This easy recipe for chicken enchilada casserole is layers of tortillas, shredded chicken, enchilada sauce and cheese, all baked together to golden brown perfection. A quick and simple meal that the whole family will love!
I make Mexican food for dinner at least once a week, I often whip up shrimp tacos, pork carnitas or this fabulous enchilada casserole. Add your favorite toppings and watch the rave reviews come in!
Sometimes there’s just nothing better than a piping hot casserole, loaded with cheese of course! This easy chicken enchilada casserole is so simple to put together, but really delivers in the flavor department. I love Mexican food, especially enchiladas but sometimes I just don’t have the time to individually roll a million enchiladas. This casserole has all of the same flavors in half the prep time.
If you are looking for delicious and filling Mexican casseroles you should also check out my tamale pie and Dorito casserole recipes. They are perfect if you want a hearty, beefy casserole!
Table of Contents
Chicken Enchilada Casserole Ingredients
To make this chicken enchilada casserole you will need corn tortillas or flour tortillas, cooked chicken, Monterey Jack cheese, pinto beans, enchilada sauce and any garnishes you want.
How Do You Make Enchilada Casserole?
There’s just 5 ingredients in this chicken enchilada casserole – chicken, tortillas, beans, cheese and enchilada sauce. Everything gets stacked together in layers in a casserole before it’s baked to golden brown perfection.
Tips For Chicken Enchilada Casserole
- This casserole can be assembled up to 4 hours before you plan to serve it.
- I recommend grating your own cheese for this recipe – it’s a little more work, but freshly grated cheese melts a lot smoother than the pre-shredded kind in a bag.
- This recipe can easily be doubled to feed a large crowd.
Quick TIp
You can use any type of cooked chicken for this dish. I typically use leftover diced chicken or shredded rotisserie chicken. You can also roast chicken for this recipe, or put some chicken breasts or chicken thighs in the slow cooker.
Recipe FAQS
This enchilada casserole is great with corn or flour tortillas. However, I slightly prefer corn tortillas because they tend to hold together well in enchilada sauce.
This recipe has Monterey Jack cheese because it melts well and has a mild flavor that pairs nicely with enchilada sauce. Cheddar, mozzarella and pepper jack cheese also work well. Feel free to mix your cheeses in any combination you like.
You should cover this enchilada casserole while it is baking for 30 minutes. Then remove the cover and bake for an additional 5-10 minutes or until all the cheese is melted and browned.
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Enchilada Casserole Variations
There are so many different ways to customize this casserole to your preferences!
- Protein: Try using ground turkey, beef or shrimp instead of the chicken.
- Beans: Refried beans and black beans work well if you don’t have pinto beans on hand.
- Tortillas: This recipe works well with both corn and flour tortillas, so choose whichever one your family prefers. You can also serve the cooked casserole with tortilla chips.
- Cheese: I typically make this dish with Monterey Jack cheese, but other great options are cheddar, mozzarella and pepper jack.
- Additions: You can add other ingredients to your casserole such as chili powder, garlic powder, salt or veggies like corn, green chiles, diced bell pepper or sauteed onions.
I love to add toppings to my casserole after it comes out of the oven – it’s an optional step but it really makes this dish special! Some great topping ideas include avocado, olives, red onion, cilantro, tomatoes, sour cream, pico de gallo, salsa verde or green chiles.
This is a great recipe to have for those busy nights when you don’t have a ton of time to get dinner on the table. It’s one of my favorite casseroles along with my chicken broccoli and rice casserole. Chicken enchilada casserole is a crowd pleaser for both kids and adults alike.
More Great Mexican Recipes
Shrimp Fajitas
25 mins
Salsa Chicken
40 mins
Barbacoa Beef (Slow Cooker)
4 hrs 10 mins
Taco Salad Recipe
30 mins
Chicken Enchilada Soup
30 mins
Chicken Enchilada Casserole Video
Love This Recipe?
Please leave a 5-star 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟rating in the recipe card below & a review in the comments section further down the page.
Chicken Enchilada Casserole
Ingredients
- 8 small tortillas cut into halves, corn or flour
- 2 cups of cooked shredded chicken breast
- 2 cups of shredded Monterey Jack cheese
- 1 15-ounce can of pinto beans rinsed and drained
- 2 cups red enchilada sauce
- cooking spray
- optional garnishes: olives, sour cream, red onions, cilantro, green onions, avocado, tomato
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Coat an 8 or 9 inch square baking pan or 2 quart baking dish with cooking spray.
- Spread 1/4 cup of sauce over the bottom of the baking dish. Layer 4 halves of tortilla over the sauce so that the bottom of the pan is covered.
- Layer 1/3 of the chicken, 1/3 of the beans, 1/2 cup of the cheese and 1/3 cup of enchilada sauce over the tortillas.
