Chicken Enchilada Rice Casserole

Last updated on March 14th, 2018 at 04:38 am

Chicken Enchilada Rice Casserole – all the makings of a chicken enchilada but with rice. It’s simply delicious!

By now I’m sure you’ve figured out that I love my Chicken Enchiladas. It is in fact my favorite Mexican food and it usually is my dish of choice whenever I make it to a Mexican restaurant, which lately is not often. While you can already find many different chicken enchilada recipes here on my blog, in no way does it deter me from coming up with new recipes for chicken enchiladas.

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However sometimes my imagination lacks … well, imagination. I mean how many different ways can you roll up a chicken enchilada? But you know the saying I had a dream? I really did have a dream. About chicken enchiladas nonetheless! But not wrapped in a tortilla, but a rice casserole type of dish, with all the ooey gooey flavors of the enchilada.

So the next day after my big dream, off to the kitchen I went and started my enchilada adventure. I prefer to use Basmati rice, I simply love the flavor of it, so I decided to cook 2 cups of rice. Normally I only cook 1 cup of rice, so I don’t think I was expecting 2 cups of dry rice to give me so much cooked rice. But it’s all good, this is a good recipe, one that I don’t mind taking for lunch every single day of the week.

Of course you cannot have chicken enchilada without the actual chicken. I used 3 chicken breasts here, but feel to free to use any part of the chicken you prefer, and shred it. After you took out your frustrations on that chicken and shredded it, smother it in some enchilada sauce. Now I buy my sauce, but if you prefer to make your own, feel free.

Because most chicken enchiladas will have refried beans, I was really on the fence about this ingredient. I just really didn’t know if it was going to make the rice all mushy and gross, but I also really wanted the flavor of some refried beans. So I went with it, I mixed in some refried beans and I did not look back.

Of course one also needs lots of cheese with an enchilada, otherwise it’s no enchilada! I decided to use a white cheddar and Monterey Jack cheese. I used a cup of each which I mixed together, then threw in a cup in the rice mixture and left a cup for the top of the casserole.

As you can see I also topped the casserole with some corn kernels, cause they’re so purrty, and I love corn!

After you bake this baby, I dare you to wait until it cools off a bit before you dig in. It smells good, it’s got all the flavors of a chicken enchilada and it’s a gorgeous casserole. Not to mention I just made enough to feed the entire neighbourhood (yes I’m Canadian and that’s how we spell neighbourhood).

Now all you need for this yummy meal is a good cold pitcher of a Sangria!

Check out the video for these awesome Green Chile Chicken Enchilada Casserole from my book:

If you guys love this recipe, and most importantly make it yourselves, please let us know. Take a picture and tag it #jocooks on Instagram so we can see it. I always love to see what you guys come up with!

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Chicken Enchilada Rice Casserole

Prep Time

20 mins

Cook Time

30 mins

Total Time

50 mins

 

Chicken Enchilada Rice Casserole - all the makings of a chicken enchilada but with rice. It's simply delicious!

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Mexican

Servings: 12

Calories: 324 kcal

Author: Joanna Cismaru

Ingredients

• 2 cups Basmati rice uncooked
• 1 cup white cheddar shredded
• 1 cup Monterey Jack cheese shredded
• 3 chicken breasts cooked and shredded
• 20 oz Enchilada sauce I used Old El Paso
• 16 oz refried beans I used Old El Paso
• 11 oz corn kernel drained (1 can)
• cilantro for garnish
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper freshly ground

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

1. Cook the rice. I cooked it with 4 cups of water and 1/4 cup of butter.
2. Preheat oven to 350 F degrees.
3. Mix the 2 cheeses together.
4. In a large bowl mix the shredded chicken with the enchilada sauce, refried beans and half of the cheese. Add rice, season with salt and pepper if needed, and mix well. Pour rice mixture into a large casserole dish. Top with corn then with remainder of cheese.
5. Bake for about 20 to 30 minutes or until cheese melts and is bubbly.
6. Garnish with chopped cilantro and serve warm.

Recipe Notes

Please keep in mind that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on products used.

How about this Cheesy Chicken Enchilada Soup?

Quick and Easy Green Chicken Enchilada Casserole

Why not try this Mexican Rice and Beef Casserole?

For another delicious Chicken Enchilada Rice dish try this One Pot Chicken and Sausage Rice Enchilada

If you like this enchilada rice casserole, you might want to try a more traditional and simple 4 ingredient Chicken Enchilada Casserole:

Or give this yummy white chicken enchiladas a try!

How about a slightly healthier version? Chicken Enchilada Quinoa Bake!