Green Chile Casserole with Pepper Jack Cheese

Green Chile Casserole with Pepper Jack Cheese

Parades, festivals, dancing, and food! Cinco de Mayo is one of Mexico’s time-honored celebrations dating back to a victory for the country in 1862.

This Green Chile casserole can be made ahead of time and reheated before serving. Or, prep everything the day before and bake the day of serving.

Green_chile_casserole with tomato

Primary ingredients are white rice, zucchini, canned green chiles, pepper Jack cheese, fresh tomatoes, sour cream, fresh oregano, garlic, green onions, and fresh herbs. This recipe uses canned prepared green chiles, but don’t the fresh ones look GORGEOUS! Roast them on the grill and serve with a juicy pork chop, steak for fish. Nutritious, delicious, and so many recipe options!

Green Chiles for Green Chile Casserole — Photo by Phillip Larking on Unsplash

Simple Substitutions and Tips:

Make this a protein-rich entree by adding cooked ground turkey or lean ground beef
Use brown rice or quinoa in place of white rice
Less spicy flavors, use Jack cheese, Provolone, or Mozzarella
Feta cheese is a delicious option, too
Add drained and rinsed low-sodium black beans or refried beans – YUM!
Serve with Grilled Shrimp
Add freshly chopped cilantro when serving
Add freshly diced red and yellow bell pepper, about 1/3 cup

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Recipe

Green Chile Casserole with Pepper Jack Cheese

Entree, Side Dish

Green Chile Casserole with Pepper Jack Cheese is made with green chiles, tomato, green onion, sour cream, and pepper jack cheese

Ingredients

1 cup long grain white rice
2 medium zucchini, sliced about 1/4 inch thick
1 - 2 tablespoons grape seed oil
1 7-ounce can diced green chiles
12 ounces Pepper Jack or Monterey Jack cheese, grated
1 large hot house or similar tomato, seeded and diced
Sea salt to taste
2 cups sour cream
2 teaspoons freshly chopped oregano leaves
1 garlic clove, diced
1/4 cup chopped green onion
1 large hot house or similar tomato, sliced
2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian flat leaf parsley or cilantro

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350*F
Cook rice according to package directions and set aside
In a steamer or in steamer basket in stockpot, steam zucchini slices until just tender
Using a paper towel, coat a 3-quart casserole dish with the grape seed oil
Layer the rice on the bottom, then the green chiles, 1/2 of the cheese, zucchini slices, and diced tomato
Sprinkle with a little bit of sea salt
In a medium mixing bowl, combine the sour cream, oregano, garlic, and green onion and spoon over the diced tomatoes
Top with sliced tomatoes, scatter remaining cheese on top
Cover and bake for about 45 to 50 minutes
When serving, top with fresh parsley or cilantro or both

Green Chile Casserole with Pepper Jack Cheese