This meatless quinoa enchilada casserole, with black beans, corn, spices, enchilada sauce and cheese will be enjoyed by everyone, vegetarian or not!
I am always on the lookout for a meatless entree I can serve when we have our Vegetarian son and his girlfriend over for dinner! I found a recipe for a Quinoa Enchilada Casserole on Pinterest and decided to give it a “taste-test” before offering it up for a family get-together!
Our youngest son (the one who used to love huge steaks and hamburgers) became a vegetarian a few years ago. His girlfriend is also a vegetarian. That complicated things a bit, making dinners more challenging for our “family get-togethers”, so I’m glad I tried this recipe! I only “tweaked” the original recipe just a little bit!
The quinoa enchilada casserole was delicious, and really easy to prepare! If you like a good enchilada, or enjoy a meatless meal occasionally like we do (one with loads of flavor), you will like this recipe… meat eater or not!
Scroll Down For A Printable Recipe Card At The Bottom Of The Page
How To Make Quinoa Enchilada Casserole
Prepare the quinoa according to package directions. When done, place quinoa in large bowl. Add the green chiles, corn, black beans, cilantro, green onion, cumin, garlic powder, and chili powder.
Add the enchilada sauce, salt and pepper to the quinoa. Stir well, to fully blend all the ingredients.
Add a half cup of cheddar cheese and a half cup of pepper jack cheese, and stir until fully combined.
Bake The Quinoa Enchilada Casserole
Pour the mixture into a lightly greased (or sprayed) 8×8 inch baking dish. Spread the casserole mixture evenly in the dish. Sprinkle the remaining jack and cheddar cheeses on top. Bake the quinoa enchilada casserole for 20-25 minutes at 375 degrees, or until the cheese is bubbly and fully melted. Remove the casserole to a wire rack.
To Serve The Quinoa Enchilada Casserole
Garnish the top of the casserole with chopped tomato and cilantro. The tomatoes and cilantro not only add a pop of color, they add wonderful flavor to this quinoa enchilada casserole, too! Serve, and enjoy!
A Note About SERVING This Casserole
When served piping HOT, fresh from the oven, the texture of the quinoa casserole makes it necessary that it be scooped out with a spoon, rather than cut into pieces with a knife.
I refrigerated the leftovers and the next day was able to cut it into pieces (while chilled) and get this photo so you can see accurately what it looks like on the inside. Once cut, I microwaved the quinoa enchilada casserole to reheat it… and it tasted fantastic!
Hope you will consider trying this recipe for quinoa enchilada casserole. It is packed with flavor (even without meat!) and tastes great! Have a great day, and come back soon.
Looking For More QUINOA Recipes?
All of my recipes can be found in the Recipe Index, located at the top of the page. A few favorite recipes using quinoa include:
- Creamy Chicken Broccoli Quinoa Casserole
- Southwest Quinoa Salad
- Thai Quinoa Salad with Peanut Sauce
- Mediterranean Quinoa Salad
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Original Recipe (slightly adapted) from: http://damndelicious.net/2014/07/07/quinoa-enchilada-casserole/
- 1 cup quinoa (uncooked)
- 1 10 ounce can (10 ounces) enchilada sauce
- 1 4.5 ounce can (4.5 ounce) chopped green chiles (drained)
- 3/4 cup corn kernels (frozen or canned...doesn't matter)
- 3/4 cup canned black beans (drained, rinsed)
- 2 Tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
- 1 green onion stalk (green/white parts, sliced)
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- Pinch Salt and pepper (to taste)
- 1 cup grated cheddar cheese (divided)
- 1 cup pepper jack cheese (divided)
- 1 Roma tomato , (diced)
- 2 Tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray an 8x8 inch baking pan with non-stick spray.
- Cook quinoa in 2 cups of water (per package directions).
- In a large mixing bowl, place the cooked quinoa, green chiles, corn, black beans, cilantro, green onion, cumin, chili powder, garlic powder and cayenne pepper.
- Add enchilada sauce, and salt and pepper to taste. Stir to combine.
- Add 3/4 cup of cheddar cheese and 3/4 cup of pepper jack cheese. Mix well to combine.
- Pour quinoa mixture into prepared baking dish. Spread evenly in dish. Top the casserole with the rest of the cheddar and pepper jack cheeses.
- Bake casserole (uncovered) in a 375 degree oven for about 20-25 minutes. Cheese should be melted and very bubbly around edges of pan.
- Remove baking dish to a wire rack. Let it cool for a couple minutes. Garnish the top of casserole with diced tomatoes and chopped cilantro. Spoon the casserole out onto serving plates. Serve, and enjoy!
Another option: Original recipe used chopped ripe avocados as a garnish (instead of cilantro).
Here’s one more to pin on your Pinterest boards!