You’ll love this easy to make Fiesta Chicken Pasta Casserole, with rigatoni noodles, chicken, corn, black beans, and cheese, baked in a Southwestern flavored sauce!
You'll love this easy Fiesta Chicken Pasta Casserole, with rigatoni, chicken, corn, black beans, and cheese, baked in a Southwestern flavored sauce!

Can I get a shout out for the humble, yet delicious casserole dishes that have made mealtimes easier for home cooks everywhere? This Fiesta Chicken Pasta Casserole is a perfectly simple but absolutely lip-smackin’ delicious casserole that will leave you smiling!

I found the original recipe on Pinterest, and loved that you can use pre-cooked (think rotisserie or leftover) chicken. By using pre-cooked chicken, and canned corn and black beans, you’ve already saved yourself some time!

Making this fiesta chicken pasta casserole recipe is as simple as cooking pasta, whisking together a simple Southwestern flavored sauce, stirring in the rest of the ingredients, then baking it! The recipe is really quite simple. Let me show you how to make this yummy meal!

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How To Make Fiesta Chicken Pasta Casserole

The first thing you will need to do is spray a 13×9 inch baking dish with non-stick spray, then set the dish aside.  Preheat your oven to 350°F. Cook the rigatoni pasta in 4 quarts of lightly salted water. Cook the pasta according to the package directions.

NOTE: No rigatoni? No problem! You can easily substitute rotini (spiral) pasta or penne pasta in this dish!

Cooking rigatoni for the fiesta chicken pasta casserole.

While the pasta noodles are cooking, mix together salsa, light sour cream, garlic powder, ground cumin, and onion powder in a medium sized bowl.

Mixing together the Southwestern sauce used in the fiesta chicken pasta casserole.

Building The Casserole

When the pasta is done cooking, drain it well, and pour it into a large mixing bowl.  Add the sauce to the pasta in the bowl, and give it a good stir to mix it together. Once the sauce and pasta are combined, add the drained corn, black beans, cooked chicken (shredded or cubed), and ONE CUP of grated cheddar cheese.

Reserve the remaining cup of grated cheddar cheese to use later. Gently stir the fiesta chicken pasta casserole together, until all ingredients are coated with sauce and are thoroughly combined.

Sauce, corn, black beans, cheese and chicken is added to the fiesta chicken pasta casserole.

Time To Bake The Casserole

Pour the fiesta chicken pasta casserole ingredients evenly into the baking dish, and spread out, to cover. Evenly distribute the remaining cup of grated cheddar cheese across the top of the casserole. 

Cover the pan with aluminum foil, and bake in a preheated oven at 350°F for 25 minutes. About 10 minutes before the cooking time is done, remove the foil and finish cooking the fiesta chicken pasta casserole.

Fiesta Chicken Pasta Casserole is covered with grated cheese, then baked.

Once the casserole is finished cooking, remove it from the oven. The cheese will be melted, and the casserole will be slightly bubbly around the edges.

Fiesta chicken pasta casserole, right out of the oven, after baking.

To Serve Fiesta Chicken Pasta Casserole

Garnish the fiesta chicken pasta casserole with some sliced green onions (or chives, as shown), and chopped tomatoes. If desired, you can also add avocado slices for flavor and color. The casserole is now ready to serve! The recipe serves 8 (modest portions), or 6, if serving larger portions!

The baked fiesta chicken pasta casserole is garnished with tomatoes and chives before serving.

The only thing left to do is dig into this absolutely delicious fiesta chicken pasta casserole! It has WONDERFUL flavor, and is not too spicy… trust me! The black beans add additional protein, and together with the corn, help to make this a well-rounded, nice and filling meal! It is SO GOOD!

An individual portion of fiesta chicken pasta casserole is served in a white bowl.

I really hope you will consider trying this fiesta chicken pasta casserole. My husband and I LOVED it! Guess what? The leftovers tasted fantastic, too! I really think you will love this easy to make recipe, too! Have a wonderful day!

Looking For More CASSEROLE Recipes?

You can find ALL of my recipes in the Recipe Index, located at the top of the page. I have a nice variety of casserole recipes you’ll enjoy, including:

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Original Recipe Source: https://togetherasfamily.com/fiesta-chicken-casserole/

5 from 1 vote
Fiesta Chicken Pasta Casserole
Prep Time
15 mins
Cook Time
25 mins
Total Time
40 mins
 
You'll love this easy to make Fiesta Chicken Pasta Casserole, with rigatoni noodles, chicken, corn, black beans, and cheese, baked in a Southwestern flavored sauce!
Category: Entree - Casserole
Cuisine: Southwestern
Keyword: fiesta chicken pasta casserole
Servings: 8
Calories Per Serving: 385 kcal
Author: JB @ The Grateful Girl Cooks!
Ingredients
  • cups uncooked rigatoni pasta (can substitute spiral or penne pasta
  • 1 cup salsa
  • 1 cup light sour cream
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • 15 ounces whole kernel corn (1 can) , drained
  • 15 ounces black beans (1 can) , drained and rinsed
  • 2 cups cooked chicken breasts , shredded or cubed
  • 2 cups grated cheddar cheese , divided
Instructions
  1. Spray a 9x13 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray, then set aside. Preheat your oven to 350°F.

  2. Cook pasta in 4 quarts of lightly salted water. Cook the pasta according to the package directions.

  3. While the pasta is cooking, mix together salsa, light sour cream, garlic powder, ground cumin, and onion powder in a medium sized bowl.

  4. When pasta is done, drain, and pour it into a large mixing bowl.  Add the sauce; stir to combine. Add drained corn, black beans, cooked chicken (shredded or cubed), and ONE CUP of the grated cheddar cheese. Reserve remaining cup of grated cheddar cheese to use later. Gently stir, until all ingredients are coated with sauce and are thoroughly combined. Pour into the baking dish, spreading to cover. Sprinkle remaining cup of grated cheddar cheese across the top of the casserole.  Cover dish with aluminum foil, and bake in a preheated 350°F oven for 25 minutes. About 10 minutes before the cooking time is done, remove the foil and finish cooking.

  5. Remove finished casserole from oven. Garnish with sliced green onions (or chives), and chopped tomatoes. If desired, you can also add avocado slices. Serve and enjoy!

Recipe Notes

Caloric calculation was calculated based on using light sour cream. Regular sour cream will work perfectly, but will increase calorie count for each portion.

Nutrition Facts
Fiesta Chicken Pasta Casserole
Amount Per Serving (1 (1/8 of total))
Calories 385 Calories from Fat 126
% Daily Value*
Fat 14g22%
Saturated Fat 8g50%
Cholesterol 69mg23%
Sodium 657mg29%
Potassium 597mg17%
Carbohydrates 37g12%
Fiber 6g25%
Sugar 4g4%
Protein 26g52%
Vitamin A 680IU14%
Vitamin C 5.2mg6%
Calcium 285mg29%
Iron 2.3mg13%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Here’s one more to pin on your Pinterest boards!You'll love this easy Fiesta Chicken Pasta Casserole, with rigatoni, chicken breast, corn, black beans, and cheese, baked in a Southwestern flavored sauce!

Fiesta Chicken Pasta Casserole

2 Comments on Fiesta Chicken Pasta Casserole

  1. 5 stars
    Thank you for this recipe!! My family loves this. I also make it to feed extended family when they visit and I always get rave reviews! So delish!

5 from 1 vote

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