Mexican Tortilla Casserole is an easy-to-prepare, vegetarian meal that’s perfect for weeknights or a gathering of friends. You can easily add meat for a heartier dish! This tortilla casserole recipe is a great make-ahead meal; not only does it freeze and reheat well, but it’s especially great for guests. You can prepare the entire thing in advance and then bake 20 minutes before dinner.
For a meaty version of this dish, try my chorizo tortilla casserole!
A few months ago, at a work event I attended, we were served an amazing Mexican tortilla casserole.
It was perfect, family-style comfort food for a gathering.
Lucky for me, the organizers were willing to share their recipe with me, and I prepared my own version of it this weekend.
It was every bit good as I remembered it.
Kind of like a taco casserole with corn tortillas.
I don’t know what took me so long; each bite felt like medicine for the soul.
Recipe Ingredients
- Olive oil
- Yellow onion
- Garlic
- Ground cumin
- Chili powder
- Canned fire-roasted tomatoes
- Tomato paste
- Black or pinto beans
- Frozen corn
- Spinach
- Corn tortillas
- Monterey jack, cheddar, or Mexican blend cheese
- Optional: cilantro, jalapeños, sour cream, salsa
How to make Mexican Tortilla Casserole
I made a few minor changes to the recipe.
I used corn tortillas instead of flour tortillas.
I also swapped out regular canned tomatoes for the fire-roasted variety (but either will work).
The original Mexican casserole with tortillas recipe suggests using either shredded cheddar or Monterey jack cheese and I was lucky enough to find a 50/50 combo bag.
It adds some nice color.
You can also use a Mexican blend.
This has now become one of the most popular recipes on my blog, and I’m not surprised.
I make it all the time.
I love it, Jeff loves it, guests love it.
It’s a guaranteed hit, even with picky eaters. Give it a try.
Recipe Notes
You can easily layer some cooked meat to this casserole for a heartier dish (though I’m never left hungry!). Doesn’t Mexican chicken casserole sound good?
Ground beef and pulled pork are also good options. There’s also my version with chorizo sausage!
When I serve this for dinner parties, I prep and layer the entire thing in advance but hold off on baking it.
I stick it in the oven soon after my guests arrive.
Serve corn tortillas with salsa and guacamole early on, then serve the salsa and guacamole as toppings during dinner.
The tortilla casserole will keep in the refrigerator for several days, making it a great weeknight dinner option you can quickly reheat in the microwave.
You can also wrap it into individual servings and freeze it.
How to Reheat
To reheat in the microwave: cover individual-sized portions using plastic wrap or a microwave lid cover, then heat in 60-90 second increments until hot in the center.
How to Freeze
Wrap in individual portions using plastic wrap, or store individually in freezer containers.
Serving suggestions
This casserole is one of my favorite options to serve at a small dinner party!
I start by serving tortilla chips with homemade guacamole and salsa (you can obviously serve store-bought guacamole and salsa if you want, Drinks can include margaritas and a beer like Negra Modelo.
Once it’s time for dinner, you can repurpose the leftover guacamole and salsa to serve as condiments alongside the casserole.
How to Chop an Onion
This recipe calls for chopped onions. Check out my fast and easy technique for how to chop an onion with step-by-step photos!
If you’re looking for an easy dish to serve at your next party, I highly recommend this casserole.
Trust me, you won’t be disappointed.
Looking for more casserole recipes?
Be sure to check out my eggplant lasagna, zucchini lasagna, and baked macaroni and cheese!
Mexican Tortilla Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 large yellow onion, chopped
- 1 medium garlic clove, minced
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1½ teaspoons chili powder
- 1 (14-ounce) can fire roasted diced tomatoes, drained, 1/4 cup juice reserved
- ¼ cup tomato paste
- 2 (15 ounce) cans black or pinto beans (or a mix), drained
- 1½ cups frozen corn
- 3 cups coarsely chopped fresh spinach (baby or regular will work)
- salt and ground black pepper
- 8 corn tortillas
- 2 cups monterey jack or cheddar cheese (I used both)
- Optional toppings: chopped fresh cilantro, chopped fresh jalapeño, sour cream, salsa
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Spray an 8×11 or 9×9 inch baking dish (or a similar sized pan) with cooking spray.
