This is a take on my mom’s chicken enchilada recipe. I loved this meal growing up. But it’s very time-consuming to make the enchiladas separately. Plus, in our old house, we didn’t have the kitchen counter space.
So, I turned her same recipe into a casserole. It’s quick, easy, and oh-so-good!
Ingredients
1 large can of Ortega chiles
4 lbs of boneless skinless chicken breast
1 white onion, diced
1 can of black olives, sliced
2 large cans of refried beans
24 Homestyle flour tortillas
1 lb of Monterey Jack cheese, grated
1 lb of Cheddar cheese, grated
1 large family-sized can of cream of chicken soup
2 packages of enchilada mix
Water
Recipe
Dice the chicken and cook in a buttered or oiled pan until completely done. Do not undercook. Set aside.
Mix the enchilada mix and cream of chicken soup. Add water as necessary to thin this mixture.
Heat the refried beans.
In a large casserole pan, add a layer of the enchilada sauce mixture. Then place about 8 tortillas to line the bottom of the pan. You can use more or less depending on the size of your pan.
On top of the tortillas, spread a layer of refried beans. Then add chicken, diced onions. a mix of cheeses, sliced olives, chiles, and then enchilada sauce. Top this layer with about 8 more tortillas.
Make another layer with refried beans, chicken, diced onion, cheese, sliced olives, chiles, and more enchilada sauce.
If you’ve reached the top of your pan, top it with more tortillas and cover it with enchilada sauce. Then add more cheese and the rest of the olives.
Place the pan on a cookie sheet and place in a 350-degree oven for about an hour.
Variations
Instead of chicken, you can use leftover Thanksgiving turkey, ground beef, etc. Just adjust your cooking time if using cooked ground beef or turkey.
You can also add Southwest-style corn to this dish in place of the canned chiles or in addition.
Dig In
Once your casserole is finished, dig in! Add a bit of sour cream to the top. Have a side of chips and salsa. The possibilities are endless!