Why You’ll Love This these Creamy Cheesy Chicken Roll-Ups
These roll-ups are basically the ultimate comfort food mashup, combining buttery crescent rolls with tender chicken and melty cheese in one glorious, mess-free package.
The creamy soup mixture creates this rich, velvety sauce that soaks into the dough just enough to make each bite absolutely divine, without turning everything into a soggy disaster.
Plus, they’re ridiculously easy to customize with whatever cheese you have lurking in your fridge, and they reheat like champions for those inevitable leftover moments.
Ingredients List
Getting these roll-ups on the table requires just a handful of simple ingredients that you probably already have hanging around your kitchen.
- 2 (8 ounce) cans crescent rolls (any brand will do)
- 2 lbs cooked chicken
- Sharp cheddar cheese (shredded)
- 1 (8 ounce) can cream of chicken soup
- 1 (8 ounce) can cream of mushroom soup
- 1 cup milk
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
A few things to keep in mind about these ingredients:
- This recipe isn’t exactly what you’d call health food, but hey, comfort food exists for a reason
- You can lighten things up by using reduced-fat cheese and low-sodium soups if that’s your thing
- The canned soups do pack quite a bit of sodium, so taste before adding extra salt
- Consider rotisserie chicken for convenience, or leftover grilled chicken if you’re feeling fancy
- Whole wheat crescent rolls exist if you want to sneak in a tiny bit more fiber, though honestly, we’re not fooling anyone here
Step by Step Directions
Making these creamy chicken roll-ups is straightforward and requires minimal prep time once you have your cooked chicken ready.
- Preheat your oven to 325°F and prepare a glass casserole dish.
- Prepare the chicken filling by cubing and sautéing chicken in butter with onion powder, garlic salt, and black pepper, then shred with a metal spatula (or use any cooked chicken method you prefer).
- Assemble the roll-ups by laying out one crescent triangle at a time, placing shredded chicken at the widest bottom part, adding shredded sharp cheddar cheese, then rolling up into crescents.
- Arrange rolls in the casserole dish side by side and bake until tops are golden brown.
- Make the cream sauce by mixing cream of chicken soup, cream of mushroom soup, milk, salt, and pepper in a bowl, adding milk gradually until the consistency is slightly thin but not runny.
- Top the rolls with the cream mixture and continue baking for a few more minutes to confirm the dough is completely cooked through.
- Let cool for 5 minutes before serving, as the inside will be very hot from the chicken and cheese.
For an elevated homemade experience, consider investing in a professional pasta maker to create fresh pasta that pairs beautifully with these rich, cheesy roll-ups.
Substitutions and Variations
• Make them mini – cut your crescent triangles in half for bite-sized appetizers, though you’ll need to adjust your baking time since tiny things cook faster than their full-sized cousins.
Additional Things to Serve With This Dish
These roll-ups are basically a complete meal wrapped in buttery pastry, but sometimes you want a little something extra on the side.
- Simple green salad – nothing fancy, just lettuce, tomatoes, and whatever dressing makes you happy, because sometimes you need something fresh to cut through all that creamy goodness.
- Roasted vegetables – toss some broccoli, carrots, or green beans with olive oil and salt, then roast them while your roll-ups bake, which is what I call efficient multitasking.
- Garlic bread – yes, this is carbs on carbs, but who’s counting when comfort food is involved?
- Steamed rice or mashed potatoes – if you’re feeding teenagers or anyone who treats dinner like a competitive eating event.
- Cranberry sauce – sounds weird but trust me, that little bit of tartness plays beautifully against the rich, cheesy filling.
- Caesar salad – the crisp romaine and tangy dressing make a perfect contrast, plus it makes the whole meal feel a bit more grown-up.
Cooking Tips & Tricks (Chef’s Notes)
After making these countless times, I’ve picked up a few tricks that’ll save you from the little disasters that can turn dinner prep into a comedy show.
- Don’t overfill the crescents – I know it’s tempting to stuff them like tiny chicken burritos, but too much filling makes them impossible to seal and they’ll explode open in the oven, creating what I like to call “chicken casserole with pastry chunks.”
- Pat your chicken dry – wet chicken makes soggy bottoms, and nobody wants soggy bottoms on their dinner rolls.
- Seal those edges properly – pinch them shut like you’re making a promise, because if you don’t, all that melted cheese will escape and burn on your pan.
- Let the sauce cool slightly – pouring hot sauce over raw dough can start cooking the pastry unevenly, which sounds scientific but really just means some parts get gummy.
- Line your baking dish – trust me on this one, because scraping baked-on cheese and sauce from glass dishes isn’t how anyone wants to spend their evening.
- Check the bottoms halfway through – lift one up with a spatula to make sure they’re browning underneath, because golden tops don’t always mean the bottoms are done.
- Rest them before serving – those little packets of molten cheese and chicken are basically edible lava bombs, and nobody needs a burned tongue to go with dinner.
Nutritional Facts
Based on the complete recipe serving 6-8 people, here’s the nutritional breakdown per serving:
- Calories: 485-520 per serving (depending on portion size and cheese amount)
- Protein: 28-32 grams from the chicken and cheese, making this a protein-packed meal
- Carbohydrates: 22-26 grams primarily from the crescent roll dough
- Fat: 32-38 grams from cheese, cream soups, and buttery crescent rolls
- Sodium: 980-1,200mg (fairly high due to canned soups and cheese)
- Calcium: 15-20% daily value from the cheddar cheese and milk
- Iron: 8-12% daily value mainly from the chicken
- Saturated Fat: 12-16 grams (about 60-80% of recommended daily intake)
- Cholesterol: 85-95mg from chicken, cheese, and dairy components
- Fiber: 1-2 grams (minimal, since this is primarily protein and refined carbs)
- Sugar: 3-5 grams naturally occurring from milk and minimal amounts in processed ingredients
Fun “Did You Know?”
Beyond those impressive nutritional numbers, this comfort food favorite holds some fascinating culinary secrets!
Did you know crescent rolls were actually invented by accident in 1965 when Pillsbury was developing puff pastry? I find it amazing that cream soups became popular during the Great Depression as affordable protein extenders.
Here’s something cool: the rolling technique we use mimics traditional European strudel-making methods dating back centuries.
Also, combining two different cream soups creates what chefs call “flavor layering” – it’s why our sauce tastes so complex.
Finally, baking at 325°F prevents the cheese from separating, keeping everything perfectly creamy!
