Name: Chicken Enchilada Casserole
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 50 min
Yield: 8
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1 tablespoon olive oil; 1 small yellow onion diced; 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt; 1 1/2 teaspoons cumin; 2 teaspoons chili powder; 1 tablespoon all purpose flour; 15 ounces tomato sauce; 1 cup chicken stock; 2 cloves garlic, minced; 3 cups cooked shredded chicken; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 4.5 ounces diced green chiles; 15 ounces black beans, drained and rinsed; 1 cup frozen corn kernels, thawed; 12 corn tortillas (6 inches); 3 cups shredded Mexican cheese blend

This Cheesy Chicken Enchilada Casserole is served up in layers of enchilada filling, corn tortillas, and cheese making a great family friendly dinner!

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A spatula with a large piece of chicken enchilada casserole on it over a baking dish showing off chicken, black beans, and corn.

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Easy Enchilada Casserole

It never occurred to me until recently that there is a whole group of people making their chicken enchiladas in a layer casserole instead of the traditional way that enchiladas are rolled up and put into the dish. These people are clearly smart and I am glad to join the team with this Layered Chicken Enchilada Casserole.

This recipe is very much like a traditional chicken enchilada dish but opposed to taking the time to roll up each enchilada the dish is easily assembled into layers before putting it onto the oven, basically like a Mexican Lasagna!

The best part about this chicken enchilada dish in particular is that it is freezer friendly and can be made into a freezer meal!

As I have been testing this recipe I have been making 2 every time, cooking one for dinner and freezing one for a later meal. This freezes nice in an aluminum pan and reheats for a great meal.

If you get creative you could also use my green sauce from my Green Chicken Enchiladas to turn this Easy Enchilada Casserole in to a Green Chicken Enchilada Casserole. Or forget the oven and make Chicken Slow Cooker Enchiladas instead. You could also go vegetarian and make Sweet Potato Black Bean No Roll Enchiladas. The possibilities are endless.

Overhead view of a white casserole pan filled with layered chicken enchilada casserole topped with sour cream and cilantro.

ingredients

I have kept the ingredients in two separate lists, for the casserole itself and the the enchilada sauce. While I love this homemade enchilada sauce feel free to use store-bought enchilada sauce instead.

For the Casserole

Shredded Chicken – This works great with a rotisserie chicken or any leftover chicken you have. If you are looking to buy chicken specifically for cooking and shredding for this recipe you will want about 2 pounds of chicken breasts (or about 3 chicken breasts). My favorite way to cook chicken for shredding? Add to a pressure cooker, add 1 cup of water and sprinkle with salt. Pressure cook for 8 minutes with a quick release. Shred the cooked chicken and you are ready to go!
Salt – I like to use kosher salt when cooking for the best result.
Diced Green Chiles – When shopping for diced green chilies at the store note that there is a ‘mild’ and ‘not mild’ version and that some people and most kids might find the ‘not mild’ too spicy (speaking from past experience). Opt for a ‘mild’ to make this family friendly for everyone.
Black Beans – Black bean will be drained and rinsed before adding to the filling for the enchiladas.
Frozen Corn Kernels – Thawed, you can do this quickly be running cool water over the corn kernels in a colander.
Corn Tortillas – Classic corn tortillas are about 6 inches in size so and you will use six of them for each layer, they will overlap a little and that’s okay!
Mexican Cheese Blend – The cheeses usually found in a Mexican Cheese Blend are Monterey Jack, Cheddar, Asadero, and Queso Quesadilla cheeses. These cheese are usually great for melting, which is exactly what we are looking for when we are making a cheesy chicken enchilada casserole!

