King Ranch Chicken Casserole
King Ranch chicken casserole is a creamy, cheesy Tex Mex delight. This zesty casserole features tender pieces of chicken layered with a creamy sauce, corn tortillas, and cheese for a dinner the whole family will love.
Casseroles are a go to in my house.
With so many big appetites to contend with, they just make sense.
Protein, carbs, and cheese in a dish everyone will devour.
Yes please.
And this King Ranch chicken casserole fits the bill!
Protein, cheese, and carbs all smothered in a creamy zesty sauce and cheese.
Why is it called King Ranch chicken?
This dish comes from the name of a ranch in Texas called King Ranch.
King Ranch is one of the largest ranches in the country.
Even though the dish gets its name from this place, it may not have originated there.
No one knows exactly where the dish got started.
Ingredients
To make this you’ll need:
- Butter– Salted
- Veggies– Seeded and diced green pepper and diced yellow onion
- Cream of soups– Both cream of chicken and cream of mushroom soup. If you don’t have one, you could substitute another kind of cream of soup.
- Diced tomatoes– A 10 ounce can of mild diced tomatoes with green chiles. Make sure to drain this.
- Chicken– Make your life easier and use chopped rotisserie chicken.
- Cheese– Shredded Mexican blend
- Corn tortillas– Cut into 1″ pieces
How to Make
This King Ranch chicken casserole is very easy!
To make it, melt the butter in a large skillet set over medium heat.
Once the butter has melted, sauté the diced pepper and onion in the melted butter until the veggies are tender.
Stir the peppers and onions occasionally.
When the veggies are tender, remove the skillet from heat and add the soups, tomatoes, and chicken to the skillet, stirring until the mixture’s evenly combined.
Set the mixture aside.
Then, lightly spray a 9×13″ baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
Spread 1/3 of the cut tortillas in an even layer in the bottom of the dish.
Next layer 1/3 of the chicken mixture evenly out overtop the tortillas, followed by 1/3 of the cheese.
Repeat with two more layers, ending with the last of the cheese sprinkled evenly out overtop of the casserole.
Bake at 325° for 35-40 minutes.
Serve warm and enjoy!
Storing Leftovers
Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Reheat in the oven or the microwave until warmed through.
Can I make this into a freezer meal?
Yes, you can turn King Ranch chicken casserole into a freezer friendly, make ahead meal.
To do it, prepare everything as instructed, but stop when the sauce is done.
Let the sauce to cool completely, and then store in an air tight container or ziplocking bag and freeze.
When you are ready to make the casserole, let the sauce thaw to room temperature.
Then assemble the casserole, as instructed, and bake as directed.
What can I use in place of corn tortillas?
No corn tortillas? No problem!
Other options include:
- Cooked rice, white or brown
- Tortilla chips or tostadas
- Flour tortillas, although they won’t break down as much during cooking like corn tortillas would
Other Tex Mex Casseroles
King Ranch chicken casserole is a Tex Mex favorite we love.
Make it and enjoy!
Looking for other Tex Mex casseroles?
Try these:
If you’ve tried this easy KING RANCH CHICKEN CASSEROLE recipe, or any other recipe on my site, let me know in the comment section how it turned out, we love hearing from our readers! You can also follow along with me on PINTEREST, FACEBOOK, and INSTAGRAM to see more amazing recipes and whatever else we’ve got going on!
King Ranch Chicken Casserole
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup salted butter
- 1 large green pepper seeded & diced
- 1 medium yellow onion peeled & diced
- 1 10.5 oz can cream of chicken soup
- 1 10.5 oz can cream of mushroom soup
- 1 10 oz can mild diced tomatoes with green chiles drained
- 2 cups chopped rotisserie chicken
- 3 cups shredded Mexican blend cheese
- 14 corn tortillas cut into 1" pieces
Instructions
- Add the butter to a large skillet set over medium heat. Once melted, add the pepper & onion to the skillet. Saute, stirring occasionally, just until the veggies are tender.
- Remove the skillet from heat, and add the soups, tomatoes, and chicken to the skillet, stirring until the mixture's evenly combined. Set aside.
- Lightly spray a 9x13" baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Spread 1/3 of the cut tortillas in an even layer in the bottom of the dish. Spread 1/3 of the chicken mixture evenly out overtop the tortillas, followed by 1/3 of the cheese.
- Repeat with two more layers, ending with the last of the cheese sprinkled evenly out overtop of the casserole.
- Bake at 325° for 35-40 minutes.
- Serve warm & enjoy!
Yumm