Layers of whole-wheat tortillas, a creamy chicken filling, spicy tomato sauce, and cheese… this Mexican Lasagna just melts in your mouth!
I like to use my homemade Soaked Wheat Tortillas in this recipe for added nutrition. 
“Soaking” is a traditional method of preparing grains, used by our ancestors, to make the grains easier to digest. They are so much healthier (and more delicious!) than store-bought tortillas. I always make a large batch and freeze the leftovers for future use.
If you buy tortillas from the store, try to find a whole-grain product without any artificial ingredients added.
This is a great recipe to make when you have leftover cooked chicken. But if you don’t have any leftover chicken, just place boneless chicken breasts (fresh or frozen) in a saucepan and add enough water to cover the chicken. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer (covered) until the chicken is no longer pink. This should take about 15-20 minutes. Drain the chicken and once cooled, shred into small pieces.
For the sauce in this recipe, you can either buy salsa or picante sauce…
…or you can use my simple recipe below for making your own picante sauce. I usually make a large batch and freeze the extra sauce for the next time I make this dish. This makes it even faster to put together!
Mexican Lasagna
Ingredients
- 1 pound (500 grams) cooked, shredded chicken
- 2/3 cup salsa or picante sauce or use the sauce recipe below
- 1 cup sour cream or lebneh
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 2 cups fresh cheddar cheese shredded
- 6 whole wheat tortillas
- fresh tomato and cilantro for garnish
For the Sauce (makes about 2 cups)
- 6 cups tomato chopped into large pieces
- 2 cups water
- 1 onion chopped into large pieces
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1/4 cup vinegar
- 1 jalapeno seeded
- 1 teaspoon natural salt
Instructions
For the Sauce
- If you are making the sauce, combine all sauce ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour the sauce in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and cook, uncovered, over low heat until thickened to about 2 cups. This takes about 20-25 minutes. (You can freeze the remaining sauce for later use)
For the Lasagna
- In a large bowl, combine the shredded chicken, 2/3 cups of sauce, sour cream (or lebneh), cumin, and 1 cup of the cheese.
- Butter a large glass dish. Break the tortillas into large pieces and spread half of them on the bottom of the baking dish.
- Spread half of the chicken mixture over the tortillas.
- Layer remaining tortillas over the top, and spoon over the remaining chicken mixture.
- Sprinkle the remaining cup of cheese over the top. Bake at 350°F (175°C) for 20-25 minutes, until top is golden and cheese is melted.
- Sprinkle fresh tomato and cilantro over the top as garnish. Let the dish sit for about 5 minutes before serving. Enjoy!
