Salsa Verde Chicken Chilaquiles — An EASY comfort food recipe with just FOUR main ingredients and ready in 30 minutes!! Green chilaquiles are made with layers of corn tostadas and juicy chicken smothered in salsa verde and melted pepper Jack cheese! Great for breakfast, dinner, snacks, a party appetizer or anything in between!!
What Are Chilaquiles?
Traditional chilaquiles are typically made from leftover corn tortillas that are first deep fried and then simmered in either red or green salsa, depending on the area in Mexico and your salsa preference, and there’s always plenty of cheese.
Adding shredded chicken, pulled pork, a fried egg on top, avocado, chiles, jalapeno, salsa, cilantro, or serving with beans on the side are some of the endless variations of chilaquiles. This dish is traditionally popular for breakfast, especially if you’re nursing a hangover.
This version of green chilaquiles is not traditional per se in the preparation (please don’t write to me telling me I am an imposter and don’t know anything about traditional Mexican cooking; on these types of recipes I get plenty of “fan mail” which I ignore and delete).
However, my version will save you both time and calories and it tastes every bit as traditional as you can imagine.
What’s in the Green Chilaquiles?
The four main ingredients for these semi-homemade chilaquiles include:
- Tostadas
- Salsa verde
- Chicken
- Cheese
In this recipe we’re using jarred salsa verde. Two 12-ounce jars of it, thanks Trader Joe’s, or make your own using the blender portion from my verde pozole recipe. Also use a shredded rotisserie chicken to save time.
And we’re not frying anything which not only saves time, but calories too. Chilaquiles are a great dish to make when there are leftover corn tortillas. But if you were to make chilaquiles with just plain tortillas, it would turn into a soggy mess. That’s why the tortillas are typically fried first.
But to save a boatload of fat and calories — and to prevent your house from smelling like a Mexican restaurant for days after — use corn tostadas instead. So much more practical and since they’re so crunchy to begin with, the finished chilaquiles are just the perfect texture — soft but not mushy — after being bathed in salsa verde and pepper Jack.
How to Make Chilaquiles
This is a very easy chilaquiles recipe, promise! Here’s how the chilaquiles verdes are made:
- To an ovenproof skillet, add tostadas to cover the base, breaking them a bit if necessary. I used 4 1/2.
- Top with one-third of the salsa, one-third of the chicken, one-third of the cheese. Repeat twice until all the ingredients have been used.
- Bake for about 30 minutes, or until the cheese is as lightly golden browned as desired, and get ready to serve.
I simply added cilantro and a few cherry tomatoes but depending on what you have on hand and enjoy, avocado, guacamole, sour cream or jalapeno make great toppers.
Can Regular Tortillas Be Used?
No, you need to use corn tostadas. Tostadas have already been fried and as such are nice and crunchy. You need that firm texture to withstand the salsa verde.
If you use plain tortillas and don’t fry them first, you’ll wind up with a pile of mush rather than green chilaquiles.
What to Serve with Chilaquiles
You’ll often see homemade chilaquiles served with a fried egg on top or refried beans on the side.
If you don’t mind serving the green chilaquiles with a non-traditional side, try making Piña Colada Fruit Salad (non-alcoholic, don’t worry!). A side of fresh fruit pairs nicely with the cheesy chilaquiles, in my opinion.
Tips for Making Chilaquiles Verdes
I recommend using a store-bought rotisserie chicken to save yourself some time. However, leftover shredded chicken that you meal prepped for the week works just as well!
I used Pepper Jack cheese for topping the chilaquiles because I like the subtle heat it lends to the dish, but use any shredded cheese you like.
Chilaquiles are best assembled and eaten right away. They don’t keep well in the fridge.
