Green Enchilada Casserole with ground turkey is a simple and delicious recipe that comes together quick. Cheesy and delicious Mexican casserole with a mild green chili sauce and lots of flavor!
This green Enchilada Casserole is a cinch to make and so much easier than rolling individual enchiladas. With layers of a meaty bean mixture, creamy enchilada sauce, corn tortillas, and cheese, it’s a great recipe to have on hand for a quick and easy weeknight dinner.
You’ll love that this recipe uses so many pantry staples and ingredients you probably already have on hand. The canned black beans, canned diced tomatoes, and canned green chili sauce make this dish extra convenient.
If you are unfamiliar with enchiladas sauces, the come in both red and green. You can look for the green enchilada sauce in the ethnic section of your grocery store. And, if you love using green enchilada sauce, you have to try my smothered Green Chili Chicken Burritos.
Why this recipe works!
Green Enchilada Casserole is also a great lightened up recipe. Traditional enchilada casserole is full of heavy ingredients like beef, sour cream, and lots of cheese.
Here, the flavors you love are all there, just lightened up! By swapping the ground turkey for beef, you save significant calories. Also, the beans add great texture and protein to the casserole.
Additionally, to make the enchilada sauce creamy without the extra fat, just add nonfat greek yogurt. This is also a great way to mellow the flavors for anyone who may find enchilada sauce too spicy.
How to Make Enchilada Casserole with Ground Turkey
The prep for this recipe is simple and much easier than rolling individual enchiladas. You can put together the sauce while the turkey browns and have this in the oven in 10 minutes! Follow these step-by-step instructions on how to make green enchilada casserole with ground turkey.
Step 1: Make the turkey filling
Start by preheating the oven to 350 degrees. Then, in a large sauce pan, cook the onions until slightly softened. Add in the ground turkey and break up the meat with your spoon. Continue cooking until the turkey is cooked through and no longer pink. Sprinkle in the taco seasoning.
When the meat is cooked through, add in one can of rinsed black beans and one can of drained diced tomatoes. Cook until warmed through.
Step 2: Make the green enchilada sauce
To make the sauce, whisk together the canned green enchilada sauce, yogurt (could also use sour cream), and the lime juice in a bowl. If you wanted to make homemade sauce, check out this recipe for Green Enchilada Sauce.
Step 3: layer the casserole and bake
Spray a 9 x 13 baking dish with cooking spray and assemble the casserole. Firstly, spoon ½ cup of the sauce on the bottom.
Then layer on four corn tortillas (one cut in half) so that the sauce layer is covered.
Next layer on half the meat mixture.
Then, scoop on about ½ cup of the remaining sauce. Use a spoon to spread the sauce over the meat mixture.
Sprinkle on ½ cup of the shredded cheddar cheese.
Repeat the entire layer: tortilla, the remaining meat mixture, ½ cup of enchilada sauce, and ½ cup of shredded cheddar.
For the final layer, place the tortillas on top, spread on the remaining enchilada sauce, and sprinkle on the cheese.
Bake for 35-40 minutes until bubbly. Alternatively, you could cover and refrigerate the casserole for up to 24 hours before baking. Green Enchilada Casserole can also be frozen for up to a month.
How to serve enchilada Casserole
Let the casserole cool for 10 minutes before cutting and serving. Top the entire casserole with diced cilantro or parsley and serve with sliced avocado, diced tomatoes, and sour cream.
This recipe is excellent as is or served with a fresh salad like this Tomato Onion Salad. Or serve on the side of Mexican Quinoa or with these Mexican-style Pan Roasted Vegetables and Beans.
If you love Mexican recipes, be sure to check out my post on Taco Bar Ideas – Mexican Buffet Menu.
I hope you love this recipe for Green Enchilada Casserole. Be sure to comment below if you try it. Enjoy!
Green Enchilada Casserole
Equipment
- 9 x 13 baking dish
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons canola or vegetable oil
- ½ onion, diced
- 1 ½ pounds ground turkey
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons taco seasoning mix (I use McCormick)
- 1 15 ounce can diced tomatoes, drained
- 1 15 ounce can black beans, drained
- 20 ounces mild green enchilada sauce
- 1 cup plain greek yogurt
- 1 lime, juiced
- 12 corn tortillas (3 cut in half)
- 2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
- diced tomato, avocado, and chopped cilantro for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Heat oil in a large pan over medium high heat. Add the onion and cook until softened, about three minutes. Add ground turkey, breaking up with spoon, and cook until browned, about ten more minutes. Stir in the salt, taco seasoning mix, canned tomatoes, and beans and cook until warmed through, about one more minute.
- In a medium bowl, whisk to combine the green enchilada sauce, yogurt, and lime juice.
- Spray a 9 x 13 casserole dish with cooking spray. Spread ½ cup of the sauce mixture on the bottom of the pan. Layer on four of the corn tortillas, using two of the halves to line the sides. Next layer on half of the meat mixture, ½ cup of the sauce, and ½ cup of cheese. Repeat, layering the tortillas, meat, sauce, and topping the mixture with the remaining cheese.
- Bake for 40 minutes, uncovered until bubbly. Let rest for 10 minutes before serving. Garnish with chopped cilantro and avocado (optional)
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Notes
Nutrition
Hi, I liked the casserole, however the recipe calls for 12 tortillas and I only used 8- 2 layers of 4. Did I not follow the recipe correctly?
Sounds like we were using different sized tortillas! Hope you enjoyed the recipe 🙂
The perfect family-friendly meal, love that you used ground turkey as well, as I always happen to have some on hand.
My family absolutely devoured this casserole, I love that its so healthy!
Yum! This casserole looks delicious, perfect for dinner.
This casserole was so delicious and satisfying! It was perfect for our family dinner tonight!