Mexican Chicken and Rice Casserole- this one pan meal is full with Tex-Mex flavor and is wonderfully cheesy. I love to load it with ALL the toppings.

Mexican Chicken and Rice Casserole in a skillet.

Easy Chicken Dinner

This recipe can be made start to finish in just 30 minutes and it is a one dish meal. Full of diced chicken breasts, rice, beans, corn, green chilies, taco seasoning, and cheese, this casserole can serve about 5 people. Everything, including the rice, cooks in one pan for easy clean-up.

Add All The Toppings

I love to top this chicken casserole with sour cream, diced avocado, fresh cilantro, and pickled jalapeno slices. Salsa, shredded iceberg lettuce, and sliced black olives are also great toppings.

Mexican Casserole on a plate with sliced avocado.

Is This Casserole Spicy?

To make this casserole spicy, use “Hot” Taco seasoning and “Hot” Rotel tomatoes and serve with Cholulu Hot Sauce.

Mexican Chicken and Rice Casserole Recipe Tips

You can use boneless, skinless chicken thighs instead of chicken breasts.

You will need a large skillet with a lid for this recipe. If you don’t have a lid for your skillet, you can set a round baking sheet on top of the skillet or cover it with heavy-duty aluminum foil.

Be sure to give the mixture a stir halfway through the cooking time to ensure the rice cooks evenly and add more chicken broth if it is getting too dry.

Don’t forget a Margarita to go with this recipe. I love these Fresh Strawberry Margaritas, Jalapeno Watermelon Margaritas, and Blackberry Margaritas.

Storage

Leftovers will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 4 days and can be reheated in a microwave.

Mexican Chicken and Rice Casserole in a skillet.

More Mexican Casseroles

Mexican Chicken and Rice Casserole

4.89 from 9 votes
Servings: 5
Mexican Chicken and Rice Casserole- this one pan meal is full with Tex-Mex flavor and is wonderfully cheesy. I love to load it with ALL the toppings.
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Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts,, cut into 1-inch pieces
  • salt and pepper
  • 1/2 medium yellow onion,, diced
  • 2 garlic cloves,, minced
  • 1 (1-ounce) packet taco seasoning
  • 1 cup uncooked long grain rice
  • 1 (10.75-ounce) can Rotel tomatoes and green chilies,, undrained
  • 1 (4-ounce) can diced green chilies
  • 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
  • 1 (15-ounce) can black beans,, rinsed and drained
  • 1 cup frozen corn,, thawed and drained
  • 2 cups shredded Mexican cheese
  • Toppings: sliced avocado, chopped fresh cilantro, sour cream, and sliced pickled jalapenos

Instructions 

  • Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Season chicken with salt and pepper and add it to skillet along with the onion.
  • Cook for 2 to 3 minutes to brown chicken and soften onion. Add garlic and cook 30 seconds.
  • Add taco seasoning, rice, Rotel tomatoes, diced green chilies, chicken broth, black beans, and corn.
  • Bring mixture to a simmer. Cover and cook for 20 minutes, stirring once halfway through.
    Note: If it is getting to dry before the rice is done, add a little more chicken broth.
  • Stir in half the cheese and sprinkle the remaining half on top.
  • Serve with toppings.

Notes

Note: If you don’t have a lid for your skillet, you can place a round baking sheet on top or use heavy duty aluminum foil to cover it.

Nutrition

Calories: 683kcal

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

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11 Comments

  1. Angela Branam says:

    This is an amazing dish! I used yellow rice in my dish and that makes for a fluffy dish.

  2. JoAnn says:

    Very good I have made this a few times I fixed it with ground beef too the whole family loved it.

  3. Brittany says:

    This was very yummy. Diced up the breast from an Costco rotisserie chicken, used instant brown rice, more corn, and diced tomatoes instead of rotel to get the heat down a tad. Family loved it. We crunched tortilla chips on top and dove in. Thanks for the quick, delish recipe.

  4. Charles Wilhoite says:

    Made tonight. Next time I might try pasta versus rice so it does not get so gummy. Went well with homemade queso and side of collards.

  5. Diane McClain says:

    Very good recipe. I didnโ€™t change a thing. Thank you for a one pan meal!!

  6. Kathryn A. Brown says:

    I made this for dinner. It was so good! My mother-in-law cannot handle any thing spicey. I was going to give her something else for dinner. She said she would try it. She loved it and so did my husband and I. We have leftovers, so tonight we will turn the casserole into burritos!

  7. Mary says:

    Excellent. Went right by recipe delicious! Family loved it. Just enough heat.

  8. Tracy says:

    I love it! So does hubs! So easy and tasty! Thanks!

  9. Judy says:

    This was delicious!! My hubby doesnโ€™t like rice, so I used orzo. Added some jalapeรฑo. A keeper!!!

  10. Helen says:

    Delicious dish that was quick and easy to make. I followed the recipe except for using homemade fajita seasoning instead of taco seasoning, which we find to be pretty mild, and I also added two cups of water at the start instead of 1.5 cups since the white rice I use calls for 2 cups of water per one cup of rice (so I figured it would for sure dry out before it was finished). Definitely one I’ll be making again!

    1. Christin Mahrlig says:

      So happy you enjoyed it Helen.