A one pan 30 minute green chili chicken bake is extra creamy with cream cheese and Monterey Jack. Sear the chicken first to get it crispy OR just put the entire chili verde chicken bake straight in the oven.
Not only is it full of chili verde flavor, but it's also low carb, gluten-free, and a keto chicken bake recipe too. 6 net carbs per serving.
If you love green chili anything like we do, then you'll also want to check out our green chili casserole.
Green Chili Chicken
The inspiration for this post came from our viral low carb green enchilada chicken casserole. It had over 140K social shares very quickly (in just a few months!) and is one of the most popular recipes on our site. Make sure to put that recipe on your meal plan, after trying this one of course 😉
Needless to say, we wanted to make a variation for our readers using baked chicken breasts, since sometimes we just need a little variation in our lives, am I right? My husband at least wanted to eat something other than casseroles for dinner and asked why we didn't eat more chicken breast recipes. Hmm, good question!
So do you call it green chili chicken, green chile chicken, or green chilli chicken? I was surprised to learn how many name variations there are for this fabulous chicken with green chilies recipe! Or some people might refer to it instead as a green enchilada chicken instead of green chili, depending on whether you use a chile verde sauce or a green enchilada sauce.
Ingredients
You won't believe this chicken with green chilis recipe has just 6 simple ingredients. If you're a huge Mexican inspired foodie like I am, you possibly have many of these in your fridge and pantry already.
- 1.5-2 lb chicken breasts, We took 2 large chicken breasts and cut them into 4 chicken cutlets
- whipped cream cheese - regular softened cream cheese will work as well
- Monterey Jack cheese, shredded - feel free to mix cheeses here! Cheddar, Colby Jack, or Jack cheese all work
- diced green chilis, mild - spicy canned green chilis provide a nice kick
- chili Verde salsa OR green enchilada sauce
- taco seasoning (sugar-free homemade or your favorite grocery store brand)
Ingredient Notes
Whipped cream cheese that you can buy in a round tub is much easier to spread than a block of cream cheese. If you already have an 8 oz block on hand and want to use that, you of course can! Just make sure it's softened or it'll be a challenge to spread it on your chicken.
Buying already whipped cream cheese makes spreading the cheese on the chicken a piece of cake. (or I guess you could call it a piece of chicken?!)
Feel free to switch the type of cheese. Our viral casserole actually used Colby Jack cheese, so that's a great swap, 3 cheese blend, Mexican blend, or shredded cheddar cheese. Either your favorite shredded yellow cheese or white cheese should work in this recipe!
Diced green chilis are sold mild or hot, we used the mild green chilis for green chili chicken, but you, of course, can use the spicier ones too.
Likewise, we used a chili Verde green salsa, yet a green chili enchilada sauce, Hatch green chili salsa or tomatillo salsa should also work well--they have similarities but each also have a unique flavor. Chili Verde sauce and enchilada sauce are very similar, chili Verde is typically a raw salsa sauce whereas green enchilada sauce is a cooked version of chili Verde.
One of the BEST parts about this green chili chicken recipe is how easy it is to make substitutions.
Recipe Steps
This green enchilada chicken recipe comes together in only 5-10 minutes, seriously! So simple!
One quick note about the chicken before we get into the recipe details.
As you're probably aware, the size of chicken breasts can vary SO MUCH, it's crazy. This is why we went by weight of chicken instead of just specifying a set number of chicken breasts.
The most important factor here is that you're starting with 2 pounds of chicken breasts. For my package that was 3 large chicken breasts, and then I went and cut them each in half to make them a decent serving size.
How long to cook the green chilli chicken will depend on the size of the chicken breasts you purchased, but the main thing is that you cook the chicken to the correct temperature, which for chicken is an internal temperature of 165F.
Making the Green Chili Chicken Recipe
Preheat the oven to 375 F and make sure the oven rack is in the middle position.
Put the chicken breast pieces into the baking dish. The dish in the photos is a 3-quart pan, I recommend a minimum of a 2 qt baking dish plus make sure there's room on all sides of the chicken so it cooks evenly.
Sprinkle the taco seasoning over the chicken and then carefully spread the whipped cream cheese over the top of the seasoned chicken breasts.
