Description
This easy Crockpot Chicken Enchilada Casserole turns tender chicken plus enchilada sauce plus corn tortillas plus black beans plus melted cheese into a quick and simple family meal. It is one of the best healthy dinner ideas for a busy weeknight dinner plus meal prep plus a casual potluck plus a game day party. Everything cooks together with very little hands on work and each serving has saucy layers plus soft tortillas plus plenty of comforting flavor.
Ingredients
- 2 large breasts or about 1 1/2 pounds Boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 2 cups Red enchilada sauce
- 1 can or 15 ounces drained and rinsed Black beans
- 1 cup frozen or drained canned corn Corn kernels
- 8 small tortillas cut into irregular strips Corn tortillas
- 2 cups divided Shredded Mexican blend cheese
- 1 can or 4 ounces Diced green chiles
- 1 small onion diced Yellow onion
- 1 teaspoon Ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon Garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon Chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons roughly chopped Fresh cilantro
- 1/2 cup for serving Sour cream
Instructions
- Place the 2 chicken breasts in the crockpot with slight overlap and pour the red enchilada sauce around and partly over them. Scatter the diced onion and green chiles across the surface so some chicken remains visible. Sprinkle in the cumin and garlic powder and chili powder and salt. The chicken should look unevenly coated with red sauce pooling more deeply around the edges.
- Cook the coated chicken until the breasts lose their raw pink color and become fully opaque and tender. The onion and green chiles soften while the sauce darkens slightly and gathers around the chicken. The 2 breasts should remain whole at this stage although their edges will look softer and slightly separated. Small bubbles and darker red patches show the sauce has cooked down.
- Pull the 2 cooked chicken breasts into irregular bite size shreds and fold them through the thickened enchilada sauce. The meat should spread across the crockpot instead of staying in two whole pieces. Some strands should remain pale inside while others become fully red from the sauce. The mixture should look loose and uneven with small pockets of sauce visible between the chicken.
- Add the black beans and corn and irregular tortilla strips to the shredded chicken. Fold them through the sauce until they are partly coated while some yellow corn and dark beans remain visible. The tortilla strips should bend and overlap in loose layers instead of forming a neat pattern. The mixture becomes thicker and more structured as the tortillas begin absorbing sauce.
- Scatter 2 cups of shredded Mexican blend cheese unevenly over the thick chicken and tortilla mixture. Leave a few gaps where the red sauce and beans remain visible around the edges. Continue cooking until the cheese melts into irregular pools with a few golden patches. The tortillas should look soft and the casserole should hold together when a portion is lifted.
- Lift one generous portion onto a white plate so the inside layers of shredded chicken and softened tortilla strips and black beans and corn are clearly visible. Let the melted cheese stretch slightly and fall unevenly over the cut edges. Finish the single portion with chopped cilantro and a small spoonful of sour cream. The serving should look saucy and homemade with irregular edges and mixed red plus golden color.
Notes
Pro Tips:
- Use corn tortillas because they soften into distinct layers and hold their structure better than thin flour tortillas.
- Drain and rinse the black beans well so excess liquid does not thin the enchilada sauce during the final cooking stage.
- Shred the chicken directly in the sauce so every irregular piece absorbs flavor and stays moist throughout the casserole.
- Add the cheese near the end so it melts into soft uneven pools without becoming oily or disappearing into the filling.
Storage: Let the casserole cool until it is no longer steaming before transferring it to an airtight container. Store it in the refrigerator for up to four days. For meal prep divide the casserole into individual portions so each serving cools quickly and reheats evenly. Keep sour cream and cilantro in separate containers until serving. Reheat a portion until the center is hot and the cheese is soft again. Add a small spoonful of enchilada sauce before reheating if the tortillas have absorbed most of the moisture. For longer storage freeze cooled portions for up to three months. Thaw them overnight in the refrigerator and reheat gently so the chicken remains tender.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 4 hours 15 minutes
- Category: Dinner
- Cuisine: Mexican Inspired