Tex Mex Chicken Casserole
This flavorful Tex Mex chicken casserole is a firm family favorite! With tasty seasoning, chicken, rice, and lots of melted cheese, it’s perfection in a pan.
Looking for your next weeknight meal the whole family will love? You need this quick and easy chicken casserole in your life. When I say quick and easy, I mean it. It takes just 5 minutes to prep this recipe, as you literally dump the ingredients in a bowl, stir, and then bake! 30 minutes later, dinner is served.
This casserole is overflowing with staple ingredients you probably already have at home too, like cheese, tomatoes, instant rice, and chicken broth. The combination of the chicken and rice with the sour cream and cream of chicken soup is basically a flavor explosion. This TEx Mex chicken casserole is creamy, cheesy, and delicious!
Here are some other casseroles my family love and I bet yours will too: crunchy beef casserole, deep-dish pizza casserole, stuffed pepper casserole, cornbread casserole, and sloppy joes casserole.
Recipe Ingredients
- Cooked chicken
- Instant rice (or to keep it lower-carb you can use my cauliflower rice recipe here)
- Cream of chicken soup
- Sour cream
- Frozen diced onion
- Shredded cheddar cheese
- Rotel tomatoes
- Cumin
- Garlic powder
- Chicken broth
Dump all of the first nine ingredients in a large bowl and stir to combine.
Add half of the cheddar cheese and stir to combine again.
Next, turn the chicken mixture out into a greased casserole dish (9X13).
Then top with remaining cheese.
Bake at 350 for 30 minutes or until hot and bubbly.
Then serve! I guarantee the flavors in this dish will have your taste buds dancing! YUM!
Storage
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Reheat in the microwave.
- You can also store casserole leftovers in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months. When it’s time, thaw leftovers in the fridge overnight and then reheat in the microwave.
Recipe Notes
- You can use any cooked chicken you like in this Mexican chicken and rice casserole, whether that’s rotisserie chicken, shredded chicken breast, or chicken thighs.
- If you’d like to add even more to this casserole, add in a can each of black or pinto beans, green chile, and corn kernels. Another option is a cup of diced .
- For extra crunch, top your casserole with tortilla strips or your favorite crushed tortilla chips, like Doritos.
- If your family prefers, you could substitute the chicken for ground beef.
- You can also add whichever cheese you prefer, whether that’s melty mozzarella cheese, a or Pepper Jack cheese for some extra heat.
- For more flavor, substitute the for a packet of . Bonus if you use homemade taco seasoning!
- Serve your with a sprinkle of and .
Recipe FAQs
Why do you use frozen onion in this recipe?
There are several reasons why I recommend using frozen onion in this Mexican chicken casserole recipe. First, frozen diced onion and frozen diced green pepper are great things to have in the freezer in a pinch. And second, use frozen because it cooks through faster and with this relatively short cooking time you’ll need them to cook faster. Using raw onions throws the casserole texture way off. Trust me, I have ruined a casserole or two before I figured this out.
Can chicken casserole be made ahead of time?
You can definitely assemble this chicken casserole recipe and store it tightly covered in the fridge for up to three days. It might just need another 5 to 10 minutes of baking time when it comes straight from the cold fridge.
Is this chicken casserole gluten-free?
Yes, this Mexican chicken casserole is gluten-free. Just make sure you double-check you’re using a gluten-free can of cream of chicken soup and that no other ingredients have sneaky gluten additions.
Can I make my chicken casserole in a crockpot?
Yes, you can definitely cook this Mexican casserole in the slow cooker. Mix all the ingredients together and cook in the slow cooker on low for 4 to 5 hours. I recommend adding the remaining shredded cheese about an hour before it’s done.
What do you serve with your Mexican chicken casserole?
While this is a substantial and hearty main meal in itself, you could also serve your casserole with your favorite taco toppings, like salsa, Pico de Gallo, salsa verde, , green onions, guacamole and corn chips, and jalapeños. Another option is a simple green salad or some fresh green beans.
Here are more marvelous Mexican-inspired dishes:
Mexican Cornbread Recipe by Mama
Taco Soup (The World’s Easiest Supper)
Chicken Enchilada Pie (A Hearty Supper Awaits)
Stuffed Zucchini Boats, Tex-Mex Style
Sweet Potato and Black Bean Tacos
Ingredients
- 4 cups chopped, cooked, and shredded chicken (about 4 to 5 breasts halves)
- 2 cups instant rice
- 1 can cream of chicken soup
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1/2 cup frozen diced onion
- 1 can Ro-Tel tomatoes
- 1/4 teaspoon cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
- 8 oz shredded cheddar cheese divided
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients and half of cheddar cheese in a large bowl. Mix well.4 cups chopped, cooked, and shredded chicken (about 4 to 5 breasts halves), 2 cups instant rice, 1 can cream of chicken soup, 1 cup sour cream, 1/2 cup frozen diced onion, 1 can Ro-Tel tomatoes, 1/4 teaspoon cumin, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 1/2 cups chicken broth, 8 oz shredded cheddar cheese
- Turn out into a greased casserole dish and top with remaining cheese.8 oz shredded cheddar cheese
- Bake at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes, or until hot and bubbly.
Video
Nutrition
This post was originally a guest post from Stacey Little in 2011 at southernbite.com and updated in 2021. Check out his blog here.
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Does this Mexican Chicken Casserole freeze well? I would like to make this for my in-laws in a salt free version and also for new mommies.
I have frozen this in the past, fully cooked. And it came out great as I slowly heated it up.
Let the casserole cool before freezing (don’t leave to cool at room temperature over an hour to avoid harmful bacteria). Freeze it right in the pan. Wrap it well with two tightly covered layers of plastic wrap. Then I wrap with foil.Always remember to label it with the name of the meal and date before freezing.
If I don’t have Frozen onion can I saute it a little bit first?
Sure can, work with whatever you have on hand. If you ever have extra onion chopped or diced consider storing them to use later.
Question where does the chicken broth come in?
Hi there Atarus! Thanks for the question. The chicken broth gets added in this step…
Combine all ingredients and half of cheddar cheese in a large bowl. Mix well.
This is located on the recipe card. Hope that helps!
I cannot print this recipe. Printing instructions won’t complete itself. Will you please post this recipe again. It sounds so good, so really wanted to make it.
This is basically the King Ranch Chicken Casserole I’ve been making for years but with rice instead of the tortillas. Wish i had thought of this change for my tortilla hating child!! I always cooked the onions (plus the bell peppers in mine) in the microwave to soften them up if you don’t have any frozen.
Can this be frozen before cooking or after cooking? Sounds great!
Love the frozen onion comment. Whenever I catch onions or peppers on sale I usually buy them and make what I like to call my very own recipe starters. I make fajita starters for my slow cooker fajitas, meatloaf starters, whatever to make my life much easier.