One scoop of this hearty Cheesy Mexican Skillet will lead to many more! It's filled with all your favorite taco night ingredients, all prepared in just one pan and just 30 minutes.
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About this Skillet
Holy guacamole, this one pan Cheesy Mexican Skillet is sKILLIN’ IT! 😂 For real. This skillet recipe is packed with incredible flavor. Juicy ground chicken, hearty black beans, fluffy rice, melty cheese, and taco-seasoned veggies taste EVEN BETTER when it all comes together in one pan and in under 30 minutes.
Plus, toppings galore—and however you like 'em! Sour cream, guacamole, pico de gallo, crushed tortilla chips, Food Processor Salsa...you can truly dress this skillet up however you like. And I like to dress mine to the nines.
Another great thing about this dish is that it can be easily modified to fit your dietary needs. Need vegetarian, dairy free, or low carb swaps? Easy as can be. I share more on this below!
You'll want to have this Mexican Chicken Skillet in your back pocket for a busy weeknight or as a new addition to your meal prep routine. Not only is it boyfriend approved, but it's chef approved, too.
And you can find all of my favorite Mexican Inspired Recipes here, but I think you'll love these Crockpot Chicken Tacos, these Zucchini Enchilada Roll Ups, these Blackened Mahi Mahi Tacos or these Enchilada Stuffed Peppers, too!
Recipe Ingredients
- Ground Chicken: You could substitute ground turkey or beef if you'd like.
- Veggies: I included onion, bell pepper, corn, tomatoes, and mushrooms. If any of these are controversial in your household, leave it out.
- Black Beans and Brown Rice: Two hearty carb sources with lots of fiber, and protein in the beans too! Beans and rice are a classic Mexican combo.
- Taco Seasoning: Grab a packet to make it easy! This will give our skillet plenty of flavor.
- Shredded Cheese: Use a Mexican blend or cotija (which I like to compare to a Mexican feta) would be tasty, too.
- Garnish: You could garnish this skillet with cilantro, avocado, chips, extra cheese, sriracha, jalapenos, sour cream, salsa, or also guacamole. Options galore!
See the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements.
How to Make This Recipe
1. First, prepare all of the ingredients. It makes it easier to focus on cooking the actual meal instead of prepping at each step. Wash and finely dice red onion, bell peppers, and mushrooms. Make rice according to package instructions.
2. Heat a skillet to medium-heat and spray with cooking spray. Sauté ground chicken, red pepper, onion, and orange pepper together in the skillet. Stir constantly.
3. Next, rinse and drain canned black beans. Once the meat is about halfway done, pour in cooked rice and black beans. Then, sprinkle taco seasoning and stir in corn, diced tomatoes and mushrooms.
4. By this time, the meat should be thoroughly cooked. Flatten the ingredients in the skillet and top the dish with cheese. Top with a lid for 2-4 minutes or until the cheese melts. Before serving, garnish with cilantro, avocado, chips, extra cheese, sriracha, jalapeños, sour cream, salsa, and/or guacamole. You can also scoop the skillet on top of a bed of greens for a delicious salad. Enjoy!
Dietary Considerations
This Cheesy Mexican Chicken Skillet recipe is so easy to make your own. Vegetarian? Dairy free? Low carb? No problem! You can make this dish work for you.
To make a vegetarian skillet, leave out the ground chicken. I suggest either adding an additional can of black beans or crumbling up a block of firm tofu into your skillet. Thanks to the taco seasoning, the tofu will strongly resemble ground meat!
For a dairy free skillet, leave out the cheese or use a dairy free alternative!
Need a low carb swap? Use cauliflower rice in place of brown rice. Add the cauliflower when you add peppers to the pan instead. This will give allow the veggie to cook down so you aren’t getting raw chunks of cauliflower in your final dish.
This recipe is gluten free as is, but just check your taco seasoning packet to ensure there's no hidden gluten (because believe it or not, there often is!).
Recipe FAQs
Store it in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 5 days. To reheat, I recommend heating it up in the microwave for 30-60 seconds. If you need more time, stir between each warming interval until hot.
Using a soft spatula, scoop about ⅙ of the skillet onto a plate or into a bowl. Have your serving plate near the skillet to make the transfer because the food isn't going to stick together like a piece of pie would. Then, add all of the toppings! If you want to turn this into the most epic burrito ever, scoop the skillet fixings into a tortilla and roll it up. I’d put extra toppings outside of the tortilla if this is the route you’re taking.
Toss one teaspoon each of smoked paprika, chili powder, sea salt, cumin, onion powder, garlic powder, and oregano in a mixing bowl. Then, add a fresh crack of black pepper. Quick tip: Spices lose their potency over time, so if you’ve had that chili powder on the shelf for who knows how many years, you’re likely going to need a little extra.
More Recipes You'll Love
Love this recipe? Please leave a 5-star 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟rating in the recipe card below & if you really like the recipe consider leaving a comment further down. Thanks for visiting!
