With all-natural ingredients like salsa verde, green chiles, and a creamy homemade sauce, this scrumptious stacked Chicken Enchilada Casserole boasts the great flavor of chicken enchiladas without the work of rolling them!
Sometimes nothing hits the spot like creamy, cheesy enchiladas! So for Father's Day a couple weeks ago, I baked up a double recipe for my husband and my father-in-law to enjoy. But since a big batch of enchiladas would take a good bit of time to roll, I decided to go the easy route and make a stacked Chicken Enchilada Casserole instead. And since I'm guessing that some of y'all enjoy taking the easy route as well (with delicious results, mind you), I figured I better share the recipe here today! 😉
I actually adapted my ever-popular King Ranch Chicken Casserole for this recipe, borrowing the ratios but changing up the flavors to turn it into an enchilada-inspired casserole. My husband's favorite type of chicken enchiladas are the green variety, so I incorporated salsa verde into an easy, from-scratch sauce (no condensed 'Cream of X' soup here!), as well as sprinkling some green chiles on top. Oh, and I stirred in some sour cream for good measure, because what enchiladas couldn't be improved with sour cream?
After alternating layers of cooked, diced chicken, homemade sauce, corn tortillas, and cheese, I baked until bubbly and served the Chicken Enchilada Casserole with sides of Easy Spanish Rice, Slow Cooker Charro Beans, and a green salad drizzled with Creamy Jalapeño Dip (which, incidentally, makes a to-die-for salad dressing). Then we enjoyed Pecan Pie Bars (my husband's favorite) for dessert. The yums just keep on coming...
The dinner was easy to make and a huge hit with not only the guests of honor, but the entire family. In fact, I'm still dreaming about it, which means we may have to have a Father's-Day-menu-repeat soon! Hopefully, you'll be inspired to do the same... 😉
More Tex-Mex Treats
- Baked Chicken Taquitos with Avocado Cilantro Dipping Sauce
- Ultimate Taco Salad with Avocado Ranch Dressing
- Slow Cooker Beef Barbacoa
- Tex-Mex Fresh Corn Dip
Chicken Enchilada Casserole
Ingredients
- 4 cups chicken , cooked and shredded
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 3 tablespoons flour
- 1 cup milk
- 1 ½ cups chicken broth or stock, DIVIDED
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 cup salsa verde, green salsa
- 1 cup sour cream
- Salt & freshly ground pepper
- 12 corn tortillas, quartered
- 8 ounces grated Monterrey Jack cheese
- 1 can (4-ounces) diced green chiles, drained
Instructions
- Adjust rack to center position of oven. Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly spray a 9- by 13-inch baking dish with cooking spray.
- Make the white sauce by melting butter in a medium saucepan over low heat. Add the garlic to the pot and saute until fragrant and light golden brown, about 1 minute. Stir in the flour and whisk continuously for 1 minute. Slowly and gradually whisk in milk and ½ cup chicken stock. Increase heat to medium and stir continuously for several minutes until sauce is smooth and thickened. Remove pot from the heat and stir in cumin, garlic powder, and chili powder. Stir in the salsa verde and the sour cream until smooth. Add salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste.
- Evenly scatter half of the shredded chicken in the bottom of the baking dish. Dollop half of the sauce on top of the chicken and use the back of a spoon to spread it in an even layer. Arrange half of the corn tortilla quarters on top, overlapping slightly and tearing in half to fill in any gaps, if necessary. Sprinkle half of the grated cheese on top. Drizzle the entire surface with ½ cup of the remaining chicken broth, including corners and edges. Repeat layers of chicken, sauce, tortillas, cheese, and final ½ cup broth. Evenly sprinkle diced green chiles over the top of the casserole.
- Cover with foil and bake for 15 minutes. Remove foil and bake for an additional 30 minutes, until hot and bubbly.
Notes
- You may use leftover chicken or cook it fresh by poaching, baking, grilling, cooking in the slow cooker, etc. I typically cook 4 (medium-sized) frozen chicken breasts for this recipe. Alternatively, a rotisserie chicken torn into chunks yields about 4 cups.
- For extra kick, you may use Pepper Jack cheese in lieu of the Monterrey Jack.
