Hope you all had a wonderful weekend. We celebrated Easter with lots of family – ham, Butterhorn Rolls, Easter egg hunts, church, attempts at taking pictures of large groups of small children, swimming, and even a piñata! Fun and full… that’s what we are. And thankful too. Thankful for the Hope we have.
So I need to confess to you that I’ve been in a bit of recipe slump. I’ve had no shortage of seemingly great ideas, but when I try to make it really happen it the kitchen, things seem to fall short. I’ve tried chicken wings in the oven, but couldn’t get them crispy. Then I had this brilliant idea for a shepherd’s pie meets sloppy joe casserole…. not so much. I thought some Greek yogurt carrot muffins might be good, but they tasted way too healthy. BOO!
I also made some cashew blondies. I even took the time to make a caramel drizzle for the top, but I poured the hot caramel into my plastic squeeze bottle too soon and it melted right then and there! Oh well, the blondies were too doughy anyway. GAH!
I’d like to take a moment to thank my family for eating it all anyway. Well, except for the mushy chicken wings. Only one person actually thought those were edible. The rest of us chose a bowl of Cheerios for dinner instead. It was one of those nights friends! WAH!
I’m so glad the idea for Southwestern Chicken Taco Pie came along and redeemed me. It’s so simple to put together, and is really a fun twist on your typical taco.
I used a store-bought rotisserie chicken to make this quick and easy. You can make it as spicy as you like – I just used mild salsa so it would be kid friendly, but feel free to substitute whatever your family prefers.
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Southwestern Chicken Taco Pie
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: Mexican
Description
With layers of chicken, black beans, corn, cheese, and tortillas, this is a quick and easy, family friendly dinner!
Ingredients
- 3 cups chicken, cooked and shredded (I used a rotisserie from the deli)
- 1/2 cup mild salsa (or you can turn up the heat)
- 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/4 teaspoon cumin
- 1/2 cup canned black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1/2 cup corn
- 2 1/2 cups freshly shredded cheese (I used CoJack)
- 4 flour tortillas, medium or soft taco size
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a medium bowl, mix chicken with salsa, chili powder, cumin, beans, and corn
- Lay your first tortilla down on the bottom of a greased pie dish.
- Scoop one third of the chicken mixture onto the tortilla and spread evenly. Top with 1/2 cup of cheese.
- Repeat the tortilla, chicken, cheese layers, ending with your fourth tortilla and the remaining 1 cup of cheese.
- Bake for 20 minutes, or until the cheese on top is bubbly.
- Allow to cool slightly, and then slice into wedges, top with avocado, sour cream, and cilantro.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 Serving
- Calories: 670
- Sugar: 2.6g
- Sodium: 1079mg
- Fat: 34g
- Saturated Fat: 16g
- Unsaturated Fat: 14.3g
- Trans Fat: 0.7g
- Carbohydrates: 41g
- Fiber: 4.6g
- Protein: 49g
- Cholesterol: 146mg
sally @ sally's baking addiction says
I go through the same phases too – recipe fail after recipe fail! Always so disappointing, but hey – this redeeming chicken taco pie looks well worth the wait Julie!
Julie says
Thanks for the encouragement Sally!
Katya says
Hey Julie! I can relate with recipe fails. I’ve had a handful but appreciate the fact that my family still sucks it up and eats the food 😉 Taco Pie looks delish. I’m a sucker for Mexican inspired food.
Julie says
Thanks Katya!
Isadora says
It is refreshing to hear that other people have recipe fails too. It is no fun when you go through all the trouble and then it doesn’t turn out. I’m curious about the shephard’s pie meets sloppy joe casserole! This chicken taco pie seems to have worked perfectly though! Tacos are my favorite and tacos stacked on top of eachother with chicken and cheese looks amazing!
Julie says
Thanks Isadora. It is frustrating when things don’t turn out – Especially when I have really high expectations if things look good in my head or on paper. Thanks for the encouragement!
