Chicken enchilada rice bake
Shredded chicken thigh and black beans stirred through brown rice in a smoky enchilada sauce, then baked under a layer of reduced-fat tasty cheese until it browns at the edges. One dish in, one dish out, with enough left over for lunch the next day.
Notable for: fibre, vitamin C, antioxidants
Ingredients
- 500 gchicken breast, diced
- 300 glong grain brown rice
- 410 gblack beans in brine
- 200 gtomato puree
- 10 gchilli powder
- 10 gground cumin
- 10 gsmoked paprika
- 150 gbrown onions, diced
- 15 gcrushed garlic
- 1red capsicum, diced
- 150 greduced-fat grated tasty cheese
- 2spring onions, sliced, to finish
- 10 mlolive oil
- 1stock cubes, crumbled
Method
Cook the brown rice according to the packet instructions and set it aside.
Heat the oven to 200°C fan bake and heat the olive oil in a large ovenproof pan or flameproof dish.
Cook the onion and capsicum over medium heat for 5 minutes until soft, then add the garlic for 30 seconds.
Add the diced chicken thigh and cook for 6 to 8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until it is opaque and starting to colour.
Stir through the chilli powder, cumin and paprika for 30 seconds, then add the tomato puree, the crumbled stock cube and 100 ml water and simmer for 5 minutes until it thickens into a sauce.
Drain the black beans, then stir them through with the cooked brown rice until everything is coated in the enchilada sauce.
Scatter the reduced-fat tasty cheese over the top and bake for 15 to 18 minutes until the cheese has melted and is beginning to catch at the edges.
Rest for 5 minutes before serving scattered with the spring onion.
Cook the rice separately, then fold it through
Cooking the rice on its own and stirring it through at the end keeps each grain separate instead of turning gluey. Raw rice added straight to the sauce to cook alongside everything else is what causes that.
Storage
Keeps four days in the fridge and freezes well in individual portions.
Reheat covered, with a splash of water, so the rice doesn't dry out.
Cost per serving is indicative, based on New Zealand supermarket prices as at September 2026. Batch prices your own week against your own store on the day. Nutrition figures, including calories, are estimates rather than label readings, so always check the packet if you have an allergy. "Notable for" reflects well-established qualities of the ingredients used, not a lab measurement of this exact dish.