If you love queso then this recipe is for you! A ooey, gooey, cheesy dinner recipe that takes only one dish and a few minutes to make! This is perfect for a weeknight family dinner your family will love.
I have to let you in on a little secret… I am OBSESSED with nachos. There is just something about the salty crunchy chip covered in rich warm melted cheese that is the ultimate comfort food for me. Any good nacho connoisseur has a special place in their heart for RO*TEL. You have seen me use it in quite a few recipes on my site, so a big THANK YOU to RO*TEL and ConAgra foods for sponsoring this post so I can bring you my newest (and cheesiest) chicken bake recipe.
I have so many memories of family gatherings growing up. The counters were always packed with dishes everyone brought and there always was a huge variety. The one staple that had to the there though was the RO*TEL cheese dip. It was a given. If we gathered it was there. It is one of those foods that kind of defined those moments…. and maybe where the nacho obsession began.
I will admit that I eat nachos far more than I probably should. I do try to pack them full of healthy extras to justify it, like corn, black beans, avocado, fresh cilantro, and tomatoes. Doesn’t that sounds delicious? So why stop there? I mean the nachos are good because of all the stuff topping them, so why not take all that good stuff and bake it with some tender, juicy chicken breast? BINGO! The Queso Chicken Bake was born!
The reason I love to make chicken bakes so much is that life is BUSY! It is hard to balance it all, and when you have to spend a ton of time in the kitchen daily to make and and then clean up a hot fresh dinner, there is not much time left for family time. If we can make and clean up dinner fast, then we get to do some of our favorite things together like going on walks around the neighborhood in the summer, and snuggling up and watching our favorite TV shows together in the winter.
If you need more super simple, super delicious easy dinner recipes, check out my other Easy Chicken Bake Recipes here! Reader favorites include: Italian Chicken Bake, Fajita Chicken Bake and the Bacon Ranch Chicken Bake. Give them a try!
But back to the food. This recipe is so fantastic because as I mentioned above it is easy so it gives us more time with the fam. Also, it’s queso! I mean let’s be honest, I have 3 small kids, so I go through my fair share of dinnertime battles, but when you are serving queso (packed with wholesome chicken, black beans, tomatoes and corn) the kids gobble it up. Heck! I gobble it up!
Queso Chicken Bake Recipe
To make this dish you need 5 ingredients. That is it.
- Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast
- Corn
- Black Beans
- RO*TEL Tomatoes with Green Chilis
- Melty Queso Cheese {I used Velveeta- you want something that will melt well and mix in with the juices to make creamy queso dip!}
Start with a large baking dish. I used a 9×13 glass dish for 4 chicken breasts. Place your chicken flat on the dish. If the chicken breasts are especially thick, you may want to butterfly them (cut in half) to reduce the cooking time.
Open drain and rinse the beans, and open and drain the corn. You will use the full can of RO*TEL. Pour the corn, beans and RO*TEL over the chicken breasts. I use canned corn, because that is what we usually keep on hand, but you could use frozen corn as well, as long as you thaw it.
Next cut the block of Velveeta into small cubes, around 1/2 inch. No need to be exact, but it makes it cover the dish a bit more evenly. I bought a 32 oz block and used half. If you want extra cheese you can use a little bit more. Then spread over the top of the chicken and veggies.
Cover the dish with foil and put it into an oven preheated to 375˚F and bake for 45-55 minutes or until the chicken is done and the juices run clear.
If you like the cheese to be a little crispy on top, remove the foil the last 5 minutes of the cook time. Either way, it is just oooooooey, gooooooey, cheesy goodness topping the delicious chicken and wholesome veggies ready to fill your family up right.
When you take this out of the oven, the cheese will be melted, but the juices from the chicken and all of the veggies will be “watery” at the bottom of the pan. I removed my chicken breasts, then mixed this delicious mixture of chicken broth, RO*TEL, and veggies together with a fork to make the creamiest best queso sauce then spooned the extra sauce on top of the chicken and rice when I served it. A fork or whisk works well to get the cheese to combine into the juices smoothly.
I served this with some Spanish rice I picked up, but you could also serve it with chips, tortillas or even a salad. It is a great way to have a warm comforting meal to the table quick.
Thanks again to ConAgra for sponsoring this post and the Mom It Forward Network for the opportunity. You can find more recipes with RO*TEL and other ConAgra foods on their Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and Twitter.
ConAgra Foods products can be found in 99 percent of American households, and include many iconic brands such as Hunt’s, Hebrew National, Swiss Miss, Manwich, PAM Cooking Spray and many more. Whether on their own or as part of a delicious recipe, ConAgra Foods brands are perfect for nearly any eating or entertaining occasion.
