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After sharing our delicious guacamole recipe earlier this week, we’ve decided to continue the fiesta for a few more days – and this Mexican Lasagna with White Sauce is next on the list!
This easy, creamy, cheesy Mexican Lasagna with White Sauce uses our pulled chicken recipe as part of the filling (which – by the way – is one of the most popular recipes on our site).
My husband Jack has really perfected this Mexican Lasagna with White Sauce recipe over the years. It was one of the most popular dishes at a restaurant he managed years ago. (In fact, it was so popular, it outsold the traditional Italian lasagna on the menu – it’s that good!)
This Mexican lasagna can be made with red enchilada sauce if you prefer, but today’s recipe is made with a white sauce for a creamier version. Jack layers flour tortillas with pulled chicken, corn kernels, black beans, shredded Colby Jack and ricotta cheeses, plus that creamy, zesty white sauce pulls it all together into some mighty delicious comfort food!
Paired with some delicious Mexican rice, this is a hearty and satisfying meal your family is sure to love!
This recipe was originally posted in February 2013. We have updated the photos.
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Mexican Lasagna with White Sauce
You are more than welcome to build the layers of this dish in any order you want. You could even use double the amount of tortillas and spread the ingredients out between the additional layers, however you will need a deeper baking dish if you use more tortillas.
Ingredients
White Sauce
- 1/4 cup butter (4 tablespoons)
- 1/4 cup flour
- 2 cups chicken stock, heated
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne powder
- 8 ounces sour cream
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 4 ounce can chopped green chiles, drained
- 1 teaspoon or more of Rocket Fuel, or your favorite hot sauce
Lasagna
- 2 tablespoons canola oil
- 11 ounce can kernel corn, drained
- 15 ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup ricotta cheese
- 1 egg
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
- 3 tablespoons chopped scallions (white and green)
- 8 ounces Colby Jack cheese, shredded and divided
- 4 8-inch flour tortillas
- 8 ounces pulled chicken, heated
- 1 cup salsa
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a medium sauce pan over medium heat, melt butter and add flour. Stir and cook for 3-5 minutes or until the raw flour smell is gone.
- Add heated chicken stock one-third at a time, stirring with a wire whisk after each addition. (This step will ensure no lumps in the sauce.) Add cayenne pepper and stir again.
- Add sour cream, salt, chiles and Rocket Fuel and stir. If you like it spicy, use more Rocket Fuel. Remove from heat and hold.
- Place canola oil, kernel corn and black beans on a sheet pan and coat with cayenne, garlic powder and salt. Place in oven and roast for 15 minutes. Stir and roast for another 15 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside.
- In a medium bowl mix Ricotta, egg, cilantro, scallions and 4 ounces of shredded Colby jack cheese.
- Have all of your ingredients laid out and begin to assemble.
- In a pan or glass dish roughly 9” round and at least 3 inches deep, place 1/3 of the white sauce to coat the bottom of the pan.
- Lay tortilla shell to cover sauce.
- Sprinkle the shell with an ounce of shredded cheese, then place half the bean and corn mixture over cheese. Next, add half a cup of salsa, and another ounce of shredded cheese.
- Lay another tortilla shell over the mixture.
- On this layer, add half of the ricotta cheese mixture and the remaining beans and corn. Top with another 1/3 of the white sauce.
- Lay another tortilla shell over the mixture.
- Place the second half of the ricotta cheese mixture and all of the pulled chicken, as well as the rest of the salsa and cover with the last tortilla shell.
- Cover the top tortilla shell with the remaining sauce, and remaining two ounces of Colby jack cheese.
- Place in the middle of your oven with a sheet of foil on the rack just below to catch any drips.
- Bake for 50-60 minutes until hot, bubbly and golden on top.
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Chicken Enchiladas with White Sauce
I was looking for something different for dinner and ran across this recipe and decided to give it a try. Followed the recipe exactly (except omitted the cilantro and scallions). We had a 9x7x3″ casserole dish and everything fit perfect once part of the 8″ round tortilla was lopped off to fit in the 7″ wide dish.
