Chicken Enchilada Bake

If you are looking for a super easy, very delicious, low-maintenance, and crowd-pleasing dinner, this one is for you. All the great taste of homemade enchiladas without making your own sauce or rolling up individual enchiladas. We are just making this in layers in a square pan and calling it a bake.

Just grab your ingredients, toss this together in 5 minutes, bake for 30 minutes, and dinner is served. Just that easy, just that quick. Because most nights, time is precious and convenience is golden.

The only part you want to think ahead on is your shredded chicken. I like to put a few chicken breasts into the slow cooker, cover with chicken broth, and cook on low for 4 – 5 hours. Then remove from the liquid, shred the chicken, and refrigerate it until you’re ready to throw a meal like this together. Faster options would be buying a rotisserie chicken and shredding that chicken off the bone. Or, if you have some frozen precooked chicken, feel free to use it in whatever form it came in. (Dice it up if shredding is difficult.) The name of the game here is easy. So, pick whatever makes this easiest for you.

Next layer tortillas, chicken, black beans, taco seasoning, sauce, and cheese. Repeat, ending with a layer of tortillas, sauce, and cheese on top. If there are other things you want to add to the layers, like more veggies or other ingredients, feel free to make it your own. Make sure to cover with foil before baking, as this will speed up the cooking time.

It’s done when it comes out looking all nice and cheesy. Feel free to remove the foil and broil for a moment if you like a nice, crusty, cheesy top. One of the reasons I like this recipe so much is that it’s another way to add chicken breasts into your rotation with more flavor. Chicken can get quite boring, but add in enchilada sauce and cheese, and it makes it much more enjoyable. If you want to use another meat or a meatless alternative, please do.

One fourth of this dish packs 47 g of protein and 54 g of carbohydrates. Depending on your training, you may need to add more carbohydrates to the side of this meal. I highly recommend heating some leftover rice or a premade rice pouch to help meet those carb needs. Remember, the more miles we run, the more carbs we need to eat at meals. Other ways to increase carbs could include adding fruit on the side, drinking a glass of juice, or having a carb-rich bedtime snack, such as a bowl of cereal or a few graham crackers.

This is also great as leftovers, if you don’t eat it all at dinner! You could also make this ahead of time and put it into four leftover containers for meal prep for lunch most of the week. Promise you won’t get sick of this waiting for you for lunch the next day.