Fiesta Chicken Instant Pot Casserole is a flavor-packed party in every bite—a delicious mashup of Mexican flair and American comfort! Tender chicken, twisty radiatore pasta, hearty beans, sweet corn, and melty cheese all mingle in a creamy, tomato-kissed sauce, just waiting to be topped with your favorite fixings. It’s bold, it’s cheesy, and it’s ready to turn any dinner into a fiesta!
It's one of the many 30-minute meal recipes on my site that I love and it's so popular.
Fiesta Chicken Casserole is a great Pressure Cooking Recipe but it can also be made on the stovetop, if that suits you better.
Anyway you make it, it's delicious and I'm sure it will become a family favorite!
By making the pasta in the Instant Pot with the chicken and spices infuses it with the delicious fiesta of flavors too.
For more delicious Instant Pot Casserole Dishes, try my Poppy Seed Chicken Casserole, Instant Pot Chicken and Broccoli Casserole, Chicken Tetrazzini Casserole, or this Chicken Bacon Ranch Pasta Casserole!
What is Fiesta Chicken?
Fiesta Chicken is a Tex-Mex dish made with cubed or shredded chicken in a creamy tomato sauce served with corn and black beans.
Typically, it's served over rice or on warmed tortillas.
This recipe includes pasta, so it makes a delicious meal in one pot, perfect for busy weeknights!
Ingredients Needed for Instant Pot Fiesta Chicken Casserole
- Chicken. I use Chicken Tenders, but you can easily use Chicken Breasts too.
- Pasta. You can use any kind of pasta you prefer, but I love using Radiatore Pasta here.
- Broth. I use chicken broth for this recipe, but vegetable broth will work too, or just water if you prefer.
- Salsa. Mild, Medium, or Hot Salsa is fine for this, just decide based on how spicy you want it overall.
- Seasonings. Use Cumin, Chili Powder (Mild or Hot), and Garlic Powder to flavor this dish, or use a good Taco Seasoning packet if you have it.
- Corn. Sweet canned Corn works great for this recipe.
- Black Beans. Soak your own Black Beans or use a can from the grocery store to add great texture and flavor to this dish.
- Cheese. I prefer using a good Mexican Cheese Blend, but Colby Jack works well too.
- Sour Cream. Adds to the creamy flavor and texture in the dish.
- Toppings. Freshly chopped Tomatoes, chopped Green Onions, fresh Lime wedges, chopped Cilantro, and Avocado slices are great options for garnishing.
How to Make Fiesta Chicken
I like to make Fiesta Chicken in the Instant Pot because I love one pot meals!
- Pour the Water, Salsa, and Pasta into your Instant Pot Pressure Cooker.
- Place the Chicken Tenders or Sliced Chicken Breasts on top of the Pasta. Do not stir the mixture.
- Sprinkle the Cumin, Chili Powder, and Garlic Powder on top of the Chicken Breasts.
- Close Instant Pot and select Manual High Pressure for 6 minutes with a 6-minute Natural Pressure Release.
- Remove the Chicken and set it aside.
- Stir the Pasta and the sauce together.
- Add the Sour Cream, Black Beans, and Corn and stir until mixed.
- Add 1 cup of Mexican Blended Cheese and stir.
- Cut or shred the Chicken, then add it back to the pasta and stir.
- Put it all into a casserole dish, and sprinkle the top of the casserole with the remaining cheese. Bake at 350 for 5 minutes or until the cheese is melted.
- Serve the dish garnished with freshly diced Tomatoes, freshly chopped Cilantro, a squeeze of Lime Juice, Lime Wedges, chopped Green Onions, and slices of Avocado.
Storage & Freezing
Storage: Store Fiesta Chicken once it has cooled to room temperature in an airtight container or Ziploc bags in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Reheat it in the microwave until piping hot.
Freezing: Store leftovers in an airtight, freezer-safe container for up to two months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight before reheating.
