Mama Tammy is my best friend’s mom, and growing up I always thought everything she made was so good.
Her cooking had this semi-homemade quality that I now appreciate even more as an adult.
Nothing unnecessarily complicated. Nothing that required you to spend six hours in the kitchen proving you loved your family.
She made this pepperoni pizza bread that I was obsessed with using the premade pizza dough from the deli at the grocery store.
Pure genius.
Now, Mama Tammy calls this Mexican Casserole.
I call it Chicken Enchilada Casserole because I have a food website now and apparently that gives me the authority to rename other people’s recipes.
You’ve got chicken, tortilla chips, cheddar, chili powder, cumin, garlic, onion and broth all baked together into this cheesy, savory situation that gives me all the enchilada vibes…
Except there are zero enchiladas to assemble.
No warming tortillas. No filling. No rolling. No carefully arranging them in a pan.
You crush a bag of tortilla chips, dump everything together, cover it with cheese and put it in the oven.
Bless you, Mama Tammy.
And this recipe has followed me into completely different seasons of my life because it’s just so damn useful.
When I was pregnant with the twins, I made one ahead of time and put it in the freezer as part of my we are about to have two newborns and Future Me is going to need all the help she can get dinner stash.
But it’s just as good for a random Tuesday when you look at the clock, realize everyone expects to be fed again, and need dinner on the table within the hour.
And I’ve made approximately a million variations of it over the years.
I’ve swapped the chicken for ground beef. I’ve added black beans and corn. Fire-roasted tomatoes. Green chiles. Jalapeños.
One time I was running low on tortilla chips, so I added potatoes—which admittedly took us in an entirely different direction, but it was delicious, so no complaints.
That’s what I love most about this recipe.
It’s a base, not a rulebook.
Make Mama Tammy’s original version first. Then open your refrigerator and see what needs to be used.
More vegetables? Throw them in.
Leftover Weekly Roast chicken? Perfect.
Ground beef instead? Go for it.
Half a bag of tortilla chips because somebody apparently needed a snack? We’ve been there.
It’s the kind of cooking I grew up loving and the kind I still love now: use what you have, take the shortcut when it makes sense, and make something really freaking good out of it.
Maybe that’s why I’ve loved Mama Tammy’s cooking all these years.
She understood the assignment before I even knew there was one.
Mama Tammy’s Chicken Enchilada Casserole
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Preheat to 375°F and lightly grease a 9×13-inch casserole dish.
- Before opening the bag, crush the tortilla chips right inside it. You’re looking for small pieces and crumbs—not tortilla-chip dust. This is also considerably more fun than chopping anything.
- In a large bowl, combine the shredded chicken, celery, onion, garlic, crushed tortilla chips, chicken broth, chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper, and 2 cups of the cheddar cheese.
- Stir until everything is thoroughly combined and the chips have started soaking up some of the broth.
- Spread the mixture evenly into the prepared casserole dish.
- Top with the remaining 1 cup cheddar cheese.
- Bake uncovered at 375°F for about 30 minutes, until the casserole is hot and bubbling and the cheese on top is completely melted.
- Let it sit for about 5–10 minutes before serving so everything has a chance to settle.
Notes
They’re not just a crunchy topping here. The crushed chips absorb the chicken broth as the casserole bakes and essentially become the starch that holds the whole situation together. Use leftover chicken.
This is PERFECT for your Weekly Roast system. I’d actually write the recipe as “2 cups shredded cooked chicken (I use leftover Weekly Roast chicken)” and cross-link the recipes. Bone broth:
Regular chicken broth works perfectly well. I use homemade bone broth because I almost always have it around and I love the extra flavor it brings. Watch the salt.
Between the tortilla chips, cheddar, and broth, there’s already quite a bit of sodium coming into the casserole. If you’re using a particularly salty broth or heavily salted tortilla chips, I’d actually start with ½ teaspoon added salt, then adjust next time if necessary. Your original Mama Tammy version can absolutely remain 1 teaspoon; this is just a useful reader note. Want some heat?
The original isn’t really a spicy casserole. Add diced jalapeño, green chiles, or hot sauce if that’s your thing. Cheese:
Mama Tammy uses cheddar, so cheddar is what belongs in the actual recipe. Monterey Jack, Pepper Jack, or a Mexican-style blend would all work if that’s what someone already has.
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