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium low heat and add the onion, garlic, cumin and chili powder. Stir for a few minutes until the onions are soft and the spices are fragrant, about 3-5 minutes. Add the tomatoes, reserved tomato juice, tomato paste, beans, corn and spinach. Stir and cook for another minute or two until the spinach has wilted and the corn has thawed. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Place two corn tortillas in the bottom of the prepared pan and top with 1/4 of the bean mixture, spreading the mixture evenly. Sprinkle evenly with 1/2 cup of the cheese. Repeat until all of the ingredients have been used up, finishing with the cheese.
- Bake until the tortilla casserole has cooked through, approximately 20 minutes. Allow to cool for 5 minutes before cutting.
- Serve with garnishes, if desired (I highly recommend them!).
Video
Notes
Please read my full post for additional recipe notes, tips, and serving suggestions!
Nutrition
Recipe Troubleshooting
For immediate help troubleshooting a recipe, please email me using the form on my contact page. I’ll try to respond to urgent questions as quickly as possible! For all general questions, please leave a comment here :)
I made this tonight, with the addition of 1 lb lean ground turkey browned with a dusting of McCormick taco seasoning. It was delicious! Hard to tell their is spinach in this, which is wonderful my vegetable-fearing boyfriend. We really love garlic, so I think we will add 3-4 cloves next time.
What side dish would be good with this?
Hi Diane! It’s a very versatile dish! I usually serve it with a simple side salad. I also sometimes serve corn on the cob along side it since it picks up the flavors from the casserole. But it also goes great with some chips and guac + salsa when I’m feeling more decadent :)
This is a great recipe. I’m a meat eater but this filled me up. I did forget the tomato paste :( but it was still delicious. I am making this again. And you have inspired me that there might be other yummy veggie meals.
I’m so glad you liked it!
This is a staple recipe to win over the hearts of any guests, even the picky ones.
Thanks again for sharing it!
This was delicious and a huge hit with my family. Thank you! I did make some modifications based on what I had available. Namely, I had two chicken thighs that needed to be used up, and I used fresh picked kale in place of spinach (to save a trip to the store). Additionally, I did not have tomato paste so just went without. I served this with organic whole plain yogurt (love the Aldi brand) and homemade salsa. My mom and sister both requested the recipe. Thank you!
That looks seriously delicious! This can be gluten free as well.
Made this tonight…absolutely delicious!
What happens if I use flour tortillas? I prefer them so much more than corn.
Thank you!
Those will work just fine :) Enjoy!
If we sub flour tortillas for the corn ones, would it alter the results in any way? Headed to grocery store now to get ingredients for this but before I went, I wanted to know…sounds delicious and I can’t wait to make it!
That will totally work!
I’m reading this recipe feeds “12.” Yet directions call for a 9×9” pan? Could you have meant a 9×13”??
Hi Janet! I think that servings are always subjective. Kind of like servings of pasta; the number is more for calculating nutritional value. A serving for my husband is about double what I would consider a serving for myself. However, the great thing about this casserole is that you can also make this in a 9×13-inch pan (or pretty much anything in this size range, even a round pan). It will just be slightly thinner if you use a 9×13-inch pan; I’ve made it in both.
I have a family member who can’t eat tomatoes. I wonder if I could leave it out for the cooking process and then have salsa on the side for those who do want tomatoes in their portion?
That should be fine!
How many calories per serving and is there a way to cut calories and use low fat items?
It looks perfect and I would love to try the recipe.
I just discovered your blog in the Washington Post.
Could this be made and frozen for a few weeks, then thawed and cooked?
Hi there! I’d recommend baking and portioning it before freezing, at least that’s what I’ve always done. It reheats beautifully. You might be able to freeze it before baking, but I’m not 100% positive it will come out the same way.
I tripled the recipe for a potluck at our parish. Delicious! I used both corn and flour tortillas in separate layers and added green bell pepper which I had on hand. I love the versatility of this dish and it was very easy! I have to cook for a crowd of about 60 on a regular basis and this may be my new go-to recipe (multiplied by 5!).
Five stars, easy, fast, and super delicious.