Easy, effortless midweek meal! Rice with shredded chicken cooked in a homemade enchilada sauce (or use store-bought!), topped with cheese. All made in one pot!
All you need is chicken, rice, tomato passata (or canned tomato) and a handful of pantry essentials to make this incredible flavour loaded, comfort-food-central meal. Oh wait – cheese. Of course you need cheese. This would not be “Enchilada” without cheese!
I’ve been overloading on Mexican over the last couple of weeks, sharing my Mexican Shredded Beef and Freezer Friendly Beef Burritos. I feel a bit silly sharing yet another Mexican(-esque) recipe today, but I hadn’t actually planned to! I had Cashew Chicken all ready to go, then I got the sweetest message from TWO readers in one day asking me to please share more one-pot recipes because they loved my One Pot Greek Chicken & Lemon Rice so much. 🙂 So I decided to shuffle my posting calendar a bit and share this today. I hope you don’t mind!
I love this kind of food for midweek. I call it Couch Food. The definition of Couch Food is “any meal that can be served in a bowl and eaten with a fork or spoon without taking your eyes off the TV”.
This qualifies. 100%. 🙂
There are quite a few spices required for this recipe because the sauce the rice is cooked in is essentially homemade Enchilada sauce. I’ve marked the ingredients that make up the Enchilada Sauce with an asterisk (*) so you could in fact substitute with a store bought Enchilada Sauce and it will become even easier to make!
My key tip for making this is to take it off the stove while it is still quite saucy because the rice will continue to absorb water while it is resting – and even while you are serving it. You want it pretty saucy – not sloppy, but not dry.
And please please please don’t overcook the rice so it is mushy! The liquid quantities I’ve provided will not yield mushy rice – I like mine tender but firm (it’s an Asian “thing”), but I know some people have a tendency to get stressed that the rice isn’t cooking and add more water. Which is totally fine, cook the rice to your taste but just don’t let it turn into baby food! 🙂
Hope you had a wonderful weekend! Back on Wednesday with something a bit different – but super easy, super tasty and totally irresistible! – Nagi x
PS Check out how bubbly and golden it looks…..ugh. Help me. I just want to dive in and grab a spoonful.
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One Pot Chicken Enchilada Rice Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 400g (13oz) chicken breast, about 1/3"/1cm thick, sliced horizontally into thin steaks (Note 1)
- 1 small onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, crushed
- 1 red bell pepper/capsicum, diced
- 680g (24oz) tomato passata or crushed canned tomatoes* (Note 2)
- 3 cups chicken broth or water (750ml)
- 1 1/2 cups frozen corn (250g)
- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper* (spicy - adjust to taste)
- 1 tbsp dried oregano*
- 2 tsp cumin*
- 1 1/2 tsp coriander*
- 2 tsp onion powder*
- 1 tbsp brown sugar*
- Salt and pepper
- 1 1/2 cups (270g) white rice (short, medium or long grain , uncooked (Note 4)
- 1 - 1 1/2 cups grated cheese (about 125 - 150 g)
To Serve
- Chopped cilantro/coriander optional
Instructions
- Heat olive oil over medium high heat in large skillet.
- Add chicken and cook each side for 2 minutes or until cooked, then remove onto a plate.
- Add extra oil if the skillet is looking dry. Add onion and garlic, cook for 1 1/2 minutes until starting to soften.
- Add bell peppers and cook for a further 2 minutes.
- Add remaining ingredients except rice and cheese. Bring to simmer, then add rice.
- Stir, cover with a lid and turn down heat to medium low. Cover and cook until rice is cooked but not mushy and most of the liquid is absorbed - about 15 to 18 minutes. (Note 3). Do not stir while it cooks.
- Meanwhile, shred or roughly chop chicken.
- When rice is cooked, quickly stir chicken through, sprinkle with cheese then pop under broil / grill until golden and bubbly.
- Serve, garnished with fresh cilantro/coriander if desired.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Nutrition per serving, assuming 6 servings.
Delicious
Terrific to hear Anna! Thanks for letting me know you enjoyed it – N x
Can’t wait to try it. I already tried some of your recipes and all of them turned out a-mazing
Thank you 🙂
Hope you love it Orsh! 🙂 N x
Absolutely delicious. Will it freeze?
Hi Sue! This will freeze fine but it’s one of those dishes best made fresh! 🙂 N xx
This dish was amazing! My partner never eats rice if it is part of a dish because he thinks rice is boring. But when he took a bite of this he stated that yes he doesn’t like rice but this was amazing and I should do this to the rice more often. I did make my homemade enchilada sauce because I did not have the coriander you called for in this recipe. I also halved the entire recipe. Will totally make again!
Oh, and after making this I found your enchilada sauce recipe on here. I will probably try making it with your recipe next time.
Great to hear Alexandria! Thank you very much for leaving a review – N x ❤️
Hi! Excited to try this recipe. Does it freeze well? I’d like to make it for someone to reheat at their convenience.
Hi Kasee! I wouldn’t say this is the best thing to freeze – reheated rice after freezing isn’t the best, but it’s still very nice!
Love it.. i just cooked them they are YUMMY in my tummy as my son said xx
That’s great to hear Jen, thanks for sharing your feedback! N x ❤️
I just made this last night. It’s really tasty! I used 1 tbsp of dried cilantro instead of coriander, doubled the bell peppers and added a 15-oz can of drained, rinsed black beans at the end with the chicken. There was a little too much liquid for me, so next time I think I will cut about 1/2 cup of either broth or tomato puree from the recipe and see how it does. I will also probably make a family-recipe chile colorado sauce with New Mexico red chiles and see who that comes out. 🙂 Super tasty and nutritious. Thanks for sharing!
