Baked Chicken Chimichangas
Baked Chicken Chimichangas are a healthier twist on the old Mexican classic chimichanga recipe with less calories. You won’t even miss this chimichanga being fried because they get nice and crispy in this oven-fried version! These chicken chimichangas can easily be made at home for dinner so keep this chicken recipe in your keeper file.
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CHICKEN CHIMICHANGAS RECIPE
Coming back from Hawaii was hard to do. Sunset dinners on the beach, live music, and Chocolate Souffle for dessert.
So this Monday has been exceptionally jarring. Early mornings are not something I easily snap back into.
I’m originally from Mesa, Arizona where phenomenal Mexican restaurants are on every corner. The love for Mexican food is in my blood.
Moving to Florida with the prominent Latin culture I thought I would have the same luxury but good Mexican is surprisingly hard to find.
The closest decent Mexican joint is about a half hour away so I end up making it at home most of the time.
WHAT IS A CHIMICHANGA?
Chimichanga is a Mexican entree that traditionally is a tortilla filled with meat or beans. Chimichangas are basically a deep-fried burrito.
So when we call these Oven Baked Chimichangas I guess we should really be calling them Oven Baked Burritos because that’s all it is.
I like to use leftover chicken or rotisserie chicken when I’m short on time. It’s such an easy recipe.
I love chimichangas but they’re usually dripping with hot oil. Every time I would go to a restaurant as a child I would order a chimichanga.
These oven fried chicken chimichangas recipe were just the taste I was craving and had plenty of crisp that you look for in a chimichanga.
WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A CHIMICHANGA AND AN ENCHILADA?
What’s the difference between a chicken chimichanga and an enchilada? Enchiladas are smothered in sauce then baked whereas chimichangas are usually served dry. However, the best chimichanga is fully dressed so make sure you have some fresh guacamole, pico de gallo, and sour cream to top yours.
BAKED VS. FRIED CHIMICHANGAS
Baking chimichangas is not only so much heart healthier but it saves calories!! Sure, when you fry tortillas they get that crunchy flaky texture, but if you brush these chicken chimichangas with butter and bake at a high heat they will get nice and crispy with half of the calories.
HOW TO MAKE BAKED CHICKEN CHIMICHANGAS
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Preheat oven to 400°F.
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Mix chicken, salsa, cumin, oregano, cheese and onions. Place about 1/3 cup of the chicken mixture in the center of each tortilla.
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Fold opposite sides over filling. Roll up from bottom and place seam-side down on a baking sheet.
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Brush with melted butter. Bake at 400°F for 25 minutes or until golden brown and crispy.
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Garnish with desired toppings and serve with salsa on the side.
CHICKEN RECIPES
OTHER MEXICAN RECIPES:
- Chicken Tortilla Soup
- Homemade Tortillas
- Pico de Gallo
- Traditional Carnitas
- Easy Beef Burrito Skillet
- Mexican Stuffed Shells
- Homemade Salsa
- Mini Chicken Chimichangas
- Classic Chicken Fajitas
- One-Pan Mexican Chicken and Rice
- One-Pan Chicken Fajita Rice
- Mexican Chicken
Baked Chicken Chimichangas
Ingredients
- 2 cups cooked chicken, chopped or shredded
- 1 cup of your favorite salsa
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano leaves, crushed
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 2 green onions, chopped (about 1/4 cup)
- 6 (8-inch) flour tortillas
- 2 tablespoons butter, melted
- diced tomato, sour cream, guacamole, salsa, and shredded cheddar cheese for topping
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- Mix chicken, salsa, cumin, oregano, cheese and onions. Place about 1/3 cup of the chicken mixture in the center of each tortilla.
- Fold opposite sides over filling. Roll up from bottom and place chimichangas seam-side down on a baking sheet.
- Brush with melted butter. Bake at 400°F for 25 minutes or until golden brown and crispy.
- Garnish with your favorite toppings and serve with salsa on the side.
Video
Notes
These Baked Chicken Chimichangas are healthy!
I didn’t have any salsa so I substituted with some Taco Bell Mild Sauce packets plus a couple dollops of sour cream in the chicken mixture and it turned out great! Love your recipes!
Awesome!
These were delicious! I am a huge chimichanga fan, so I wasn’t so sure about baking them but man it was great! Thank you so much for sharing such an awesome recipe. It’s been saved to my favorites!!
I love hearing that!
My husband‘s a vegetarian, so I use vegan crumbles in his (plant-based ‘meat’ for those who don’t know), and he loves them! I make mine per your recipe, other than using pan spray on the outside of the tortillas before we bake them, instead of butter. They get nice and crispy and golden! Yum!
