This Mexican casserole is made with ground beef, tortillas, vegetables and cheese, all layered together and baked to golden brown perfection. A quick and easy dinner for busy weeknights!
My family adores all Mexican inspired food, including Chipotle chicken, vegetarian fajitas, and this hearty Mexican casserole.
You can never go wrong with a casserole, especially when it’s loaded with plenty of meat, tortillas and cheese! This Mexican casserole is a huge hit with both kids and adults, and is great for feeding a crowd.
Mexican Casserole Ingredients
This casserole consists of easy to locate ingredients including ground beef, tortillas, taco seasoning, vegetables, cheese and enchilada sauce.
How do you make Mexican casserole?
Start by cooking the ground beef in a pan. Add the onions, then stir in taco seasoning. Next, add tomatoes and corn to the beef mixture. Layer tortillas, the beef mixture, shredded cheese and enchilada sauce into a baking dish. Repeat the layers, then sprinkle extra cheese over the final layer. Bake until the casserole is bubbly and the cheese is melted. Add any toppings of your choice, then serve.
Tips for the perfect dish
- To make this casserole in advance, assemble all the layers, then cover the casserole dish with foil and refrigerate for up to one day. When it’s time to eat, follow the baking instructions in the recipe, but add 15 minutes more to the bake time to compensate for starting with a cold casserole.
- You can serve your casserole as-is, or add some toppings such as cilantro, lettuce, sour cream, avocado or sliced olives. For an extra special touch, whip up a homemade topping such as Chipotle guacamole, salsa fresca, or corn salsa.
- Need a side dish to serve with your casserole? Try my easy cilantro lime rice.
- I recommend using 90% lean ground beef. It has plenty of flavor without a lot of grease. If you use beef with a higher fat content, you may need to drain off any excess grease after it’s cooked.
- This recipe works best with freshly grated cheese. The bags of shredded cheese at the grocery store are often coated with preservatives and anti caking agents and do not melt well.
Recipe FAQs
Most Mexican casseroles contain meat, chips or tortillas, and cheese. They also often contain a sauce, such as salsa or enchilada sauce. A Mexican casserole is often topped with melted cheese, and fresh garnishes such as pico de gallo or avocado.
A Mexican casserole should bake for about 35-40 minutes. I start by baking the casserole covered, then uncover it during the last few minutes. This allows for all the flavors to meld together yet keeps the top of the casserole from burning.
Flavor variations
Sometimes I make this casserole with different ingredients, depending on what I have on hand. You can easily customize this recipe to your family’s tastes!
- Protein: Swap out the ground beef for ground turkey, or use cooked shredded chicken instead. You can also turn this into a vegetarian dish by using a can of black beans and a can of pinto beans.
- Tortillas: While I typically make this recipe with corn tortillas, flour tortillas will also work just fine.
- Cheese: No cheddar on hand? Try using Monterey Jack, colby or pepper jack instead.
- Vegetables: Feel free to add other veggies to the filling such as cooked zucchini, roasted green chilies, mushrooms or bell peppers.
- Flavorings: Stir in some favorites such as olives, or add hot sauce for a spicy kick. You can also use green enchilada sauce instead of red.
Once you see how easy and delicious this Mexican casserole is, you’ll find yourself making it on a regular basis!
More casserole recipes you’ll love
- Hashbrown Casserole
- Chicken and Rice Casserole
- Chile Relleno Casserole
- Mexican Casserole
- Beef Noodle Casserole
Mexican Casserole
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1/2 cup onion finely diced
- 1 packet taco seasoning
- 15 ounce can diced tomatoes drained
- 3/4 cup frozen corn kernels thawed
- 2 cups red enchilada sauce
- 8 6-inch tortillas halved
- 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
- cooking spray
- salsa, sour cream, cilantro, avocado optional, for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a 2 or 3 quart casserole dish with cooking spray.
- Heat the oil in a pan over medium heat. Add the ground beef and crumble with a spoon. Cook until browned, 6-7 minutes.
- Add the onion and cook for an additional 4-5 minutes or until softened.
- Stir in the taco seasoning and 2 tablespoons of water.
- Add the tomatoes and corn and stir to combine.
- Spread 1/4 cup of enchilada 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 beef mixture, 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 beef, 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 if desired and serve.
Notes
- To make this casserole in advance, assemble all the layers, then cover the casserole dish with foil and refrigerate for up to one day. When it’s time to eat, follow the baking instructions in the recipe, but add an extra 15 minutes to the bake time to compensate for starting with a cold casserole.
- I recommend using 90% lean ground beef. It has plenty of flavor without a lot of grease. If you use beef with a higher fat content, you may need to drain off any excess grease after it’s cooked.
- This recipe works best with freshly grated cheese. The bags of shredded cheese at the grocery store are often coated with preservatives and anti caking agents and do not melt well.
So delicious and a great way to sneak in the veggies. I used some leftover zucchini from the fridge. My husband loved it and asked that it be put into the recipe rotation.
Does this casserole freeze well?
Yes, it should be fine to freeze!