Dump and Bake Taco Chicken and Rice Casserole
These super simple dump and bake taco chicken rice casserole is the easiest taco inspired dinner recipe the whole family will love! Add ingredients to the pan you cook them in, stir and bake and then add sour cream, cilantro and all the cheese on top. This dish is simple to customize, uses a pack of your preferred taco seasoning and is even better with all the taco toppings!
Servings: 6
Ingredients
- 1 cup long grain white rice, uncooked rinsed well
- 1 ¾ -2 cups chicken broth low sodium preferred
- 1 can rotel 10 oz. (tomatoes with green chiles)
- 2-3 garlic cloves minced
- 1 cup corn frozen or canned
- 1 can black beans 15 oz., drained and rinsed
- juice of one lime
- 1½ lb chicken breast cut in bite-sized pieces
- taco seasoning packet, 1- 1.31 oz. (approx. 3-4 Tbsp, we like siete foods)
- ½ cup chopped cilantro more for topping
- ⅓ - ½ cup sour cream room temperature
- 1½ cup freshly shredded pepper jack or your favorite cheddar!
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F.
- Add rice, broth, rotel (don’t drain any liquid), beans, corn. garlic, and lime juice to a 9×13 inch baking pan and stir to combine.
- Add the cubed chicken over top and sprinkle over the taco seasoning packet. Gently stir to combine.
- Cover the pan with foil and seal very tight. Bake for 50-60 minutes or until the chicken has reached 165°F and the rice is tender.
- Once cooked, remove from oven and stir in the sour cream and cilantro. Sprinkle the cheese over top to cover and broil on high for about 3-5 minutes or until cheese is melted and browned.
- Allow the dish to rest for about 10 minutes before serving. Add your favorite toppings, we like jalapeños, more cilantro, crushed tortilla chips and tomatoes. Oh and more sour cream!
Notes
Add lots of toppings! This chicken rice taco bake is so good with all the taco toppings: sour cream, jalapeños, olives, tomatoes, avocado, pickled onions, crushed fritos, and more.
Make sure your rice is not par-boiled or precooked in any way. Using uncooked rice is imperative to the success of this taco bake. If you use a rice that has already been cooked in some way, you will end up with a mushy mess for sure.
Cut your chicken into similar sized pieces. About 1 - 1 1/2 inch pieces are ideal for the cook time in this recipe, and making sure they are all similar in size will keep them from becoming overcooked or dry.
Storage: Store leftovers in an airtight container for about 4-5 days in the refrigerator. This dish can be frozen up to 3 months in a freezer safe container. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.
To reheat, bake at 350°F uncovered for about 15-20 minutes or until heated through. You can microwave leftovers, but the chicken can become a bit dry doing it this way.
Nutrition
Calories: 471kcal | Carbohydrates: 43g | Protein: 41g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Cholesterol: 105mg | Sodium: 562mg | Potassium: 832mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 549IU | Vitamin C: 11mg | Calcium: 277mg | Iron: 3mg