This dish is a real crowd pleasure and everyone at the table will be asking for seconds! It's packed with protein and nutritious vegetables and makes for delicious leftovers!
It's a quick and easy one pot meal that can be in the oven in under 30 minutes. Colorful vegetables and fresh flavors will turn this Tex-Mex Chicken Bake into a family favorite in no time!
Ingredients
This dish is super flexible so feel free to exclude, switch up, or add in any vegetables, herbs, or seasonings you wish.
- Chicken thighs - bone-in, skin on. You can use any pieces of chicken you like. I do recommend at least leaving the skin on for extra flavour.
- White onion - you can also use yellow, sweet, or Spanish onions
- Red pepper - or any colour of bell pepper
- Zucchini - or summer squash
- Corn - frozen or fresh kernals
- Salsa - My favourite is Organic Jack's Cantina Salsa but any fresh, store bought, salsa will work. One jarred option that is good is Herdez brand but most others tend to be more like a sauce then a salsa.
- Cilantro - You can omit this if you're not a fan or substitute with fresh parsley.
- Old cheddar cheese - You can substitute with any type of cheddar, Monterey Jack or a combination.
- Green onions/scallions - These are an optional garnish added at the end for freshness.
- Sour cream - An optional garnish. You could also add guacamole or fresh avocado slices.
Substitutions
- Chicken thighs - can be replaced with chicken breasts. Cooking time will vary.
- Cilantro - omit or use fresh parsley
- Cheddar Cheese - use any kind of melting cheese or replace with a dairy free alternative.
- Vegetables - you can make this dish with any vegetables you like. This combo is classicly Tex-Mex.
- Corn - a great substitute for corn in this recipe is green peas, mushrooms, or simply omit the corn altogether.
Make it Vegetarian
To make this dish vegetarian simply omit the chicken and add 1 - 2 cans of black beans. Add the beans at the time you would add back in the chicken, before baking in the oven.
To make it Vegan, do the same but use vegan cheddar or omit the cheese.
Storage
Keep covered in the fridge for 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
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📖 Recipe
Tex-Mex Chicken Bake
A quick and easy one pot meal that can be in the oven in under 30 minutes.
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Servings: 6 thighs
Calories: 348kcal
Ingredients
- 6 chicken thighs, bone-in, skin on
- 1 large white onion, peeled and diced
- 1 large red bell pepper, or any colour, diced
- 1 large zucchini, diced
- 2 large cloves garlic, finely chopped, 1 tbsp.
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 cup fresh or frozen corn kernels
- 2 cups salsa
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 small bunch cilantro, washed and rough chopped. Divide in two portions. One half is for garnish
- 150 g or about 2 cups Old cheddar cheese, grated
- 2-3 green onions, sliced, for garnish
Optional toppings
- Sour cream
- guacamole or avocado
- pickled jalapenos
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
- Season chicken thighs on both sides with salt and pepper.
- Heat olive oil in large sauté pan over medium-high heat.
- Add chicken thighs, skin side down and set sear, without moving them, for 4-5 minutes or until golden brown. Flip over and sear the other side for 3-4 minutes more or until golden brown.
- Remove chicken to a large plate or dish and set aside.
- Add diced onion to the pan with the oil and fat from the chicken. Saute, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes or until soft and glossy.
- Add diced zucchini, red pepper, garlic, cumin, and chili powder. Continue cooking and stirring occasionally for 3-4 minutes.
- Add corn and cook for 2 more minutes. Add salsa and half the chopped cilantro. Taste and add salt and pepper as needed.
- Bring to a boil and reduce heat to a simmer. Nestle chicken pieces into the vegetable mixture.
- Top with grated cheddar leaving the chicken skin exposed.
- Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes or until a thermometer reads 165 degrees F.
- Top with remaining cilantro and sliced green onions.
- Serve on it's own or with rice or quinoa. Top with sour cream and/or guacamole.
