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Weeknight style One Skillet Saucy Chicken Tortilla Enchilada Rice Bake…finished with all the toppings…of course! Mexican seasoned chicken, rice, and enchilada sauce all cooked together in one skillet, then topped with tortilla chips and plenty of cheese. Throw the skillet in the oven to create the perfect cheesy, one skillet, Mexican inspired chicken and rice dinner. There’s simply nothing not to love. This dish is easy, takes under an hour to make, is cheesy, and all-around delicious. The perfect meal to serve to family and friends.

One Skillet Saucy Chicken Tortilla Enchilada Rice Bake | halfbakedharvest.com

There are days when developing new recipes, that do not go nearly as planned. The “bad” days don’t happen often, so I’m thankful for that, but they’re never very fun when they do happen. I had a day last week where literally not one of the five recipes I was working on showed any promise. Nothing I was testing was working and the entire day was a struggle. Finally, at the end of the day, I accepted that something was clearly off and it just wasn’t my day for recipe testing.

These days happen, it’s hard not to beat myself up about them. But I’m slowly learning to accept them and attempt to move on the best I can.

Now, all that said, the one good thing I’ve noticed about bad days? Nine times out of ten, the following day ends up being so much better. As my dad always tells me, you wouldn’t know what a good day is without having the bad days.

Anyway, I’m completely rambling, but the point of this long story is that this recipe came to be after a bad day of cooking. It was almost as though I knew I needed a great recipe to make up for the previous day’s failed dishes.

Enter this one skillet chicken and rice dinner. Somehow this dish worked perfectly the very first time I tested it out. It’s probably my favorite recipe of the week. I’ve been excited to share it with you all since the day I created it.

prep photo of skillet with meat and sauce before adding the chips

Here are all the details.

As you can guess, this simple dinner is made start to finish all in one skillet. So, the very first step…find yourself a great skillet. I love using a cast iron skillet, but any oven-safe skillet or even dutch oven will work great.

Next, brown some ground chicken, turkey, or beef. Really, use whatever you love most. I typically use chicken, but when my brothers are in town, beef is always their first choice. Brown the meat, season it up, then pour in your favorite enchilada sauce and water. Bring this mix to a boil, add the rice, cover and let the rice steam for a bit. This only takes ten or so minutes. You do not need to cook the rice completely as it will finish cooking in the oven.

Now, once the rice is “al dente”, the rest is pretty simple and comes together quickly. Top the skillet full of chicken and rice with cheese, then tortilla chips, and finish with one more sprinkle of cheese. Transfer the skillet to the oven, bake until the cheese is melty and the sauce is bubbly.

And that’s it. Simple right? This dish smells incredible and tastes even better. But then, what’s not to love about Mexican rice topped with cheesy tortilla chips!?

So good!

prep photo of skillet topped with chips before baking

The secret to this skillet dinner?

It’s all about the seasoning mix plus that enchilada sauce.

For the seasoning mix, I was inspired by my quick weeknight tacos. I used smoky paprika, ground cumin, and a chipotle chili pepper in adobo. It’s just a touch spicy, a little smoky, and hinted with garlic.

For the enchilada sauce, I like to use the homemade recipe from the original HBH Cookbook, but if you’re using store-bought I typically pick up this one. It’s as close to homemade as it gets. Just be sure to use a sauce that’s high quality and one that you know you really enjoy, as it’s key in this recipe.

Let’s talk about the toppings.

I topped this skillet bake just as I would a taco, with plenty of fresh cilantro, avocado, a dollop of yogurt, and a squeeze of lime. You could even add a pickled red onion on the side if you like.

If you wanted to take the toppings a step further, I would recommend a pineapple salsa or mango salsa. But you all know me, I love a good fruity salsa. Oh, and maybe add a nice margarita too. This strawberry margarita is perfect for the springtime days ahead.

One Skillet Saucy Chicken Tortilla Enchilada Rice Bake | halfbakedharvest.com

What I love most about this recipe is the fact that it’s a complete dinner. It’s an all-in-one dish that everyone can really enjoy. I can serve this up on busy weeknights, but it’s equally great for a Saturday or Sunday night dinner with friends and family. I’ll be making this dish time and time again…actually, I’ve made it three times in the past week. Yep, it’s that good.

Looking for other one skillet dinner ideas…check out these. Or maybe a couple of my favorites below.

One Skillet Creamy Sun-Dried Tomato Chicken and Orzo

One Skillet Greek Meatballs and Lemon Butter Orzo

One Pot Creamy Tuscan Pesto and Artichoke Pasta

photo of One Skillet Saucy Chicken Tortilla Enchilada Rice Bake with spoon in skillet pulling up the rice to serve

Lastly, if you make this one skillet saucy chicken tortilla enchilada rice bake, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!

