Green Chile Egg Casserole
Green Chile Egg Casserole has tater tots, green chiles, and cheese baked in a fluffy breakfast casserole. This green chile egg bake is easy to make for any level of cooking experience, perfect for company, holidays, and brunch.
Like my Sausage Casserole and Roasted Poblano Breakfast Casserole, this Green Chile Egg Casserole is a throw-together egg bake totally appropriate for brunch, holidays, special occasions and such. It is vegetarian and gluten-free, if those things matter to you or to anyone you are serving. It can be assembled the night before, then baked the next morning. And no matter whether you are a beginner in the kitchen or an experienced home chef, this recipe is EASY.
Why this recipe works
The flavors in my green chile breakfast casserole are really so good. Green chile as a pepper is flavorful, but not over the top and it is mild – so it is a safe try for people that, say, maybe aren’t as open to trying new things (like my mom, for example). And while I added a little hot sauce, this is not a spicy casserole and you are free to turn up the heat if you like.
This casserole can be assembled in advance the evening before, or not. You can even get creative and add meat like cooked and crumbled sausage, bacon, or chorizo Mexican sausage. Just an easy, versatile, tasty recipe.
About the ingredients
I sure added some ingredients to this egg bake didn’t I! But no worries because each is a pantry staple, affordable and easy to find, and once we group them by purpose, there aren’t as many as it seems.
- First there are the potato tater tots. I like crowns shaped tots, but traditional shape works just as well. Tater tots usually come frozen, so we do want them to thaw before making this casserole.
- Our cheese of choice for this recipe is pepperjack cheese, also known as Monterey Jack with jalapeno peppers. We’ll need 2 cups (or 8 ounces) total.
- Our egg mixture is started with 10 large eggs, half-and-half, and a wee bit of hot sauce.
- Next is the star of the casserole, the diced green chiles. Get two 4-ounce cans or a single 8-ounce can of diced green chiles. Fire-roasted green chiles are a thing now too, and I love them in this casserole as well.
- Then our seasonings: dried minced onion, garlic powder, cumin, kosher salt, and fresh cracked pepper.
- Our fresh ingredients are green onion and cilantro. If cilantro is not your thing, flat-leaf parsley is a substitute.
- And finally, we garnish with sour cream, salsa, and chopped cilantro. These are important to brighten the flavors of our casserole which, as egg bakes often are, is pretty homogenous in flavor – as good as that flavor is.
I have come to love dried minced onion and embrace it in easy, throw-together recipes such as this. Who wants to wake up and chop an onion anyway. Not this girl.
How to make green chile egg casserole
For this casserole, we are going to layer, in order, the following in a casserole dish or 13×9 bake dish, lightly sprayed with cooking spray. See the recipe card below for specific details.
- Tator tots.
- Half of the cheese. So, 1 cup / 4 ounces of it and keep the rest to put on top before baking.
- The egg mixture, which consists of the eggs, half-and-half, hot sauce, all the seasonings, green chiles, the green onion and cilantro all whisked together in a bowl. Because of the green chiles, green onion, and cilantro, I prefer to use a fork to whip this up, but a large whisk will also work. Pour this mixture over the cheese and tater tots.
- The rest of the cheese.
Bake in a 400°F oven for 50-60 minutes. Green chile egg casserole is done when eggs are set and puffed in the center, top is golden, and the potatoes on the bottom are tender. Serve topped with salsa, sour cream, and more cilantro or green onion.
What to serve with this green chile egg bake
This casserole is not greasy or overly rich, so the sky is the limit as to what to serve with it. Here are a few suggestions that come to mind.
- Fresh fruit.
- Poblano Popovers.
- bacon or sausage.
- Southern Buttermilk Biscuits.
- Cheddar Bay Biscuits for a gluten-free option.
- Salad, such as if serving a brunch or breakfast-for-dinner.
- Pancakes or French toast.
- Huevos Rancheros Sauce, which is my all-purpose Mexican sauce for eggs.
- Breakfast pizza, because why not.
I think of the ideas I can think of, this green chile casserole with my poblano popovers or buttermilk biscuits and some fresh fruit is the best combination.
FAQs
Yes. The casserole can be assembled 8 hours in advance, then kept in the refrigerator until baking. Note that if cold, this will take longer to cook. So to ensure even baking, remove from the refrigerator and let it sit out for 20-30 minutes (while the oven heats) prior to baking. I do not recommend baking this casserole too far in advance as it is best served fresh and fluffy.
Green Chile Egg Casserole
Ingredients
- cooking spray
- 20 oz tater tots thawed
- 2 cups grated pepperjack cheese divided
- 10 large eggs lightly beaten
- 2 cups half-and-half
- 2 tsp hot sauce
- 2 (4 oz) cans diced green chiles
- 2 tsp dried minced onion
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp cumin
- ½ tsp kosher salt
- ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
- ¼ cup chopped green onions
- 1 Tbsp fresh chopped cilantro
- garnish: sour cream, salsa, cilantro, green onion
Instructions
- Heat oven to 400°F. Lightly spray casserole dish or 13×9 bake dish with cooking spray.
- In a bowl, combine the eggs, half-and-half, hot sauce, green chiles, dried minced onion, garlic powder, cumin, salt, pepper, green onions, and cilantro. Set aside.
- In the prepared casserole dish, layer, in order, the tater tots, half of the cheese, and the egg mixture. Top with the rest of the cheese.
- Bake at 400°F for 50-60 minutes until puffed and set in the center, golden on top, and potatoes are tender.
- Let sit 5 minutes before serving. Serve topped with sour cream, salsa, chopped cilantro, and green onion.