Substitutions & Variations
- Taco Seasoning. You can use Taco Seasonings in place of the other spices, use as much or little as you desire. Everyone likes their own level of flavors anyways.
- Greek Yogurt. Plain Greek Yogurt can be used in place of the Sour Cream if you want.
- Chicken Breasts. If you don't have Chicken Tenders, you can use Chicken Breasts to make this meal. Just make sure to slice them the long ways, and to cook the pasta and chicken all at the same time you will want your chicken to be in Chicken Tender Sizes.
- Change the meat. Try using Beef or Pork instead of chicken for a different flavor. Just be sure to cook it through first.
- Add some spice. Spice it up with diced Jalapeños, a little bit of hot sauce, or some cayenne pepper to the pot to turn up the heat a bit.
- Fiesta Chicken Salad. Serve your fiesta chicken on a bed of shredded lettuce for a deliciously refreshing Fiesta Chicken Salad!
- Add more veggies. Add some diced, sautéed onion, chopped red bell pepper or red bell pepper, or even peas.
Pro Tips
- You can serve Fiesta Chicken in so many different ways. Try it with corn chips, tortilla chips, or brown rice instead of pasta, or in some flour tortillas with salad as wraps!
- Add a splash of broth or water to the dish when reheating it so it doesn't dry out.
Have you tried this Instant Pot Fiesta Chicken recipe?
Please leave a comment below if you have tried making this recipe. I love to hear from you and enjoy reading about what you think. Be sure to tag @devourdinner when posting to social media. I can't wait to see your photos!
More Instant Pot Chicken Recipes
- BBQ Ranch Pasta Salad
- 3 Packet Chicken and Gravy
- Whole Chicken in the Instant Pot
- Huli Huli Chicken (Instant Pot or Stovetop)
- Instant Pot Chicken Breast
- Instant Pot Hawaiian Haystacks
- Instant Pot Chicken Pot Pie with Biscuits
- Chicken and Wild Rice Instant Pot Recipe
Fiesta Chicken Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 lb Chicken Tenders or Chicken Breasts
- 8 oz Radiatore Pasta
- 2 cups Water or Chicken Broth
- ½ cup Salsa
- 1 teaspoon Cumin
- 1 teaspoon Chili Powder
- 1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
- ½+1 cup Corn - canned corn drain
- ½+1 cup Black Beans - Rinsed and drain
- ½ cup Sour Cream
- 2 cups Mexican Blend Cheese - *Divided
- To Garnish, optional Diced Tomatoes, Green Onions, Limes, Freshly Chopped Cilantro, Avocado
Instructions
- Pour the Water, Salsa, and Pasta into your Instant Pot Pressure Cooker.
- Place the Chicken Tenders or Sliced Chicken Breasts on top of the Pasta. Do not stir the mixture.
- Sprinkle the Cumin, Chili Powder, and Garlic Powder on top of the Chicken Breasts.
- Close the Lid and set the Instant Pot to Manual Pressure Cook for 6 mins with a 6 minute Natural Release.
- Remove the Chicken and set it aside.
- Stir the Pasta in the sauce.
- Add the Sour Cream, Black Beans, and Corn and stir until mixed.
- Add 1 cup Mexican Blended Cheese and stir.
- Cut or shred the Chicken, then add it back into the pasta and stir.
- Put it all into a casserole dish and sprinkle the top of the casserole with the remaining cheese. Bake at 350 for 5 mins or until cheese is melted.
- Serve the dish, garished with freshly diced Tomatoes, freshly chopped Cilantro, a squeeze of Lime Juice, or Lime Wedges, chopped Green Onions and slices of Avocado.
Notes
- Store: Store Fiesta Chicken once it has cooled to room temperature in an airtight container or Ziploc bags in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Reheat it in the microwave until piping hot.
- Freeze: Store leftovers in an airtight, freezer-safe container for up to two months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight before reheating.
