Italian Chicken Sausage Quinoa Casserole
Published 4/16/2020 • Updated 8/23/2022
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Note: This recipe was formerly called: Sun-Dried Tomato, Kale, and Chicken Sausage Quinoa Bake.
There really is nothing better than throwing everything into a casserole dish raw and baking it to perfection in under 60 minutes!
This Chicken Sausage Quinoa bake packs in the Italian flavors while also packing in veggies and protein. You need minimal ingredients for a maximum amount of flavor!
Key Ingredients
- Quinoa – uncooked red or white quinoa will work just fine!
- Broth/Water – any kind of broth or water is perfect for this.
- Chicken Sausage – we used pre-cooked chicken sausage. Choose your favorite flavor!
- Onion – Adds the perfect amount of flavor.
- Kale – Spinach would also work!
- Sun-Dred Tomatoes – make sure to use the kind that is jarred in olive oil for maximum flavor.
Can you use uncooked sausage?
The short answer here is YES. If you are using uncooked sausage, we suggest that you still slice it into chunks so that it cooks easier. We also recommend you increase the cook-time to a full 60 minutes to ensure your sausage is fully cooked.Can you use precooked quinoa?
We don’t recommend using precooked quinoa as the quinoa to liquid ratio would change!How to make this vegetarian/vegan?
To make this dish vegan/vegetarian, simply remove the chicken sausage and replace it for a different protein such as tofu or garbanzo beans.
Baking Instructions
Once you have everything in your casserole dish, make sure that the veggies and quinoa are pressed into the liquid. Place a piece of tin foil over the casserole dish and bake at 375ºF for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake for another 20 minutes or until the quinoa is fully cooked. Serve with fresh basil and parmesan cheese.Storage
Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. You can get strategic and separate out the 6 servings into meal prep containers for an easy grab-and-go lunch!
More Quinoa Casserole Recipes
- Mexican Sweet Potato Quinoa Casserole
- Quinoa Broccoli and Cheese Casserole
- Healthy Cashew Chicken Quinoa Bake
- Chicken Parmesan Quinoa Casserole
- ALL Quinoa Casseroles
Italian Chicken Sausage Quinoa Casserole
This healthy, superfood-packed dinner only requires 1 dish and 60 minutes of your time. No need to pre-cook the quinoa or sauté any veggies!
Ingredients
- 1 cup uncooked quinoa
- 2 cups chicken broth, or any kind of broth
- 2 cups chopped kale, packed
- 1/2 cup julienne-cut sun-dried tomatoes, we used the kind in olive oil
- 1/4 large red onion, finely diced
- 1 tablespoon olive oil, I used the olive oil from the sun-dried tomato jar
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon ground pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 5 fully-cooked chicken sausages, sliced (use your favorite!)
Optional
- fresh basil
- parmesan cheese
Instructions
- First, preheat oven to 375ºF. Then, spray a large casserole dish with nonstick cooking spray.
- Place quinoa and chicken broth on the bottom of your casserole dish.
- Then, prep kale by de-stalking and chopping into bite-sized pieces. Pack kale into your 1 cup measuring cup by pressing it down. Add 2 cups into the casserole dish.
- Use a fork to remove 1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes from the jar and add to the casserole dish.
- Finely dice 1/4 large red onion and add that to the dish as well.
- Season with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Then drizzle on about 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Pro tip: you can use olive oil straight from the sun-dried tomato jar!
- Mix together everything in the casserole dish so that that’s it’s evenly spread out. Use your hands to press the veggies down to submerge it into the broth.
- Finally, slice 5 fully-cooked chicken sausages into bite-sized pieces and spread evenly on top of casserole.
- Cover casserole dish with a piece of tin foil and bake at 375ºF for 30 minutes. Remove tin foil after 30 minutes and continue baking for another 20 minutes or until quinoa is fully cooked.
- Let cool for 5-10 minutes and serve with fresh basil and parmesan cheese.
Tips & Notes
- This recipe was slightly updated on 3/31/2020. The only thing that changed was the baking instructions!
Nutrition
Calories: 318 kcal, Carbohydrates: 31 g, Protein: 22 g, Fat: 11 g, Fiber: 3 g, Sugar: 3 g
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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What size pan did you use? I have a 5.5 x ~8. Would that change the cooking directions?
Would this be gluten free?
Yes! Just make sure you’re using a gluten free chicken sausage!
So I am making this for this coming week, meal plan prep Sunday night, and had a few questions.
1. Is there a substitute for the tomatoes? If not would they be easy to pick out?
2. Can it freeze and be microwaved or is the refrigerator shelf life long enough to get me to Thursday?
Hey Angel! The sun dried tomatoes are totally a star of this recipe bc they bring so much flavor! Is it a dietary need to remove them or flavor? If flavor- yes they will be easy to pick out! This will last for around 4 days and you can just refrigerate! If you freeze, it will last a few months!
The only cheese I think would work here is feta…it compliments sun-dried tomatoes beautifully! Can’t wait to try this.
Woohoo! I hope the feta addition goes well!
Could I replace the quinoa with couscous? If so, any need to modify the cooking time?
Hey Tina! I’m not exactly sure it would turn out just because the liquid/cous cous ratio is different than quinoa. Quinoa is 2 to 1 and I believe cous cous is 1.25 to 1!
Calories per serving?
Hi Lee, I made this for dinner tonight and it turned out great. Super yummy :), thanks for the recipe. Anyways, I was wondering for future reference if I could just prep everything ahead of time and throw in in the pan the night before. Then pull it out from the fridge for a weeknight dinner? Would that affect anything?
I’m very excited to try this! What is the serving size for this? Sorry if I missed it in other comments!
It serves around 4-6!
Lee, I stumbled onto your website via Pinterest. I’ve been interested in trying quinoa for a while but hadn’t found a recipe that sparked my interest. I made this tonight for dinner – THANK YOU SO MUCH! It was delicious and I love that it’s truly a “one pot dish”. I’ll be sure to pass your site along to my friends; we love trying new healthy recipes!
YAY!!!!!! I’m so happy you loved this recipe. It’s a great gateway recipe to loving quinoa because you really can flavor it with anything!
This looks cheesy and delicious! I love using my cast iron skillet for baking casseroles and pasta dishes. Such a fun idea!