Chicken Enchilada Casserole

This is another recipe from Good Housekeeping Magazine. They have the topic "One Dish Meals" in the January 2011 issue. I like all the recipes and intend to try all of them. This dish required more work because the ingredients (chicken, onion, zucchini, and corn) all need to be cooked separately then mix together. But when we tasted it, all the work was worth it. This tasted like a Mexican lasagna. Instead of pasta, there were corn tortillas between the layers. The sauce was really good. Love the zucchini in the dish. Yum yum yum! I will definitely make this one again and again.


Chicken Enchilada Casserole
http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/recipefinder/chicken-enchilada-casserole-recipe-ghk0111

Cheesy and creamy, this baked version of Mexican favorite requires only one pan and one hour to become a bubbling, gooey meal the whole family will enjoy. The salsa verde and cilantro add a bit of brightness and freshness to keep this dish from being too heavy.

Serves: 6
Total Time: 1 hr
Prep Time: 20 min


* 2 tablespoon vegetable oil
* 1 pound chicken breast tenders, cut into 1/2-inch chunks
* Salt
* Pepper
* 1 small red onion, thinly sliced
* 1/4 cup water
* 2 large zucchini, cut into 1 1/2-inch by 1/2-inch spears
* 2 cup corn kernels, frozen and thawed
* 2 cup salsa verde (I only had 1 cup because I only bought 1 can. So I used 1 cup salsa verde, and 1 cup regular picante salsa I had at http://www.eileenlikestoeat.com. Result was great!)
* 1/2 cup sour cream, reduced-fat (I had regular sour cream at http://www.eileenlikestoeat.com so just used that. Oh well... I will exercise after the new year. haha....)
* 1/2 cup cilantro leaves, packed fresh and chopped
* 12 corn tortillas
* 5 ounce (1 cup) queso añejo or cotija (aged Mexican cheeses) or feta cheese, crumbled (I found cotija cheese at Henry's Farmers Market. It tasted sorta like Feta cheese, but a bit harder and saltier.)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease 3-quart shallow baking dish.

2. In a 12-inch skillet, heat 1 tablespoon oil on medium-high. Season chicken with 1/8 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper. Add to skillet in single layer and sear 2 minutes. Turn chicken over; cook 1 to 2 minutes or until just browned. Transfer to large bowl.

3. Add onion and water to skillet; cook 5 minutes or until tender, stirring and scraping pan. Add to chicken in bowl.

4. To skillet, add remaining 1 tablespoon oil. When hot, add zucchini, 1/8 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper. Cook 4 minutes or until browned and just tender, stirring occasionally. Transfer to bowl with chicken. To skillet, add corn and cook 3 minutes or until browned. Transfer to bowl with chicken. Stir in salsa, sour cream, and half of cilantro until well mixed.

5. In prepared dish, arrange 4 tortillas in single layer. Spread evenly with one-third of chicken mixture and then one-third of cheese. Repeat layering twice.

6. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until hot. Garnish with remaining cilantro.

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