Is That The Best You Can Do? Chicken Taco Casserole?

The most essential part of a well-balanced diet is — food! — Anonymous.

This Chicken Taco Casserole recipe is infuriatingly basic and lacks the finesse and creativity required to truly elevate your cooking. And don’t get me started on the lackluster wine pairing. Nevertheless, I suppose I can salvage this disaster of a recipe. Let’s turn this amateur casserole into something worth eating.

Laxfed’s Chicken Taco Casserole with a Twist

Ingredients:

• 4 cups shredded chicken
• 1 (4-ounce) can mild green chiles
• 2 (1-ounce) packets taco seasoning, divided
• 1 pound shredded colby jack cheese, divided
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 1/2 cups corn kernels (no need to thaw if frozen)
• 1 (15-ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 (14-ounce) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes
• 12 (6-inch) corn tortillas
• 8 crispy tostadas
• Sour cream, for serving
• Chopped cilantro, for serving

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 400˚F.
2. Begin by preparing the chicken filling. In a large bowl, mix the shredded chicken with the green chiles, 1 packet of taco seasoning, and half of the shredded cheese. Set aside.
3. Next, prepare the vegetable filling. In a large skillet, add olive oil and diced onion. Season with salt and the second packet of taco seasoning. Sauté over medium-high heat until the onions soften, about 4 to 5 minutes. Then, add the corn and cook for an additional 1 to 2 minutes. Incorporate the black beans and fire-roasted tomatoes, allowing the flavors to meld and the tomatoes to break down slightly. Remove from the heat and stir in half of the remaining shredded cheese.
4. Now, let’s assemble the casserole. Lightly spray a 9x13-inch baking dish with nonstick spray and line the bottom with 8 overlapping tostada shells. Alternatively, you can use 6 corn tortillas, but the crispy tostadas work best. Top the tostadas with the chicken filling, then cover with 6 corn tortillas to create another layer.
5. Spread the black bean and corn mixture on top of the tortillas. Cover with the last 6 corn tortillas. It’s okay to rip them up to ensure even coverage. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese.
6. Bake the casserole, uncovered, for 30 minutes, until it is bubbling and the top is crispy.
7. Allow the casserole to cool for 5 minutes before slicing portions with a knife and serving with a spatula. Garnish each serving with a dollop of sour cream and a sprinkle of freshly chopped cilantro.

Wine Pairing:

The bold flavors of this revamped Chicken Taco Casserole call for a robust and flavorful wine to complement it. I recommend pairing this dish with a rich and velvety Malbec, such as the 2017 Catena Zapata Malbec from Argentina. The wine’s dark fruit notes and elegant tannins will beautifully balance the spiciness of the casserole.

There you have it — a proper Chicken Taco Casserole worthy of your time and effort. It’s about time this dish received the makeover it deserved. Enjoy!

I hope you enjoy this recipe. Be sure to subscribe for more. If you think there is anything that needs to be corrected or added to this recipe, please feel free to leave a comment, or don’t.