The next time your looking for an  absolutely delicious and easy recipe, look no further than this Skillet Cheesy Vegan Enchilada-Inspired Chick’n & Rice Bake! It’s hearty, comforting and perfectly spiced. But the best part? Most of the cooking is done in the oven … making for a nearly effortless cozy weeknight meal!

Easy, Cheesy Comfort in a skillet

I’m pulling out all the stops on this one – rich sauce, fluffy rice, and pockets of melty vegan cheese oozing throughout each bite. With minimal effort (and lots of cheese), this Skillet Cheesy Vegan Enchilada-Inspired Chick’n & Rice Bake is my definition of the ultimate cozy weeknight meal! It’s:

• easy
• fuss-free
• bold and flavorful

Pretty much everything you could want (and need) when you want something tasty, but easy! Grab a drink and let’s get to cookin’ the easiest Skillet Cheesy Vegan Enchilada-Inspired Rice Bake!

how to make Skillet Cheesy Vegan Enchilada-Inspired Chick’n & Rice Bake

The best part about this dish is that it is so easy. Here’s how to make it:

1. Make the enchilada sauce. While you can totally opt for store bought enchilada sauce, I highly, highly recommend making it with the recipe I’ve provided. It’s bursting with flavor that you will not get from any store-bought sauce.
2. Sauté the chick’n strips, onion, bell pepper and jalapeño. Add the sauce, beans, corn and half the cheese. Mix, top with the remaining cheese and cover with foil or an oven-safe lid.
3. Finish baking in the oven!

And what comes out is truly delectable – cheesy, bubbly enchilada flavored fluffy rice! Top with your garnishes for the ultimate skillet meal!

do I have to start on the stovetop or can I just cook everything in the oven?

While I recommend sautéing your chick’n, onions, peppers and jalapeño, and toasting your rice over the stovetop to get maximum depths of flavor, you could essentially just dump everything in a pan and bake the entire dish! To do so, you’ll need to make sure your enchilada sauce is hot. After blending, heat it up in a small pot over medium high heat.

While the sauce is heating up, place the chick’n strips, onions, peppers, rice, garlic, beans, corn, cilantro and 1 cup of cheese shreds in a 9×13 inch baking dish. Mix to combine. Once the sauce is simmering, remove from the heat and carefully pour evenly over the rice mixture. Add the remaining cheese, cover with foil and bake according to the directions.

perfect and easy baked rice!

I really hope ya’ll love this Skillet Cheesy Vegan Enchilada Chick’n & Rice Bake as much as I do! If you give this recipe a try, make sure to snap a photo or video of your cheesy baked perfection and share it by tagging me on Instagram at @eat_figs_not_pigs and #EatFigsNotPigs.

Til next time, friends! XO!

Skillet Cheesy Vegan Enchilada-Inspired Chick'n & Rice Bake

Ashley

The next time your looking for an  absolutely delicious and easy recipe, look no further than this Skillet Cheesy Vegan Enchilada-Inspired Chick'n & Rice Bake! It's hearty, comforting and perfectly spiced. But the best part? Most of the cooking is done in the oven ... making for a nearly effortless cozy weeknight meal!

5 from 1 vote

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Course Vegan

Cuisine Mexican-Inspired

Ingredients

  

Enchilada-Style Sauce:

• 2 dried California Chiles
• 2 dried New Mexico Chiles
• 1 dried Pasilla Chile
• 2 ¼ cup vegan chickn broth or vegetable broth
• 1 7 ¾ oz can of El Pato or tomato sauce
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1 TBS chipotles in adobo sauce
• 1 TBS Mexican oregano
• 1 TBS ground cumin

Rice Bake:

• 2 TBS avocado oil
• 1 10 oz bag vegan chick’n strips
• 1 white onion chopped
• 1 large red bell pepper chopped
• 1 deseeded deveined, and minced jalapeno
• 1 ½ cups long grain white rice *See notes
• 6 cloves fresh minced garlic
• 1 15 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 15 oz corn, drained and rinsed
• ½ cup fresh chopped cilantro plus more for serving
• 2 cups vegan mozzarella or cheddar shreds divided

For Serving:

• Sliced avocado
• Fresh chopped Cilantro
• Fresh lime wedges
• Hot sauce

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 425° F.
• To make the enchilada sauce, rehydrate the dried chiles in hot water for 15 minutes. Drain and place the chiles in a high-powered blender along with the rest of the enchilada sauce ingredients. Blend until completely smooth. Taste and adjust seasonings, adding salt if necessary. Set aside.
• For the rice bake, heat the oil in a large, 12-inch oven safe sauté pan or cast-iron skillet over medium heat. (*See notes).
• Once the oil is hot and shimmering at the bottom of the pan, add the chick’n strips, onion, bell pepper and jalapeno, and cook, stirring often, until the chick’n is warmed through and the onion is translucent, 3 to 5 minutes.
• Pour in the rice and garlic and cook another 2 to 3 minutes, stirring often, until the rice is just barely toasted.
• Reduce stovetop heat to low and pour in the prepared enchilada sauce, black beans, corn, ½ cup cilantro, and 1 cup of shredded cheese. Mix carefully to combine.
• Turn off the stovetop and top the rice with the remaining cup of cheese shreds and cover with an oven safe lid or tin foil. Place in the middle rack of the preheated oven and bake until the rice is fluffy and has absorbed the liquid, 35 to 45 minutes.
• Remove from the oven and garnish with avocado slices, fresh cilantro, lime wedges, and hot sauce (if using). Enjoy!

Notes

RECIPE NOTES:
* You cannot make substitutions for rice or grains here. Different types of rice and grains require different amounts of liquid and cooking times.
* If you don’t have an oven-safe pan or skillet this large, you can saute the chickn, onions, peppers, rice and garlic in a pan and transfer the ingredients into a 9x13 inch baking dish.
* This dish can easily be made gluten free with the swap of a gluten-free vegan chick’n, such as Sweet Earth Foods Mindful Chik’n Pieces or soy curls (rehydrated according to package directions).

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!