One Skillet Saucy Chicken Tortilla Enchilada Rice Bake

Author: Tieghan Gerard
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 45 minutes
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 765 kcal

Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.

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Ingredients

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Instructions

  • 1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
    2. In a large oven safe skillet, heat the olive oil over high heat. When the oil shimmers, add the ground chicken and onion. Cook, breaking up the meat as it cooks, until the chicken is browned, about 5 minutes. Add the jalapeños, garlic, paprika, cumin, and salt, cook 1 minute. Stir in the enchilada sauce, chipotle chili, if using, and 2 cups of water. Bring to a boil, stir in the rice. Place the lid on the skillet and turn the heat down to the lowest setting possible. Allow the rice to cook 15 minutes, until most of the liquid has cooked into the rice, but not all of it.
    3. Remove from the heat and stir in the cilantro and lime juice. Sprinkle 1/3 of the cheese over the chicken/rice. Add the tortilla chips on top, pressing them gently into the cheese. Evenly sprinkle on the remaining cheese. Transfer to the oven and bake 10 minutes, until the cheese is melted.
    4. Serve topped as desired with avocado, cilantro, and yogurt. Enjoy!
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overhead horizontal photo of One Skillet Saucy Chicken Tortilla Enchilada Rice Bake

This post was originally published on March 4, 2020
4.30 from 740 votes (583 ratings without comment)

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Comments

  1. 5 stars
    OMG!! I just made this tonight and it was soooo good!! I wouldn’t change a thing.
    Thank you so much for all your amazing recipes.I have both your cookbooks and love reading them and looking at the beautiful pictures.

    Reply

  2. What are you thoughts on doing this in an instant pot through step 2? I have always struggled to get rice to fully cook on the stovetop for some reason. Thanks

    Reply

    1. Hi Stephanie,
      I have not tested this myself, but I do think it would work. I hope you enjoy the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan

      Reply

  3. Currently self-isolating and would like to make this to have for dinner throughout the week. Can you help me figure out how to meal prep this recipe? Rather than make the whole recipe start to finish in one go, I want to stop after adding the cilantro and lime juice. When ready for dinner, after topping with cheese and chips, do you think it could be baked in a small dish in the oven at 425 as the recipe suggests? Hope that all made sense…

    Reply

    1. Hi Alexis! I think that should work great! Please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan

      Reply

  4. 5 stars
    These recipes have been great during the shelter in place! Tonight I made this enchilada skillet dish and as you suggested, using the brown rice and cooking it longer. Love your recipes!!!

    Reply

  7. 5 stars
    This was super yummy, very flavorful and hearty… probably the most delicious recipe I’ve made from HBH so far. I couldn’t find chipotle chiles in adobo (which I love) but found chipotle chile sauce so put 2 tablespoons of that and I think it added a lot to the dish. I used the canned enchilada sauce recommended (Hatch). Also, because I used brown rice, I had to cook it longer on the stove before sticking into the oven (about 30 min more on the stove).

    Reply

  9. 5 stars
    This was 10/10. Just as good as enchiladas, but less carby and way easier. A few things i did different: I used Gwynneth Paltrows enchilada sauce, and instead of rice, I did refried beans so therefore I eliminated the 2.5 cups of water and the simmer time. I also spooned a can of green chilis on top of the chips before I did the second layer of cheese. I served it with green onion, diced tomato, a lime wedge, pickled jalapenos, hot sauce, and guacamole. (I’m extremely extra/and enneagram 7 IF YOU CANT TELL) It was EXCELLENT and honestly would have been great without 17 toppings too. So easy, so good. This will now be a part of my regular repertoire.

    Reply

  10. 5 stars
    Another winner dinner! We enjoyed this comfort meal earlier this week and would definitely make it again. I think it could also make a great super nacho for a party if you add more chips to the top! Super tasty. Thank you for sharing, Tieghan!

    Reply

  11. 5 stars
    Delicious! Even my 5 year old ate some and liked it. My 3 year old shoveled in a lumberjack sized portion so apparently she liked it too. My husband, who’s not one to get excited about anything, said he really liked it about 10 times, and asked me to write it down somewhere to make again. I didn’t use the jalapeno (kids) but did use the chipotle pepper and I was glad I did. It adds a kick without a ton of heat. I served the chips on the side to keep things flexible for everyone. I’ll be making this often. Thanks for the great recipe! (By the way, I recently bought both of your cookbooks and have made a bunch of the recipes – excellent!!)

    Reply

    1. Wow that is so amazing!! I am so glad you all loved this and I hope you love all of the recipes in the books! Thank you Amy! xTieghan

      Reply