Notes
- STORAGE - Keep covered in the fridge for 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
- SUBSTITUTIONS – Black beans, tofu, or shrimp work well in place of chicken. Use any combination of vegetables you like.
- MAKE IT VEGETARIAN - Omit the chicken and add 1 - 2 cans of black beans. Add the beans in step # 9. Or slice a block of firm tofu and follow recipe as is, browning the tofu first.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 348kcal | Carbohydrates: 14g | Protein: 34g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 156mg | Sodium: 413mg | Potassium: 464mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 8g
Tried this recipe?Mention @MyPocketKitchen or tag #mypocketkitchen!
Brian MacDonald says
Super recipe! Made it for a dinner party and it got rave reviews!!
Jenn says
Incredibly delicious! Kids had no idea it was healthy lol
Andrea says
Best compliment ever!
Laura says
I love a one pot recipe, and this one does not disappoint. It's simple, delicious and super versatile; you can add extra vegetables and a can of black beans to really stretch it out. We had plenty for dinner, plus leftovers for the freezer. Thank you Andrea!
Andrea says
My pleasure! I'm so happy you all enjoyed it! Love the addition of black beans too!
Suzanne Livingstone says
I made this last night for dinner. I thought I had everything but alas, I did not. I don’t care for zucchini so I put one more cup of corn. I only had one cup of red salsa so I mixed with with a cup of salsa verde and it was fantastic. It was thick and I could eat the veggies and nothing else. So, so, so good. Thank you. Another hit!
Rosemary Barry says
Family Favourite! Love this dish as I can pre-prep everything, ie BBQ Chicken, Chicken leftovers, sautéed veggies from the night before as well as just making it as the recipe states. I love that I can put it all together in advance (for me this is key as then when needed I then pull from the fridge to pop in the oven! Cottage, home - Easy Peasy! So awesome!
Donna says
Made this the other day and absolutely loved it
Suzanne says
Thank you Andrea, this dish is so flavourful. The dish was watery just a bit and the cheese kind of disappeared in the liquid, no worries as I read a previous comment to rectify this. Loved the addition of sour cream. Next time and there is going to be a next time I will add leafy greens to step 7.
Love your comments re: The Livy Method.
Thank you again.
Sharon Van Dyke says
This is still my family’s favorite recipe! I make at least 2 of your recipes every week. I love being able to incorporate everything into the Livy method. Thank you and looking forward to anything new you put out there!😊
Andrea says
That makes me happy to hear Sharon! Thanks so much for your continued support. So happy you are enjoying the recipes!
Sally says
Can I make this a day ahead , could I I sear-the chicken & assemble all ingredients in pan & then put in fridge & finish cooking next day?
Andrea says
Hi Sally! Yes you could definitely do that. It may take a little longer to finish with everything being cold going into the oven but it will work 👌
Beverly says
A DEFINITE KEEPER! So many great flavors, true Tex-mex., Soo good & savory. Thank you for Another great, flavorful, healthy recipe!
Andrea says
My pleasure! So happy you enjoyed it! Thank you so much for your comment!
Jackie Tridico says
So good ! I started off with the chicken thighs and then made again with a cooked chicken that I shredded and put into the base ! It was AMAZING !
Leah V says
Hi Andrea! This is definitely a 5 star recipe! The skin stayed crispy, the sauce was flavorful. I added a big handful of spinach at the bottom of my shallow bowl and my husband used rice on the bottom of his and both were terrific. Thank you!
Andrea says
Hi Leah!
I'm so happy you both enjoyed it! Thank so much for commenting!
Anne Brodie says
I didn’t expect much, I just thought I would try it as I was looking for a quick dinner and I had most of the ingredients on hand. Well I am glad I did! It was so good !! We really enjoy Mexican food and my family said it was just as good,if not better than some of our favourite dishes at our local Mexican restaurants.
This is a keeper and I recommend for people to try it. Yum!
Andrea says
Hi Anne!
I'm so happy you tried it and that everyone enjoyed it! Thanks so much for commenting!