Nutrition Disclaimer
All nutrition values are approximate and calculated by a plugin and are provided as a courtesy. Adding or subtracting ingredients will change the nutritional value.
Charlotte
How do you make this with no instant pot. This looks great and I’d like to make it
Kevin
Like some of the others:
(a) I used TACO SEASONING (taco bell package). Came out great.
(b) I also had too much liquid afterwards, so I drained the noodles, just like if you made it in a pot on the stove. Still came out really good.
(c) Adding the taco-bell seasoning package absorbed and thickened any remaining liquid.
(d) PLUS -> I also added a can of BUSHES SIDE KICKS beans (taco fiesta flavor) -- so the extra sauce from the beans also helped.
Rather than sour cream, I substituted some cottage cheese. Came out great.
James
I didn't have any salsa... but had some tomatoes.... cut it into quarters and through it on the top of everything, cooked along with the chicken. This helped a bit.
Devour Dinner
Your substitutions all sound fantastic. Thanks for sharing!
Sheila
It was good but needs more spice. Kind of bland.
Devour Dinner
Hi Sheila, Thanks for your feedback. Try adding a Salsa with more zest and heat to it if you prefer. You can also increase Chili Powder if you wish as well.
Meredith
This recipe saved me! I tend to make the same things over and over so that I know my kids will eat. Tacos is their favorite meal. And I'm just tired of tacos every week. I saw the live demo of this and gave it a try. My kids loved it! They are really picky about flavors so I stuck with the taco seasoning packet we usually use (actually used 1.5 packages). It was so easy, so cheesy and creamy. Will keep this in my rotation.
Peggy Deis
This is so easy to make and really delicious!
Adam
Hi, is this recipe supposed to be liquidy?
Devour Dinner
Hi Adam,
If you use the correct amount of liquid, it will be perfect. However, initially it might seem like there is still too much liquid. As you add the cheese and it cools the sauce thickens and is perfect.
Jen
Can I make this with frozen chicken tenders?
Devour Dinner
Yes, you can use frozen chicken tenders. The time would be the same
Timothy Ruggiero
Just made this for my family tonight. It was a very big hit and so much flavor. Thank you Rebecca for having this recipe on your site.
Kiara Farmer
I am.making this tonight inan 8 quart ip. I want to use 16 oz of pasta do i double the broth and the salsa?
Devour Dinner
Hi Kiara,
You will need to double the ingredients if you want to double the pasta. If you wish to use less Cumin and Chili Powder that would be okay, but you would definitely need to double the broth and salsa for the pasta to cook properly. Hope that helps!
Molly
Super good, my husband and I loved it! I ended up using 16oz noodles and doubled the salsa and broth as mentioned in the comments. I also sautéed some onions before adding everything into the instant pot! Will use more spices next time too 🤪
Devour Dinner
Hi Molly, so glad you enjoyed this recipe!
Jenn
Hi did you increase the cooking time when you doubled the recipe???
Devour Dinner
Hi Jenn, no need to increase the cooking time when you double the recipe. It's the same!
Kim
When use the ninja foodi, would the Cook time be the same as the instant pot... 6minutes and 6 for natural release..
Devour Dinner
Typically the times would work the same for the different brands of pressure cookers with the same pressure release indicated in the recipe.
Susan
Is that 1/2 cup of corn and beans or 1and 1/2 cup?
Devour Dinner
Hi Susan, I use 1/2 Cup (plus) meaning a generous 1/2 cup. You can add more or less to your tastes! Hope this helps. 😉
Kathryn
Do you know how many calories per serving this is?
Devour Dinner
Hi Kathryn, I just updated the recipe card to reflect the calories. The nutrition calculator suggests 630 calories per serving.
Sarah
This looks like a delicious meal. Since I don't have an instant pot I would need to cook this the old fashioned way. Going to add this to my list of recipes to try.