This recipe came about because I was making my famous NTK Creamy Chicken Enchiladas and found myself with some extra filling. I ate it that day for lunch and realized it is so delicious, you really don’t even need a tortilla! Since that day, I have been making this recipe often and have found it is my favorite for when guests are coming to town. Here’s why: it is extremely forgiving on time. 

If our guests show up at six and are starving, we can eat it right then. If they aren’t hungry upon arrival, show up later than expected, or we opt to put the kids to bed before we eat, this simply sits in the crockpot on warm, ready when we are. I cook my rice in my tried-and-true rice cooker and so it sits there, on warm, waiting until we are ready as well. 

Here is something you need to know about these bowls: they are pretty darn hard to mess up. You can leave out any veggie you don’t love, and add any that sound good to you. When we have guests coming, my favorite way to really jazz these up is to go buy Whole Foods’ house-made guacamole and their house-made mango pineapple salsa. I serve the guacamole as an appetizer with chips and serve the mango pineapple salsa as a topping for the bowls. It is out of this world good.

Cook any rice you prefer, using the method for that specific rice. Like I said, I prefer a rice cooker but you can certainly do it on the stove, or use microwaveable rice. 

This recipe will feed 6-8 people, so it’s great for a dinner party or for meal prep.

CREAMY CHICKEN ENCHILADA BOWL INGREDIENTS:

• Cumin
• Kosher salt and black pepper
• Chicken breasts
• Green enchilada sauce
• Olive oil
• Thinly sliced onion
• Thinly sliced red bell peppers (you can sub yellow or orange)
• Salsa verde
• Sour cream, divided
• A 15-ounce can of corn (you can use thawed frozen corn or fresh corn kernels)
• A 15-ounce can of black beans
• Brown rice (or white rice or another grain like quinoa)
• Optional toppings: avocado, cilantro, guacamole, pico de gallo, fresh lime wedges, mango salsa, shredded Cheddar/Mexican-style cheese

HOW TO MAKE CREAMY CHICKEN ENCHILADA BOWLS:

• STEP 1: To a small bowl, add cumin, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and black pepper. Stir to combine.

• STEP 2: Season chicken breasts with cumin mixture. Add the chicken to the crockpot with 8 ounces of enchilada sauce and cook on high for 4 hours or low for 6 hours.

• STEP 3: While the chicken cooks, sauté your onion and peppers. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat and sauté the onions and peppers until soft and slightly caramelized. Set aside.

• STEP 4: While the chicken cooks, cook your rice according to package directions.

• STEP 5: Make the salsa verde sauce: In a blender, combine 1/2 cup sour cream, 12 ounces salsa verde, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Blend until smooth.

• STEP 6: Once the chicken is cooked, turn off the crockpot and remove the chicken breasts. Shred the chicken with two forks.

• STEP 7: To the crockpot, add the remaining 1 cup sour cream and remaining 8 ounces enchilada sauce and whisk to combine.

• STEP 8: Return the shredded chicken to the crockpot, along with the corn, black beans, and sautéed onions and peppers. Stir to combine.

• STEP 9: Assemble the bowls: Put your preferred amount of cooked rice in your bowl. Top with the creamy chicken mixture, additional salsa verde sauce if you want it extra creamy, and any additional toppings you like, such as avocado, cilantro, squeeze of lime, pico de gallo, etc.

Creamy Chicken Enchilada Bowls

Recipe by KateCourse: Dinner

Servings

8

servings

These enchilada bowls are extremely delicious, extremely hard to mess up, and extremely forgiving with regard to when you serve them. They can sit on “keep warm” in the crockpot for hours, and can be dressed up with store-bought salsa and/or guac, or kept simple with sliced avocado. This recipe cooks a huge batch, making it ideal for entertaining or meal prep. Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons cumin

• 3/4 teaspoon salt, divided

• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

• 4 chicken breasts

• 16 ounces green enchilada sauce, divided

• 1-2 tablespoons olive oil

• 1 onion, thinly sliced

• 2 medium red bell peppers, thinly sliced (you can sub yellow or orange)

• 1 1/2 cups sour cream, divided

• 12 ounces salsa verde

• 1 (15-ounce) can corn, drained (or thawed frozen corn, or fresh corn kernels)

• 1 (15-ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed

• 2 cups uncooked brown rice

• Optional toppings: Sliced avocado, guacamole, shredded cheese, cilantro, pico de gallo, fresh lime wedges, mango salsa

Directions

• To a small bowl, add cumin, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and black pepper. Stir to combine.
• Season chicken breasts with cumin mixture. Add the chicken to the crockpot with 8 ounces of enchilada sauce and cook on high for 4 hours or low for 6 hours.
• While the chicken cooks, you will sauté your onion and peppers, make your salsa verde sauce, and cook your rice according to package directions. For the onions and peppers, heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat and sauté the onions and peppers until soft and slightly caramelized, about 10 minutes. Set aside.
• To make the salsa verde sauce: In a blender, combine 1/2 cup sour cream, 12 ounces salsa verde, and the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Blend until smooth.
• For the rice: Cook per package directions.
• Once the chicken is cooked, turn off the crockpot and remove the chicken breasts. Shred the chicken with two forks.
• To the crockpot, add the remaining 1 cup sour cream and remaining 8 ounces enchilada sauce and whisk to combine.
• Return the shredded chicken back to the crockpot, along with the corn, black beans, and sautéed onions and peppers. Stir to combine.
• Assemble the bowls: Put your preferred amount of cooked rice in your bowl. Top with the creamy chicken mixture, salsa verde sauce if you want it extra creamy, and any additional toppings you’d like, such as avocado, cilantro, shredded cheese, a squeeze of lime, pico de gallo, etc.

Notes

• 2 cups uncooked rice will yield approximately 5 cups cooked rice. (You will likely have some left over, but rice is cheap and there’s no sense in running out. You can freeze what you don’t use or use for another recipe that week!)

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