John Wayne Mexican Casserole (Naturally Gluten Free)

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Mr. GFE and I both enjoy a good casserole and he is a huge fan of John Wayne. So when I saw John Wayne Mexican Casserole made with beans and tortilla chips in a listing on All Free Casseroles Recipes, I had to take a look. The description began: “Here’s a Mexican casserole recipe that every cowboy will love, including the Duke himself.” Once I clicked on the link to see the recipe, I determined that All Free Casserole Recipes had come up with the John Wayne casserole name. The original recipe was actually called My Mom’s Mexican Casserole. I am pretty sure that the casserole recipe got a lot more views by affixing John Wayne’s name to it though. I’m not sure what the Duke would think, but we love it!

To be honest, when I think of John Wayne, I think of hearty “manly” meals that don’t usually involve Mexican food, but the casserole looked really good. Still, I decided to give the recipe a go, creating my own simpler version—a gfe version made with simple pantry ingredients. So I skipped the canned Ranch style beans and opted for plain pinto beans. I omitted the cream of chicken soup. (Although Pacific Foods makes gluten-free cream of chicken soup and there are lots of homemade gluten-free versions of “cream of” soups, again, I wanted to keep things simple and use what I already had in my pantry.) I omitted the packaged taco seasoning mix (although there are plenty of gluten-free options, like this one), but I decided that I would salsa as my liquid, binder, and main flavoring in the recipe instead of as an optional ingredient and, therefore, I knew the taco seasoning would not be needed. (By the way, when I do need taco seasoning, I rely on this Four-Ingredient On-the-Spot Taco Seasoning.) I knew the salsa would do the job I wanted, because my Enchilada Casserole includes salsa for the very same reason and it’s delicious.

This John Wayne Mexican casserole made with beans and tortilla chips (pantry staples here) is a perfect one-pot meal—my personal fave! My aunt and I enjoyed it for lunch when she was visiting. Mr. GFE and I enjoyed it for dinner two nights. And I ate if for breakfast and/or lunch a few days. It was good every time! Enjoy!

Gluten-Free John Wayne Mexican Casserole Gluten Free Easily

John Wayne Mexican Casserole … Cover the Tortilla Chip Edges if You Want them Soft

John Wayne Mexican Casserole Recipe

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John Wayne Mexican Casserole

Author Shirley Braden of Gluten Free Easily

I'm not sure what the Duke would think, but we love this simple Mexican casserole. Great comfort food, and naturally gluten free.

Ingredients

1 pound lean ground beef (or ground turkey; I used ground venison), cooked and drained
1 small onion, diced
1 can pinto beans,drained
Most of a 10-12 ounce bag tortilla chips, mostly crushed (about 3 1/2 cups or so, if you wish to measure; see notes)
1 can Ro-tel tomatoes, 10 ounces, drained (I used the one that included green chilies)
2 cups of salsa (I used ready-made medium-flavored salsa, but homemade salsa would be great, too)
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
sour cream for serving (optional; we didn’t use sour cream)
guacamole for serving (optional; I would have used it if I had had some!)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
In a large skillet, brown meat with onions and drain off fat.
Stir in beans, tomatoes, and salsa.
Simmer over medium-low (or heat on medium heat stirring constantly) until everything is well combined and heated through. There will be some extra liquid; do not drain/discard. (The extra liquid will be absorbed by the tortilla chips and will soften them nicely.)
Grease a 9×13 casserole dish.
Put down a layer of crushed tortilla chips, followed by a layer of the meat/bean mixture (use half of the amount), then a layer of cheddar cheese (use half of the amount). Add one more layer of remaining ingredients.
Cover with foil and bake for 20-30 minutes, or until bubbly.
Let sit for 5-10 minutes before serving.
Top with sour cream and/or guacamole, if desired. Enjoy!

Notes

For the crushed tortilla chips, I just grabbed a mostly full, already opened bag of tortilla chips that was clipped shut and used my hands to crush the chips (most of them anyway) while they were still in the bag. That was an easy way to do it. You want a mixture of larger pieces and smaller pieces, so don't go too crazy with your crushing. You really don’t want them pulverized. When you add the meat/bean mixture over the tortilla chip layer, be sure to cover the chips all the way to the edges if you want them soft rather than crispy. Either

When you add the meat/bean mixture over the tortilla chip layer, be sure to cover the chips all the way to the edges if you want them soft rather than crispy. Either way will work fine, but I preferred the softer version, although the crispier version is shown here.

This John Wayne Mexican Casserole made with beans and tortilla chips is naturally gluten free and loved by everyone who has tried it! It's a great addition to the one-dish meal category, which is a personal favorite of mine. From Gluten Free Easily. (photo)

John Wayne Mexican Casserole … Perfect for My Aunt and I for Lunch

Originally published December 7, 2013; updated September 6, 2017.