Expert consulted: 
As soon as a crisp chill hits the air, I pull out my coziest sweaters from the attic and get ready to eat all the comfort foods. That means bringing out the slow cooker, digging into cheesy pasta bakes, and dusting off the casserole dishes.
Bubbling straight from the oven, casseroles offer up peak comfort and a dose of nostalgia. So many of my childhood memories center on one casserole or another: tuna noodle, chicken divan, you name it.
But lately, I’ve been trying to cut back on ultra-processed foods, and most of my mom’s recipes start with a can of condensed soup. As a food editor, I’ve been on a quest to recreate those classics from scratch—without sacrificing my sanity. The biggest hurdle? Preventing casseroles from turning out watery. I asked Tina Martinez, recipe developer and food producer in the Good Housekeeping Test Kitchen, to weigh in.
The solution is surprisingly simple—and it’s probably already sitting in your pantry: flour.
Why do so many casseroles call for canned condensed soup?
First, let’s take a moment to appreciate the brilliant invention that is condensed soup. Before the process of condensing soup came to be, selling and shipping soup was expensive and logistically challenging. Then, in 1897, Dr. John T. Dorrance—who would later become president of Campbell’s, a.k.a. the condensed soup company—developed a process for removing water, the heaviest ingredient, from soup.
The result was a smaller, more affordable package. At home, people simply added milk, water, or another liquid to reconstitute it.
But it turns out condensed soup also has culinary benefits when used straight from the can. Campbell’s even had a test kitchen devoted to creating and sharing recipes made with its condensed soups—many of which continue to circulate today (hello, iconic green bean casserole!).
Because condensed soup is so concentrated, it provides an easy way to add flavor and body to dishes without excess liquid. That makes it especially useful in casseroles, where too much moisture can quickly turn a bubbling bake into a watery mess.
How to make a casserole without condensed soup
If you’re like me and trying to make a casserole without this shortcut ingredient, you’ll need to account for both flavor and moisture. The flavor component is easy enough to address with a little extra salt, along with herbs, spices, or other seasonings.
The moisture factor is trickier. If you simply leave out the condensed soup without adjusting the rest of the recipe, you could end up with a casserole that’s thin, watered-down, and/or bland.
“You can easily make your own creamy base [replacement] with a roux. A roux is the key to a thicker, creamier casserole sauce,” says Martinez. “Cook equal parts butter and flour together until smooth, then gradually whisk in the liquid (broth, milk, or cream). The flour thickens the sauce as it simmers, helping to prevent a watery casserole.”
Add the flour to the butter or cooking fat before whisking in any liquid, she explains. “That way it has a chance to cook and thicken the sauce evenly. If you forget, you can make a beurre manié—a paste of softened butter and flour—and whisk it into the simmering sauce at the end. Let it cook for a few minutes so the flour fully thickens the sauce and loses its raw taste.”
How to avoid watery casseroles
Even the most successful roux can’t fully compensate for a casserole loaded with moisture. To avoid a soupy result, pay attention to the other ingredients going into your dish.
The most obvious place to start is the liquid. Measure carefully, and resist the urge to use up the last bit of chicken broth from the carton.
Next, be strategic with your vegetables.
One time, I was making slow-cooker salsa chicken and decided it’d be fun to add a heap of thinly sliced onions and bell peppers only to end up with a watery mess. Why? Certain vegetables release a lot of water as they cook. Without an opportunity for moisture to evaporate, as it would when roasting or sautéing, that liquid winds up in the finished dish.
That’s why many recipes often call for salting or squeezing excess moisture from certain vegetables, like grated zucchini, before adding to batters and casseroles. You may also want to cook high-water vegetables first, drain them well, and use a towel to remove as much moisture as possible.
A smart bet is to stick with vegetables that won’t leach moisture the way others do—broccoli, for instance. Otherwise, if you’re using onions, peppers, mushrooms, spinach, or zucchini, take a moment to prep them properly before incorporating them into your casserole.
See? A little flour from your pantry is all you need to make a creamy casserole base from scratch. You can get that same rich texture—sans can!
Tina Martinez (she/her) is the food producer for the Hearst Lifestyle Group. Her work for Good Housekeeping includes recipe development and testing as well as food styling. She also brings the Kitchen & Cooking Lab’s expertise to GH’s popular “I Tried It” series, where she tests viral recipes and food trends. She has worked in the food industry since 2007, with experience as a restaurant line cook, culinary educator, and food stylist for editorial, digital, and television platforms. Tina now lives in Westchester with her husband after leaving Brooklyn for a little more suburban greenery. When she’s not cooking, she enjoys discovering local breweries, hiking in national parks, and digging for treasures at thrift stores. Instagram: @tina.d.martinez TikTok: @tinadmartinez