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Salsa Verde Chicken Chilaquiles
Ingredients
- 12 to 15 corn tostadas, or as necessary
- 24 ounces salsa verde, or your favorite
- 3 cups cooked shredded chicken, use rotisserie chicken to save time
- 12 ounces pepper Jack cheese blend
- cilantro, optional for garnishing
- tomatoes, optional for garnishing
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375F (use convection if you have it) and spray a 10-inch oven-proof skillet with cooking spray.
- To the bottom of the skillet, add 4 to 5 tostadas, enough to completely cover the base of the skillet, breaking them slightly if necessary to get complete coverage (does not have to be perfect).
- Evenly top with one-third of the salsa (8 ounces), one third of the chicken (1 cup), and one-third of the cheese (4 ounces).
- Repeat the layering process twice. Tostadas, salsa, chicken, cheese.
- Bake for about 25 to 30 minutes, or until the cheese is as lightly golden browned as desired.
- Optionally garnish with cilantro, tomatoes, or your favorite garnishes (read blog post for ideas). Serve immediately. Chilaquiles are best fresh.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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These were soooo good. I made the 30 min Chicken Tortilla soup (also excellent) for the same meal…I decided to make extra of the onions & jalapeno (and I added an orange pepper to the mix) and added into the layers on this dish. I also accidently opened a can of creamed corn instead of regular corn, so I used half of that in the soup and half with this dish. That may caused it to slightly less crunchy, but it was still fabulous.
These were soooo good. I made the 30 min Chicken Tortilla soup (also excellent) for the same meal…I decided to make extra of the onions & jalapeno (and I added an orange pepper to the mix) and added into the layers on this dish. I also accidently opened a can of creamed corn instead of regular corn, so I used half of that in the soup and half with this dish. That may caused it to slightly less crunchy, but it was still fabulous.
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad these were great! And great that you also make the Chicken Tortilla Soup, great addition with the chilaquiles I’m sure!
Loved this, easy, tasty, can add all sort of things on top.
I loved this easy recipe. I have never used tostadas before so this was my first time buying those. My husband wanted me to make this again so, on my first trip to the grocery store in 3 weeks, I bought enough ingredients to make three batches. I left a bag with the ingredients and the recipe on the doorstep of two families who I thought might appreciate a simple, tasty meal. An easy way to show some love at a time when we are all keeping our distance. Thanks for new favorite quick meal.
I loved this easy recipe. I have never used tostadas before so this was my first time buying those. My husband wanted me to make this again so, on my first trip to the grocery store in 3 weeks, I bought enough ingredients to make three batches. I left a bag with the ingredients and the recipe on the doorstep of two families who I thought might appreciate a simple, tasty meal. An easy way to show some love at a time when we are all keeping our distance. Thanks for new favorite quick meal.
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad that you loved this enough to make it again, and to buy ingredients so you could make it again. And how NICE of you to cook for other families. I am sure the surprise of a home-cooked meal absolutely delighted them!
This is a really informative post and indeed it’s greatly helpful for making this recepi. Thank you so much for sharing this informative post with us.
I love love love Chilaquiles!! I could eat them any time of the day. I’m definitely going to try this!
This dish was so simple, yet so delicious!! Everyone loved it!!
Thanks again, Averie!!
This dish was so simple, yet so delicious!! Everyone loved it!!
Thanks again, Averie!!
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad it was so simple yet delicious and everyone loved it! Thanks for making it right after I posted it, too!
Yes Yum! I think I will use the next month or two as an opportunity to try some recipes I haven’t been able to get to….and I heard last week that Trader Joe’s is finally coming to town!! I hope you and your family stay well.
I hope you and your family stay well, too! I normally make my recipes 2-3 months ahead of time so I made this one right after the 1st of the year. Ironically it only has a few ingredients, and lucky you TJs is coming to your town! Right now I cannot really cook how I’d like, it feels like an episode of Chopped, with just very random ingredients in my basket, literal pun intended if you’ve ever watched that show on Food Network.
Anyway…keep me posted what you try if you can get ingredients. Take good care, Paula!
Yum!
Yum!
Yum!