The Best Ever Queso Chicken Casserole

The Best Ever Queso Chicken Casserole–an easy Instant Pot dinner made with ground chicken, rice, green chiles, salsa con queso and plenty of cheesy Tex-Mex flavor.

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The Best Ever Queso Chicken Casserole

This is one of those easy one-pot dinners that has lots of flavor! I switched it up and used ground chicken (I found it at Costco for $2 a pound wowzers!!!!). But if you don’t have ground chicken you can make this with ground turkey, ground beef or ground pork. The queso I used was a brand I’ve never tried before but it was really good! It was called Mateo’s Gourmet. I’m so glad I used it because it flavored the whole meal and spooning extra on top of my serving really hit the spot. This is a good one to freeze and have for a quick microwaveable meal another night. Enjoy!

Ingredients/Substitution Ideas

• Olive oil–or canola, avocado, vegetable oil
• Ground chicken–or ground turkey, ground beef
• Kosher salt
• Black pepper
• Tomato paste
• Chicken broth–or water and Better than Bouillon
• Converted rice–or long grain white
• Chili powder
• Cumin
• Garlic powder
• Onion powder
• Diced green chiles
• Mateo’s Gourmet Salsa Con Queso–or another brand you like
• Mexican blend cheese–or shredded cheddar, Monterey Jack or Pepper Jack
• Green onions–optional topping
• Diced tomatoes–optional topping
• Sour cream–optional topping

Steps

Turn Instant Pot to sauté setting. When display says HOT add in the oil and swirl around. Add in the chicken and break it up. Brown for about 5 minutes. Stir in the salt, pepper and tomato paste.

Pour in the broth and scrape bottom of pot so that nothing is sticking.

Sprinkle in the rice, chili powder, cumin, garlic powder and onion powder. Spoon the green chiles and ½ cup of the queso over the top. Don’t stir.

Cover Instant Pot and secure the lid. Make sure valve is set to sealing. Set manual/pressure cook button to 5 minutes. When time is up let pot sit for 10 minutes. Move valve to venting and remove the lid.

Stir well. Stir in the cheese. Scoop onto plates and top each portion with the remaining queso, green onions, diced tomatoes and a dollop of sour cream.

Notes/Tips

• Serve with corn and black beans or refried beans.
• Sprinkling the rice over the liquid and adding the green chiles and queso on top should help reduce the chance of getting the burn message.
• To make it spicy you can use hot diced green chiles, Pepper Jack cheese, a spicy queso or add sliced jalapeños on top.
• Store leftovers in an airtight container* in the refrigerator for 4 days. Freeze leftovers for up to 3 months.
• Other recipes you can make with Mexican blend cheese are Ellen’s Oklahoma Casserole and Greg’s Taco Lasagna.
• Tools:
  • I used my pink 4 quart Instant Pot*. You can also make this in a 6 or 8 quart pot.
  • Wooden saute paddle*
  • Knife*
  • Cutting board*
  • Magnetic measuring cups*
  • Magnetic measuring spoons*
  • Glass measuring cup*
  • Can opener*

Did you know you can filter the recipes on my website to search by meat type, IP or Crockpot, low carb, gluten free, etc.? Use the filter to find exactly what you are looking for. 

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*Karen Petersen is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.