Southwestern Chicken Casserole
Published 1/30/2024
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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!
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
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.
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!
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.
Serving Suggestions
Serve this southwestern chicken casserole with our homemade guacamole, salsa and our ultimate margarita.
Southwestern Chicken Casserole
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.
- 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.
- Once fully cooked, let rest for 10 minutes before serving. Top with Greek yogurt, more shredded cheese, salsa, and green onions.
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
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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I LOVE southwest style food! When I found this recipe, I was so excited to try it. But after reading the comments about it being too liquidy, I got nervous. However, whenever I try a new recipe, I make it exactly as the recipe states (in order to give it a fair self review). So I made this exactly as posted. It was AHHHMAZING!!! I don’t know what everyone was talking about with too much liquid. Maybe they didn’t let it sit for the 10 minutes outside of the oven? I made it last night for my husband and myself. We had seconds last night; the leftovers was my lunch for today (the day after), and we had the leftovers for dinner tonight!! I will definitely be putting this in the rotation. Please give this a shot exactly as the recipe calls for, and you should have no problems!
So happy to hear, Erin! Thanks for this super helpful review 🙂
i’ve made it a few times and actually prefer it without the chicken. def let it rest 10mins or it will seem a little liquidy. it needs a little salt too but other than that it’s one of our go-tos. 🌟
It came out soupy for me as well. I’m gonna tweek it. I’m going to use riced cauliflower and omit the chicken stock and use a rotisserie chicken. Maybe some red pepper flakes. Otherwise, it’s a win for me!
Everything tasted great, but I would really recommend removing the minute rice part or using little/no chicken broth. Mine came out so soupy it needed to be drained. I will definitely make it again with those modifications though.
I’m doing low carb so I need to lose the rice. Does that mean I shouldn’t use the chicken broth? I assume the broth is to cook the rice
Way too much liquid but tasty. Either use less broth or a chunkier salsa.
This is a recipe I revisit again and again- it’s incredible, filling, and my family of 2 always has leftovers for days. It’s so quick and easy to throw together plus it’s hearty enough that you don’t need to supplement with any side dishes. I would definitely recommend using a spicier salsa- I’ve made this recipe many times and I do think that it really does need that additional kick of flavor and spice. Make this- you won’t regret it!
One of my favorites, too!
So I messed up bc minute rice is technically cooked…
If it just said regular uncooked rice I think it would’ve worked. I’m just cooking very soupy stuff here. Nothing is absorbing 🙁
woohoo! loved it!
Can I make this in the morning and bake it much later in the day? Thanks!
I’m not sure if I missed it but what are the optimal dimensions for the casserole dish itself?
A 9×13 casserole dish is the size we use for this recipe!