Cindy @ Pick Fresh Foods says
I think we have all had recipe fails. I fall into a slump where I have all these great ideas, buy the ingredients and then use them for something else. Then I never get around to making what I originally wanted. I’d say this Chicken Taco Pie is a success. Looks absolutely delicious! Beautiful colors!
Julie says
Thanks Cindy!
Mademoiselle Gourmande says
I think everybody can relate to that.. However, this recipe sounds great! It looks amazing but sounds rather easy.. Thank you for sharing,..
Julie says
It really is very easy. Thanks for stopping by!
Kelly Bettendorf says
I can’t wait to try this!
Julie says
Hope you enjoy Kelly. Thanks for stopping by!
Kellicipes says
I really want to make this tonight! One question though, did you find that the tortillas were soft or soggy?
Julie says
I would say the tortillas are soft but not soggy. Similar to enchiladas maybe? There really isn’t a lot of liquid (just the salsa) to make them soggy. Hope this helps :0)
Vanessa R says
Thank you for this recipe!! I’m always looking for easy, quick and yummy recipes and this one nailed it. I made it today and have a house full of satisfied tummies. Thanks a million!!
Julie says
I’m so glad everyone liked it! You are very welcome!
Dee says
Hey Julie thank you! Can’t wait to try this
Julie says
You’re very welcome! Enjoy 🙂
Austin says
Hey Julie, I will be making this recipe this week, but I am looking for a little crunch. Do you think I could use tostada shells instead of soft tacos? Or do you have another recommendation?
Thank you!
Julie says
I think most tostada shells are a little smaller than the tortillas I used but you could do smaller individual stacks. Or you could do crushed up tortilla chips on top for crunch. This recipe is pretty versatile. Thanks for your question and I hope you enjoy!
Jerri says
This is exactly what I was looking for today! My husband has a sore mouth from dental work but we are craving tacos and I have a cooked chicken breast to use. I think I will prepare as you have stated, and add crumbled corn tortillas for crunch on mine as a topping.
Thank you!
Julie says
So glad to hear you found something that will work for you. Hope he feels better soon!
lana says
Great recipe! I too have had a run of “kichen woes”. Great ideas while trying to sleep but not so good outcome for a well seasoned cook. So thanks for sharing. It’s reasurring. Love your blog. Lana in western, ky.
Julie says
Thanks so much for stopping by and saying hello!
kathy says
Is there a calorie count for this recipe?? thanks ..
Kathy says
It doesn’t look like there is any salsa in the picture. Do you omit the salsa?
Julie says
Hi Kathy, the 1/2 cup of salsa is mixed in with the chicken so it does blend in. But it’s there! Hope you enjoy!
Shari says
I make this with ground beef as well. I use a lean ground beef. Make your usual taco meat and add any extras you want, i.e. Onions ,black olives, cut up tomatoes, peppers( any color) I only do 2 layers. (3 tortillas)
You can cook the extras with the ground beef or add just before you bake. (Soft or crunchy, whatever you want.)
So good, even the next day. I often make this for new moms!
I am however excited to try this….as it’s always a good day when you know what’s for supper!
Julie says
Great idea for bringing to new moms!
USMCamphib says
What a great recipe. I did add fresh jalapeños for a little extra kick.
Thanks!!
Karen Wallace says
I’ve been meaning to leave a comment for a couple years and finally today. This recipe is delicious! I make it a couple times per month. Delicious exactly as is but sometimes I add things I have on hand – chopped green onion, sliced black olive, 1/2 small can diced mild chili – it’s just as good. One thing I also do – i hated having 1/2 cans left of the corn and black beans. Now I measure the corn and black beans and leftover diced chilis and put in individual snack size ziplock bags and freeze. I’m ready to go for the next time. Thanks so much for our family favorite recipe!!
Julie says
Thank you, Karen!
Lisa says
Can you do corn tortillas?
Julie says
Sure thing!