Updated on January 4th, 2024
I have to admit: I hadn’t eaten Doritos in years before I decided to remake this Dorito Chicken Casserole Recipe. The recipe is a classic and longtime favorite here on BlogChef.
Chicken, gooey melted cheese, and everyone’s favorite tortilla chip is a tempting combo, but my at-home cooking has slanted towards healthier options lately. Still, I enjoy indulging every so often and I had an unexpected craving to indulge in, you guessed it, Doritos.
So, yeah, I revisited the Dorito Chicken Casserole — and it did not disappoint. It’s salty, cheesy, tangy, crunchy, and satisfying. I served it to four adults, and we polished the entire thing off handily.
Why make Dorito Chicken Casserole?
The better question here might be, why not make Dorito Chicken Casserole? The recipe is super easy to put together and creates a hearty meal on its own. Serve it to guests for casual get-togethers or use it as a weekday meal. Since it’s a casserole, you can clean up all the prep mess while it’s baking.
Ingredients
Here are the ingredients you need for this casserole:
- 2 cups shredded chicken (see FAQs for starting with raw chicken)
- 2 cups shredded Mexican cheese (a mix of cheddar and jack)
- 10 oz. can of cream of chicken soup (see FAQs for substitution)
- Ā½ cup milk
- Ā½ cup sour cream
- 1 can Ro-Tel tomatoes, drained
- 1 tablespoon taco seasoning (see FAQs for substitution)
- 9.25 oz bag of Doritos Nacho Cheese
Steps to prepare Dorito Chicken Casserole
1. Get your ingredients ready
The two ingredients you may need to prep a bit are the chicken and cream of chicken soup. Let’s talk about the chicken first.
If you’re starting with raw chicken, you can:
- Pressure cook it in an Instant Pot. Cook 2/3 lb of chicken breast on high pressure for 4 minutes. Let the pressure release naturally for 5 minutes, then open the valve. Remove the breasts from the pot and shred with two forks.
- Poach chicken breast in water. Place 2/3 lb of chicken breast into a large pot and cover them with 1 inch of water. Bring the water to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes. Remove breasts from pot and shred with two forks.
- Bake chicken in the oven at 400Ā°F or 204Ā°C for 20 minutes. Check for doneness and shred with two forks.
You can alternatively buy a rotisserie chicken and shred that.
Now, about that cream of chicken soupā¦You can simply buy a can of soup as the original recipe recommends. But you don’t have to. (I don’t cook with canned soup anymore because it’s generally loaded with preservatives and ingredients I can’t pronounce.)
The other option is to make cream of chicken soup. I like BabyDollPie’s recipe. It does have a fair amount of seasonings in it, which you could leave out if you wanted.
2. Mix the filling
Now you can heat your oven to 350Ā°F or 177Ā°C. Also wipe the inside of a 2-quart casserole dish with oil. I used olive, but any oil will do.
Then grab a large bowl and mix:
- 2 cups of shredded chicken
- 1 cup of shredded Mexican cheese
- Ā½ cup milk
- Ā½ cup sour cream
- 1 can Ro-tel tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon taco seasoning
3. Layer
Grab a handful of Doritos, crush them slightly with your hands, and drop them into the casserole dish. Repeat until you have an even layer of chip pieces covering the bottom of the dish. Top that with half of the chicken mixture.
Repeat with another layer of Doritos and another layer of chicken. Add more crushed Doritos on top and finish with more shredded cheese.
4. Bake and serve
Cover the casserole with foil and bake in your heated oven for 25 to 30 minutes. It should be bubbling hot when you remove the foil.
Let the casserole cool for a few minutes, then serve. Optionally, top with fresh salsa.
Dorito Chicken Casserole Recipe
Chicken, gooey melted cheese, and everyone's favorite tortilla chip is a no-fail combo. This recipe comes together in a few minutes and cooks for 30.
Ingredients
- 2 cups shredded cooked chicken
- 2 cups shredded Mexican cheese blend (divided)
- 10 oz can cream of chicken soup
- Ā½ cup milk
- Ā½ cup sour cream
- 1 can Ro-tel tomatoes (drained)
- 1 tablespoon taco seasoning
- 9.25 oz bag of Nacho Cheese Doritos
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F or 177°C. Grease a 2-quart casserole dish.
- In a large bowl, mix shredded chicken, 1 cup of cheese, cream of chicken soup, milk, sour cream, Ro-tel tomatoes, and taco seasoning.