Recipe
Cheesy Mexican Chicken Skillet Recipe
Equipment
- Chef's Knife
- Cutting Board
- Can opener
- Rubber Spatula
- strainer
- Measuring cups and spoons
Ingredients
- Cooking spray
- 1 lb ground chicken
- ½ cup red onion
- 1 cup red pepper
- ½ cup orange pepper
- 1 can black beans, 15.5oz can
- 8.8 oz bag brown rice
- 1 oz taco seasoning
- ½ cup corn, fresh or frozen
- 7 oz canned diced tomatoes
- ½ cup mushrooms
- ½ cup mexican blend cheese
For garnish (optional)
- cilantro
- avocado
- chips
- extra cheese
- sriracha
- jalapenos
- sour cream
- salsa
- guacamole
Instructions
- I like to prepare all of the ingredients before starting the heat on the skillet. It makes it easier to focus on cooking the actual meal instead of prepping at each step.
- Wash and finely dice red onion, bell peppers, and mushrooms. Make rice according to package instructions. See notes above on dietary suggestions.
- Heat a skillet to medium-heat and spray with cooking spray.
- Sauté ground chicken, red pepper, onion, and orange pepper together in the skillet. Stir constantly.
- Next, rinse and drain canned black beans.
- Once the meat is about halfway done, pour in cooked rice and black beans. Then, sprinkle taco seasoning. Stir in corn. If you're using frozen corn, toss it into the skillet frozen. It will cook in the dish!
- Add diced tomatoes (do not drain them from their juice) and mushrooms to the skillet. Stir until there is an ingredient in every bite.
- By this time, the meat should be thoroughly cooked. Flatten the ingredients in the skillet and top the dish with cheese. Top with a lid for 2-4 minutes or until the cheese melts.
- Before serving, garnish with cilantro, avocado, chips, extra cheese, sriracha, jalapenos, sour cream, salsa, and/or guacamole. You can also scoop the skillet on top of a bed of greens for a delicious salad.
- Enjoy!
Nutrition
Notes
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If you're using MyFitnessPal, search 'A Paige Of Positivity' and find CHEESY MEXICAN CHICKEN SKILLET calories and nutrition facts. Disclaimer: for most accurate macronutrients and caloric breakdown, it is recommended that you input each ingredient into your MyFitnessPal food diary.
I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below. It’s my passion to create dishes that can be shared with others. Tell me something you loved or just say hi!
Maddi Teufel says
Super easy to make and tastes great! However, I couldn’t find how many grams a serving size is but loved besides that!
Courtney Paige says
Hey Maddi, I just weigh the total pan and then divide by six (1/6 is a serving size). Hope that helps!
Madison Toth says
Sooo easy and SOOOO delicious! Will be making this a lot!!
Lauren Blinn says
Another great recipe! My family really enjoyed this for supper tonight! Husband made them into burritos and the kids and I ate them as is (4 year old and 8 month old!). Would you clarify a couple things for me:
1) The weight of your beans?
2) Do you drain your canned tomato's prior to adding?
Courtney Paige says
Love to hear it, Lauren! Thank you. Sure thing - I can't confirm the weight of the beans. Other than I used a 15.5oz can (I'll update the recipe to account for it). I did not drain the canned tomatoes, the extra liquid from them gets soaked up from the rice and it's SO tasty. Thanks for the questions!
Lauren Blinn says
Thank you so much! I really appreciate your response and your content:)
Morgan Marini says
Just made this for dinner and it was soo good! Such an easy meal and it looks so colorful 🙂 will definitely be making again!
Susan says
My family and I loved this meal. It is easy to make, healthy, and delicious! I plan to add this recipe to my meal rotation.
Michelle says
So good, I will be making this again.
Courtney Paige says
I love to hear that! Thank you so much!
Kristen Zuleg says
Yum yum!!!! Super easy to make and oh so tasty!! Will definitely make this again 😋
Courtney Paige says
You're the best - thanks for trying!
Kaitlyn says
Easy and delicious!
Jen says
Made this before and absolutely loved it!!
Is it possible to make this in the oven in a casserole dish to take to a friend?
Sydney Van Acker says
I've made this in a casserole dish before for easy transport! First you'll want to cook the meat and all of the veggies in the skillet. Then I dumped that with the black beans and rice into my casserole dish and topped with the cheese and baked at 425 degrees for ~10 minutes just until the cheese started to bubble.
Jen Boudreau says
Great as always! Easy to make and we had lots of leftovers 🙂
Samantha Hawke says
Love this!!! Soooo easy i love me a one pan convenient meal that makes leftovers. Just as good with vegan alternatives!!
Allie Steinbach says
So delicious! Family loved this recipe. Super easy to make and loved how we could each customize it the way we wanted with toppings! I added avocado and lots of chips hehe - can’t wait for our leftovers!
Sydney Van Acker says
Amazing for meal prep. I actually enjoyed it cold too😂
Courtney Paige says
This is consistently in our rotation - we LOVEEE it!!