This Dorito casserole includes layers of cheesy chicken, Rotel, and crunchy Dorito chips baked in a casserole for a delicious and easy weeknight dinner!
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My friend, Stephanie, introduced King Ranch Chicken to me years ago. It is a Texas staple, which is where she is from. Over the years, I altered the recipe and this is my updated version. I also call it Cheesy Chicken Dorito Casserole now so there is less confusion about what is actually in the dish.
There are many variations of king ranch casserole recipes. Some use tortillas instead of chips. Some are as simple as 5 ingredients and no layers. My recipe is easy and delicious with loads of cheesy chicken layers! Gather these ingredients:
Grocery List for Dorito Casserole:
- Rotisserie chicken (or 3 cups shredded)
- Doritos chips (we prefer Cool Ranch)
- Sharp cheddar cheese (2 cups shredded)
- Sour cream (1/4 cup)
- Yellow onion (1 small)
- Bell pepper (1 any color)
- Garlic cloves (2)
- RoTel (1 can)
- Cream of mushroom soup (1 can)
- Cream of chicken soup (1 can)
- Chicken broth (1/2 cup)
- Cumin
- Chili powder
We prefer Cool Ranch flavor Doritos for this recipe, but traditionally people use nacho cheese flavor. You can also use leftover Thanksgiving turkey for this recipe, so make sure you bookmark this for the holidays!
Click here for the full recipe ingredients and instructions.
How to Make Shredded Chicken
I typically always have cooked shredded chicken on hand to use in recipes like this. Once per month, I either boil chicken or use my Crock Pot to cook the chicken then shred it and portion into freezer bags. When I want to make dinners like Chicken Pot Pie, Poppyseed Chicken, Chicken 'n Dumplings, or Chicken Rice Green Bean Casserole, I can easily grab a bag from the freezer!
I have a few appetizer recipes that use shredded chicken, too! Like this Buffalo Chicken Dip, Egg Rolls, and Buffalo Chicken Bites. And don't forget you can make chicken salad sandwiches in a jiffy when you have shredded chicken on hand!
Storing and reheating leftovers
Any leftovers of this chicken casserole should be stored covered in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. This casserole is best reheated in the oven in order to crisp up the Doritos again. The microwave is fine, but oven is better.
Freezer casserole
To make this into a freezer meal, I suggest replacing the Doritos with flour or corn tortillas. Prepare all the layers in a foil casserole dish, cover tightly with plastic wrap and cover again with foil. Store in the freezer until ready to bake. To bake, remove the plastic covering and cover with foil. Bake, covered, for 30 minutes then remove foil and continue to bake until bubbly and crispy.
For your picky eaters who may not like seeing diced tomatoes, green pieces, and onions in their food -- try pureeing the sauce in a blender before layering in the casserole dish. This will blend all those questionable ingredients for your picky eaters and they won't even know they're eating those yummy veggies!
Other favorite casserole recipes
- Biscuit Italian Ground Beef Casserole
- Easy Sausage Breakfast Casserole
- Broccoli Cheese Casserole
- BBQ Beef Casserole
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Cheesy Chicken Dorito Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 small yellow onion , peeled and diced
- 1 bell pepper , seeded and diced
- 2 garlic cloves , minced
- 10 oz. diced tomatoes with chiles , such as Rotel
- 10 oz. cream of mushroom soup
- 10 oz. cream of chicken soup
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 3 cups cooked shredded chicken
- 2 cups roughly broken Doritos chips , we prefer Cool Ranch flavor
- 2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease 9x13 casserole dish.
- Heat oil in skillet. Cook onion and pepper until soft, about 7 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 more minute. Transfer to large mixing bowl.
- Add the rest of the ingredients except the chicken, chips and cheese to the mixing bowl with the onion and pepper. Mix until combined.
- Spread a heaping 1/2 cup of the mixture (sauce) into the bottom of the prepared casserole dish. Set aside another heaping 1/2 cup of sauce for later.
- Layer half of the chicken over the sauce in the casserole dish, then half of the remaining sauce from the mixing bowl. Sprinkle with one-third of the cheese and half of the chips. Repeat these layers.
- Top with the reserved 1/2 cup of sauce and the remaining cheese.
- Bake, uncovered, at 350°F for 30 minutes. Without opening the oven door, increase oven temperature to 400°F* and bake an additional 5 to 10 minutes until bubbly and golden crisp.
Notes
- *Do not remove casserole from oven when increasing temperature. Oven temperature may not actually reach 400°F before the end of baking time.
- For the picky eaters, you can puree the sauce in a blender before layering in the casserole.
- Click here or here for two different methods to make shredded chicken. Store the shredded chicken portioned in freezer bags so it's ready for recipes like this!
- Nutritional information is an estimation only.
Nutrition
This recipe was originally published November 5th, 2010 and updated with new photos and improved recipe on June 15, 2020.
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