Company Chicken with Dried Beef

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ByMarty Walden Published on05/12/202610/15/2026 Last Updated10/15/2026

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If you grew up with casseroles straight from a Pyrex dish, this one’s about to feel like a trip back in time. Chicken and Chipped Beef — also known as Company Chicken — layers salty dried beef, bacon-wrapped chicken, and a rich sour cream sauce into one simple, hands-off bake. It’s the kind of recipe that’s been passed down through families for decades: no fuss, just five ingredients, and a dish that disappears fast whether it’s Sunday lunch or a potluck table.

This old-fashioned Chicken and Chipped Beef recipe (aka Company Chicken) bakes bacon-wrapped chicken in a creamy sour cream sauce — an easy, comforting family dinner.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Easy prep with just a handful of ingredients
Great make-ahead meal for busy weeknights
Perfect comfort food for chilly evenings
Family-friendly and filling

Ingredient Swaps Readers Swear By

Make it your own: This recipe has been passed around families for generations, and readers have shared plenty of tried-and-true tweaks over the years — swap cream of mushroom for cream of chicken soup, skip the bacon if you find it turns out slimy, or slice the dried beef into the sauce instead of lining the dish with it. There’s no one “right” way to make it — just the way your family likes it best.

What to Expect with This Recipe

Prep time: About 10 minutes — just layer and pour
Cook time: 1 hour at 350°F (or low and slow at 250–275°F for 3 hours if you prefer)
Texture: Creamy, rich sauce with tender chicken — almost like a gravy
Best served: Over rice, egg noodles, or mashed potatoes to soak up the sauce
Make-ahead friendly: Assemble the day before and refrigerate until ready to bake

One of our favorite family recipes is Chicken in Sour Cream Sauce or we call it Chicken and Chipped Beef. Or…..it can also be called Company Chicken!

If you grew up eating casseroles straight from a Pyrex dish, this recipe will probably feel like a little trip back in time.

Chicken and Chipped Beef is one of those old-school comfort meals that doesn’t try to be fancy—it just shows up and does its job well. Creamy sauce, salty dried beef, crispy bacon, and tender chicken all bake together into a rich, hearty dinner that practically begs to be served over rice, mashed potatoes, or buttered noodles.

This is the kind of recipe busy families have passed around for decades because it’s simple, filling, and made from ingredients you can usually keep on hand.

Growing up, this was my absolute favorite dish to have on Sundays. My mom would prepare everything in advance the day before and set the timer before we left for church services. The aroma as we walked into our house was divine!

Whatever it’s called, it’s perfect for the church potluck or for serving friends and family at everyday meals. It may not be the prettiest dish but it sure tastes great! Serve it with my easy Slow Cooker Cheesy Potato Casserole and your family will be in heaven!

Ingredients for Company Chicken with Dried Beef

ingredients for chicken and chipped beef recipe. This old-fashioned Chicken and Chipped Beef recipe (aka Company Chicken) bakes bacon-wrapped chicken in a creamy sour cream sauce — an easy, comforting family dinner.

8 boneless chicken breasts
1 jar dried beef
8 strips of bacon
16 oz. sour cream
2 cans cream of chicken soup

Instructions for Dried Beef Chicken Casserole

Lightly grease 9×13 glass casserole dish and line with dried beef.

Wrap bacon around boneless skinless chicken breasts and place chicken on dried beef.

Use a wire whisk and mix sour cream and chicken soup together.

Spread sour cream mixture on top of chicken and chipped beef vintage company chicken recipe

Pour over chicken.

Dried beef chicken casserole with chipped beef and chicken

Cover with tinfoil and bake for 1 hour at 350 degrees or until tender.

Tinfoil wrapped around 9x13 dish vintage Company Chicken with Dried Beef

Serving Suggestions

This dish is especially delicious served with:

fluffy white rice
egg noodles
mashed potatoes
roasted green beans or a crisp side salad

Because the casserole is rich and creamy, pairing it with something fresh or green helps round out the meal.

Storage & Leftovers

This dish reheats beautifully, making it a great one for meal prep or feeding a crowd across a few days.

Refrigerator: Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3–4 days.
Reheating: Warm gently in the oven at 300°F, covered with foil, until heated through — the microwave works too, but the sauce holds its texture better with slower reheating.
Freezing: This dish freezes well before or after baking. To freeze unbaked, assemble in a freezer-safe dish, cover tightly, and freeze up to 2 months — thaw overnight in the fridge before baking as directed. To freeze leftovers, portion into airtight containers and freeze up to 2 months; thaw overnight before reheating.
Tip: If the sauce looks a little thick after reheating, stir in a splash of milk or water to loosen it back to that creamy, gravy-like consistency.

FAQs about Company Chicken

What is company chicken?

To some it’s a casserole topped with bread crumbs. Trisha Yearwood’s Company Chicken contains white wine, dry Italian dressing mix, cream cheese and mushrooms for starters. To others it’s fancy with prosciutto and capers.

For me this company chicken recipe has to include dried beef and bacon! Is it the perfect healthy recipe? Not really but it was always perfect for my family! Good old fashioned comfort food at its best!

Is there a substitute for the dried beef?

Since a jar of dried beef is so expensive I use the smallest package of sliced sandwich meat (such as Buddig) in a ham or beef flavor to save money.

Can you use a different type of soup?

My mom used to love cream of celery soup but you can use cream of mushroom soup or your favorite condensed soup.

Do you have to use boneless chicken?

If you’d prefer you can use other chicken pieces in place of boneless. It just requires a bit more work if there’s bone.

Can I leave out the bacon?

Yes — several readers find the bacon turns out a little slimy after baking and prefer to skip it, or crisp it partway in a pan before wrapping the chicken. The dish still has plenty of flavor from the dried beef and sauce alone.

Why did my sauce look curdled?

Sour cream can separate slightly at high oven temperatures, especially over a longer bake — it doesn’t affect the taste, but whisking the sauce well before pouring and avoiding a too-hot oven can help keep it smoother.

Can I assemble this the night before?

Yes — you can layer everything in the dish, cover, and refrigerate up to 24 hours before baking, which makes it an easy make-ahead option for busy days or potlucks.

Can I cook this low and slow instead of 1 hour at 350°F?

Yes — many readers bake it at 250–275°F for 3 hours for an even more tender result; just keep an eye on the sauce and add a splash of water or milk if it starts to look too thick.

Variations

Can also be cooked in a crock pot at 3 hours on high or 5 hours on low. The sauce thins as it cooks but you can also add water to create a thinner sauce if desired.
I love the “gravy” the sauce makes because it’s perfect over rice or potatoes. If it’s your first time baking in the oven check about halfway through to make sure there is enough of that good sauce. You can also use milk or a little water to thin the sauce a bit if necessary
Almond slivers or bread crumbs would be a yummy addition for the top of the casserole.
If you want to add a vegetable to the mix broccoli or fresh mushrooms would be perfect.
If you’re a cheese lover like me add some shredded cheese to the top and see how you like it!
Paprika sprinkled on top for color/flavor is a fun option!

Testimonials

“Omg my mom made this every other sunday. My adult kids still ask me to make this. We love it over rice. Yummy.” Sue (a reader)

“I have been making this for years. It’s delicious over rice or toast.” Barbara (a reader)

“This was my favorite company recipe growing up — I remember it being assembled the day before and baked low and slow the next day.” Anne

One longtime reader shared that “this recipe has been a family favorite for decades, going all the way back to a home economics class, with cream of mushroom soup swapped in for cream of chicken.” Cheryl

“My adult kids still ask me to make this. We love it over rice.”
— Sue

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