This Mexican Chicken and Cornbread Casserole is Simple, So Good and it’s Skinnyfied!
My husband and I love this Mexican Chicken and Cornbread Casserole so much, we ate it three days in a row! It's loaded with tender chicken, sweet corn, Mexican spices, salsa, and a golden cornbread crust with a cheesy topping. So easy to make, incredibly satisfying, and it freezes beautifully! Serve it with a simple side salad for a fabulous family dinner. Each serving has just 323 calories and 8 grams of fat. Comfort food Skinnyfied!®
Why You'll Love This Mexican Chicken and Cornbread Casserole
- Easy to make: Simple ingredients and very little prep work.
- Loaded with flavor: Tender chicken, sweet corn, salsa, and Mexican spices baked together with golden cornbread and melted cheese.
- A complete dinner: Just add a simple green salad!
- Great for leftovers: Make it ahead, refrigerate, or freeze individual servings for another day.
Ingredients For Skinny Mexican Chicken and Cornbread Casserole
This easy casserole combines tender chicken, sweet corn, salsa, Mexican spices, and cheese with a golden cornbread topping. It's made with simple, everyday ingredients and comes together without a lot of fuss!See the recipe card below for the complete ingredient list and exact amounts.How to Make Skinny Mexican Chicken and Cornbread Casserole
This casserole is surprisingly easy to make! You'll combine seasoned chicken, corn, salsa, and Mexican-inspired flavors, then add the cornbread mixture and cheese. Bake until the cornbread is golden brown and the casserole is hot and bubbly.Let it rest for a few minutes before serving. Add a simple green salad, and dinner is ready!See the recipe card below for complete step-by-step instructions, baking temperature, and cooking time.Helpful Tips About this Recipe
Shopping Tips
WW SmartPoints 11-Green
- Cornbread mix: I use Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix for this recipe. It's inexpensive and makes a wonderful golden cornbread topping.
- Chicken: Using already-cooked chicken makes this casserole especially easy to prepare.
- Salsa: Choose your favorite mild or medium salsa, depending on how spicy you like your food.
WW SmartPoints 11-Green
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SKINNY FACTS: for 1 slice 323 calories, 8g fat, 3g sat. fat, 56mg chol, 15g protein, 44g carbs, 4g fiber, 824mg sodium, 14g sugar |
| FACTS: for Freestyle SmartPoints 246 calories, 3g sat. fat, 5g protein, 12g sugar |
This Mexican Chicken and Cornbread Casserole is Simple, So Good and it's Skinnyfied!
Ingredients
- 1¼ cups onions chopped
- 2 tbsp reduced-fat butter or Smart Balance Light
- 1 (14.5 oz) can cream-style corn
- 1½ cups chicken breasts, cooked and diced, see shopping tips
- 1 egg
- 1 tbsp fat-free milk
- ¼ tsp cumin
- ¼ tsp chili powder
- 8.5 oz 1 box Jiffy's Corn Muffin Mix see shopping tips
- ½ cup salsa I used Pace Medium Chunky Salsa or use your favorite
- ½ cup fat-free sour cream
- ¼ cup Light Mexican Blend Cheese or light cheddar cheese
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Coat a 9 x 9” baking pan with cooking spray.
- In a microwave-safe bowl, add onions and butter. Cook in microwave on high for about 4 minutes until soft. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, mix together the cream-style corn, chicken, egg, milk, chili powder, and cumin. Blend well. Stir in cornbread mix and only stir until blended. The batter will be a bit bumpy. Spread cornbread batter into prepared pan.
- Spoon cooked onions and liquid left in the bowl evenly over the top.
- Using a rubber spatula, carefully spread the salsa evenly over the onions. It won’t completely cover the onions. Using the same rubber spatula, carefully spread sour cream evenly over the salsa. It also won’t completely cover the entire casserole.
- Sprinkle the cheese evenly over the top of the sour cream.
- Bake for 45 minutes so the entire casserole will be cooked through. It will look very golden brown.
- Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting into 6 slices. This casserole may be made ahead of time, refrigerated and reheated. It also freezes great.
Nutrition
Serving: 1sliceCalories: 323kcalCarbohydrates: 44gProtein: 15gFat: 8gSaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 56mgSodium: 824mgFiber: 4gSugar: 14gBlue Smart Points: 9Green Smart Points: 11Plus Points: 8
Tried this recipe?Let me know how it was!
Amazingly delicious!
Oh this message makes me so happy! Thank you, Jamie! Like I said, my husband and I love it so much we sometimes have it 3 days in a row.
With my very best wishes,
Nancy
I’ve tried this and have made it over and over! My husband and I both love it and will certainly keep it on our menu. Just hits the spot every time. So glad you noted that casserole “gets very brown” because it sure does.
Although my family loves this with the cornbread mix, I’m not sure straight cornmeal will work. Please share if you give it a try.
My best wishes,
Nancy
Too sweet, May try again with straight corn meal. Corn breal mix ruined the taste.
I’m loving that you love this recipe so much. Thank you! It’s one of our favorites, too!
My warmest regards,
Nancy
This was absolutely fabulous! We loved it! Thank you
Anita, I’m so happy you enjoyed this. It’s one of our favorites! I love your addition of green chilies. Yum!
All the best,
Nancy
My husband and I absolutely loved this casserole! The only thing I added was green chilies and talk about yummy!!! Thank you!
Doris, I’ve only used cornbread mixes. Another one I like is Marie Calander’s but it’s a 1 lb container so you only use 1/2. Not sure about using cornmeal and a leaving agent. Sorry!
Actually, when you make this casserole it ends up not tasting sweet because of the savory ingredients added to it. I hope you give it a try!
All the best,
Nancy
This looks yummy ………………have you tried making this with other than Jiffy cornbread mixes ?? The Jiffy is much too sweet for our tastes….or could we substitute corn meal and leavening agents instead ?? Any hints/suggestions/alternatives appreciated ..thanks
Sue, If you don’t want to use creamed corn, use this as a substitute. Use 1 cup of corn kernels. Put all the corn + 1/3 cup water and 1 tbsp flour into a bowl. Then blitz with hand blender (or use blender) until you can’t see whole corn kernels anymore but there are still corn chunks (don’t to puree). Use all of it in place of canned creamed corn in this recipe.
Enjoy!
My best,
Nancy
I would prefer not to use cream corn, if I used niblets how much moisture would I use? Maybe 1 cup?
Yes, Tammy. Mix together the cream-style corn, chicken, egg, milk, chili powder, and cumin. Blend well. Stir in cornbread mix and only stir until blended. Finally, spread cornbread batter into a prepared pan.
Enjoy!
My best,
Nancy
To clarify, in step #3, do you dump the dry cornbread mix into the corn/chicken and mix that and place in the pan?