Dinners under $20: Mexican Casserole

By: Victoria Nguyen | July 11 2011
Posted in Recipes - SF Bay Area Recipes

Economical, easy-to-make, and most importantly, delish! Photos by: Victoria Nguyen

Whether you’re headed to a potluck, looking for a way to spice up “Taco Tuesday,” or want to feed yourself on the cheap – TLD’s Mexican Casserole will do the job. For those who’ve never tasted it before, it’s like taking the main ingredients of a taco and baking them with a layer of melted cheese on top. The bottom layers of tortilla chips, which separate alternating layers of juicey meat-tomato-bean and cheese goodness, assume the soft texture of fresh tortillas when baked. Meanwhile, the dish’s top layer of cheese and chips gives it a crunchy and satisfying bite. Yeah, doesn’t sound too bad, right?

The best news of all? The entire dish costs less than $15…and we’re not even factoring in items that you may find on sale. Easy, quick, and affordable – make sure you bookmark this one!

The basics + spices for great flavor.

Mexican Casserole

20 ounces (or 1.25 pounds) of ground turkey of beef - $4.99
2¼ cups shredded cheddar cheese or your choice of cheese mix – 4.99
half a medium white onion, diced – $1.50 
one packet of taco seasoning - $1
15-ounce can of your choice of beans, with juices drained - $1
14.5-ounce can of diced tomatoes, with juices reserved - $.88
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
pepper
14-ounce bag of tortilla chips, yellow or white corn (you will use most, but not all) - $2 

Simmering ground beef, onions, and seasoning. Yum!

Preheat oven to 350-degrees. With a 9-inch pan over medium heat, add enough oil to cover the onions. When oil is hot, but not steaming, add the onions. Sautee until onions are translucent, about four minutes. Add ground turkey, taco seasoning, and cayenne pepper. Sautee until meat is cooked and ingredients are thoroughly mixed. Add tomatoes. When mixture is boiling, lower heat to a low simmer for 10 minutes. Turn off heat.

Arrange a layer of tortilla chips at the bottom of a 12x7x2.5-inch casserole dish. With a spoon, add a layer of the meat mixture, followed by a layer of beans and top with cheese. Repeat layers until there’s about a half-inch of space left in dish. Pour in rest of meat juices from mixture, if there’s any left. Top with final layer of tortilla chips, cheese and sprinkle of cheese. Add a sprinkle of freshly ground pepper.

Bake in oven, uncovered, for 45 minutes. Add an additional layer of cheese, however much you prefer, and bake until top layer of cheese is browned and bubbling.

Let cool for 15 minutes. Serve hot with a dollop of whip cream, salsa, guacamole and/or hot sauce. Goes great with a side salad, can be prepared and refrigerated ahead of time, and freezes well. Makes six servings.

Almost ready to eat!