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Baked Chicken Chimichangas are like a crispy burrito, stuffed with chicken + cheese. Everyone will love this simple restaurant-style recipe!
Crispy, Baked Chicken Chimichangas are simple to make and are so delicious! Packed full of your favorite fillings, these Chimis are great for dinner and are perfect served with some homemade Salsa and Guacamole!
A family favorite!
Our family loves good Mexican food! Being Hispanic, Mexican food was something I grew up on. One of our favorite dishes happens to be Chimichangas!
Our favorite Chimis have chicken, but we also love making shredded beef and bean versions as well.
What are chimichangas? A Chimichanga is a deep-fried burrito that is popular in Tex-Mex, Southwestern U.S. cuisine, especially here in Arizona.
Customize the flavor to suit your tastes by using your favorite salsa (we use a traditional medium salsa, however, salsa verde would be delicious too)!
They’re easy to whip up thanks to Knorr® Rice Sides ™. You need just 8 ingredients and 30 minutes for these delicious Baked Chimichangas. Simple, right?!
How to Make Chimichangas
This is a very simple Baked Chimichanga version. Yes, these can be fried, but we prefer this lighter, healthier version.
PREP. Preheat the oven to 425°F.
CHICKEN MIXTURE. In a large bowl, combine the cooked, shredded chicken with salsa, cumin, and oregano. Set aside.
RICE. Prepare your Knorr® Fiesta Sides™rice according to package directions (cover and simmer for 7 minutes) or rice recipe. Remove from heat.
WRAP & BAKE. Stir in the chicken mixture and cheese. Divide the mixture between Flour Tortillas, wrap and place seam-side down on a lined baking sheet. Brush with the remaining oil and bake in the oven for 20 minutes or until golden brown and crispy.
TOPPINGS. Serve with your favorite toppings: shredded cheese, sour cream, chopped tomato, chopped cilantro, chopped green onion, chopped lettuce, salsa, guacamole, and lime wedges.
Variations
Here are our favorite ways to change up the recipe:
- Cheese. Substitute or pair with cheddar cheese, mozzarella cheese, or a fiesta cheese blend.
- Sauce. Add a few tablespoons of enchilada sauce to the mixture or drizzle the sauce over the Baked Chimichanga.
- Meat. The chicken can be substituted with an equal amount of shredded pork or beef.
- Tortilla. These bake best in a flour tortilla, but if frying you can use either flour or corn tortillas.
Recipe Tips
Folding a Baked Chimichanga. It’s just like folding a burrito. Place the meat and rice in the middle of the open tortilla. Fold up the bottom of the tortilla over that mixture, then fold both sides in towards the middle and roll up.
Fry Chimichangas. Baking is perfect for getting the same great taste, without added calories. However, if you’re feeling a little indulgent you can easily fry the Chimichangas instead.
- Heat a skillet over medium heat and add 2 inches of vegetable oil.
- Place the filled and folded Chimichanga seam side down in the oil.
- Turn every 30 seconds until golden brown on all sides. Enjoy!
Air fryer. Aside from baking, the air fryer is another great way to get a crisp Chimichanga without frying it in oil.
- Fold the Chimichangas as directed and spray/brush each side with olive oil.
- Working in batches, fry the chimichangas at 400°F for 8-9 minutes, flipping halfway.
Storing Info + Side Ideas
FREEZE. Baked Chicken Chimichangas make a perfect freezer meal. They do not need to be pre-baked.
Wrap each individual Chimichanga in foil, put them in a freezer bag, and label them. Freeze for up to 6 months.
To reheat Oven Baked Chimichangas.
- Microwave. Warm them up in 30-second increments to a minute.
- Oven. Pull the desired amount out of the freezer. Preheat the oven and bake at 425°F. If frozen, bake for 35-40 minutes. If thawed, bake for 20-25 minutes.
Re-brush them with oil to make them crispier.
What to serve with chimichangas? Here are some of our favorites:
- Sour Cream Rice
- Homemade Salsa
- Homemade Flour Tortillas
- Easy Refried Beans
- Homemade Pico de Gallo
- Black Bean and Corn Salsa
- Cafe Rio Cilantro Ranch Dressing
Recipe FAQ
They’re similar in that they’re made from a folded flour tortilla usually filled with meat, cheese, and other ingredients. The main difference is that chimichangas are deep fried, although in this case it’s baked. 😉
Instead of using packaged rice, you can use homemade. We love to use leftover Spanish Rice in ours! It ends up being about 2 1/2 cups prepared (or half that unprepared).
