Gluten-free Salsa Verde Chicken and Rice Casserole is totally cravable. Creamy, cheesy comfort food with a Mexican twist.
I have been craving all the comfort foods in the form of soups, casseroles, and skillets lately, which might be why my Salsa Verde Chicken and Rice Casserole is especially hitting the spot!
This no-bake, toss together casserole is the epitome of creamy, cheesy comfort food. The combination of chicken and rice always does it for me!
Long grain white rice is simmered in tangy salsa verde and chicken broth then combined with sauted chicken, green chilies, and a creamy homemade cheese sauce before being scooped into a baking dish and broiled.
It’s a riff on my Skinny Cheesy Chicken and Broccoli Rice Casserole which is a mega hit with IGE readers.
Spoiler alert – I like this version even better!
It’s even delicious when re-heated, which is hard to come by in rice-based dishes, and would be great to scoop into gladware containers then reheated for lunches all week long.
In a world of ho-hum, cold salads and sandwiches it is so nice to be able to enjoy something hot and homemade in the middle of the day. Lunch, dinner – whenever – you will LOVE this!
Start by cooking 2 cups long grain rice in 3 cups chicken broth and 3/4 cup salsa verde.
Cook the rice according to package directions then fluff and add 3 small or 2 large chopped green onions to the pot, place a lid on top, then let the onions steam with the pan off the heat for 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil in a large, deep skillet over medium-high heat. Add 2 chopped chicken breasts and a 4oz can green chilies. Season with salt and pepper then saute until the chicken is just cooked through.
Add 3 minced garlic cloves then saute for 1 more minute. Pour the chicken and chilies onto a plate then very carefully wipe out the skillet with a couple of paper towels.
Keep the skillet off the heat to cool down for a few minutes while you whisk 5 teaspoons gluten-free flour (or AP flour if not GF) into 1/2 cup milk. Place the skillet back over medium-high heat, pour the flour/milk mixture in, and then add 1-1/2 cups more milk.
While this is not a dairy-free recipe by any means, making cheese sauce without a butter base is 100% possible (and delicious!)
Season with salt and pepper, bring the mixture to a bubble, and then turn the heat down to medium and simmer until thickened, 8-10 minutes, stirring the entire time.
Pull the skillet off the heat then add 6oz shredded Monterey Jack cheese and 1/3 cup sour cream and then stir until smooth.
Add the cooked rice and chicken mixture to the cheese sauce then mix to combine. It should be cheesy, ooey, and 4,000% gooey!
Scoop the mixture into a nonstick sprayed 8×8″ baking dish then sprinkle 2oz more Monterey Jack cheese on top and broil until golden brown.
Scoop onto plates, garnish with some chopped cilantro, if you please, then serve!
Your entire family will flip for the casserole. Perfect fuel for getting through fall activities or just hunkering down with a plate underneath a big blanket with a fire roaring in front of you. Because that’s how we all eat our dinner, right? Ahh, a girl can dream. Either way, enjoy!
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3 cups chicken broth
- 3/4 cup salsa verde, Herdez recommended
- 2 cups long grain white rice, Lundberg recommended
- 2 green onions, chopped
- 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
- 2 chicken breasts, ~1lb, cut into bite-sized pieces
- 4 oz can green chiles
- salt and pepper
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 5 teaspoons gluten free flour, or AP flour if not GF
- 2 cups milk, divided
- 8 oz shredded Monterey Jack cheese, divided
- 1/3 cup sour cream
Directions
- Spray a 8x8" baking dish (or equivalent-sized baking dish) very well with nonstick spray then set aside. Bring chicken broth and salsa verde to a boil in a medium-sized saucepan then add rice, place a lid on top, turn heat down to low, then cook according to package directions. Remove pan from heat then fluff rice, sprinkle green onions on top, and then place the lid back on the pan for 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, heat extra virgin olive oil in a large, deep skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and green chilies, season with salt and pepper, and then saute until chicken is just cooked through. Add garlic then saute for 1 more minute. Remove chicken and chili mixture to a plate then very carefully wipe out the inside of the skillet with a couple of paper towels. Let the skillet cool off the heat while you whisk the flour into a dish with 1/2 cup milk.
- Return the skillet to the burner over medium-high heat, add the flour and milk mixture, and then add the remaining 1-1/2 cups milk. Season with salt and pepper then let the mixture come to a simmer, stirring constantly. Turn heat down to medium then simmer until thickened, 8-10 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove the skillet from the heat then stir in 6oz shredded cheese and sour cream. Taste then add salt and pepper if necessary.
- Add the chicken mixture and rice to the cheese sauce then stir to combine and scoop into the prepared baking dish. Top with remaining cheese then broil until golden brown.
Nutrition
Nutritional values are estimates only. Please read our full nutrition information disclaimer.
super creamy !! Will definitely try this!!
WOW! Made this for my husband tonight, and we both LOVED it! He always compliments my cooking (especially if it’s an IGE recipe!) but he seriously flipped over this casserole! The best part is this recipe makes plenty of food, so we will be able to enjoy it all week! Do yourself a favor and make this ASAP!!
I made this for dinner tonight. It was soooo good! My whole family enjoyed this. I love all your casserole recipes!
If I used quinoa in place of the rice, would it change the baking time?
Do you use rice flour to make it gluten free? Looks yummy
You got it, Marianne! I used white rice flour (and just made a note of it in the post – thanks for pointing that out!)
My family will flip over this casserole! I think I’ll serve it with chips for scooping!
And peanuts and candy corn…YES! But not honey roasted! I need good salty peanuts to balance the uber-sweet candy!!
This looks fabulous. Salsa verde is the best.
My friend just had a baby and she LOVES salsa verde. I will definitely be making this to bring over to her :) Thank you!!
Where is the button to save this recipe to ziplist? I only see the ‘Pin It’ button…
Thanks for the reminder! I will be posting a note about this sometime in the next couple of weeks but unfortunately ZipList is shutting down and as of Dec 10 none of the recipe box features (including saving recipes) will be working anymore. Stay tuned for more info!
Ziplist is shutting down??? Nooooo!!!! I love their app to create my grocery lists right from my recipes. Any suggestions on replacements?
BTW, made this dish tonight. My rice stuck to the pot while boiling and got a little burned, then my milk burned (apparently you have to scrape it off the bottom of the pan, not just half-heartedly stir the top of the pot), but I salvaged it and it was DELICIOUS.
I know :( I haven’t heard of any replacements, but I’ll keep you all posted!
I’m just making this today based on your Top 10 — made a few modifications and it’s in the oven now.
I was able to save all my recipes to epicurious.com — but as of today, the recipe clipper and shopping list are not working in a browser. I was able to download the epi app and I can manually create my shopping lists there. It’s not as good as ziplist – which I totally LOVED!! – but it’s better than nothing. I’ve been in contact with epicurious and they are working on improving things. Also, none of my recipes appear in my phone app.
Oh goodness, I couldn’t agree more with all of your “couples”. This recipe looks sooooo good. Can’t wait to try next week after this silly little detox the hubs and I decided to do this week. Lame.
Mmmm so creamy! Looks absolutely delicious.
YUM! I just made turkey enchiladas the other night and made a tomatillo sauce for the first time. I was pleasantly surprised. Adding this to the list to make next week when my sister is in town.
Side note: You had mentioned a while back that you were working on a new responsive website. Any estimate on when they will be done? Thanks!
As of now by Feb 1!
Seriously, how do you kill it week after week with your recipes?! Thank you!! One quick question… would you ever use brown rice in place of the white rice?
Sure! You’ll probably want to add a bit more salsa and chicken broth, and account for the longer cooking time. :)