- Grab a handful of Doritos, crush them gently with your hands, and place them in the bottom of your casserole dish. Repeat until there's an even layer covering the bottom of the dish. Top with half of the chicken mixture. Add another layer of crushed Doritos, and then the rest of the chicken mixture. Top with remaining cheese and more crushed Doritos.
- Cover the dish and bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes, until bubbling hot. Remove from the oven and let it cool for a few minutes before serving.
Notes
You can start with raw chicken or rotisserie chicken if you don't have shredded chicken on hand. If you're using raw chicken, cook it in an Instant Pot, the oven, or a pot of boiling water first, then shred it and proceed with the recipe. You can also make your own taco seasoning mix and cream of chicken soup -- see the FAQs for recipes!
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Dorito Chicken Casserole FAQs
Do I have to use canned cream of chicken soup?
No, you don’t have to use canned cream of chicken soup. You can easily make a healthier homemade soup that stands in beautifully for this recipe.
Do the Doritos get soggy?
The chips at the bottom get softer, but not soggy. As designed, the recipe has a nice variation in texture. The chips at the top stay crunchy, while the ones underneath mimic have a tortilla vibe, like what you’d have in an enchilada casserole. If you’re worried about the chip texture, skip the layers and place the chips on top only.
What do I serve with Dorito Chicken Casserole?
A green salad goes well with this casserole. It’s very rich, so you want something fresh and light.
What drinks go with Dorito Chicken Casserole?
Lemonade, beer, or margaritas are nice drinking pairings for Dorito Chicken Casserole.
Can I substitute something else for the taco seasoning?
Yes, you can substitute a homemade taco seasoning mix. Also see our list of other taco seasoning substitutes. If you’re working with a taco seasoning packet, know that most of them contain 2 tablespoons or 6 teaspoons of mix. For this recipe, use 1 tablespoon or 3 teaspoons.
What do I do if I’m starting with raw chicken?
You can quickly cook up chicken for shredding. My preferred method is the Instant Pot. Toss your chicken pieces in with some water and pressure cook them for 5 minutes, then let the pressure release naturally for 5 minutes. Release the valve, remove the chicken, and shred it with two forks.
Do you have more Doritos recipes?
Why yes, we do. Try Doritos chicken nachos, Doritos chicken bites, Doritos mozzarella sticks, and Doritos chicken strips.
making this for supper tonight
Thanks for this! I made this for dinner a couple of weeks ago. I did substitute refried beans for the canned soup. And because the beans were heavier with more volume, I added a bit more milk because I like really creamy stuff. We loved this so much it has been requested for dinner tonight.
CAN YOU USE DICED CHICKEN?
This is so yummy glad I saved this recipe!
Made this last night n its a keeper n i wudnt change anything š my kids loved it š
I love tacos, anything Mexican! I did everything the recipe said except instead of rote tomatoes I use black bean & corn salsa, 1cup of lite sour cream and I added a can of black beans, also used cubed chicken chunks instead of shredded. Oh, and i added a cup of white rice to make it more of a meal ( starch and protein)We like spice so we used the spicy nacho doritos….we all loved it and its so easy and cheap to make this will be a favorite
I would use a sharp cheddar instead of the milder Mexican blend cheese – I live in WI and cheddar is the best!
I heard that you can use a sleeve if ritz crackers with it but the directions left out what to do with the ritz crackers! Should I mix it with the chicken mix? Any ideas?
would like to no if i could use salsa sauce since i cannot find ro-tel tomatoes?
Brittany,
Cheddar Cheese soup might be a good substitute for the Cream of Chicken.
This was absolutely delicious and so easy to make! I loved it!
How many people will this wonderful casserole feed? Wondering if I need to double it or just make 2 casseroles….
Lynn K – This casserole will serve about 4 people.
It was good, my family enjoyed it I put salsa on it.
can u use hamburger in place of chicken
kathyj55 – I have never tried using hamburger instead of the chicken. If you do try it, please let everyone know the results.
This was great,my son ate all that was on his plate which doesn’t happen very often! We had left overs the next night and it was just as good!! we will be making it again thanks for sharing!
This is such a great recipe!! It’s definaltly not healthy but really yummy. I was kind of upset though because I didn’t get two layers of the chicken mix. I only got to do one layer of chicken mix but I defiantly had plenty of doritos to cover the top and bottom. I think that maybe it was because my glass dish was so big that I could only use one layer of chicken mix. I will be making this again just use a smaller Pan.