For the Homemade Enchilada Sauce

Olive Oil – It begins with some extra virgin olive oil to sauté the onions.
Yellow Onion – A yellow onion works best but you can use a sweet onion as a substitute. Diced small works best especially if you aren’t planning of blending the sauce.
Salt, Cumin, & Chili Powder – For flavoring the enchilada sauce.
All Purpose Flour – To help thicken the sauce just slightly, this can be substituted for a gluten-free flour if necessary just ensure that the flour you choose will thicken the sauce slightly.
Tomato Sauce – Tomato sauce is at the heart of enchilada sauce.
Chicken Stock – Chicken stock for flavor and consistency, since you only need one cup it is great to use better than bouillon in this recipe.
Garlic – And of course some garlic for flavoring the sauce!

For a complete detailed list of the ingredients continue towards the bottom of the page.

pro tip

To blend or not to blend? If you are making the homemade enchilada sauce you have the option to blend it smooth. This is really to blend in the diced onions and garlic. I almost always opt for not blending, it is one less step and no one in my family minds the pieces of onions. So this is entirely up to you and what your family prefers.

instructions

Preheat your oven to 350º F.

To make the enchilada sauce: In a large skillet heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium heat. Add the diced onion, sauté until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes.

Stir chili powder, cumin, salt, and garlic into the onion and cook for about thirty seconds. Then stir in 1 tablespoon of the all-purpose flour. Slowly whisk in chicken stock. Then stir in the tomato sauce. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes.

Optional: For a smoother sauce you can transfer the enchilada sauce to a blender and blend to make smooth or use an immersion blender.

To make the Enchilada Filling: In a large bowl mix together the shredded chicken, salt, diced green chiles, corn, black beans, and 1/2 cup of the enchilada sauce.

Collage showing the first steps to making chicken enchilada casserole filling.

Collage showing the second steps to making chicken enchilada casserole filling.

To make the Enchilada Casserole: Pour 1/2 cup of the enchilada sauce into the bottom a 9×13 baking dish and spread out.

Dip 6 tortillas in the remaining sauce to coat them and line the bottom of the casserole dish with them.

Divide the chicken mixture in half, and add half of it to the top the tortillas in the pan. Top with 1 cup of cheese.

Dip the remaining 6 tortillas in the enchilada sauce and line them on top of the chicken mixture in the baking dish.

Add the remaining chicken mixture to the baking dish and pour any remaining sauce over the casserole and top with the remaining 2 cups of cheese.

Bake uncovered for 25 minutes or until the cheese is bubbly.

tips, tricks and questions

To use store bought enchilada sauce you will want about 2 cups. If you are using store bought sauce after preheating the oven in step 1 you can skip down to step 5.

Are enchiladas better with flour or corn tortillas? And can I use flour tortillas instead?

Traditionally speaking enchiladas are made with corn tortillas, and I prefer the taste of the corn tortilla over the taste of flour tortillas in this dish.

I did do a round of tests with flour tortillas and it does work, if you prefer to use the flour tortillas. The one thing I will point out is that the flour tortillas tend to make the dish slightly more soggy.

At the end of the day if you want to use flour tortillas you totally can.

Freezer Meal

For a Freezer Meal Chicken Enchilada Casserole very little has to be changed, actually nothing except what you want to make the actual casserole in. Instead of a ceramic or glass 9×13 dish opt for and aluminum baking dish instead. After preparing the casserole in the freezer friendly aluminum dish you will wrap with a few layer of plastic wrap followed by a layer of aluminum foil. Remember to label the dish well before transferring to the freezer. To cook from frozen preheat the oven to 425° F. Remove the aluminum foil carefully (you will place it back on) and then remove all of the plastic wrap. Recover the top of the baking dish with aluminum foil. Cook in the oven for 45 minutes covered with foil. Remove the foil and cook for 30 minutes uncovered.

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Yield: serves 8

Chicken Enchilada Casserole

This layered chicken enchilada casserole is a great family friendly dinner! With layers of enchilada filling, corn tortillas, and cheese this is a delicous meal to make when you are craving some Mexican.

Prep Time 25 minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes

Total Time 50 minutes