When I think of quick family favorites this cheesy chicken casserole tops the list!
Table of Contents
🗝️ Key takeaways
- It's done in less than 30 minutes and it's the BEST way to use up tortilla chips that have gone a bit stale.
- Since you can assemble this ahead of time, or make it and freeze, it's a delicious weeknight dinner!
- Don't have any creamed corn? Read through the Things to Know section for the best substitute!
Monterey chicken casserole is full of Tex-Mex goodness in every bite.
The cream-style corn helps to keep the chicken mixture creamy while the cheese adds just the right amount of melty goodness.
It's even better with a few candied jalapenos on the side! You'll also want to try the taco spaghetti - it's a 30-minute dinner the whole family will love!
🧾 Ingredients
📖 Variations
- Substitute pork or turkey.
- You can use boneless chicken thighs in place of the boneless skinless chicken breasts.
- I like to use Monterey Jack cheese or Pepper Jack in place of the Colby Jack.
- Use Fritos in place of tortilla chips.
🔪 Instructions
This is such an easy chicken recipe! This is an overview of the instructions - you'll find the full instructions in the green recipe card below.
- Saute chicken, onion, and green pepper until done.
- Layer chips in the bottom of the pan.
- Layer the chicken and vegetables over chips. Top chicken with cilantro.
- Add creamed corn, top with olives and half the cheese. Add a layer of salsa. Add another layer of chips and top with the remaining cheese. Bake.
🥫 How to store
You can make this cheesy chicken casserole a few days ahead of time but leave the tortilla chips off the top until you're ready to bake it.
Leftovers should be covered tightly with plastic wrap or put in an airtight container and refrigerated for up to three days - or you can freeze the baked casserole for up to three months.
If you'd like to freeze this easy casserole unbaked just make sure you leave the top layer of chips off of it.
💭 Things to know
This Monterey chicken tortilla casserole recipe got 100% thumbs up at our table. All of the kids liked it... a lot. Comments like, "Wow Mom, it's delicious!" made me smile.
Expert Tip: Keep your knife sharp and change cutting boards and knives between the chicken and the vegetables to prevent cross-contamination. The more uniform the sizes of the chopped foods the better it will cook.
- Grab a rotisserie chicken on your way home to save time!
- Don't use packaged shredded cheese. Shred your own from a block - it melts much better.
- This easy Monterey chicken casserole recipe can be made ahead and even frozen - just leave the tortilla chips off the top until ready to bake.
- If you don't have creamed corn use regular corn and add 1 can of undiluted cream of chicken soup. You may need to add ⅓ cup of milk to make it "saucy".
- I like to keep bags of chopped onions and peppers in the freezer to keep it easy and save even more time. They work really well in this.
- Garnish with green onions if you like them.
- Serve with a dollop of sour cream or guacamole on top!
- If you make extra chicken you can assemble this easy chicken spaghetti casserole at the same time and freeze it for later!
Try these easy chicken empanadas next! They are a great grab-and-go meal!
👩🏻🍳 Frequently asked questions
Here are the questions I am most frequently asked about this recipe.
Think of highly flavored ingredients like chiles, tomatoes, garlic, etc. This casserole gets a lot of its flavor from the salsa.
This cheesy chicken casserole starts with cooked chicken so all you are doing is making sure it's warmed through. As a general rule your dish is done when it registers 165F in the center on an insta-read thermometer.
📚 Related recipes
🍽️ Serve with..
This is a creamy dish so I like to serve a salad for crunch - try this marinated southern cucumber salad. Grilled pineapple lends a sweet, fruitiness to the meal.
Finish sweet with this Boston cream poke cake.
📞 The last word
This easy chicken casserole feeds a crowd and it's a great way to use up leftover tortilla chips. It doesn't matter if they're a little stale.
I like to top this will a little sour cream and some extra cilantro just before serving. Next time try this chicken and stuffing casserole.
If you click on the number of servings in the recipe card you can adjust the measurements up or down for the exact number of servings you need.
If you love this recipe please give it 5 stars! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📖 Recipe
Monterey Chicken Casserole
Print Pin Recipe Save Recipe Rate RecipeIngredients
- 3 cups tortilla chips, broken in coarse pieces
- 4 boneless chicken breasts, or thighs
- Salt and pepper
- 15 ounces Cream-style whole kernel corn
- 1 ½ cups Medium hot Salsa
- ½ cup Pitted ripe olives, sliced
- 1 cup cheese, shredded. Colby Jack, Pepper Jack, or Cheddar all work well.
- 1 cup Onion, chopped
- 1 cup Green pepper, chopped
- ¼ cup Fresh cilantro
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F.
- Oil a 13 x 9 inch pan.
- Cut the chicken into uniform sized chunks.
- Chop the onion and green pepper.
- Season the chicken with salt and pepper.
- Saute the chicken in a hot pan with a little olive oil.
- Add the onion and green pepper after about 5 minutes.
- Saute until chicken is done (165F) and vegetables are tender.
- Put half of the crumbled chips on the bottom of the casserole dish.
- Add the chicken and vegetables.
- Sprinkle with cilantro.
- Pour the creamed corn over.
- Sprinkle the half the cheese and the olives over the corn.
- Spoon the salsa over.
- Add another layer of crumbled chips and top with cheese.
- Bake for 20 to 30 minutes, or until cheese is melted and casserole is bubbly.
Notes
- You can save time by starting with cooked chicken.
- Substitute pork or turkey.
- Monterey Chicken Casserole can be made ahead and even frozen - just leave the tortilla chips off the top until ready to bake.
- If you don't have creamed corn use regular corn and add 1 can of undiluted cream of chicken soup. You may need to add ⅓ cup of milk to make it "saucy".
- Vary the cheese. Pepper Jack or Cheddar work well.
- I like to keep bags of chopped onions and peppers in the freezer to keep it easy and save even more time.
- Garnish with green onions if you like them.
- Serve with a dollop of sour cream or guac on top!
- Store leftovers in the refrigerator, tightly covered, for up to 4 days.
Nutrition Facts
Nutrition information is estimated as a courtesy. If using for medical purposes, please verify information using your own nutritional calculator. Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
This recipe has been tested several times. If you choose to use other ingredients, or change the technique in some way, the results may not be the same.
First Published January 26, 2012. Last Updated September 13, 2023 for editorial improvements.
Ali says
I have made this a couple of times and I making it tonight. It is so good! The changes I made was is omitting the black olives and I seasoned the chicken with Montreal Chicken seasoning. Oh and added more cheese on top. Thank you for this recipe and the many delicious recipes you have.