Chicken Enchilada Casserole (White Queso & Cool Ranch Doritos)

This Chicken Enchilada Casserole is loaded with spicy white queso and topped with a mixture of white cheddar cheese and cool ranch Doritos. Must I say more? This chicken enchilada casserole is super easy to make and is definitely a crowd pleaser. Perfect for these cold and dark winter evenings.

I graduated for the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville. I can't say there is much about that town when it comes to food that I miss. The Mexican food there is subpar compared to my beloved Tex Mex.

There is a popular dish in Fayetteville called the Steven's Special, which is a fajita chicken on a bed of rice drowned in white queso. It is typically served with flour tortillas and you make tacos with the cheesy chicken rice mixture.

So I created this chicken enchilada casserole with the Steven's special in mind. In my opinion this dish is much better than the original. The queso is a little spicy and the chicken is super juicy. And what takes it to the next level is the cool ranch Dorito topping.

Try my Buttermilk Ranch Chicken and Dumplings for another hearty dinner idea!

Tips for Making the Best Chicken Enchilada Casserole

• Grease the bottom of the casserole dish. I use some nonstick spray to grease the bottom of the casserole dish. I find that if I do this I have no issues with the tortillas sticking to the bottom.
• Do not over thicken the queso. We want the queso to be a tad runny. It will thicken even more when the chicken enchilada casserole goes in the oven. This keeps the casserole moist.
• Save some of the chicken liquid. When we shred the chicken, we do not want to leave all of those cooking juices behind. The juice adds even more flavor and moisture to the casserole.
• Save some cheese for the top. The star of the show is this topping. Be sure to add some cheese to the top.

Let's Get Cooking

1. Cook the chicken in the instant pot. The instant pot cooks the chicken quickly and makes it so tender. If you do not have an instant pot you can boil the chicken or see my shortcut below. Just throw in the chicken, water, enchilada sauce, spices, and turn it on.
2. Make the rice. We will start by sautéing the rice in some butter. When it comes to the liquids, it is important to read the instructions on the back of the rice. Each kind varies on cook time and water ratios.
3. Make the queso. Don't overcook the onions and peppers. They add some nice texture. Once those are done, we will make a roux. This is a paste of equal parts fat and flour, which thickens sauces. Once the half and half is added and the cheese is melted, remove the sauce from the heat. We do not want to over thicken the sauce, like I mentioned above.
4. Shred the chicken and add the rice. We will shred the chicken and add back in some of the cooking liquid. Then we will add the rice to the chicken to make assembling easier.
5. Assemble the chicken enchilada casserole. So this is the order of assembly (don't forget to grease the casserole dish): tortillas, queso, rice/chicken, queso. There will be four layers in total. Top with more cheese and chips and off to the oven it goes.

Shortcuts for Chicken Enchilada Casserole

Here are some ways to make this dish even easier!

Use rotisserie chicken instead of making it yourself. You will need about 2 ½ cups of shredded chicken. Add the same sauce and spices to the shredded chicken. Just omit the water.

Use pre-made rice. You can use microwavable rice (some come in the frozen section and some come in the pantry section). Rice triples in size when it cooks. So you will need about 2 ¼ cups cooked rice.

Chicken Enchilada Casserole (White Queso & Cool Ranch Doritos)

This Chicken Enchilada Casserole is loaded with spicy white queso and topped with a mixture of white cheddar cheese and cool ranch Doritos. Must I say more? This chicken enchilada casserole is super easy to make and is definitely a crowd pleaser. Perfect for these cold and dark winter evenings.

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Recipe by Brianna May

0 from 0 votes

Course: MainCuisine: MexicanDifficulty: Medium

Servings

4-6

servings

Prep time

45

minutes

Cooking time

20

minutes

Total time

1

hour 

5

minutes

Ingredients

• 8 tortillas, corn or flour

• 2 ½ cups cool ranch doritos, lightly crushed*

• ½ cup shredded white cheddar cheese*

• Chicken

• 1 pound chicken breast, boneless skinless

• ½ cup enchilada sauce

• ¼ cup water

• ½ teaspoon salt

• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika

• 1 teaspoon cumin

• Rice

• ¾ cup jasmine rice

• 1 Tablespoon unsalted butter

• ½ teaspoon salt

• ½ cup enchilada sauce

• water*

• Cheese Sauce

• 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter

• 1 small yellow onion, diced

• 1-2 jalapenos, diced finely*

• 4 cloves garlic, minced

• 1 Tablespoon flour

• 1 ½ cup half and half

• 1 ½ cups shredded white cheddar cheese*

• ½ teaspoon salt

• 1 lime, juiced

• 2 Tablespoons water

Directions

• In an instant pot, add the chicken, enchilada sauce, water, salt, paprika, and cumin. Cook on the “pressure cook” setting on HIGH for 10 minutes. Let the pot naturally release pressure for 10 minutes.

  • 

• While the chicken is cooking, make the rice. In a medium saucepan, melt the butter on medium high heat. Add the rice and sauté for a minute. Add the salt, enchilada sauce, and water. Cover, turn the heat to low, and cook for 15-20 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 375°.
• While rice/chicken is cooking, make the cheese sauce. In a medium saucepan, melt 1 Tablespoon of butter on medium heat. Cook the onions, jalapenos, and garlic for a few minutes. Add the rest of the butter and melt. Add the flour and mix. A paste will form. Pour in half and half, and stir continuously. Once the sauce is simmering, add about 1 cup of the cheese. Keep stirring. Once the cheese is melted and the sauce is bubbling, remove from the heat. Stir in lime juice and water.

  • 

  • 

• Remove the chicken from the instant pot and shred in a large bowl. Add back in some of the chicken cooking liquid to coat the shredded chicken.

  • 

• Once the rice is done, add it to the chicken, and mix well. Using the spoon I will cut the mixture in quadrants so I know about how much to add to each layer.

  • 

• Grease a 2.5 quart baking dish. Place two tortillas on the bottom. Add about ⅛ of the cheese sauce. Spread ¼ of the chicken and rice mixture over the cheese sauce. Add about another ⅛ of the cheese sauce on top of the chicken and rice. Repeat this process 3 more times (see photo above). Top with the cheese and chips.

  • 

• Bake for 10-15 minutes covered. The edges should be bubbling. Bake uncovered for about 5 minutes. Keep an eye on it so the chips do not burn.

Notes

• *You can substitute white cheddar for a mecican blend. 
• *Follow the instructions on the back of the bag of rice. Add the ½ cup of enchilada sauce with the water. This counts as part of the liquid for the rice. 
• *You can omit the jalapenos if you do not want it to be spicy. You can also remove the seeds and membranes to tone down the spice. I like adding one with seeds and one without.

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