- Place a second layer of tortillas on top and layer 1/3 of the chicken, 1/3 of the beans, 1/2 cup of the cheese and 1/3 cup enchilada sauce over the tortillas.
- Repeat this process one more time for the third layer. Place the remaining tortilla halves over the top and spread the remaining enchilada sauce over the tortillas.
- Sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup cheese over the top.
- Cover with foil that’s been sprayed with cooking spray and bake for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake for an additional 5-10 minutes or until cheese is melted and browned.
- Let sit for 5 minutes to firm up, then top with garnishes and serve.
Notes
- You can use any type of cooked chicken for this dish. I typically use leftover diced chicken or shredded rotisserie chicken.
- This casserole can be assembled up to 4 hours before you plan to serve it.
- I recommend grating your own cheese for this recipe.
Currently in the oven now! I added some green olives as that is a preference of ours. I also only did two layers since there are just two of us. It looked so good making it! And seriously the easiest dinner I put together this week! Thank you!
This recipe has become one of my family’s favorite.
Great easy casserole
This recipe is a snap to make especially if you use a rotisserie chicken–I did not make any changes–no need! It was delicious and I will make often–thanks for the recipe!
Love this casserole just wondering if I can make ahead and freeze it?
Yes that should be fine!
Can this be made ahead and frozen?
Yes that’s fine!
Do I need to bake it first before freezing it?
No you can freeze unbaked!
I added a little extra chicken since I had it left from another meal, used my own canned chili beans, spiced up the enchilada sauce I had on hand. I normally make my own enchilada sauce. Used homemade flour tortillas. Very yummy and easy to make!
Has anyone doubled this recipe?
I’d love to try it but not sure the standard recipe is enough but don’t want to end up with way too much 🙈
Made this tonight with some leftover instant pot salsa chicken (literally just a jar of salsa, chicken breast and seasonings shredded in the IP). Made my own enchilada sauce cheap, simple and tastes better. I had three types of leftover tortillas and a can of black beans. Threw it all together with this recipe as the framework. Yay! So good! The very best leftover remake. Great recipe. Will definitely make again!
So good and so easy to make
This has become my husband’s favorite meal! Probably the 6th time making it and the reaction is always the same..a dancy dance!Lol! Thank you so much!
Easy and really tasty as is. I used canned chicken to save time. We will make this again.
Thank you for this delicious recipe. My husband loved it. We will be making this many times in the future. There are so many ways to tweet it. The tips included were very helpful.
Should you pre cook the tortillas?
You don’t need to pre cook them!
Have made this two times now it is so good! Do you think I could make this with ground beef as well? Thanks!
I made this last night, and it was fantastic! Thanks for the recipe!
I took some extra steps with the shredded chicken that boosted the flavor levels of both the chicken and the enchilada sauce. If you’re interested, here’s what I did:
Ingredients:
1 1/2 lbs chicken breast
1 1/2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1 tbsp oil
1/2 cup chicken broth or water
20 oz red enchilada sauce, divided
Directions:
– Mix chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, salt, and pepper in a bowl, then thoroughly coat chicken and rub in.
РSet instant pot to saut̩ on high.
– Add oil, and wait to come to temperature.
– Place chicken in single layer and brown (2-3 minutes on each side). Chicken will not be cooked through.
– Remove chicken to plate, and press CANCEL.
– Add water/broth to pot and scrape up any bits stuck to the bottom of the pot.
– Add chicken back to pot and coat with 1/2 cup enchilada sauce.
– Set instant pot to MANUAL and set for 8-10 min (I did it for 10, but the chicken was a bit more done than I prefer).
– Quick release when timer reaches zero.
РRemove chicken to plate and set instant pot to saut̩ again.
– Cook until liquid volume is reduced by half.
– While liquid is reducing, shred chicken with two forks.
– When liquid is done reducing, add shredded chicken back to pot and toss to coat.
– When well-coated, remove shredded chicken from pot yet again to plate.
– Add remaining liquid to the rest of the enchilada sauce to boost flavor.
Your recipe picks up from here.
Do you have a recipe for good red enchilada sauce? I cannot get it here.
Hi, I like your recipes very much, I am gathering a few recipes for my college age girls that cook in their dorm. Fresh chicken is not available sometimes for a quick meal. Can Canned chicken be used and canned vegetables in stead of frozen in some of the recipes. There is not much refrigerator or freezer space when sharing a kitchen. Some recipes that work well with foods that would be on hand would be great
Yes canned chicken should be ok!
Love this recipe. I’ve made it with shredded roast chicken and ground chorizo. I switched out the soft tortillas to packaged yellow corn taco shells. Love the extra crunch.
Making this dish with my daughter for lunch, can’t wait to try it. Thanks
Thank You,