Place the meat and rice in the middle of the open flour tortilla. Fold up the bottom of the tortilla over that mixture, then fold both sides in towards the middle and roll up.
For more chimi & BURRO recipes, try:
- Bean Chimichangas
- Green Chili Smothered Burritos
- BBQ Chicken Burritos
- Breakfast Burrito
- Green Chili Burrito
- Cheesecake Chimichanga
- Chimichanga
Baked Chicken Chimichanga Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup chicken cooked and shredded
- 2/3 cup salsa
- 1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 2 tbsp canola or vegetable oil divided
- 1 package Knorr® Fiesta Sides™ – Spanish Rice
- 1 1/4 cup colby jack cheese shredded
- 4 flour tortillas burrito sized
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F.
- In a large bowl, combine the cooked, shredded chicken with salsa, cumin, and oregano. Set aside.
- Prepare your Knorr® Fiesta Sides™rice according to package directions (cover and simmer for 7 minutes) or rice recipe. Remove from heat.
- Stir in the chicken mixture and cheese. Divide the mixture between flour tortillas, wrap and place seam-side down on a lined baking sheet. Brush with the remaining oil and bake in the oven for 20 minutes or until golden brown and crispy.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
What will you make with Knorr Rice Sides? Tag your creations with #Knorr – we’d love to see them! For more simple & tasty Knorr® inspired recipes hop on over to Allrecipes.com. Also, be sure to follow Knorr® on Pinterest!!
about how much cooked rice is that total?
2 1/2 cups prepared rice; half of that unprepared.
has anyone made a bunch of these and frozen for easy reheating.?
I haven’t, but I bet they would do fine. I’ll have to try next time!
I freeze my breakfast burritos in large numbers, for reheating later so it’s basically the same thing. It’s very easy to do! I wrap them not in foil, but in waxed paper. Then I pile them up in gallon freezer bags. She has instructions up above on how to cook frozen chimis. I do NOT recommend using the microwave to reheat. It will lose its crispyness and will either be like a wet dishcloth in texture or hard and chewy like a dog’s rawhide. lol!
Made these last night. I have one in the refridge to eat as left overs today for lunch and I am counting down the hours until lunch. They are soooo tasty. My husband who is on overtime right now and is so tired came home and gobbled this up and said this was awesome. Thank you. Will be making these on the regular.
Oh, I’m so glad!! Thank you so much for letting me know and for giving them a try!! We love them too 🙂
I made this for the first time this even for dinner. We loved it. Even my extremely picky toddler ate his entire portion (a miracle)! Are these able to be frozen? I would love to have some stored for quick and easy heat-up if so!
That makes me happy to hear! I haven’t personally put them in the freezer, but they should be able to. Thanks so much for letting me know and trying them!
These are amazing! We tried this recipe a couple months ago and loved it! We have mixed it up a few times with different fillings and everyone loves them! The tortillas have the perfect amount of crunch on the outside, while the inside stays moist and flavorful! Thank you for this!
Thanks!!! That’s the great thing…they can be changed every single time! SO glad you like them! Thanks for letting me know!
We made these tonight and loved them! Do you know how many calories are in them? They were delicious!
Glad you liked them!! I don’t know and probably shouldn’t know 😉 Sorry!!
That’s not a good sign, but I will make this on my chest day! LOL
I made these exactly as directed but used smaller flour torts, and they came out delicious! I only used about half the filling, so the next day I made chimi-ladas! I followed all the steps, but instead of brushing with oil and baking, I placed them side-by-side in a baking dish, covered with green enchilada sauce, cheddar cheese, tomatoes, and green onions, and baked them for about 30 minutes. It was great that way as well!
Oh, that is such a great idea!! Thank you for sharing that!!
Making these today. Used a Spanish rice recipe found on pinterest. I’m using taco sauce instead of the salsa, because I don’t like it. So hope it’s good. Thanks for the recipe
Sounds good!! Let me know what you think!! Thank you!
I made this last night and let me tell you it was amazing, I didn’t have any chicken so I used Hamburger and I also used my homeade salsa. It was so simple and delicious. Thank for this fantastic recipe.
That sounds delish!! I’ll have to try that! Thanks for sharing!
I can’t wait to try these!
Hope you love them, as much as we do!!! Thanks so much for stopping by!