Making a chicken casserole recipe like this easy chicken fajita casserole is one of my favorite comfort foods. It has all the fajita flavors with chicken and peppers baked into one cheesy dish.
This Chicken Casserole Recipe Is a Favorite Family Dinner
This casserole, like my creamy chicken casserole, is always a huge hit when I make it. You know I’m a fan of everything Mexican food so this gets added to the rotation very often in my house. It’s quick and easy to make on a busy weeknight or weekend and is so comforting!
You can scoop it right onto your plate and top with any favorite toppings like avocado or guacamole, sour cream, cilantro, salsa or pico de gallo and crushed tortilla chips. Or you can also serve it in burrito size flour tortillas with more gooey cheese!
It’s also a great recipe to make ahead by a day or so. Just mix everything together, and put it in the baking dish, cover and refrigerate until you’re ready to bake. Be sure to place the dish in a cold over and then turn the oven on so the dish doesn’t crack.
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Ingredients You’ll Need to Gather
The complete list of ingredients with amounts are listed in the full recipe card below.
- Olive oil – for sautéing the veggies. sed to sauté the onions and peppers. You can use any neutral oil like avocado oil or canola oil if you’d like.
- Onion – Slice a yellow or white onion into thin pieces.
- Red bell pepper and green bell pepper – sliced thin. Use any colors you’d like.
- Chicken breast – cooked and shredded. You can also use chicken thighs, chicken tenders or a mixture of both white and dark meat.
- Rice – I cooked Mexican rice for this recipe but you can use plain white rice or brown rice. If you’d like to season the plain rice yourself, use a couple more tablespoons of fajitas seasoning or taco seasoning. Spanish rice packets are also good.
- Cream of chicken soup – Swap one can for salsa or diced tomatoes for extra flavor.
- Cream cheese, at room temperature – Softened to room temperature.
- Fajita seasoning – Any brand will work.
- Shredded Mexican blend cheese – I like to shred my own so it’s extra creamy. Some goes into the casserole mixture and the rest gets sprinkled on on top. Swap with another cheese like any cheddar cheese, Monterey Jack, colby jack, or pepper jack or a combination of a few as long as you have about 2 or so cups. Feel free to add more cheese of course.
Variations To Try
1. Although this chicken casserole is perfect as is, here a few ways you can change it up if you’d like.
2. Add a 15 ounce can of pinto beans or black beans, drained first.
3. Swap one of the cans of cream of chicken soup for a cup of salsa (or diced tomatoes) or sour cream.
4. Add any favorite hot sauce or even sliced jalapeños if you want to make it spicy.
5. Swap the rice for cauliflower rice for a lower carb option
Ways to Cook The Shredded Chicken
There are several easy ways to cook the chicken to use for this cheesy chicken fajitas casserole. No matter how I cook it, I love to use a food processor and pulse the chicken just about 4 or 5 times to make it the perfect size for any recipe that calls for shredded chicken. You can use any leftover chicken.
I. Bake chicken breasts at 375° F in a baking dish covered with aluminum foil for 30-40 minutes until the thickest part is not longer pink.
2. Boil the chicken in a pot of water for about 20 minutes. Remove from the water and let it sit for 10 minutes on a plate before shredding.
3. Use a rotisserie chicken. De-bone all the meat from a store bought cooked chicken.
4. Slow cook chicken breasts in a Crock Pot on high for 4 hours or low for 6-7 hours. I love doing this and freezing it in plastic freezer bags for quick prep on recipes like this!
5. Cook the chicken breasts in a skillet in a couple of tablespoons olive oil on medium high heat for 5-7 minutes on each side until no longer pink in the thickest part.
How to Make Chicken Fajita Casserole
Step 1: Preheat oven to 375° F. Grease a 9×13 inch baking dish with cooking spray or a light coating of olive oil.
Step 2: Cook the rice per package directions.
Step 3: In a large skillet, add the oil, onions and peppers and saute over medium-high heat for 4-5 minutes until tender. Remove from the heat and set aside.
Step 4: In a large bowl, add the cooked chicken, cooked rice, cream of chicken soup, cream cheese, fajita seasoning, sautéd peppers and onions, and one cup of shredded cheese. Stir until all the ingredients are combined well.
Step 5: Pour the chicken mixture into the prepared casserole dish and top with the remaining cup of cheese. Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes until the cheese is melted and bubbly.
Serve with more cheese on top and any your favorite Mexican toppings.
How to Store Leftovers
Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Freeze: Place in a freezer safe container covered tightly for up to 2 months. ( I like to wrap it in plastic wrap and also aluminum foil). Thaw in the refrigerator overnight.Keep in mind that rice may be softer when thawed.
Reheat: Reheat single servings on a microwave safe plate in the microwave for 30 seconds, stir and repeat if necessary. Or place the casserole dish in a cold oven and heat to 350° F and cook for 15 minutes or until heated through.
If you love this chicken fajita casserole, make these other chicken casserole recipes next:
- Mexican Chicken Casserole
- Slow Cooker Chicken Enchilada Casserole
- Chicken Parmesan Casserole
- Bacon Ranch Chicken Casserole
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Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 small yellow onion sliced thin
- 1 cup red bell pepper sliced thin
- 1 cup green bell pepper sliced thin
- 1 ½ pounds chicken cooked and shredded (approximately 4 cups cooked)
- 3 cups Mexican rice cooked per to the package directions (like 6.4 ounce box Rice a Roni Mexican rice)
- 21 ounces cream of chicken soup (2) 10.5 cans
- 8 ounces cream cheese at room temperature
- 3 tablespoons fajita seasoning a 1-ounce packet
- 2 cups shredded Mexican blend cheese divided
- Optional toppings: sour cream avocado, cilantro, crushed tortilla chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375° F. Grease a 9×13-inch casserole dish.
- Cook the rice per package directions.3 cups Mexican rice
- In a large skillet, add the oil, onions and peppers and saute over medium-high heat for 4-5 minutes until tender. Remove from the heat and set aside.2 tablespoons olive oil, 1 small yellow onion, 1 cup red bell pepper, 1 cup green bell pepper
- In a large bowl, add the cooked, shredded chicken, cooked rice, cream of chicken soup, cream cheese, fajita seasoning, sautéd peppers and onions, and one cup of shredded cheese. Stir until all the ingredients are combined well.1 ½ pounds chicken, 21 ounces cream of chicken soup, 8 ounces cream cheese, 3 tablespoons fajita seasoning, 2 cups shredded Mexican blend cheese
- Pour the mixture into the prepared dish a and top with the remaining cup of cheese.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes until the cheese is melted and bubbly.
- Serve with your favorite toppings like avocado or guacamole, sour cream, cilantro, salsa or pico de gallo.Optional toppings: sour cream
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclosure
Nutrition information is automatically calculated and should only be used as an approximation.
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