Mexican Chicken Casserole with Corn Tortillas is three layers of soft corn tortillas and shredded chicken in a cheesy cream sauce with green chiles and diced tomatoes, finished with a blanket of sharp cheddar. It is built like a King Ranch chicken casserole: cream of chicken soup, pepper jack, taco seasoning and a splash of chicken broth make the filling. It serves 12 and takes 70 minutes, including a 10-minute rest.
How to make it: Soften an onion in butter, stir in the soup, green chiles and diced tomatoes, and melt in the pepper jack. Mix the chicken with taco seasoning and broth, fold it into the sauce, then layer it with 18 corn tortillas in a 9×13-inch dish. Cover the top with cheddar, bake it covered and then uncovered, and let it rest before cutting.
Why You’ll Love It
- Short prep: about 15 minutes of prep with cooked chicken.
- Cuts into squares: three layers of tortillas and a short rest help each serving hold its shape.
- Feeds a crowd: one 9×13-inch dish makes 12 servings.
- Make it ahead: assemble it, then refrigerate or freeze it and bake it later.
Ingredient Notes
Corn tortillas: Small ones, 6 for each layer. Corn tortillas give the casserole its classic texture and flavor.
Cream of chicken soup: Two cans of condensed soup make the base of the sauce.
Green chiles and tomatoes: The green chiles go in with their liquid. Pick mild or hot to taste.
Two cheeses: Pepper jack melts into the sauce, and sharp cheddar covers the top layer completely.
Chicken: Breasts, tenderloins or thighs, baked, boiled or rotisserie.
Taco seasoning and broth: The broth adds moisture and helps the seasoning coat the chicken evenly.
Onion and butter: A yellow or white onion, softened in butter or olive oil.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon butter (or olive oil)
- 1 onion, diced (yellow or white)
- 2 cans condensed cream of chicken soup (10.5 ounces each, 21 ounces total)
- 1 can (4 ounces) green chiles, mild or hot, with the liquid
- 1 can (10 ounces) diced tomatoes with green chiles
- 8 ounces pepper jack cheese, shredded
- 3 cups cooked chicken, shredded (baked, boiled or rotisserie)
- 1 ounce taco seasoning mix (1 package)
- 1 1/2 cups chicken broth, low-sodium if you like
- 18 small corn tortillas (6 per layer)
- 8 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
How to Make Mexican Chicken Casserole with Corn Tortillas
1. Heat the oven. Heat the oven to 350°F and grease a 9×13-inch baking dish.
2. Soften the onion. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat and cook the diced onion until softened.
3. Make the cheese sauce. Add the cream of chicken soup, green chiles and diced tomatoes with green chiles. Cook over medium heat until the sauce is warm. Stir in the pepper jack and cook until it melts, then take the skillet off the heat.
4. Season the chicken. In a large bowl, mix the shredded chicken with the taco seasoning and chicken broth. Add it to the cheese sauce and stir to combine.
5. Layer. Lay 6 corn tortillas in the dish and spread half of the chicken mixture evenly over them. Add 6 more tortillas and spread most of the remaining chicken mixture over them, saving a little for the top. Finish with the last 6 tortillas, spread the saved chicken mixture over them in a thin layer and cover it completely with the cheddar.
6. Bake. Cover the dish with foil and bake for 25 minutes. Remove the foil and bake 20 minutes more, until the cheese is melted and bubbly and the center reaches 165°F.
7. Rest and serve. Let the casserole rest 10 minutes before cutting. Serve with salsa, guacamole, olives, onions and tomatoes.
How to Layer Corn Tortillas So It Cuts Into Squares
Use three layers, not two. A third layer of tortillas helps the casserole hold its shape and puts creamy filling and tortilla in every bite.
Mix the sauce into the chicken. The cheese sauce and seasoned chicken go into the dish as one filling: half on the first layer, most of the rest on the second, a thin coat on top, then cheddar right to the edges.
Bake covered, then uncovered. Foil on for 25 minutes, off for 20, until the cheese bubbles and the center reads 165°F.
Wait before you cut. It is tempting to dig in straight from the oven, but a 10-minute rest lets the casserole firm up and keep its shape when you lift out a square.
The tortillas can go in other ways too: torn into small pieces, cut into 2-inch strips and overlapped, or cut into fourths and laid over a little sauce spread in the dish first. However you lay them, cover the bottom of the dish completely.
Tips for Success
Can I use rotisserie chicken?
Yes. Choose a low-sodium taco seasoning, since rotisserie chicken is already seasoned.
How do I keep it from tasting too salty?
Use unsalted cream of chicken soup and low-sodium chicken broth to keep the salt down.
How spicy is it?
You control the heat. For a milder casserole, use Monterey Jack in place of the pepper jack, and choose mild green chiles and mild diced tomatoes with green chiles.
