Easiest Ever Chicken Taco Casserole Recipe

This Chicken Taco Casserole recipes is one of the easiest dinners to prepare and everyone loves it!

If you browse Happy Healthy Mama dinner recipes over the years, you’ll see an evolution. The dinner recipes I created when my kids were toddlers are different than the recipes that I create now that they are active teenagers. It’s a reflection of the way I’ve evolved in my understanding of how to best meet our nutritional needs, as well as how the amount of food needed to feed teenagers is way different than toddlers or small children, and how Luke outgrew his food intolerances and can eat things he couldn’t when he was younger, like gluten and dairy.

I still prioritize vegetables as much as possible, and limit gluten in general since it can be inflammatory, but my priorities have changed in what our dinners need to include. I consider how to feed them well for both their growth/development AND performance in their sports and dance.

It gets tricky when what they need to fuel their growing/developing bodies for peak performance is very different than what their parents, in their late 40s, need. I settle this paradox by creating meals for them that my husband Tim and I can still eat, maybe just in smaller proportions and/or with something different added to the meal. This Chicken Taco Casserole, for example, I could serve with a salad. Tim and I can have smaller portions of the casserole with a bigger portion of salad, while the kids can have a bigger portion of the casserole and smaller portions of the salad. I make meals work for the entire family even though we have different needs!

One thing that hasn’t changed over the years is that my favorite recipes are those that are quick, easy, and require minimal prep at dinnertime. This is the perfect dinner in my eyes for that reason! With a little meal prep of cooking your chicken ahead of time (I use this recipe for how to cook a whole chicken in the Instant Pot), or using leftover chicken, this recipe takes about 5 minutes of prep and can be on the dinner table in about 35 minutes!

I used my original Taco Casserole recipe, that’s made with ground beef, as the basis for this Chicken Taco Casserole recipe. The whole family loved it and it’s a perfect way to change up taco night!

Recipe Ingredients –What You Need

Only four simple ingredients needed to make this easy dinner!

4 cups shredded chicken

You can use leftover chicken, rotisserie chicken, or chicken you cook ahead of time. You can use all chicken breasts or a combination of light meat and dark meat.

1 (15.25 ounce) jar salsa of choice

I have used mango salsa in all my recipe testing; use your favorite salsa flavor to make this recipe the flavor and spiciness level you prefer. The salsa you choose will dictate the overall flavor of this chicken taco bake, so choose a good one!

5-6 small flour or corn tortillas

With this easy chicken taco casserole, I used flour tortillas, but I know that corn tortillas work because that’s what I used in this Taco Casserole. Use what you have on hand or what you prefer.

3 cups shredded Mexican cheese blend

I upped the cheese amount for this recipe so there’s plenty of melty cheese in the final product.

Optional Toppings

No toppings are needed for this dish, but if you love toppings, try green onions, fresh cilantro, hot sauce, sour cream, or plain Greek yogurt.

How to Make Chicken Taco Casserole

Here are the step-by-step instructions for how to make this easy weeknight dinner. If you’d like printable instructions, please scroll down to the recipe card.

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a large bowl, combine the shredded chicken and salsa.
3. Cut the tortillas into strips so they don’t have to overlap in the casserole dish.
4. In a square baking dish, spread 1/3 of the chicken mixture in the bottom. Top with 1/3 of the cheese.
5. Finally, cover the chicken and cheese with a layer of the tortilla strips.
6. Repeat this process, ending with a final layer of chicken and cheese on top.
7. Bake casserole in the preheated oven for 30 minutes. Allow to rest for 5-10 minutes before slicing and serving. Enjoy!

What to Serve with Chicken Taco Casserole

This Chicken Taco Casserole can be a complete meal by itself, but here are some ideas if you’d like to add a side dish or salad with your dinner.

1. Mexican Chopped Salad with Spicy Avocado Dressing — the flavors of this salad are perfect with a taco casserole.
2. Mexican Quinoa Skillet—you could stretch out the casserole to serve 6-8 if you serve it with this quinoa skillet on the side.
3. Mixed greens dressed with thisCilantro Lime dressing—this would be a light and easy side to include with your meal.

If you make this Chicken Taco Casserole, or any of my other healthy recipes, please let me know! I’d love to see a photo–share it on Instagram and I’ll feature you. Please leave a comment and star rating below. It really helps other readers know which recipes are tried and true!

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Easiest Ever Chicken Taco Casserole Recipe

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4 from 1 review

• Author: Maryea
• Total Time: 35 minutes
• Yield: 4 servings 1x

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Description

A super easy casserole that is filling and delicious.

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Ingredients

Units USM Scale 1x2x3x

• 4 cups shredded chicken
• 1 (15.25 ounce) jar salsa of choice
• 5-6 small flour or corn tortillas
• 3 cups shredded Mexican cheese blend

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Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a large bowl, combine the shredded chicken and salsa.
3. Cut the tortillas into strips so they don’t have to overlap in the casserole dish.
4. In a square baking dish, spread 1/3 of the chicken mixture in the bottom. Top with 1/3 of the cheese. Finally, cover the chicken and cheese with a layer of the tortilla strips. Repeat this process, ending with a final layer of chicken and cheese on top.
5. Bake casserole in the preheated oven for 30 minutes. Allow to rest for 5-10 minutes before slicing and serving. Enjoy!

• Prep Time: 5 minutes
• Cook Time: 30 minutes
• Category: dinner recipes
• Method: bake
• Cuisine: Mexican

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1/4 of recipe
• Calories: 657
• Sugar: 6.2 grams
• Fat: 31 grams
• Saturated Fat: 15.4 grams
• Trans Fat: 0 grams
• Carbohydrates: 41 grams
• Fiber: 2.5 grams
• Protein: 52.8 grams