This Chicken Enchilada Bake is layers of shredded chicken, corn tortillas, green enchilada sauce and cheese topped with a flavorful homemade salsa! It’s a family friendly meal that satisfies!

chicken verde enchilada square plated with salsa

I’m a huge fan of tomatillos. I love them raw in guacamole and my easy tomatillo salsa recipe, but they’re also amazing when they’re cooked.

This Chicken Enchilada Bake celebrates roasted tomatillos in a smooth, flavorful homemade green enchilada sauce. And if you love traditional enchiladas, be sure to try my green enchiladas!

If you love tomatillos as much as I do, be sure to check out my collection of tomatillo recipes.

I made this chicken enchilada casserole weeks ago, and to my surprise, everyone loved it. My boys even asked for seconds.  🙂

How to make this recipe

I love this recipe, because sometimes I just don’t want to roll up a bunch of enchiladas.  This dish is layered with shredded chicken, green enchilada sauce, corn tortillas, and plenty of cheese.

It really doesn’t get much better. 🙂

chicken verde enchilada casserole cut into squares in baking dish

This chicken enchilada casserole comes together in three parts, but they’re three very easy parts.  

Part 1

  • Prepare my Homemade Green Enchilada Sauce.  It can be made in advance and even frozen!

Part 2

  • Place the chicken in the slow cooker with the enchilada sauce and cook on low for 3-4 hours, or until the chicken is nice and tender and shreds easily (my chicken was perfectly done in 3 1/2 hours).  Remove the chicken, shred it, then mix it back in with the sauce. 
  • You can definitely use leftover or rotisserie chicken and skip this step!

Part 3

  • The third and final part of the recipe is assembling and baking your chicken enchilada bake.  Preheat the oven, and get layering! 
chicken-verde-enchilada-bake-process-collage1
chicken-verde-enchialda-bake-process-collage2
  • Use an 8×8″ square baking dish, and put just enough sauce on the bottom to cover and keep those tortillas moist.  Halve 3 small tortillas ( I used small taco size corn tortillas), and overlap them over the sauce.  
  • Top with half of the sauce, and sprinkle on your favorite cheese.  Repeat one more time with 3 more tortillas, the remaining sauce, and more cheese.  
  • Bake for 30 minutes, and done. 🙂
chicken verde enchilada bake spatula

I know I told you there’s only 3 parts to this recipe, and the chicken enchilada bake tastes great if you stop there.  

Why settle for great, however, when you can have extraordinary?  

The first time I made this bake I topped it with a dollop of Greek yogurt and chopped cilantro…like I said, it was great.  I got to thinking that this dish would be even better topped with a fresh salsa over it, and it certainly was.  

While your chicken enchilada casserole is in the oven, chop up your salsa ingredients, and you’re all set for a homemade Mexican fiesta that everyone will be happy about.  

Consider your Cinco de Mayo meal planning done. 🙂

Recipe notes

  • Use leftover or rotisserie shredded chicken in this recipe to save time.
  • Make the verde sauce in advance or use store bought as a time saver.
  • Flour tortillas may be substituted for corn if you’re not gluten intolerant.
chicken verde enchilada bake on plate with salsa overhead shot

More Mexican recipes you’ll love:

Did you try this recipe?  If so, be sure to leave a review below and tag me @flavorthemoments on Facebook and Instagram

chicken enchilada bake cut into squares in baking dish

Chicken Enchilada Bake with Homemade Salsa

Servings: 6 servings
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Additional Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
Chicken Enchilada Bake is layers of shredded chicken, corn tortillas, green enchilada sauce and cheese topped with a flavorful homemade salsa!
Print Recipe
6
reviews
Leave a Review »

Ingredients

For the Salsa:

  • 1 cup cherry tomatoes coarsely chopped
  • 1/4 cup red onion finely chopped
  • 1 tablespoon lime juice
  • 1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
  • salt and pepper to taste

Instructions 

Prepare the chicken verde:

  • Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper, and place them in a slow cooker. Pour the sauce over the chicken, and cook on low 3-4 hours, or until the chicken is no longer pink and shreds very easily. Remove from the slow cooker and shred. Place the chicken back in the slow cooker and mix thoroughly with the verde sauce.

Prepare the enchilada bake:

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8×8″ square baking dish with cooking spray. Place just enough of the chicken verde mixture on the bottom of the baking dish to cover. Halve (3) of the tortillas and overlap sideways, covering the sauce. Cover with half of the remaining chicken verde, and sprinkle with half of the grated cheese. Repeat with the remaining tortillas, chicken verde, and cheese.
  • Bake for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown and bubbly. Let stand for 10 minutes.

Prepare the salsa:

  • Place the cherry tomatoes, red onion, lime juice, cilantro, and salt and pepper in a small bowl. Let stand at room temperature to let the flavors marry. Top the enchilada bake with a dollop of Greek yogurt and salsa. Enjoy!

Notes

  • The verde sauce can be made ahead and stored in the refrigerator until ready to use.
  • The chicken verde can be made ahead in the slow cooker and stored in the refrigerator until ready to make the enchilada bake.
  • Use leftover or rotisserie chicken in this recipe to save time.
  • Flour tortillas may be substituted for corn if you’re not gluten intolerant.

Nutrition

Serving: 1g, Calories: 300kcal, Carbohydrates: 9g, Protein: 35g, Fat: 13g, Saturated Fat: 7g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g, Cholesterol: 98mg, Sodium: 324mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 3g

Nutrition is estimated using a food database and is only intended to be used as a guideline for informational purposes.

Course: Main Dishes
Cuisine: Mexican
Author: Marcie
All recipes and images © Flavor the Moments.
Did you try this recipe?Be sure to tag @flavorthemoments with the hashtag #flavorthemoments on Instagram so I can see what you made!

**This post was originally published on May 1, 2014.  The recipe, text and photos have all been updated.

Sharing is caring!