Get all the flavors of your favorite enchilada dinner in this easy one-pot Crockpot Chicken Enchilada Casserole recipe – no rolling tortillas or baking required! Just layers of tortillas, tender chicken, and cheesy goodness that your whole family will love.
While I love spring and everything that it brings – warm sunshine, fresh flowers, and long days outside, we are also in the season of life that each and every week is filled with the chaos that is multiple sports, end of the year activities, and an onset of non-stop birthday parties and other gatherings.
It suddenly feels like we have no time, especially for ordinary activities like, you know eating and cooking dinner.
And while I have been an Instant Pot girl for the past six years, I recently bought a new Crock Pot and it has saved us. And so I would expect this chicken enchilada casserole recipe to be the first of many slow cooker recipes to come!
Why I Love This Slow Cooker Chicken Enchilada Casserole
This recipe is a gem, checking all my boxes:
- It tastes JUST like a tray of chicken enchiladas, but no rolling or baking necessary.
- There’s minimal prep and chopping. And if you have one of these food choppers, you can get your veggies prepped in minutes.
- It uses pantry staples like chicken broth, tomato sauce, canned beans, and dried seasonings. No need for special enchilada sauce.
- Toppings. I love a dinner with toppings.
- We love Mexican food here – such a crowd pleaser.
If you love my popular Mexican Lasagna and my Lazy Zucchini Enchilada Skillet, you have to try this one! Our new favorite taco Tuesday dinner!
Looking for an authentic enchilada recipe? Try these Enchiladas Verdes from Mama Maggie’s Kitchen!
Ingredients
I almost always have these simple ingredients on hand, making this a go-to dinner for us. You will need:
- tomato sauce – I use two, 8 ounce cans. If you can find low sodium sauce, that is always a bonus.
- low sodium chicken broth – you can sub chicken stock and veggie broth/stock would also work great.
- chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, onion, powder and oregano and salt – this combination of spices turns ordinary tomato sauce into an easy, homemade red enchilada sauce.
- chicken breast – I use chicken tenderloins, but any boneless cut of chicken works.
- bell peppers – my picky kids prefer green, but you can use any color of peppers. Did you know red bell pepper has the most health benefits? Also – do not discount frozen bell peppers and onions!
- onion – any color onion works for this recipe.
- black beans – love the extra protein and fiber you get from adding beans.
- fresh lime – optional
- thin corn tortillas – my favorite kind of tortillas are the Mission Brand and I specifically look for the thin tortilla because you can eat three for 120 calories or one yellow container for the 21 day fix.
- freshly shredded cheese – cheddar cheese, monterey jack cheese, pepper jack, or your favorite Mexican style cheese blend.
- toppings – add your favorite toppings – diced avocado, fresh pico de gallo, plain Greek yogurt (my favorite sour cream substitute), fresh cilantro, black olives, green onions, red onions, fresh lime, hot sauce…the list is endless!
Full nutrition information and ingredient amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
Step by Step Instructions
This crockpot chicken enchilada casserole couldn’t be easier!
- Mix sauce, spices, salt, and broth together to make the quick enchilada sauce.
- Spray bottom of the slow cooker with nonstick spray (optional, but recommended). Add chicken, bell peppers, onions, and beans into the crock pot. Sprinkle with an additional pinch of salt. Pour enchilada sauce over the chicken and veggies. Stir.
- Cook for 6-8 hours on low heat or 2-4 hours on high heat.
- After cook time, shred chicken using two forks. You can do this right in the crockpot or in a separate bowl if it’s easier.
- Stir shredded chicken and sauce, and squeeze in a little lime juice, if desired. Then stir in 1/3 to 1 cup of cheese into chicken mixture – depending on your preference. We like this recipe with lots of cheese.
- Using a pizza cutter or a sharp knife, slice corn tortillas into 8 small triangles. Stir tortillas into cheesy chicken mixture. Top with the remaining cheese. Cover pot and allow cheese to melt for another 10-20 minutes.
- Serve with a drizzle of plain greek yogurt and topped with fresh cilantro, fresh pico de gallo, or your favorite toppings.
Recipe Variations + Substitutions
- Swap out the protein: use chicken thighs, flank steak, or your favorite ground meat (but be sure to saute the ground meat first)
- Make it vegetarian: add extra beans or refried beans and even some corn to replace the meat in this recipe
- Make it lower carb: skip the tortillas for a low carb version of this cheesy casserole.
- Sub in diced tomatoes with green chilis or crushed tomatoes if that’s all you have on hand.
- Skip the corn tortillas and top with crushed tortilla chips instead or serve it as a dip or nacho topping!
- Need some shortcuts? Use my salt-free taco seasoning if you have it prepped already. Or use frozen diced onions and bell peppers so eliminate the need for chopping!
Meal Prep and Storage
To Prep Ahead: this recipe requires minimal prep, but on meal prep day, chop your onion and bell pepper and store in an airtight container for up to 4 days before you cook your casserole. You can also prep the spices.
To Store: Place leftover chicken enchilada casserole in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
To Freeze: Freeze leftover casserole in a freezer safe container for up to 3 months. You can use Souper Cubes to freeze individual portions for grab and go dinners and lunch.