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One Dish Queso Chicken Bake {Easy Dinner Recipe}
Ingredients
- 3-4 chicken breasts
- 1 can RO*TEL
- 1 can corn drained
- 1 can black beans drained and rinsed
- 16 oz Velveeta
Instructions
- Place the chicken breast in a baking dish flat. Butterfly breasts if they are especially thick.
- Layer the corn, black beans, and RO*TEL on top of the chicken.
- Dice the queso cheese into 1/2 inch cubes and spread them evenly over the top of the dish.
- Cover the dish with foil and bake in a preheated oven at 375F for 45-55 minutes or until the chicken is done and the juices run clear. *if you want the cheese to be a little crispy remove the foil for the last 5 minutes of baking.
- Remove from oven then remove the chicken breasts from the pan and use a fork or whisk to work the extra cheese into the juices to form more queso sauce.
- Enjoy! Serve over rice, with chips, or with tortillas
(Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.)
Leslie says
So easy and was so good. I like easy cooking and one dish makes it better. I left the beans out as my husband doesn’t like them .
Kimber says
So glad you enjoyed it Leslie! Beans are optional, but I pack in all the healthy stuff I can under that cheese to trick my kids into eating it ha!
Erin says
Oh my gosh! Made this tonight and was delicious!! I did cook my chicken all day in crock pot ( seasoned with taco seasoning,black pepper, cumin, and a little salt). I thought I was going to double the recipe so I added 2 cans of beans, I didn’t up doubling it but only after I dumped the can of beans. My fault, it had too many beans. I did add 2 can of Rotel ( drained). We ate it like a dip with scoops.
Erin says
I forgot, I added a whole box of Velveeta Queso
Tara says
Do I use Queso velveeta cheese or just the original velveeta?? Planning on making this for supper tonight.
Lauryn Steele says
I love your recipes. Some women are so catty. Wow. I am a Cajun to the bone, so I always modify recipes to taste. Thank you for sharing! As we say in the south, bless their cotton picking little hearts?.
sue says
I made this last night! It was delicious! I did drain the Rotel as others suggested. Thank you for sharing this recipe! I will definitely make this again!
Linda says
I made this colorful, one skillet meal last night. After reading a lot of comments, I decided to tweak, just a little ? I knew by the list of ingredients, I wanted a more seasoned dish. I started off by marinating my boneless chicken breast. I made mine up. ( olive oil, garlic, cumin, lemon juice, cracked peppercorns) I then got out my large skillet ( I love cast iron) drizzled with olive oil, and sear chicken to lock in all that yummyiness!! Then remove chicken and set aside. Add a little bit more olive oil to pan. Add fresh corn you already cleaned and taken off the husk. Fry, stirring constantly until tender. Toss in already drained and paper towel dried black beans and the rotels. Heat until warmed through. Pour into bowel. Put chicken back into skillet and pour veggies evenly over chicken. Top with cubed velveeta, cover and simmer until chicken juices run clear. Sir often. Serve over Spanish rice, and with warm tortillas! I topped mine off with avocado, scallions, picante. Mine was creamy and thick!! I also added broccoli to mine ?
Laurie says
I’m trying this right now, but after reading comments, I will try some different things to combat the “watery” problems. First I precooked my chicken with seasonings (Cavender’s all purpose Creek seasoning, pinch of cumin and turmeric….tumeric is great for inflammation & flavor). I cut up my chicken into bite sized pieces after cooking. I also added some diced jalapenos because I like the extra kick of flavor. I did drain my Rotel before adding. Since I cooked my chicken first, I set the oven to 350 and will check on it after 30 minutes. Everything else is as per your recipe. I’ll let you know how it turned out…
Laurie says
Okay…I’m back to report my findings (see my first post). I checked on it after 25 minutes and mine was slightly watery, but no worries. After stirring it was better, but then I remembered one of the other comments I saw earlier about adding cream cheese and I just happened to have some in my refrigerator. I only had about 2 oz of it but I figured it wouldn’t hurt so I added it and started in well and popped it back in the oven without aluminum foil. It turned out awesome! I will be serving it over rice that I also added some to route to which gives it a nice yellow hue. This is definitely a keeper! The flavor is amazing!
Michelle says
Hi I’m planning on making this tomorrow but was wondering what your thoughts would be on throwing everything in the crockpot on low earlier in the day? I’d like the chicken to shred so that we can use it as tacos? But not sure about the cheese cooking on low for too long.
Kimber says
My guess is that it would probably work. People have queso dip on for hours at parties and it says good so I think it would be fine especially if you are not removing the lid. Let me know how it goes if you try it!
Nicki says
After trying many chicken quest bakes and always being disappointed, I’m glad I stumbled upon this one. This was delicious and a huge hit with the entire family. I drained the tomatoes and seasoned the chicken with my homemade taco seasoning. I served it over quinoa, I will definitely be making it again. Thank you!
Kimber says
Glad you really enjoyed it! I certainly have a soft spot in my heart for anything cheesy and this doesn’t disappoint!