I’m so pleased to hear you enjoyed this Ashley! Thanks for letting me know! N x ❤️
Made this last night for our Mexican birthday party. Absolutely delicious! Love One pot cooking and love your recipes!
I’m so happy you enjoyed this Cheryl! Thank you for letting me know – N x ❤️
This looks delicious. What kind of Mexican cheese is so stringy as appears in your photos?
Your pix are really great! I love the styling.
-joanne
Aspiring food blogger
Hi Joanne! Pretty sure that mozzarella in the photos, or maybe Monterey Jack 🙂 Thank you for the flattering comments! N xx
Hi Nagi , this looks delicious and can’t wait to try it.
I want to make it to take to my daughter’s for our new monthly lunch. Everyone just brings something they want to cook.
Do you thinks it will travel and reheat well? Don’t really want to cook it there.
Love love love your recipes
Hi Karin! This will travel well, it is moist and flavour loaded so more forgiving to reheat than things like pasta bakes 🙂 Also the rice is firm tender, no overcooked and mushy which again means that it will reheat well. Hope you LOVE IT!!!
I tried this last night for dinner…my family raved! It is absolutely delicious! I also used short grain brown rice and cooked it for about 40 minutes. This recipe is a real keeper! Thanks!
WHOOT! That’s fantastic to hear Rosy, thanks for letting me know! N xx
Nagi this was incredible! I love your recipes so much, every one I have tried has been delicious and your notes are so useful. I’m trying to eat healthy at the moment and so many of your recipes have plenty of filling veg, but also packed with flavour to keep my partner happy too. Thanks for sharing your talents 🙂
That’s so fantastic to hear Sophie! Thank you for letting me know you enjoyed it! – N xx
Made this twice now, with double the onion and bell peppers, amazing! So quick and easy too?? Haven’t been disappointed with a recipe from you yet.
I’m so pleased to hear that Alisha, thank you for letting me know! N xx
Hi Nagi
I recently discovered your blog and so far I’ve made your honey and mustard chicken and pad see ew, both gorgeous! Thank you. I was wondering what ‘cups’ means where you live ie in ml or grammes? Also what would happen if I used brown rice against your advice? 😛
Hi Emma, thanks for your kind words! I live in Australia and cups are 250ml. I am guessing you are in Europe and are used to weights and volumes? 🙂 I will update this recipe for you! N x
that is so kind, thank you – I live in the UK 🙂
Again a 4 thumbs up. Husband requested tortilla as well and loved it. Enough for 2 lunches as well. Broil confused me as well until I realised you meant under the grill at the end.
Yikes, I’m usually pretty good at using both UK/Aus/EU language! 🙂 Updated, thanks for picking that up!
Hello Nagi ! I have been meaning to comment for quite sometime and finally am getting around to it! since finding you I have averaged one new recipe a week of yours and every single time these recipes are greeted with smiles and yummy yummy sounds ! so far I have made your greek chicken with lemon rice, your Salisbury steak, the Irish stew with Guinness beer , your yummy cheese and garlic crack bread, and now this dish…..just wonderful ….I am so thankful for you ,..I am recently remarried and was having trouble melding my cooking style with my new hubby’s likes and dislikes …. all of my family’s favorites were just ok to him ….it was really frustrating trying to meld families and cooking styles and you have made it so much easier….dinner time is family bonding time for me and I always took pride in making everyone’s favorite dishes to make each one feel special on special days or just when they have had a bad day…my confidence was a little shaken when my hubby wasn’t crazy over anything I made him…that’s what happens when you put an Italian Irish lady with a Lebanese! lol thank you for helping us feel like a family <3 next up rotisserie flavored chicken over potato gratin !
Oh wow! What a gorgeous message to receive Paula, thanks so much for taking the time to write in! I’m so glad you’re enjoying my recipes, thanks you for trying them! N xx
Hi Nagi, my family don’t like corn (crazy I know) so do you think adding kidney beans would be ok instead? I have a few cans to use up and thought it may be ok.
I see others have used black beans and I’ll definitely try that at some stage too.
Hi Lisa! Absolutely! 🙂
I made this last night (with the kidney beans) and the whole family absolutely gave it a 10/10 – even my 18 yr old fussy with carbs DIVA!!!!!! I served it with corn chips on the side and sour cream and coriander and they were liking the bowls. I just made it with cooked diced chicken and threw it back into the pot with the rice for the cooking part. Mine had alot more liquid and the rice took a little longer to cook but eventually it was absolutely a WINNER!!!!!
My Nagi Favourites List is getting embarrassingly long!
WOO HOO! I am SO GLAD you enjoyed this, I am so in love with this recipe!!! Thanks so much Lisa – and for the lovely compliment. N xx
Oh and I forgot – I used 2 jars of store bought enchilada sauce because I’m essentially lazy hahaha
hey! there is NO SHAME in that!!! ❤️
I loved this recipe! It was easy and delicious. I added black beans, also. I topped with chopped green onion, cilantro and a touch of sour cream.
I am excited to try other chicken recipes!
Thank you!
Thanks for trying my recipe Theresa! So glad you enjoyed it – and thanks for letting me know! N xx
Love the chicken recipes and they ate easy to follow
Thanks Willis! 🙂
This was amazing! The only ingredient I added was black beans and the only change to cooking I made was in a slow cooker. I placed the whole chicken breast in the slow cooker with all the ingredients bar the rice and cheese for a total of 3.5 hours on high. I then removed the chicken, shredded it, back to the sauce and poured into a skillet with rice and cooked the rest as per your instructions. So good! Thank you!
Hi Michelle, I’m so happy to hear that! Thank you for taking the time to let me know – N x