Serve up this incredibly flavorful one-pot Healthy Mexican Chicken and Rice Casserole for dinner tonight! An oven-baked family favorite that's ready in 30-minutes. It's packed with lean protein, fiber, and tons of veggies.
Table of Contents
Mexican Chicken, Rice, and Veggie Casserole
Hola! Have we told you how much we LOVE Mexican food?
It's the best go-to comfort food. It's bold in flavor yet so delicious and satisfying! One Mexican recipe with healthy and delicious chicken is this Chicken & Rice Mexican Casserole! Bonus! It's ready in 30 minutes.
We love feeding our family Healthy Food Recipes, and this fits the bill!
Eating a tasty casserole or this 30-minute Chicken Enchilada Verde Soup on busy nights is heavenly!
Ingredients
This savory Mexican Chicken and Rice Casserole Recipe comes together with basically what's hanging out in your pantry:
Rice - we like to use brown rice for added nutrition. If you cook your brown rice in the instant pot, you're ready to go!
Beans - canned black or pinto bean work great. Just drain and rinse them
Salsa - hot or mild salsa is perfect
Corn - canned, fresh, or frozen corn will all work
Green Chilies - canned mild or zesty green chilies
Onions - red onions or yellow onions
Peppers - red peppers or green bell peppers
Garlic - freshly minced
Mexican Spices - cumin, chili powder, paprika, oregano, and salt
Fresh veggies - zucchini is a great compliment, but any veggies of choice work
Chicken - shredded cooked chicken is excellent. For ease, use a store-bought rotisserie chicken
Olive Oil
You can use our homemade taco seasoning!
It's safe to say this is definitely a fall-back dinner recipe we eat time and time again.
This Mexican recipe is versatile. You can mix and match the veggies you have on hand, making it nutritious and delicious. Heat and serve. Perfect!
You can also try adding the following vegetables:
- broccoli
- cauliflower
- green beans
- butternut squash
How to Make - Step By Step Instructions
Ok, let's see how simple it is to put this healthy Mexican chicken recipe together.
Start by preheating your oven to 350 degrees F.
Step 1 - Cook Onions
In a large oven-safe pot or dutch oven, sauté your onion in olive oil over medium heat for 2-3 minutes. Then add the spices (cumin to oregano) and stir together. Continue to cook for another 2-3 minutes.
Tip - To bring out the full flavor of your spices, sauté your onions with the spices.
Step 2 - Add Peppers, Chilis, Garlic, and Zucchini & Cook
Add the diced peppers and sauté until cooked, 3-4 minutes. Next, add the garlic, green chilis, and zucchini, season to taste, then sauté for another minute.
Tip: We use canned mild green chilies, but you can use fresh jalapeños if you want a zesty kick.
Step 3 - Mix in Remaining Ingredients
Next, remove the mixture from the heat and mix in the chicken, rice, corn, rinsed black beans, and salsa.
Step 4 - Top with Cheese and Bake
Once the ingredients are all mixed, you top it with your shredded cheese, pop it in the oven for about 20 minutes until it's slightly brown and bubbly and smells fantastic!
Tip: You can broil your Mexican Chicken and Rice for a few minutes if you want your cheese topping more crispy and brown.
Dinner is made, and the kids line up for seconds!
Tips & Tricks
- If you need to make some cooked chicken for use in this recipe quickly, try poaching your chicken. It's easy. Just cover lightly salted chicken pieces with water, add a quarter of an onion, a smashed garlic clove, and 10-12 peppercorns. Then, bring the water to a boil, turn the heat down to low, cover and let them simmer on the stovetop until the chicken is cooked through - about 8 - 14 minutes.
- To meal prep this Mexican chicken and rice casserole, you can assemble your ingredients ahead of time and then bake it before you're ready to serve it.
Topping and Serving Suggestions
This one-pot Mexican Chicken and Rice Casserole begs to be adorned with some toppings. Try any one of these!
- fresh cilantro
- more salsa
- black olives
- diced green onions
- avocado
- sour cream
This Chicken and Rice Mexican Casserole can be served with cornbread, a green salad, or roasted vegetables.
How To Store
This Mexican chicken recipe is AMAZING leftover.
REFRIGERATOR: If you have any leftover casserole, store it covered in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
FREEZER MEAL: This recipe can easily be made ahead of time in a freezer-safe container, covered and labeled, and then frozen. Bake at 375 degrees if thawed for 30-35 minutes or frozen for 60-70 minutes when ready to serve.
