Easy Skillet Chicken Chilaquiles (2024)

I still remember my first taste of chicken chilaquiles. It was at a local Mexican restaurant, a good number of years ago. As I was looking over the new-to-me menu, my friend shared that one of her favorite dishes on the listing was the chicken chilaquiles. The restaurant offers it two different ways: in salsa verde (green) or salsa ranchero (red). I have tried each version and like them both, but am slightly more partial to the green salsa.

This Easy Skillet Chicken Chilaquiles is my own personal way to enjoy chilaquiles at home, in quick and super tasty salsa verde fashion.

Chilaquiles is a traditional Mexican dish—a tortilla casserole, if you will. The restaurant where I was first introduced to chilaquiles offers this dish on both their lunch and dinner menus, but most often you will find it on breakfast and brunch menus. I can’t resist its combination of flavors and order this particular item quite a bit when we’re out for breakfast. And it always arrives in different forms with different ingredients, many times with an egg on top. Chilaquiles is definitely a dish that’s open to the creator’s own interpretation.

For my own quick and easy version of chilaquiles, I use rotisserie chicken from the grocery store and a jarred salsa verde. They help to bring this one-dish meal together with barely any effort at all.

Our kids’ palates seem to adapt to more and more spiciness with each year that passes, but I still have to be careful not to overdothe heat factor. One of the jarred green salsas that we can all agree on is found at Target, under their own label of Archer Farms. The jar reads, “Roasted Salsa Verde/thick and chunky/mild”. It offers plenty of flavor for Blake and me, while still being mindful of the milder heat preferences of the kids.

The salsa verde soaks into the tortilla chips lining the bottom of the skillet, giving them a softened texture. Sometimes restaurant versions get a little too goopy for me with the sauce on their chilaquiles, so my version is a bit on the drier side. If you like yours super saucy, simply add more salsa verde.

Shredded chicken gets piled ontop of the softened chips, and the whole skillet takes a trip to the oven to get all warm and cozy. This gives you time to prep whatever garnishings you’re in the mood for. I think that sour cream, guacamole, and fresh cilantro are must-haves, as well as a side of pickled red onions. And you don’t have to ask me how I feel about a margarita, right? It’s the perfect way to enjoy a Mexican meal. If you need an easy co*cktail recipe, I can help you out with that, too. Here’s myMargarita Recipe for One and for a Crowd!