To Reheat: Place in a microwave safe dish and heat for 2 minutes or until casserole is warmed through.
Can I use flour tortillas?
I prefer to use corn tortillas for this recipe, as flour tortillas tend to give the casserole a doughy texture and that’s not what we are going for here. Plus corn tortillas are gluten free.
Do the tortillas get mushy in the slow cooker?
Since they go in at the end of cook time, they tortillas get soft, but they do not get mushy. For us, the taste and texture is very similar to corn tortilla based enchiladas that are baked in sauce. If you are worried about the texture of the tortillas, you can opt to top with crispy tortilla strips instead.
Looking for a more traditional enchilada recipe? Check out these healthy enchiladas!
More Easy Recipes for the Crock Pot
Slow Cooker Salsa Verde Chicken Soup
Crockpot Chicken Enchilada Casserole
Ingredients
- 2 cups tomato sauce
- ¾ cups low sodium chicken broth
- 4 teaspoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1/4 tsp salt plus more for chicken
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon oregano
- 1.5 pounds chicken breast
- 2 cups diced green bell pepper
- ½ cup diced onion
- 6 thin corn tortillas I use Mission brand – 3 for 1 yellow
- 1 cup black beans
- ⅔ – 1 1/3 cups of freshly shredded cheddar cheese
Toppings
- plain Greek yogurt, cilantro, fresh pico de gallo, diced avocado
Instructions
- Mix tomato sauce, spices, salt, and broth together.
- Add chicken, bell peppers, onions, and beans into crock pot. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt. Pour enchilada sauce over the chicken and veggies. Stir.
- Cook for 6-8 hours on low heat or 2-4 hours on high heat
- After cook time, shred chicken using two forks. You can do this right in the crockpot or in a separate bowl if it’s easier.
- Stir chicken and sauce. Then stir in 1 cup of cheese.
- Using a pizza cutter or a sharp knife, slice corn tortillas into 8 small triangles. Stir tortillas into cheesy chicken mixture. Top with the remaining cheese. Cover crock pot and allow cheese to melt for another 10-20 minutes.
- Serve with a drizzle of plain greek yogurt and topped with fresh cilantro, fresh pico de gallo, and diced avocado.
geri says
Are the black beans uncooked or canned
Nancylynn says
canned 🙂
Hillary says
I was so impressed with the flavors that came from this dish. It’s SO filling and a great recipe to make on a workday. My husband loves it too and typically make it once a week.
Nancylynn says
Thank you, Hillary! So nice to hear!
Tamara Stein says
What happens to the tortillas when the leftovers are refrigerated over night?
Nancylynn says
They will get like a lot of reheated tortillas, a little mushy. And the texture could be off putting to some. If you know you’ll have leftovers you could always keep a portion of the crock without tortillas and then add fresh crispy tortilla strips to your reheated portion the next day!
https://confessionsofafitfoodie.com/instant-pot-chicken-tortilla-soup-21-day-fix/ There are tortilla strip directions in this post!
Susan C says
Would reheating any leftovers in the airfryer help crisp things back up and get rid of any potential mushiness?
Nancylynn says
That would definitely help!!
Emily says
I don’t see enchilada sauce in the ingredients list – can you advise?
Nancylynn says
The first step of the instructions is making the sauce, but I see your confusion. I added the word tomato to make it more clear! So you’ll mix the tomato sauce, spices, salt, and broth to make the enchilada sauce!
Catherine says
This was so good but really watery- after it sat a bit it thickened up but it didn’t look like yours… still delicious and healthy!
Nancylynn says
Thank you Catherine! Next time try taking the lid off for the last 30 minutes (before adding the tortillas) and see if that helps thicken it up a little bit.
Mel says
Is this gluten free?
Nancylynn says
Yes! When you use corn tortillas it is!
Jen says
I think this is our new favorite recipe by you. I used the instapot directions I found in the comments. The only slight change was that I used 5 teaspoons of taco seasoning instead of the chilli+cumin (my hubby and kids don’t like anything remotely spicy). I also let it natural release for 15 min and then did quick release for the rest because we were starving lol. It did have probably a bit more liquid in it than if I had done the full natural release, but it was still perfectly fine. This is going to be a staple in our house!
Nancylynn says
Thank you for this feedback, Jen!
Jenn says
Hands down the best enchilada recipe! it’s sooo good and my kids have now requested it three weeks in a row!
Nancylynn says
Wow!! Such a win!
Emily says
What is the serving size please of this meal?
Nancylynn says
It can vary based on varying sizes of veggies, etc. but if you divide the entire recipe into 4 equal portions they should be about 1 1/2-1 3/4 cups each.
Anastasia Keys says
Can you make this in an instant pot?
Nancylynn says
I haven’t tested it, but YES it should work! Be careful about layering – give it a good oil spray, then chicken on the bottom, peppers onions and beans next, and sauce on top of that. Don’t stir! Then cook for 15 minutes and do a natural release. Then you can shred the chicken and follow the slow cooker instructions on how to finish. Please report back if you try it!! Good luck!
Niki Patel says
I made it in IP and it’s so good!
Nancylynn says
Oooh thank you Niki! Did you follow this exactly or make some tweaks?
Natalie Repinski says
♥️