Evenly spread the diced green chilis and the green chili salsa over the cream cheese layer and then top with the shredded Monterey Jack cheese.
Bake the green chili chicken recipe for 35-45 minutes until a thermometer reads 165F, when inserted into the thickest part of a chicken breast.
Having an instant-read thermometer you can leave on the counter but know what the internal meat temperature is, is just so handy!
No one wants to keep opening and closing the oven multiple times.
Garnish with chives, chopped parsley, sour cream, and salsa.
Serve 6
Keto Chicken Bake
If you've been following a low carb or keto diet, you might be wondering if green chili chicken is also a keto chicken bake recipe. And you'll be happy to know that this is a great option for those following a ketogenic diet.
With 6 net carbs per serving, this is definitely a meal you'll want to mix into your regular low carb dinner rotation.
Be sure to use full-fat cream cheese and check the labels on the various cheese brands. Pre-shredded cheese often has more carbs than buying a block of cheese and grating it yourself. Plus, pre-shredded cheeses often don't melt as well since they have starchy fillers to prevent sticking in the bag.
In other words, to keep this as low carb as possible, don't buy low-fat cream cheese or cheeses and be sure to shred your own cheese.
And likewise check the green sauce labels, because some brands might have added sugar and others do not. Chili Verde salsa often does not have sugar but many green enchilada sauces do. It might just depend if you want this to be a keto chicken bake with green chilis or if you're wanting more of an enchilada flavor and don't mind a tiny bit of sugar for a green enchilada chicken bake.
What to Serve with Green Enchilada Chicken
While this dish already has lots of colors with the green chilis and the chili Verde (or enchilada sauce), you won't need to add much to make this an impressive dinner plate.
Here's a list of some of our favorite side dishes to go with green enchilada chicken:
A simple salad
cauliflower rice or broccoli rice
roasted vegetables- this would be a really easy side dish to go alongside the keto chicken bake, just put the vegetables on a separate baking pan and cook at the same temperature as the chicken.
steamed broccoli - we especially like to make broccoli in an instant pot if you have one
Other Chicken Recipes You'll Love
- Chicken Zoodle Soup
- Chicken Green Chili Casserole
- Chicken Fajita Bake
- Low Carb Chicken Divan Casserole
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Green Chili Chicken Bake
Green chili chicken bake is simple to put together and is mild enough the whole family will love it. With chicken breasts layered with cream cheese, green chili sauce, and shredded cheese, dinner doesn't get much easier. Keto, low carb, and gluten free too
Ingredients
- 1.5+ lb chicken breasts, 3-4 breasts
- 8 oz whipped cream cheese
- 1 cup Monterey Jack cheese, shredded
- 4 oz can diced green chilis, mild
- ½ cup chili Verde salsa or green enchilada sauce
- 2 tablespoon taco seasoning (homemade or favorite brand)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 F
- NOTE: directions include baking the chicken from raw in the oven and also searing first in a skillet and then finishing by baking in the oven for a shorter amount of time.
- Cut the 2 large chicken breasts into halves lengthwise to make 4 chicken cutlets.
- In a large skillet over medium high heat, add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to the pan. Sear the chicken breast cutlets for 3 minutes on each side. *skip this step if you want to make the whole dish in the oven*
- Sprinkle the taco seasoning over the chicken
- Spread the whipped cream cheese over the top of the seasoned chicken breasts.
- Spread the diced green chilis and the green chili salsa over the cream cheese layer and then top with the shredded Monterey Jack cheese.
- If you first seared the chicken, bake the chicken cutlets for 10-15 minutes until the internal temperature reaches 165F.
- If you did NOT sear the chicken ake the entire recipe for 30-35 minutes until a thermometer reads 165F, when inserted into the thickest part of a chicken breast. Broil the cheese for a couple minutes if you prefer it crispy and browed.
- Garnish with chives, chopped parsley, sour cream, and salsa.
- Serve 6
Notes
You can buy chicken cutlets instead of cutting 2 large breasts lengthwise
Instead of searing the chicken on the stovetop, you can also bake the chicken by adding 10 minutes to the cooking time
Use a variety of cheeses like cheddar, Colby Jack, or Jack cheese
Swap red salsa or red enchilada sauce for variety
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