For the best tasting results, always follow our tips to prevent freezer burn.
Other Great Mexican Recipes
We Love to Hear From You!
If you try this Healthy Mexican Chicken and Rice Casserole or any other recipe on Suburban Simplicity, don't forget to rate the recipe and let us know how it went in the comments below; we love hearing from you! Better yet, use the hashtag #suburbansimplicity if you make the recipe.
Healthy Mexican Chicken and Rice Casserole Recipe
Equipment
- large oven-safe pot
- Spatula or cooking spoon
- knife
Ingredients
- 1 small red onion (diced)
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 2 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika (smoked or regular)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 clove garlic (minced)
- 2-3 cups left-over cooked chicken (cubed or shredded)
- 2 cups Brown Rice (cooked and cooled)
- 1 red bell pepper (cored and diced)
- 1 zucchini (shredded)
- 1 (4 ounce) can diced green chilies (drained (or 1 jalapeño, diced))
- 1 cup corn kernels (canned, fresh or frozen and defrosted)
- 1 (15 ounce) can black beans (drained and rinsed)
- 12 ounces salsa (or enchilada sauce)
- ¼ cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
- ½ cup shredded cheddar cheese
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375° F.
- In a large oven-safe pot or dutch oven, sauté the onion in olive oil over medium heat for 2-3 minutes. Then add the spices (cumin to oregano) and stir together. Continue to cook for another 2-3 minutes.
- Add the peppers and sauté until cooked, 3-4 minutes. Add the garlic, green chilis, and zucchini, season to taste, then sauté for another minute.
- Remove from the heat and mix in the chicken, rice, corn, black beans, and salsa.
- Top with the cheese and place in the oven.
- Allow to bake uncovered for 15-20 minutes until the cheese is golden brown and all the ingredients are heated through. Broil for a minute or 2 if you want a crispy browned top.
- Remove from the oven, then serve with the avocado, black olives, green onions, sour cream, or cilantro.
Video
Notes
- If you need to make some cooked chicken for use in this recipe quickly, try poaching your chicken. It's easy. Just cover lightly salted chicken pieces with water, add a quarter of an onion, a smashed garlic clove, and 10-12 peppercorns. Then, bring the water to a boil, turn the heat down to low, cover and let them simmer on the stovetop until the chicken is cooked through - about 8 - 14 minutes.
- To meal prep this Mexican chicken and rice casserole, you can assemble your ingredients ahead of time and then bake it before you're ready to serve it.
Nutrition
This recipe was originally published on February 2, 2017. We updated it with enhanced instructions and images on June 16, 2021.
Try these other Healthy Food Recipes for Easy Weeknight Dinners.
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Chicken Enchilada Verde Casserole
Alisha says
Tastes great and my kids never once said anything about the veggies - hehehe
Erin Henry says
Yes! The hidden veggies are one way to sneak a little nutrition on to our kid's plates 🙂
Melissa says
Great family meal, I have a big family so there wasn't much left!
Erin Henry says
This is a great recipe for a large family. Plus, cleanup is a breeze!
Beth says
Oh wow! This is perfect for dinner tonight and I can’t wait to try this! The family is going to devour this casserole. Very excited to make this!
Erin Henry says
It's a keeper for sure! Easy and always delish!
Deona says
This recipe rocks! I made it with brown rice and it was delicious. Thank you!
Erin says
I make it with brown rice too! It's good that way as well. So glad you enjoyed it, Deona.
Priscilla says
Hi Erin!
Love your recipes ❣️
Erin says
Thanks so much, Pricilla! So sweet that you stopped by and left a note 🙂
yvonne says
Oh, I love this. What a great family meal to make - I will need to give it a go x
Erin says
You'll love it, Yvonne! So fresh and flavorful. Plus, it's got the veggies mixed in, which makes it healthy! Yeah! Win for mom!
Nikki says
Erin, this looks like a perfect meal for our family. We all love Mexican food, and I love a dinner that comes together quickly and easily. Not to mention that stuffed with all good things. Another thing that I love about it, there will probably be leftovers for lunch the next day. Totally pinning this recipe.
Erin says
Thanks for the stellar rating! This recipe is tasty and even better left over the next day. I'm so glad our whole family love its! I hope yours does too! Enjoy!