Thank you!
Can you replace chicken with hamburger meat and add taco seasoning to the meat?
Absolutely!
You’re my go to, some of my favorite sides, mains, and desserts come from you. Im a slacker and need to do a better job at reviewing. This is a tried and true recipe, my husband says it needs to go on our rotation. ✌️ thumbs up
Aw Thank you!
Oh my gosh so simple and so delicious….. 💜
thank you!
Amazing starting point. For my family I adjusted the recipe a little to suit our tastes. I doubled the cumin, then added corn, bell peppers and rice. I also double up on the tortillas, and put a layer of cheese in between them.
Sound good!
I added sauted Mushroom and onions and taco seasoning to the chicken and cheese and it was fantastic! Definitely a family favorite!
Yay!
Can black beans be put in the mixture too?
YEs!
FABULOUS!
EASY!
I made with beef the first time, then chicken the next. I will be making these often……So many options for fill and toppings!
Just made these for dinner. So yummy!
Thank you!
Hi, I was wondering if you could use beef instead of chicken, Hubby is not fond of chicken in his Mexican unless it’s fajitas 🙂
Sorry for posting I didn’t read the comments before I posted. 🙂 I’ll let you know how they come out.
Beef would be great!
Can I use canned tuna?
No. You cannot use canned tuna.
😂
Finally someone who knows good Mexican food, not “gringo” style that so many people serve. I too grew up in Arizona,( Phoenix), so yes I understand the love for Mexican food is in my blood too. My Uncle’s would make it for us, that is how my mother learned & then I too from them. Although as a young girl I was not interested in cooking. Then when I got married I realized, I had to cook & eat the food! I quickly learned & had many phone calls home asking for help. My husband enjoys my cooking & is glad I learned.
I am glad I found your site. Thank you for such great ideas.
Welcome! I will actually eat the Gringo style too!
I wanted to add ground beef instead of chicken. Would you do 2 cups of ground beef also or a little more? Also, would this require any taco seasoning or do the spices season it up?
I would do 2 cups of seasoned ground beef with taco seasoning.
Celiac here. Can I use corn tortillas?
Absolutely. They’re just hard to roll.
Steam your corn tortillas in the microwave before you roll them and they don’t crack or break
Can you use the canned chicken?
Yes!
These are delicious! Great recipe!
Thanks Rhonda.
Wow. This is a great recipe. Definite keeper.
Thank you!
What tortillas can we use that’s keto friendly?
Mission has low-carb ones that we use.
Can these be frozen after baking? These would be perfect for school lunch
Yes! They reheat well
These were so easy to make, and they were so yummy served with a side of Spanish rice. We topped ours with light sour cream and guacamole. I mixed up the filling earlier in the day, then stored it in the refrigerator until I was ready, giving me a head start on dinner. At dinner time I just had to assemble them and pop them in the oven. LOVE IT! I cut down on some calories using reduced-fat Mexican blend cheese, and skipping the butter, using butter flavored cooking spray instead.
This is a great recipe! I had been craving chimichangas and found this! I updated it for an ever lower calorie option that I thought you’d enjoy as well.
I replaced the wrap with a Ole high fiber wrap thats 50 cal per a wrap. (that reduced it 93 calories per serving), replaced the cheese with fat free (reduced it 43 calories per serv) and replaced the butter with country crock spread (that reduced it 16 c.).
That is a total of 153 calories less. So the calories per a serving is only 197 !!
Even better if you’re in an active weight loss!!
Thank you for your recipe!
Thanks for the tips!
Absolutely delicious! Adding this to my library !
Thank you!
I plan on trying these tomorrow evening. Could I make them early in the morning?
YEs!
I’ve made these with chicken, pork, and beef. I use low carb tortillas and even with guacamole and Pico de gallo it’s a fabulous low carb meal.
I made these tonight and the only substitution was sauteed yellow onion for the green. It was a hit!
Awesome!
Tried this last night. Really good. I didn’t have 8 inch flour tortillas so I used what I had and made it about 9.
Added a cheese sauce that I made: 1 can rotel, 1/4 cup velveeta, 2 tablespoons milk (about) and 2-3 tablespoons shredded cheddar. I melted it on the stove.
That sauce sounds good
Sounds delicious!
My 10 year old and I made these last night, they came out excellent! They are a lot easier to make then I thought and had lots of flavor. My family has requested to put this in the weekly dinner rotation .
Awesome! These are one of my favorites.