Making this tonight. Im going to add some corn tortillas and refried beans! I cant wait to try this!!!
This is in the oven right now! I added some diced red onion & green pepper, used breaded crispy chicken, left out sour cream (i didn’t have any) but it looks delish! š
this was so amazingly good we are making it for everyone again today!!
My husband loves this! If you’re cooking for 2, you’ll want to cut this in half, it doesn’t reheat very well – even if you put it in the oven.
I got 4 approval votes in a tough household! Kudos. Made with Nacho Doritos, A ! Thank you!
This is mine & my families absolute favorite recipe/hotdish!! I could eat it every night & we rarely ever have leftovers – but if we do they are gone the next day š
I add a can of cream of mushroom soup. This is a delicious recipe. My grandkids love it.
I made this for my family and it was the biggest hit ever i swear they ask for it at least twice a week if not more granite i have to triple up on the ingrediants but still this is the best recipe i have ever stumbled upon
This was delicious! My family loooved it! Jus made it and half of it is gone! Th rotel tomatoes also had cilantro in them which made it taste a bit better- that is if you like cilantro… Thx for the recipe loved it. Also what I would do is, if i made this for a party, I would take a spoonful of sower cream and put it on each piece (serving). Thx
5 stars š
Made this for my son and his family. Said it was really yummy! Thanks!
Made this in a shallow crockpot today for a function at work. It was a HIT!! Followed the recipe except we used two 12.5 oz cans of chicken breast, rinsed, in place of the shredded chicken. We also reduced the taco seasoning a bit to reduce sodium. It seemed to work out fine.
I made this tonight. I used Greek yogurt in place of the sour cream and cut way back on the cheese. I also used Fit & Active cream of chicken from Aldi but I wish I would have read the comment about using refried beans instead first! We are having lettuce, tomato, homemade guacamole & refried beans on the side!
This is the biggest hit ever for my family. We have made this recipe as written at least 20 times in the last six months since my wife stumbled across it. This week she found a few ground beef versions. I studied different recipes and didn’t like the sound of them. From what I gathered, I decided to use the chicken recipe and change one thing. I used cheddar soup instead of cream of chicken. I substituted the chicken breast for a pound of ground beef and that was it. It was as delicious to all of us as the chicken version above. And I would like to add, that my wife and daughter eat the leftovers up the next day, they are very good even in the microwave. One other recommendation, my wife can’t handle rotel because of the green chiles, so we use a can of petite tomatoes. Thank you for this wonderful recipe!
Can you sub cream of chicken for cream of mushroom?
I have never tried this recipe with cream of mushroom. If you do try it please let everyone know the results.
I made this tonight and followed the recipe to the T, OH MAN what amazing flavor! My husband said it was really good. I added black beans to this dish and used taco seasoning that had 30% less sodium. The only thing was that he just didn’t like that the Doritos came out mushy after baking. So next time I will make the casserole as stated above, let it bake 30 minutes and then when it’s finished and has cooled a bit I will top with Doritos, add a dollop of sour cream and green onions. We enjoyed. Thanks for the recipe š
Made this tonight after trying to figure out what to do with our leftover shredded chicken from our taco night. Also made a small portion for my vegetarian sister. Used tostidos in hers, spicy sweet chili in one and Fritos in another. I added retfried beans to all 3.(picked them up for sister in lieu of chicken) also added fiesta cheese soup ( again for sister and used the rest in ours with the cream of chicken) and used basil and oregano diced tomatoes,, and doubled the cheese. Used a Mexican blend and mozzarella. Had extra sour cream to dollop on top… It was very well received by all.
Thank for this .so ,easy to make! i love it!
Salt bomb but i think i used too much cheese and not enough chicken.
Great recipe but I changed a few things. Added onion, garlic, green chilies, chopped corn and pinto beans to the mix. I also used Baked Doritos and low fat cheese and sour cream.
I love this easy to do, my grandkids will love this recipe, I add more cheese to it they ll love it
This is by far the best chicken casserole I’ve ever had in my life! I have nearly everything on hand so that makes my shopping trips easy and quick! This is one of those go to meals my family (all 5 of us!) thoroughly enjoy!
This dish was the star at our potluck dinner.
Dane,
You made my day! So glad you enjoyed it.
Catherine