Southwestern Chicken Casserole

4.63 from 51 votes
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This Southwestern Chicken Casserole calls for simple, flavorful ingredients and is made completely in a casserole dish. A perfect weeknight dinner idea!

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You guys are going to love this southwestern chicken casserole recipe. It reminds me of a GIANT Chipotle burrito bowl. I am a huge Chipotle fan and order the same thing every time I go. Can you guess what it is? A chicken burrito bowl.

And when it comes to casseroles, we love making them a well-rounded meal. That usually means pairing a grain, with veggies, and a source of protein. Chicken is such a great protein to cook inside of a casserole because it’s juicy, lean and can be flavored so many ways.

why you’ll love it!

  • You only need to dirty one dish.
  • It’s a great weeknight meal that packs a ton of flavor.
  • This casserole leaves great leftovers, making it a great meal prep recipe for the week.

What You Need for this Southwestern Chicken Casserole

The base of this flavorful chicken casserole recipe is quick-cooking brown rice, black beans, and chicken breast. And when it comes to adding that flavor punch, we went big! Here’s what really gives this casserole its robust flavor:

  • 1 jar of salsa
  • paprika
  • chili powder
  • ground cumin
  • garlic powder
  • fresh cilantro
  • shredded cheese
ingredients for chicken casserole in casserole dish

Ingredient Substitutions

Beans: Black beans pair well with this dish, but feel free to substitute 1:1 for another canned bean like great northern beans or pinto beans.

Chicken: We’re using diced chicken breast, but boneless chicken thighs cut into 1 in. chunks will also work.

Rice: We’ve tested this recipe with minute brown rice and minute white rice. Either will work!

Top Tips

Don’t substitute the minute rice: Only use brown or white minute rice for this casserole! The rice won’t have enough time to completely cook if substituting for any other variety of rice.

Spice to your liking: This casserole calls for an entire jar of salsa, so feel free to use your favorite variety, whether that’s a mild or super hot salsa.

Get creative with the toppings: We love topping this casserole with green onions, tortilla chips, and a dollop of Greek yogurt and homemade guacamole.

White casserole dish.

Our Favorite

Casserole Dish

We love this le creuset casserole dish because it is oven safe AND has a cover. It is the perfect casserole dish for this baked one pot pasta dish!

chicken casserole with cheese

Storage

Store this casserole in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.

Freezer Instructions: we recommend making your casserole in a disposable casserole tin. Once cooked, let the casserole cool completely and then cover with tin foil and remove as much air as possible. Place in the freezer for up to 3 months.

southwestern chicken casserole with Greek yogurt and salsa

Serving Suggestions

Serve this southwestern chicken casserole with our homemade guacamole, salsa and our ultimate margarita.

4.63 from 51 votes

Southwestern Chicken Casserole

This Southwestern Chicken Casserole calls for chicken breast, salsa, beans, and amazing southwestern spices. It's made 100% in a casserole dish in under an hour.
Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 1 hour
Total: 1 hour 15 minutes
Servings: 8
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Ingredients 

  • 1.5 cups minute brown rice, uncooked (white or brown minute rice will work)
  • 1.5 cups chicken broth
  • 1/2 medium yellow onion, finely diced
  • 10 oz. frozen corn, thawed
  • 15 oz. canned black beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch chunks (raw)
  • 16 oz. jar salsa, any spice level works!
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
  • 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 2 teaspoons chili powder
  • 2 teaspoons ground cumin
  • 2 teaspoons garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1/2 cup Colby Jack cheese
  • optional toppings: shredded Colby Jack cheese, Greek yogurt, salsa, and green onions.

Instructions 

  • Preheat oven to 375°F and spray a large casserole dish with nonstick cooking spray.
  • Add all of the ingredients (minus the shredded cheese) into the casserole dish and mix together with a wooden spoon making sure that everything is well mixed and submerged in liquid.
    a chicken casserole with beans, corn and other ingredients in a red baking dish.
  • Then, cover with aluminum foil and bake at 375ºF for about 50 minutes.
  • Uncover and top with shredded cheese. Bake, uncovered, for an additional 10 minutes.
    a chicken casserole topped with cheese and green onions.
  • Once fully cooked, let rest for 10 minutes before serving. Top with Greek yogurt, more shredded cheese, salsa, and green onions.
    chicken casserole

Tips & Notes

  • Nutrition information is for a serving of 8 people and includes the 1/2 cup of Colby Jack cheese
  • This recipe was updated slightly on 1/29/2024 to reduce the amount of chicken broth as some had reported issues with the casserole consistency being too soupy. The original recipe is HERE.