These were so good! I added 1/2 tsp of onion powder and garlic salt. I debated adding some cream cheese to the filling too, but didn’t have any on hand. I may try that next time to see what it adds. Definitely saving this recipe though.
Awesome! So glad you like it!
I’ve been making these for several years now and now and guests love them! Perfect recipe! Thank you 🙂
You’re welcome!
For the chicken part of the recipe. It says canned roasted tomatoes but under instructions it says sundried tomatoes. Which is correct, canned roasted or sundried (not talking about the noodle part, I know that’s sundried)?
Regards
Ross Alisha
These were AMAZING!!! My family & I are pescatarian so I use veggie crumbles as a substitute but they were still great. I’m actually in the kitchen now making them again
These sound good and easy. I am wondering…Where is all the sodium coming from in this recipe?
From the store bought salsa which is loaded with salt and from the cheese also loaded with salt. To cut salt intake, make homemade salsa. Yes, it is time consuming but so much healthier.
My husband, son, and I loved the chimichangas! Thank you for the great recipe! I will be making them often!
Aww thank you Renae!
Can these be frozen prior to baking?
This really is a 5 star recipe. Good!
Thank you so much!
I am from Mesa also and I add roasted red peppers instead of salsa to my chicken, the cumin, onions, oregano and no cheese. I use the same for tacos.
You can use corn tortillas for tacos and enchiladas — just warm the tortillas in the oven with a damp cloth over the top. Also the tortillas can be warmed with a light spray of avocado or canola oil.
Put the cheese, guacamole and sour cream with salsa or pico de gallo on top. YUM!
Sounds delicious! Mesa has great Mexican food.
Is the nutritional information listed for 1 or 2 chimichungas?
Can you make them the night before and then bake them the next day?
These were so good! I kinda did my own thing flavoring the chicken, but they cooked up perfectly following the recipe.
These were so good! I wish I didn’t halve the recipe. So much regret. Thanks for sharing.
You are welcome!
could these be made ahead of time and frozen then baked later
Yes, totally.
Once frozen what would you recommend to bake them? Can you bake frozen?
You can bake from frozen!
This is so delicious! Excellent recipe and so filling! Thank you!
Thank you!
Thank you for the baked chicken chimichangas – tired of plain chicken.. Thank you, thank you.
You’re welcome!
this site is absolute brilliance
I made the chimichangas, I doubled the recipe. They were amazing, my husband and I both loved them. They are definitely a keeper. I made one in a large tortilla wrap it was wonderful. I did put more filling in then it called for, we just like a little more filling. The rest of them I put in the 8 inch wrap. We liked in the large or small wrap.
These chimichangas are so crispy and good!!
Thank you!
One of our favorite family meals – so full of flavor!
Thank you! I’m so glad to hear that!
Ive made these once with chicken and dozens of times with frozen fajita beef strips. I just chop up the cooked fajita strips and use them in place of the chicken! DELICIOUS! Thanks for an awesome recipe that my whole family loves!
Lauren, I’ll need to try the beef version!
My kids are obsessed with chimichangas! It’s so great to have a recipe where they are baked. Thank you!
You’re welcome!
Made the baked chicken chimichangas tonight. They were delicious! Big hit with the family! Thank you!
So glad you liked them!
These are SO good! Easy to fix and taste amazing! Thank you for a great recipe!
You’re welcome!
I’ve been making these for a few years now. The whole family loves them. We have a few picky eaters but everyone thinks these are absolutely amazing!!!The last time I made them I used ground beef instead of chicken. They were just as amazing!!! Thank you so much for something the entire family will eat!
Ground beef would be awesome!
I could eat these every single day! So yummmmmm! And I’m obsessed with them being baked and not fried!
I’m so glad you enjoyed them!
one of our favorites! thanks!
Thank you!
These are so delicious and the best part is that they’re baked! Healthy and amazing.
Thanks!
Okay, maybe this is nuts, but I’m thinking leftover turkey chimichangas would be a great idea, too! Just keep everything the same, but pop that Thankgiving leftover bird in place of the chicken. Hooray!
Yes, I think that’s a great idea!
I am adding these to the dinner menu. Love that they are baked instead of fried!
Yes, me too!
Love everything about these! My son always orders a chimichanga when we go out for Mexican, and now he loves these at home too!
That’s what I always order too!
So smart to bake these and they are every bit as delicious as fried! This one will be on the dinner regular dinner rotation!
Thanks. We make them weekly!
I made these for my husband last night and he loved them! Very yummy.
So glad you loved them!
I make these often and everyone loves them! So easy and good. Thanks for the recipe!
