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!
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!
While the pasta noodles are cooking, mix together salsa, light sour cream, garlic powder, ground cumin, and onion powder in a medium sized bowl.
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.
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.
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.
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 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!
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:
- Layered Chicken Enchilada Casserole
- Easy Chile Relleno Casserole (meatless)
- Mom’s Tuna Noodle Casserole
- Chicken Divan
Interested In More Recipes?
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Original Recipe Source: https://togetherasfamily.com/fiesta-chicken-casserole/
- 2¼ 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
Spray a 9x13 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray, then set aside. Preheat your oven to 350°F.
Cook pasta in 4 quarts of lightly salted water. Cook the pasta according to the package directions.
While the pasta is cooking, mix together salsa, light sour cream, garlic powder, ground cumin, and onion powder in a medium sized bowl.
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.
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!
Caloric calculation was calculated based on using light sour cream. Regular sour cream will work perfectly, but will increase calorie count for each portion.
Here’s one more to pin on your Pinterest boards!
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!
That’s awesome, Tonya! Glad you enjoy it, and thanks so much for writing. Have a great day.