Watch It

[adthrive-in-post-video-player video-id=”xFSQudfR” upload-date=”2024-01-29T19:53:54.000Z” name=”Southwestern Chicken Casserole” description=”This Southwestern Chicken Casserole calls for simple, flavorful ingredients and is made completely in a casserole dish. A perfect weeknight dinner idea!” player-type=”default” override-embed=”default”]

Nutrition

Calories: 270 kcal, Carbohydrates: 36 g, Protein: 21 g, Fat: 5 g, Fiber: 6 g, Sugar: 3 g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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About Lee Funke

Lee is the founder of Fit Foodie Finds and based in Minneapolis, MN. She started this website in 2010 as a way to share her love for real food and wellness. The internet has changed so much since then and so has Fit Foodie Finds. Today we're a female-run recipe website publishing hundreds of tried and true recipes developed and tested by our team.

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Destiny
Destiny
July 22, 2021 9:15 am
Recipe Rating :
     

5 stars
Ok so this was AMAZING, however I changed the recipe a tad… I cheated and got two of walmarts rotisserie chickens, deboned and shredded them, added 1 can of Rotel, green chilies, green onions AND 1 large yellow onion, and as far as the seasonings go, I just added them to the top on my entire mix. It was not soupy (had a tad bit of juice at the bottom) but this is DEFINITELY the day after meal. Today I heated it up and everything soaked up all the juice and flavor and it was incredible, will definitely make again.

Regan
Regan
July 18, 2021 6:47 pm
Recipe Rating :
     

4 stars
It was very flavorful- I followed the recipe exactly and it came out very soupy and the chicken was not cooked all the way, I put it back in for 15 minutes and it was much better

Lena Haroutunian
Lena Haroutunian
June 1, 2021 5:59 pm

Can I use cooked chicken? I have some left over and was wondering if boiled chicken would work?

Destiny
Destiny
July 22, 2021 9:17 am

I used two of walmarts rotisserie chickens came out great

Anna
Anna
May 19, 2021 6:20 pm
Recipe Rating :
     

3 stars
Sad!! This was a miss for me. A little bit of liquid leftover and lacking flavor. Anyone have an idea of how I can doctor this up a little? Perhaps I need better salsa.. just wasn’t for me 🙁

Destiny
Destiny
July 22, 2021 9:16 am
Reply to  Anna

I changed the recipe a tad… I cheated and got two of walmarts rotisserie chickens, deboned and shredded them, added 1 can of Rotel, green chilies, green onions AND 1 large yellow onion, and as far as the seasonings go, I just added them to the top on my entire mix. It was not soupy (had a tad bit of juice at the bottom) but this is DEFINITELY the day after meal. Today I heated it up and everything soaked up all the juice and flavor and it was incredible, will definitely make again.

Anna
Anna
May 19, 2021 9:17 am

This may be incredibly stupid but is this minute rice, like the brand? Or rice that cooks in a minute

Ronda
Ronda
April 14, 2021 10:03 am

Thank you! Going to try it today not sure if I can find fresh cilantro at our local store live in a very small town.

Ronda
Ronda
April 13, 2021 3:53 pm

What size pan?

Kay
Kay
April 5, 2021 3:01 pm

I may have missed these instructions, but what are the cooking directions after freezing your cooked casserole?

Olof
Olof
March 31, 2021 6:49 pm
Recipe Rating :
     

5 stars
This casserole was so easy to make and full of flavor. My husband and I both went back for seconds. I’m going to use the leftovers for taco salads tomorrow. Yumm!

IMG_20210331_193726.jpg
Lauren
Lauren
March 1, 2021 8:08 pm
Recipe Rating :
     

5 stars
This was delicious! I did not experience any wateriness. It tasted delicious and was so easy to make. I loved that it was a filling dish, but I didn’t feel sick or overly full afterward the way I do with lots of casseroles. Definitely a great one for bringing leftovers to work. I did use sour cream for a topping, but that’s just a matter of preference. I know it does nothing to make it healthier haha. Other than that, made exactly as described.