You’re welcome! Glad you enjoy them!
I’m from Mesa as well and currently live south of Chandler. I moved here with my parents in 1965. . Went to Mesa High. . . and Mesa Community College. . I enjoy your recipes and have made several of them already. Excited to try the baked Chimmies. . ❤️
Wow. I’m sure you knew my siblings? they went to mesa high and range from age 40-60? Larsons…
Can’t wait to make this, looks delicious! Thanks.
Hope you love it!
It looks delicious. I wish this were in front of me right now.
They are always good!
very very good. made half of them with GF tortillas. cooked the chicken in my Insta Pot then shredded the chicken. was a big hit
So glad you enjoyed them!
We have made this one time before and tonight I’m doubling the recipe because it makes amazing left overs as well!! We love this recipe! It’s easy to do, I always have all the stuff on hand and it turns out amazing for everyone from adult to child! It’s a big hit! Thank you!
Great! Now I want to make them!
Made these for dinner tonight and they were delicious!
Happy to hear that.
Another “GREAT ” recipe . made it last night with family over. Made a double batch and all were eaten.I used dark (thighs) and chicken breasts cooked in chicken broth in the crock pot. SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Yummy !!!
Yes!!! Glad you liked it.
These must be fantastic. I can imagine the filling oozing out once cut open. Ahhhh, I’m hungry now.
E || OH LA LATKES
They’re pretty fabulous.
Is very good.
Thank you!
Can you make these a day a head of time ?
You can definitely prep these ahead of time and bake the day of.
Ps…I wish I could include a picture of my plate! Beautiful. I has 1.5. Husband 2. Pete who doesn’t care for red Mex had 1.5! Lookes like your picture.
Awesome! Which means you had all the toppings!!
I just made this tonight for dinner. So easy. So good. I used closer to 3 cups of shredded rotisserie chicken, so extra salsa needed. I also added a very thin slice of Monterey jack cheese on the mixture inside each shell. Omg…using butter on the rolled shell worked for browning it. I did increase the oven to 420 for last 5 minutes to get it more brown. We had it for Cinco de Mayo with Spanish rice. Again….so good! So glad i found this recipe. Fanily said very good, make it again!
Ooh! Yessssss!!!
Love love this recipe!!!! I have made it so many times and keep some unbaked and rolled up in aluminum and plastic and they are perfect every time! I’m making two batches tonight to take to NC for my family to try woohoo. Thank you for the recipe! I could definitely eat two but make myself eat one with lots of lettuce tomatoes and the other good toppings.
Oh girl I can definitely eat two easily! So glad you enjoyed these.
I have made these several times and they are delicious! I don’t miss the fried part at all. My recollection is that these freeze well, but I don’t see the freezing instructions with the recipe. Am I missing something?
There aren’t instructions for freezing but basically assemble then freeze. Bake as normal. You might have to add an extra 5 -10 minutes.
I’m visiting my brother this week and have been looking for fun recipes to make for him! I tried these…and he LOVED them!! We had leftover rotisserie chicken on hand so I just used that and it was great and easy. He literally could not stop saying how wonderful they were. XD Thank you!!!! I love your blog!!!
Oh that makes me so happy!
Clinicians are delicious! Made them for dinner tonight according to the directions. No one suggested any changes! Great, easy and tasty! I did cook it at a cooler temp because I know my oven is a bit hot. I also naked a shorter time.
Glad you loved them!
How can these be chimichangas with flour tortillas? The defining factor of chimichangas is the corn based wrap…
We made these for dinner recently – used rotisserie chicken to keep things easy. They were very good and will make again. I also loved how you wrote use 1/3 cup of the filling, that made it fool proof! Thanks!! 🙂
You’re welcome!
We have had these numerous times. We love them. Thank you for sharing.
You’re welcome!
I made these for my Aunt and family and we loved them. I was wondering if I can make them up and bake them the next day? What do you think?
Yes, you totally can. I’ve done it often.
How fun to come across a recipe from someone that loves Mexican and Mesa, AZ. Lived here since 73 and maybe there are a lot of good restaurants here but our favorite is Rosita’s (Guadalupe and Dobson). Been going there over 30 years! Chimis are my go to when I judge a new Mexican restaurant so I am looking forward to trying these. Love that they are baked which will make them a little healthier 🙂
Not I have to try Rosita’s next time I’m in town. Thank you!
Do you think these would work for weekly meal prep? Make them on Sunday and eat them for lunch for a week? Or would they get too soggy?
I think they would be fine for a couple of days but towards the end of the week could get soggy. Unless you heat them in the oven to get them toasty.