Anne
I made this tonight for a Halloween Pot Luck. Unfortunately, I did NOT even get to taste it because by the time I made it through the line, it was GONE!!! But everyone was commenting on how GREAT it smelled before they dug into it. Dang it! I THINK it was good!!! And judging by how much was left (NONE) I am thinking it was GREAT!! I totally forgot to add the fresh cilantro I had in the fridge which I feel would have made it even better. I follow the recipe EXACTLY. Thanks for a successful potluck dish!!! Anne in Oregon.
Samantha at Five Heart Home
Ha ha...yay, Anne! So happy it was a hit! Next time be sure to sneak yourself a slice first. 😉
Courtney
Can this be a freezer meal?
Samantha at Five Heart Home
Yes! I would assemble the casserole (without baking) and then tightly wrap it really well to prevent freezer burn. Freeze for up to a month or two. Move it to the refrigerator to thaw 24 hours ahead of time and then bake as directed. Hope that helps! 🙂
Melisa Alexander
I made this with a twist. Instead of tortillas I used al dente lasagne noodles and made it a mexican lasagna. Husband and neighbors said was delicious!!! I would post a pic but I'm an idiot lol. Definitely a keeper!!!
Samantha at Five Heart Home
What a great idea, Melisa...I'm going to have to try that next time! Thanks for sharing. 🙂
Whitney Nelson
Just wanted to drop by to say hello and tell you that I discovered your recipe a couple years ago and everyone I make it for begs me for the recipe! It has become my secret weapon at school-related functions (I'm a teacher) and now most of my co-workers are making this recipe for their own families! My now-husband loves it and will eat it for breakfast the next day until it's all gone! Thanks for sharing it with the world!
Samantha at Five Heart Home
Awww, I'm so happy to hear that, Whitney! I'm glad that this recipe has been enjoyed by so many in your circle. Thanks for taking the time to let me know! 🙂
Brenda Green
Can this be made in advance and popped into the oven when ready? If so, how far ahead? Hoping for a couple of hours ahead without changing integrity of the dish. Thanks.
Samantha at Five Heart Home
Prepping this recipe a couple hours before baking should be fine, Brenda. 🙂
Delma Lopez Miller
I’m Hispanic and this dish, which I really really like, is not one we grew up with....I just finished feeding it to my family and a few of their friends and it was a big hit!!!! One of the girls asked that I send it to her mom so she can make it AND she’s the picky friend.
I love the flavors, especially the homemade sauce,....it makes a big big difference....will keep as my go to AND will pass it on!!! Thank you for sharing!!!
Ann Brown
I just made this and put it in the freezer for when my husband returns from out of town next week. As someone that was born and raised in the southwest, I wanted to say how good I know this will be. The sauce tastes wonderful, and I think your trick of adding the chicken broth over the casserole will keep it moist.
Marie
I’ve tried to figure out the calories for this recipe. My husband is trying to loose weight, and loves it. He hope it will be diet food so that he can have it again
Samantha at Five Heart Home
Hi Marie! You should be able to plug this recipe into an online nutrition calculator like My Fitness Pal to get the info you need. Hope that helps!
sara
Marie- you can healthy it up a bit by omitting the tortillas, swapping sour cream for plain non-fat Greek yogurt and cutting the amount of milk, butter and cheese. Overall, this recipe is really just chicken, cheese and salsa so it's more on the healthy side than it seems.
Carrie
My "non-enchilada eating" family loved this....it was even better the next day!
Samantha at Five Heart Home
Yay! I'm glad this recipe passsed their test, Carrie. 😉 And I agree...leftovers of this casserole are the best!
Anne
Definitely one of my favorites in your fabulous book.
Samantha at Five Heart Home
You are too sweet, Anne. 🙂
Michelle
This recipe sounds delish!! Has anyone tried making it with shrimp instead of chicken? This will be tonight's dinner for sure! Thank you for sharing your deliciousness!! ❤️
Linda
This sounds fabulous. I'm ready for a cool-weather casserole dish. Thanks for sharing.
Wishes for tasty dishes,
Linda
Samantha at Five Heart Home
Thanks so much, Linda! If we start eating casseroles, maybe the cool weather will follow suit? 😉 Happy Friday and thanks for stopping by!
Cathleen @ A Taste of Madness
This casserole looks amazing!! You just combined two of my favorite dinners 😉
Samantha at Five Heart Home
Thank you, Cathleen! This casserole is full of my favorites, too. 😉