Chicken Fajita Rice Bake

Our Chicken Fajita Rice Bake is a weeknight-friendly recipe that is sure to please everyone. Protein-rich chicken thighs are nestled in a bed of colorful bell peppers, gut-healthy pinto beans and fiber-rich rice, spiced up with flavorful shortcuts like a delicious seasoning blend and canned diced tomatoes and chiles. It’s all baked with a melty topping of sharp Cheddar-Jack cheese for the most delightful and tasty dinner. Finish it off with crunchy radishes and fresh cilantro. Keep reading for our expert tips on how to save time by using cooked chicken, how to add more fiber to this dish and more. 

Tips from the EatingWell Test Kitchen

These are the key tips we learned while developing and testing this recipe in our Test Kitchen to make sure it works, tastes great and is good for you too! 

• To save time, toss in some shredded rotisserie chicken at the end of cooking instead of cooking the chicken thighs.
• If you let the chicken brown undisturbed at first, it will get a nice golden crust. And to get a browner, bubblier top, pop the dish under the broiler for a few minutes at the end of cooking.
• Swap the Cheddar-Jack cheese for Monterey Jack or a Mexican-style cheese blend.

Nutrition Notes

• Chicken thighs are a combination of white and dark meat. This provides a deeper flavor because of the higher fat content, but also helps ensure that your protein won’t dry out while it bakes in the oven. Chicken thighs are a source of B vitamins, which are helpful for your metabolic health. 
• Adding pinto beans, or any type of bean, to casseroles is an excellent way to boost a dish’s protein and fiber content. Beans also contain resistant starch, which resists digestion and helps your good gut bacteria thrive. 
• Canned tomatoes with green chiles are an excellent time-saver food. Tomatoes are high in an antioxidant called lycopene, but canned tomatoes are even higher in this anti-inflammatory nutrient. So, feel good about choosing the canned tomatoes.