Easy and Cheesy- Green Chile, Chicken and Rice Casserole
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This Cheesy Green Chile, Chicken and Rice Casserole is a flavorful and hearty casserole that will definitely keep you warm and full in the upcoming winter months.
September is National Family Meal Month
Did you know September was National Family Meal Month? Family meals eaten at home have been proven to benefit the health and wellness of children and adolescents, fight obesity, substance abuse and to make families stronger.)
Who would say no to that?
To celebrate and give you one more easy and yummy meal option for your family’s meal, I’m sharing this Cheesy Green Chile, Chicken and Rice Casserole recipe with you today.
Cheesy Green Chile, Chicken and Rice Casserole
This hearty Tex-Mex Chicken and Rice Casserole will definitely keep you warm and full in the upcoming winter months. (Thanks to Hormel for partnering with me to bring you this post-all opinions are mine.)
My family loves just about anything made using green chiles as an ingredient. (I have several recipes featuring green chiles, you can check them out here ==>> green chile recipes.)
I personally prefer green chiles over jalapenos. I think their flavor is better and they are less spicy. (Foods with too much spice just don’t go over well with the kids or me for that matter, lol.)
If you are someone who likes a bit of kick, definitely add in some diced jalapenos to crank the flavor up a notch.
I make a similar casserole (with just the rice) as a side dish to go with taco or enchiladas; but for this dish, I wanted to make it a complete meal. I doubled the recipe and added in a generous serving of diced chicken and make it into a dinner casserole.
Ingredients in this Green Chile Chicken and Rice Casserole:
Diced Rotisserie chicken is delicious in this recipe, but if you don’t have any Rotisserie chicken on hand, canned chicken will work in a pinch and I always keep a can of the Hormel® Premium Chicken in my pantry for last-minute recipes just like this one.
If you want to add this recipe to your meal plan this week, these are the ingredients you need to have on hand:
- Olive oil
- 1 small onion
- 1 yellow bell pepper
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1 egg
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 2 4 oz cans diced green chiles, drained well
- 10 oz diced, pre-cooked chicken
- Cayenne pepper
- Cumin
- Salt and pepper
- 2 cups shredded cheese (I used a combo of white cheddar and pepper jack, but Monterey Jack is really good too.)
- 4 cups cooked rice
This Tex-Mex Version of a Chicken and Rice Casserole is Easy to Make!
Since this Cheesy Green Chile Chicken and Rice Recipe is made with pre-cooked chicken (like rotisserie or canned) and precooked rice. (I usually do minute rice in the microwave.) Pretty much all you are doing is sauteing your peppers and onions then tossing everything together and then baking in the oven.
I like recipes like this – once I put it in the oven, the 30 minute baking time is perfect for rounding up the kids and having “cleaning time”, lol! (Or maybe do a workout – although cleaning tends to be a pretty good work out for me.)
My favorite aspect of this Green Chile, Chicken and Rice Casserole dish, is that it covers all the bases: protein, carbs, fat, and dairy. Just add a side salad and it’s a perfect well-rounded dinner.
Dare I say, it’s even better the next day as leftovers?
Do you have a family favorite casserole that can be put together in a flash? If so, share in the comments below!
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Easy and Cheesy- Green Chile, Chicken and Rice Casserole
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 35
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 6 1x
Ingredients
- 2 tbs olive oil
- 1 small onion, minced
- 1 yellow bell pepper chopped
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1 egg
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 2 4 oz cans diced green chiles, drained well
- 10 oz diced, pre-cooked chicken
- Pinch cayenne pepper
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- Plenty of salt and pepper
- 2 cups shredded cheese (I used a combo of white cheddar and pepper jack, but Monterey Jack is really good too.)
- 4 cups cooked rice
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. rub olive oil on the sides and bottom of a large casserole dish.
- In a large pan over medium-high heat, saute onions and bell peppers with olive oil until they begin to brown. Set aside.
- Combine the rice, chicken, 1 1/2 cup of the cheese, green chilies, sour cream, cumin, cayenne, salt, pepper and onion mixture to the casserole dish and combine well. (Give the mixture a taste to make sure you have enough salt, pepper and cayenne.)
- In a separate bowl, whisk together milk and egg. Add milk and egg to the rice mixture
- Top the casserole with remaining shredded cheese and bake for 30 to 35 minutes.
Serve with an extra dollop of sour cream and enjoy!
Notes
- Double the chicken for extra protein.
- Make sure to taste your mixture to confirm it has enough salt, pepper and cayenne.
- If you like lots of cheese, you can add more on top!
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Peggy says
Does this casserole freeze well?
Nancy Bell says
I was wondering the same, does it freeze well and would you freeze it before or after baking it? Thank you.
Jamie Sanders says
I have no attempted to freeze this dish, so I cannot speak on freeze-ability. Maybe someone who has will chime in.
Linda D says
I did make it will cauliflower instead of rice. I used already ‘riced’ cauliflower that I got in the freezer section at Costco. Next time, I will make sure it is thawed and patted dry. I also add 1 egg to the egg/milk mixture. I used a 9×12 cake pan covered in foil until the last 10 minutes. My husband LOVED it, so that’s a good thing for me. Thanks for the recipe.
★★★★
Jessica says
It says 4 cups cooked rice. So recipe wise your cooking rice on stove top first and then adding to casserole? Please specify
Jamie says
Yes, 4 cups cooked rice. Leftover rice, precooked rice. However you want to do it.
Cindi says
I just made this and it is in the oven. In your recipe, you did not mention adding the chilies. I did, but thought you might want to edit the recipe.
★★★★★
Jamie says
thank you for the comment, I have made the adjustment.
Colleen says
Deliciouso! Just the way it’s presented.
★★★★
Colleen says
I didn’t use canned chicken. I cooked chicken thighs after soaking in pickle juice and milk.
Beth says
Really liked how easy this was to make and used up a lot of pantry staples. I think next time I will add 1 can of black beans, it would go great with all these flavors. I loved her suggestion of using sharp white cheddar, really tasty! I used 2 cans of canned chicken and also only had 1 can of green chiles and it still tasted fine.
★★★★
Penny Eastham says
We loved this. I added twice as much chicken and half as much rice.
★★★★★
Julie H says
This is one of the best recipes using canned chicken breast I’ve found. It isn’t immediately obvious that the chicken is canned, which is the case most of the time in my opinion. I cooked Mahatma long-grain white rice to use in this casserole, doubled the chicken (I always rinse canned chicken in a colander with warm water to help with the canned taste), only used 1 can of green chilies plus around 3-4 Tbsp of chopped, tamed jalapeno slices, and used sharp cheddar. I was pleasantly surprised at how good it was. Even the very picky BF (think 5 year old picky) loved it! I’m sure it’s even better with “real” chicken. Thank you so much for sharing! This one goes in my regular rotation.
★★★★★
Jamie Sanders says
I never even thought of rinsing th3e chicken, I will try that next.
PK says
Can you make before hand and cook the next day?
Jamie Sanders says
I don’t see why not.
Mary says
Two thumbs up from two picky eaters that don’t particularly like chicken.
Jinny Tomozy says
I am going to make this tonight. I only have a green bell pepper, not an yellow. Will that work?
Jamie Sanders says
sure, if you like green bell peppers, it will be fine.
Ana says
I love this recipe and I have very picky eaters- husband and 3 kids! They all loved it. Thank you. And it was so easy to make.
★★★★★