Savory bread pudding might sound a bit off, but it’s really just an excuse to eat carbs on carbs on carbs for dinner. This BBQ Chicken Pizza Bread Pudding is basically like a strata (but bread pudding just sounds better let’s be honest), a strata that tastes like a bbq chicken pizza. It’s got chicken, cheese, bbq sauce, scallions, cilantro and of course, bread. All the toppings I love on my bbq pizza. It’s great for a quick-fix dinner or can be the highlight of a weekend brunch. Serve this and everyone will love it!
Set a large skillet over medium-high heat with the butter. Once melted, add the red onion and cook until softened and just beginning to brown, about 8 to 10 minutes. Season with a large pinch of salt, pepper and crushed red pepper flakes.
**Note: You want to make sure to keep stirring the onions so that they don’t burn or stick to the bottom of the skillet.**
Add the chicken and 1/2 cup of the barbecue sauce, cooking until warmed through, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly.
**Tip: This is a great use for leftover chicken from the night before or you can always just pick up some rotisserie chicken from the grocery store and shred that yourself. It should be easy!**
In a medium bowl, whisk together the half and half, eggs, and the remaining 4 tablespoons butter (that have been melted) and a large pinch of salt and pepper.
In a large bowl, stir together the bread cubes, half and half mixture, the onion and chicken mixture, and 3/4 of the cheese until evenly combined.
**Note: As with most bread puddings you want to use dry stale bread as it’ll soak up the liquid better. If you plan ahead you can buy bread at the beginning of the week and then make this later in the week. I used a sourdough bread here but lots of different bread will work!**
Transfer to the prepared baking dish and spread out evenly. Top with the remaining cheese and bake until golden brown and bubbly, about 35 minutes.
Remove from the oven and drizzle with the remaining 1/4 cup barbecue sauce. Top with scallions and cilantro right before serving.
It’s delicious on it’s own but would be great with a simple salad on the side. Perfect for brunch, lunch or dinner. So basically I’m saying you can eat it any time of day you want!
This is meant to be a super easy recipe that you can whip up without much time or effort. Take lots of help from the grocery store with the cooked chicken and store-bought bbq sauce. This isn’t the time to be super fancy trust me.
Give this savory bread pudding a try when you’re craving a bbq pizza but don’t want to deal with making dough, rolling it out or ordering in. You can’t go wrong with it. Let me know what you think below. As always, thank you so much for reading and following along.
BBQ Chicken Pizza Bread Pudding
Equipment
- skillet
- Baking dish
- Cheese Grater
- Bowl
- whisk
- wooden spoon
Ingredients
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter divided
- 1 large red onion thinly sliced
- kosher salt and coarse black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 2 cups shredded cooked chicken
- 3/4 cup barbecue sauce divided
- 1 1/2 cups half and half
- 2 large eggs
- 4 cups stale bread cubes
- 3/4 cup shredded Mozzarella cheese
- 3/4 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
- 2 scallions thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro chopped
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease a 9-inch baking dish with butter or cooking spray and set aside.
- Set a large skillet over medium-high heat with the butter. Once melted, add the red onion and cook until softened and just beginning to brown, about 8 to 10 minutes. Season with a large pinch of salt, pepper and crushed red pepper flakes. Add the chicken and 1/2 cup of the barbecue sauce, cooking until warmed through, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the half and half, eggs, and the remaining 4 tablespoons butter (that have been melted) and a large pinch of salt and pepper.
- In a large bowl, stir together the bread cubes, half and half mixture, the onion and chicken mixture, and 3/4 of the cheese until evenly combined. Transfer to the prepared baking dish and spread out evenly. Top with the remaining cheese and bake until golden brown and bubbly, about 35 minutes. Remove from the oven and drizzle with the remaining 1/4 cup barbecue sauce. Top with scallions and cilantro before serving. Enjoy!
Another great recipe and the perfect idea with fall knocking on our doorstep!
I took inspiration from this recipe and have been making “Pizza Bread Pudding” with pizza sauce and traditional pizza toppings. So, while not the same (thus not rating the recipe) it has brought many tasty meals and happy tummies.