Variations
- Sour cream and black beans: stir 2 cans of cream of chicken soup, 1 1/2 cups sour cream, a drained 10-ounce can of diced tomatoes with green chiles, a rinsed and drained 15-ounce can of black beans, a 1-ounce package of taco seasoning and 3 cups of chopped cooked chicken together. Layer it in a 9×13-inch dish with 12 torn corn tortillas and 2 cups shredded Mexican blend cheese, in two rounds, and bake at 350°F for 30 minutes, until bubbly and 165°F in the center.
- Fresh peppers: use diced green bell pepper, red bell pepper or poblano pepper in place of the canned green chiles.
- Salsa verde: swap it in for the diced tomatoes with green chiles for a change of flavor.
- Chip topping: scatter crushed tortilla chips over the top along with the cheddar before it goes into the oven.
Storage & Reheating
USDA FSIS says to refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours in shallow, covered containers and eat them within 3 to 4 days, or freeze them for 3 to 4 months. FSIS lists cream sauce among the foods that don’t freeze well, so the sauce may not be quite the same after thawing. Thaw frozen portions overnight in the refrigerator, never on the counter.
Reheat leftovers covered until they reach 165°F. A thawed casserole takes about 25 to 30 minutes in a 350°F oven; single portions can go in the microwave, covered and turned partway through. Do not reheat leftovers in a slow cooker.
What to Serve With It
Serve it with Mexican rice, black beans or a chopped salad, plus tortilla chips and salsa. For a corn side, bake easy creamy corn casserole, and for a warm dip with the chips, try white queso dip. If you like tortilla casseroles, there’s a ground beef one in Mexican tortilla casserole, and easy chicken burrito casserole bakes chicken with rice and beans. For rolled enchiladas, see cream cheese chicken enchiladas and chicken enchiladas with sour cream white sauce.
Frequently Asked Questions
What other chicken casseroles use tortillas?
Besides this cream-soup casserole, there is the sour cream and black bean one under Variations, a chilaquiles-style bake with cream of chicken and cream of mushroom soups, salsa, onion and bell pepper, an enchilada-sauce casserole with cream cheese and Monterey Jack, and a layered one made with Greek yogurt, black beans and salsa.
Is this the same as King Ranch chicken casserole?
It is built the same way: layers of corn tortillas, chicken and a rich, creamy sauce under cheese. For a more traditional King Ranch, use a can of cream of mushroom soup in place of one can of cream of chicken.
Can I use flour tortillas instead of corn?
Yes, flour tortillas work. Corn tortillas give the casserole its classic texture and flavor.
Can I make it ahead?
Yes. Assemble the casserole, cover it with plastic wrap or foil and refrigerate it until you are ready to bake. Add a few minutes to the baking time when it goes into the oven cold from the refrigerator.
Can I freeze it before baking?
Yes. Assemble it, wrap the dish tightly in plastic wrap and foil, and freeze it for up to 3 months. Thaw it overnight in the refrigerator, then bake as directed, adding 10 to 15 minutes, until the center reaches 165°F.
Final Notes
Three layers of tortillas, the sauce stirred into the chicken, foil on and then off, and a 10-minute rest before cutting: that is the whole method. If you make it, tell me in the comments how it went.
Mexican Chicken Casserole with Corn Tortillas
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Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon butter or olive oil
- 1 onion diced; yellow or white
- 2 cans cream of chicken soup condensed, 10.5 ounces each (21 ounces total)
- 1 can green chiles 4 ounces, mild or hot, with the liquid
- 1 can diced tomatoes with green chiles 10 ounces
- 8 ounces pepper jack cheese shredded
- 3 cups cooked chicken shredded; baked, boiled or rotisserie
- 1 ounce taco seasoning mix 1 package
- 1 1/2 cups chicken broth low-sodium if you like
- 18 small corn tortillas 6 per layer
- 8 ounces sharp cheddar cheese shredded
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 350°F and grease a 9x13-inch baking dish.
- Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat and cook the diced onion until softened.
- Add the cream of chicken soup, green chiles and diced tomatoes with green chiles. Cook over medium heat until the sauce is warm. Stir in the pepper jack and cook until it melts, then take the skillet off the heat.
- In a large bowl, mix the shredded chicken with the taco seasoning and chicken broth. Add it to the cheese sauce and stir to combine.
- Lay 6 corn tortillas in the dish and spread half of the chicken mixture evenly over them. Add 6 more tortillas and spread most of the remaining chicken mixture over them, saving a little for the top. Finish with the last 6 tortillas, spread the saved chicken mixture over them in a thin layer and cover it completely with the cheddar.
- Cover the dish with foil and bake for 25 minutes. Remove the foil and bake 20 minutes more, until the cheese is melted and bubbly and the center reaches 165°F.
- Let the casserole rest 10 minutes before cutting. Serve with salsa, guacamole, olives, onions and tomatoes.
