Chicken Tortilla Casserole
Easy Mexican-inspired chicken tortilla casserole!
Filled with chicken, black beans, sweet potatoes, and layers of corn tortillas topped with cheese, this chicken tortilla casserole is a well-balanced and flavour-packed meal. Make this casserole up on a busy weeknight and you’ll have plenty of leftovers for healthy meals for days to come!
Tortilla Chicken Casserole
This chicken taco casserole with corn tortillas is everything you love about tacos baked into a single dish. For the best results, I recommend using white corn tortillas, as they tend to be softer than yellow corn tortillas and a little studier than wheat tortillas, which gives the casserole more structure and texture to hold it together. And although the recipe calls for shredded chicken breasts, simply because I find them quick to cook, using leftover roast chicken, chicken thighs, or chicken legs would work just as well ad add an extra depth of flavour to the dish.
This easy, cheesy, chicken tortilla casserole satisfies like comfort food while being a healthy and well-balanced meal packed full of protein, fibre, and healthy fats. Layers of chicken, veggies, beans, covered in a salsa tomato sauce and cheese make this a one-pan dish the whole family is bound to love.
More Healthy Casserole Recipe:
Chicken Tortilla Casserole
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
- Category: Mains
- Method: Baked
Description
This Mexican-inspired chicken tortilla casserole is easy to make while being packed full of flavour. Plus, leftovers store well in the fridge or freezer so you’ll have healthy meals ready to go for days to come.
Ingredients
- 2 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded (3–4 cups)
- 1 sweet potato, diced
- 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 red onion, diced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 1 green bell pepper, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 can (28 oz.) can crushed tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 can (14 oz.) black beans, strained and rinsed
- 15 corn tortillas
- 1 cup chicken broth, or water
- 1 1/2 cups (5 oz.) grated Monterey Jack or Havarti cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F and grease a 9×13-inch baking dish with a drizzle of olive oil
- If the chicken isn’t already cooked, place the chicken breasts on a baking sheet, transfer to the oven; bake the chicken breasts in the oven for 25 minutes or until cooked through. Once cooked, remove chicken from the oven, place cooked chicken breasts on a cutting board and use two forks to shred the chicken into bite-size pieces.
- On a large baking sheet or tray, add diced sweet potatoes, drizzle with 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil, and toss until all of the potatoes are well coated. Transfer to the oven and allow to bake for 20 minutes or until the sweet potatoes are tender. Don’t worry if they still have a little bite to them, they will cook again in the casserole.
- In a large pot on medium heat, warm the remaining tablespoon of olive oil, then add the diced red onion, and cook for 3-4 minutes until tender. Add diced bell peppers and garlic and cook for another 2-3 minutes until all of the vegetables are tender.
- Once the vegetables are cooked, add chili powder, cumin, paprika, oregano, cayenne pepper (optional), and salt to the pot, stir to coat the vegetables and cook for another 30 seconds or so until fragrant.
- Add the can of crushed tomatoes and chicken broth, stir to combine with the vegetables, reduce heat to a simmer and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes or until it’s time to build the casserole.
- Once the potatoes are cooked, remove them from the oven, set them aside, and build the casserole.
- Layer the bottom of the greased 9×13-inch baking dish with tortillas (about 5), overlapping them as needed to ensure the dish is well covered. You can cut some in half to help create better coverage.
- Top the tortilla layer with cooked sweet potato and black beans, spreading them across the dish evenly, then cover with roughly 1/3 of the tomato and vegetable mixture, about 4 ladles full, until well covered. Then top with another layer of tortillas, overlapping as need to ensure it’s well covered.
- Top the second tortilla layer with shredded chicken and 1/2 of the tomato and vegetable mixture (leaving a bit for the top layer), spreading it across the dish evenly to ensure the chicken is well covered with sauce.
- Add a final layer of tortillas, top with remaining sauce, spread it out to ensure the tortillas are well covered, and top with shredded cheese.
- Cover the baking dish with aluminum foils and then transfer to the oven to bake for 35 minutes. Once baked, remove the aluminum foil and bake uncovered for a final 10-15 until cheese is melted and bubbling and the top is slightly golden in colour.
- Once baked, remove from the oven and allow to rest for 5 minutes before serving. Serve warm with desired toppings.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 381 calories
- Sugar: 8 grams
- Fat: 13 grams
- Carbohydrates: 44 grams
- Fiber: 10 grams
- Protein: 24 grams
Keywords: mexican chicken tortilla casserole, chicken casserole corn tortillas, chicken taco casserole with corn tortillas
Very filling and flavourful! Steps were easy to do but took more time than I thought. Definitely going to make this again.
★★★★★
I’m so happy you enjoyed it, thanks for sharing!