This chicken enchilada casserole is a hearty entree packed with flavor from shredded chicken, mushroom, onions, sour cream, gooey cheese and cream of mushroom. Perfect for a quick and easy weeknight dinner!
Chicken Enchilada Casserole Recipe
A few years ago, my family started doing a Mexican-themed Christmas Eve dinner. It was a natural choice for us because my family is crazy about Mexican food.
This year when we hosted the Christmas Eve festivities, we made tamales and my mom brought her chicken enchilada casserole with mushrooms. Mushrooms are a new thing for me to like, in fact I wasn't a huge fan until I made this fennel and mushroom polenta. But now I love them, so I was obsessed with this casserole!
I can definitely say that even if you hate mushrooms, you probably won't even notice them mixed in with this delicious creamy chicken enchilada casserole.
This is now a staple at Christmas Eve dinner, plus it's a great weeknight recipe since the whole family loves it.
Layered chicken enchilada casserole is also a fabulous option to add to your list of good casserole recipes for freezer meals! You can make one of these and freeze it to bring to a sick friend at the drop of a hat, or pop in the oven on a busy day.
I've made this easy dinner recipe countless times and it never gets old! You're going to love it!
Why You'll Love This Recipe
- You can make the shredded chicken breast ahead of time and store it until you are ready to make this great recipe.
- This Mexican casserole makes 12 servings. Perfect for serving a large group or big family!
- If you make the chicken ahead of time, your prep time for this easy casserole recipe is just minutes.
Ingredients
Grab these ingredients on your next run to the grocery store:
- shredded cooked chicken
- diced mushrooms
- diced onion
- sour cream
- cream of mushroom soup
- salt
- pepper
- garlic powder
- green chiles
- shredded cheddar cheese
- corn tortillas
- cooking Spray
Substitutions and Variations
For a corn substitute, you can purchase almond flour or cassava flour tortillas. They'll work wonderfully in this green chile chicken enchilada casserole! You can also use flour tortillas if you prefer.
To reduce the amount of mushrooms, feel free to swap out the cream of mushroom soup for cream of chicken soup or cream of celery soup.
You can substitute greek yogurt in place of the sour cream if you prefer.
To save some time, shred a pre-cooked rotisserie chicken to use in this sour cream chicken enchilada casserole.
Feel free to use a different cheese like Monterey jack cheese, Mexican blend shredded cheese, or anything else you'd like.
These easy chicken enchilada casserole recipe can be adapted to include bell peppers, pinto beans, or any other add-in you'd like.
How to Make Chicken Enchilada Casserole
Place chicken breasts in a slow cooker and cook on low for 6 hours. Once cooked, shred it well and allow it come to room temperature. Store in the fridge until you're ready to use it!
When you're ready to make the casserole, sauté the onions and diced mushrooms in a large skillet while you let the oven preheat to 350° Fahrenheit.
Next, mix together the cooked chicken, sour cream, cream of mushroom soup, salt, black pepper, and spices in a large bowl. Then, mix in the onions, mushrooms, green chilies, and 1 cup cheese.
Grease a 9x13 casserole dish and spread a layer of the chicken mixture on the bottom of the pan.
Next, spray both sides of the tortillas with cooking spray and then place three full tortillas and three halves on top of the chicken mixture in the baking dish.
Layer more of the chicken mixture, then sprinkle cheddar cheese on top. Repeat this process until 5 layers. The top layer will just be tortillas and cheese.
Bake this layered chicken enchilada casserole for 30 minutes until the top has melted gooey cheese.
Allow the creamy chicken enchilada casserole to cool slightly, then cut into even squares and serve.
What to Serve with Chicken Enchilada Casserole
This delicious casserole can be served on its own, or with tasty side dishes like Mexican rice, charro beans, and even tortilla chips and salsa!
Or, go with less traditional Mexican food sides like oven roasted broccoli, oven roasted green beans, or roasted rosemary potatoes.
You can add your favorite toppings to each square, like salsa verde, fresh cilantro, and diced green onions too. Don't forget to round out your meal with a sweet treat like vanilla bread pudding with tequila!
How to Store Leftover Chicken Enchilada Casserole with Mushrooms
Store leftover chicken enchilada casserole in an airtight container or cover the casserole dish tightly is plastic wrap or aluminum foil. Store in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. Reheat in the oven or microwave.
To freeze this casserole, make all of the layers of chicken and tortillas and don't bake it. Cover the baking dish well, and freeze for up to 3 months. To bake from frozen, add 10-15 minutes onto the baking time.
Tips for Success
- Make your own homemade tortillas to add an extra level of fresh flavor to these white chicken enchiladas.
- If you like spicy food, add extra green chiles or some diced jalapeños to the creamy chicken mixture.
- This easy dish is already fully cooked, so the cook time is just to warm everything up and meld the flavors together. Don't overcook it!
FAQ
It isn't necessary to cover this casserole dish with aluminum foil while baking! The cheese will get all gooey and the casserole will bake evenly without it.
This recipe is best when chicken is used, but feel free to modify it my using ground beef. You could also throw in some red enchilada sauce too!
More Dinner Recipes You'll Love
If you make and love this recipe, please leave a ★★★★★ review below! It means so much to me when you try my recipes, and I'd love to know how it goes. Please leave a comment below if you have any questions.
Chicken Enchilada Casserole with Mushrooms
This chicken enchilada casserole with mushrooms is such a tasty meal! Bring it to a potluck, share it with friends, or serve it as a simple weeknight dinner.
Ingredients
- 2 cups shredded, cooked chicken (see notes)
- 1 cup diced mushrooms
- 1 onion, diced
- 16 ounces sour cream
- 1 (10.5 ounce) can cream of mushroom soup (cream of celery or cream of chicken can also be used)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 (4-ounce) can green chiles
- 2 ½ cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
- 15 corn tortillas
- cooking spray
Instructions
- Cook chicken breasts in a slow cooker for 6 hours on low (recommend doing this overnight so it's ready for you in the morning). Once cooked, shred and allow to come to room temperature then store in the refrigerator until you're ready to make the casserole.
- Sauté the onions and diced mushrooms in a medium frying pan.
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
- Mix together chicken, sour cream, cream of mushroom soup, salt, pepper and spices. Mix in onions, mushrooms, green chile and 1 cup of the cheese.
- In a greased 9x13-inch glass baking dish, spread a thin layer of chicken mixture on the bottom of the pan.
- Next you will layer the casserole. First spray both sides of corn tortillas with cooking spray, then place three full tortillas plus three tortilla halves on the chicken mixture. Then add layer of chicken mixture and then a layer of cheese. Repeat layers until you have 5 and a half tortilla remaining. The last layer will be just tortillas and cheese.
- Bake for 30 minutes until cheese is melted on top. Cut into 12 pieces and serve.
Notes
I cook the chicken the night before in a slow cooker, using about one pound of chicken or three breasts. Place in slow cooker with just enough water to cover the breast, cook on slow overnight. Remove from slow cooker and allow to cool enough to place in fridge until you're ready to make the casserole.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 12 Serving Size: 1 sliceAmount Per Serving: Calories: 330Total Fat: 21gSaturated Fat: 10gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 69mgSodium: 517mgCarbohydrates: 21gFiber: 3gSugar: 4gProtein: 15g
Lisa R Corrao says
What temp to bake?
Madison | A Joyfully Mad Kitchen says
Thank you for clarifying this! We've updated the recipe, but it is at 350º!