Here is our take on it… the filling and white sauce were absolutely delicious, but nobody could get over the texture of the soggy, doughy flour tortillas. Going to make the recipe again soon, but will substitute regular lasagna noodles and also we discussed just using the filling inside a fresh tortilla or hard taco shell, maybe adding some fresh lettuce and tomato…
Thanks for your feedback Ray.
I needed a white sauce for a “Croque Senora” I had in mind. I modified based on ingredient availability. Used 2 or 3 tablespoons cream cheese in place of sour cream. Sauted scallions in the butter before adding flour. Turned out great, so flavorful!
Glad it worked out Lisa! Thanks for the idea!
I made this recipe for the first time today and everyone loved it and had seconds. I used ground turkey and mixed 2 cups of salsa right into it with the corn and black beans. I used a 9×13 baking dish. Can’t wait to make this again!
Glad you enjoyed the recipe Melinda!
My wife and I made this yesterday and it was delicious. So much so that we are having the leftovers tonight for our dinner. A few things I found. I used a much deeper dish to cook it in. I used kidney beans instead of black beans and I layered it with a bit of everything on each layer and I used the sauce from making the pulled chicken in the slow cooker instead of ragu. We served it with a fresh guacamole and cannot wait to make it again. Posted the photos on social media and friends begged for the recipe.
So glad you enjoyed the recipe – and thanks for sharing your tips and tricks!
This recipe is delicious thank you for posting it! There is only 3 of us so we have leftovers. Is it ok to reheat in the microwave or oven the next night? How long will it stay good for in the fridge?
Hi Lindsey – Yes – this reheats nicely in the microwave. It should be good for 2 to 3 days in the refrigerator.
The white sauce looks divine! Has anyone tried making this in a 9×9 or 9×13 instead?
Thanks Krystle – We selected a round dish to match the shape of the flour tortillas but you can use a 9×9 pan instead – maybe cutting the tortillas in half and placing them cut side against the straight outer sides of the pan. A 9×13 would also work similarly. (You might have room for some extra ingredients since the overall volume of the pan will be greater. Hope that helps!
Can the ricotta cheese be omitted?
Hi Rachel – Sure – if you’d prefer to leave it out, you can.
I have to make this recipe, and an upcoming family event will be the perfect time to try it. Since I don’t have all the energy I once possessed, I would like to make the pulled chicken on day one, then assemble the lasagna on the second day. Then, I would like to freeze the uncooked dish until the day of the event, and present it piping hot. Do you think the uncooked dish will freeze well?
Hi Linda – You can definitely make the pulled chicken ahead of time and it will freeze well. In general, we ourselves avoid freezing anything with a cream sauce – it tends to separate once it’s thawed and it’s just not as good as freshly cooked. Additionally, unlike a pasta based lasagna, the tortillas don’t really absorb much of the liquid in a dish, so I worry that they will get soggy. But you can make the white sauce a day or two ahead of time and just refrigerate it (don’t freeze it) – as well as shredding the cheese, etc for the lasagna. Then we’d recommend that you assemble it all the day you plan to serve it. I hope that helps!
Thanks, Martha. I was afraid the white sauce would be a problem, but you offer a good solution for doing this in steps, and I appreciate your response.
My pleasure Linda – We hope you love the recipe!
DO NO USE THE RECOMMENDED DISH!!! Please save yourself! After reading someones annoying lengthy criticizing comment I do wish I listened to the part where they said all the stuff didn’t fit in the recommended dish! It was a mess flowing over. But I am excited to see how it tastes I have it all put together and will bake it tonight for my church group
Sorry you were disappointed in the results Natasha – we’ve made this recipe several times in the IKEA dish with those exact dimensions and it fits perfectly. (Sounds like maybe your dish was smaller?) In the end, we hope you enjoyed the recipe. Thanks for sharing your feedback.
Should the white sauce be thin or thick? Mine is pretty thin and It seems it should be on the thicker side
Hi Laura – I’d say the sauce should be in the middle…not super thick but not thin. If you need to thicken it a bit, you can add a little more flour to the sauce.