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Fajita chicken casserole with melted cheese, chicken, rice, and peppers in a baking dish
Katie

Fajita Chicken Casserole

A creamy fajita chicken casserole with shredded chicken, instant rice, charred peppers, and melted cheese. Bold Tex-Mex flavor in one dish, and the rice cooks right in the pan.
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Rest Time 10 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Servings: 8 servings
Course: Dinner, Main Course
Cuisine: Mexican, Tex-Mex
Calories: 455
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 1 cup frozen diced onion and bell pepper mix
  • 4 cups cooked shredded chicken about 3 large breasts or 1 rotisserie chicken
  • 2 cups instant rice uncooked
  • 10.5 ounce can cream of chicken soup
  • 1 cup full-fat sour cream not light or reduced-fat
  • 10 ounce can diced tomatoes with green chilies like RoTel, with juices, undrained
  • 1 ½ cups chicken broth
  • 1.12 ounce packet fajita seasoning
  • 2 cups shredded Mexican blend cheese divided
  • ¼ cup fresh cilantro chopped, to finish

Method
 

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 9x13-inch baking dish with cooking spray.
  2. In a large bowl, combine the shredded chicken, uncooked instant rice, cream of chicken soup, sour cream, frozen pepper and onion mix, diced tomatoes with their juices, chicken broth, fajita seasoning, and half of the shredded cheese. Stir until fully incorporated.
  3. Spread the mixture evenly into the prepared casserole dish.
  4. Cover the dish tightly with foil and bake 35 minutes. A tight seal traps the steam that cooks the rice.
  5. Remove the foil, sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top, and bake uncovered another 10 minutes, until the cheese is melted and bubbling.
  6. Let it rest 10 minutes before serving so it thickens and holds together when scooped. Scatter the chopped cilantro over the top just before serving, with tortilla chips, sliced avocado, or a simple green salad.

Notes

Use full-fat sour cream, not light or reduced-fat. Sour cream curdles when heat causes its whey proteins to bind with casein and clump. Butterfat coats those proteins and prevents it, so reduced-fat versions are far more likely to turn grainy over a 45-minute bake.
The cream of chicken soup and the rice supply starch, which stabilizes the dairy by absorbing liquid and keeping the proteins from bonding tightly. That's why this works even with acidic tomatoes stirred in from the start, and why the soup shouldn't be swapped for plain cream or milk without a thickener.
Don't raise the oven temperature above 350 degrees F. That is roughly the ceiling for baked dairy.
Add the frozen peppers and onions straight from the freezer. Don't thaw and drain them; the liquid balance assumes they release their water in the dish.
Instant rice only. Regular long-grain rice stays firm in this bake time and would need more liquid.
To make ahead, assemble without the broth and add it right before baking; instant rice starts absorbing immediately and the casserole will bake up dry otherwise.
A squeeze of fresh lime alongside the cilantro brightens it further. Add acid at the end rather than stirring it in, which is gentler on the dairy.
Reheat gently on low power with a splash of broth or milk.