Quinoa Enchilada Casserole
by Chungah
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A lightened-up, healthy enchilada bake that you can enjoy guilt-free, chockfull of quinoa, black beans and cheesy goodness. And the leftovers taste even better!
Featured Comment
I think it’s safe to say that I have somewhat of a love affair with Mexican food. Whether it’s fish tacos, cheesy enchiladas or a giant burrito the size of my forearm, I could honestly live off of all of these for the rest of my life.
So when Old El Paso asked me to be their brand ambassador for the next year, well, how could I say no? It just gives me an excuse to make even more of my favorite Mexican-inspired dishes to share with you all! And to start things off, I just had to share my favorite Mexican comfort food lightened-up.
Now this is a super easy enchilada bake with quinoa instead of tortilla. By using quinoa, we’re adding in some fun healthy goodies, like protein and fiber, and there’s absolutely no rolling or wrapping of any kind. You can simply throw everything into a bowl, mix it up, and bake it from there. Yes, it doesn’t get easier than that!
After you let this bake through, you’ll have the most amazing cheesy enchilada bake! It’s so good, you’ll never want to have traditional enchiladas ever again!
Quinoa Enchilada Casserole: Frequently Asked Questions
You can use about 2 cups cooked quinoa.
Absolutely! This is our favorite recipe for homemade enchilada sauce.
Mushrooms, spinach, zucchini, and/or carrots would be great additions.
Ground taco meat and/or leftover rotisserie chicken can get mixed in with your quinoa-enchilada-sauce mixture.
Yes! You can freeze the leftovers in individual freezer bags, thaw overnight, and reheat in the oven until completely warmed through.
You can substitute vegan cheeses for the cheddar and mozzarella cheeses to make this a vegan quinoa enchilada casserole.
Quinoa Enchilada Casserole
Video
Ingredients
- 1 cup quinoa
- 1 (10-ounce) can red enchilada sauce
- 1 (4-ounce) can diced green chiles, drained
- ½ cup corn kernels, frozen, canned or roasted
- ½ cup canned black beans, drained and rinsed
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon chili powder
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- ¾ cup shredded cheddar cheese, divided
- ¾ cup shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
- 1 avocado, halved, seeded, peeled and diced
- 1 Roma tomato, diced
Instructions
- In a large saucepan of 2 cups water, cook quinoa according to package instructions; set aside.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly coat a 9 x 13 baking dish with nonstick spray.
- In a large bowl, combine quinoa, enchilada sauce, green chiles, corn, black beans, cilantro, cumin and chili powder; season with salt and pepper, to taste. Stir in 1/2 cup cheddar cheese and 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese.
- Spread quinoa mixture into the prepared baking dish. Top with remaining cheeses. Place into oven and bake until bubbly and cheeses have melted, about 15 minutes.
- Serve immediately, garnished with avocado and tomato, if desired.
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Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Old El Paso. All opinions expressed are my own.
This sounds to good to be true.
I too love Mexican food.
As a vegetarian, I really look forward to making this.
Thank you, Chungah for this.
Delicious!!! I just made this and my boyfriend said “three cheers for Chungah!”
He is a weightlifter and likes to eat healthy so he was happy to try this. After we ate he said he didn’t want enchiladas with tortillas at home ever again.
I did add some canned diced tomatoes into the mix and topped it with some chopped black olives. But it’s a great recipe because you can easily substitute whatever veggies you have on hand.
Thanks so much for sharing!
Yum! So easy and will make again!
Delicious! I added a little chicken to mine 🙂 my husband and I both went back for a second serving!
I know this was posted awhile ago, but we just found it and it’s amazing! Our family- kids, parents, grandparents, in laws- everyone loves it! We make it at least once a month now. Sometimes as it is, sometimes we add chicken or pulled pork and put it in tortillas.
Just made this and am really amazed. Thank you!!!!!
Has anyone tried this using vegan cheese?
This is delicious! Thank you!! It freezes well before and after cooking and is easily doubled for large groups. I usually use 3/4 c quinoa and 1.5 cans of beans.
Tonight, after making it dozens of times, I tried it with quinoa, green enchilada sauce, great northern beans , cilantro, corn, 1/2 cup sour cream and Colby jack cheese. Amazing!
I have a large group of women over every other week and we eat this EVERY time… by their request. They love it- red and green alike ! So appreciate this delicious and forgiving recipe!
Made the dish for dinner tonight. The family gave it an A+. It was simple to prep and really quick to bake. My husband couldn’t believe it was quinoa. I added a green salad and tortilla chips on the side for the kids. They can’t wait to eat leftovers tomorrow.
Amazing!
Delish!!! I made this for dinner tonight and was pleasantly surprised. I excluded the cilantro because I don’t like the taste and salt because I was out, inconceivable I know. I wish I would have added some salt to it but other than that it was fantastic! I will definitely make this again!
Awesome!
If I add a pound or less of cooked ground turkey, should I add more sauce? any suggestions on how to keep the right consistency?
What a great idea! But unfortunately, without further recipe testing, I cannot answer with certainty. As always, please use your best judgment when making substitutions and modifications.
I just wanted to thank you for this recipe. We found it over two years ago and it’s been on constant repeat since. One of our very favorite meals!! Soooo good!
Love that! 🙂
I added 1 lb. of ground turkey, no way less cheese. It was delicious! Thanks for the healthy inspiration!
Meant to say, “way less cheese”. That makes it more weight watcher friendly. It was still fantastic!
Does this call for 1 cup of dry quinoa or one cup of quinoa after it’s been cooked? (One cup dry yields about 4 cups cooked) so I want to make sure I’m not putting in too much!
The recipe calls for 1 cup uncooked quinoa which is then cooked in step #1. Hope that helps.
Can I sub rice for the quinoa?
Yes.
I make this all the time. I divide it into small batches and freeze for lunches. It freezes well. I just pop it into microwave to thaw and heat or put into my mini crockpot in the morning to be ready by lunch. Delicious and nutritious. Thanks for sharing
Mine was to runny…
This dish was the fourth or fifth I’ve made from you and I’m hooked!
This was so good. At first I wasn’t sure if it was 1 cup uncooked quinoa or 1 cup cooked, but the video answered (1 cup uncooked/ 2 cups cooked if anyone is wondering).
I love that your meatless dishes don’t leave me wanting meat. If anyone could make me vegetarian, it would be you. Thanks so much!
I made this yesterday. I had never tried Quinoa and was a little scared to try it but it came out great! My kids loved it my husband loved it! Definitely making this again and again!! Thank you!
I made this ahead for dinner tomorrow. Should I cook it now or will it be better to put it in the fridge for 24 hours and cook it tomorrow?
I recommend cooking now.