11 Tex Mex Dinner Recipe Ideas From 12Tomatoes

When we think of spaghetti squash we typically think of healthy dishes that we turn to when we want to lighten up and cut back on some of the more indulgent elements of our diets. Now, there’s nothing wrong with that, but since spaghetti squash has such great flavor and so perfectly takes on any sauce you throw on it – and is super healthy itself – we figured, why not pair it with a creamy, decadent sauce that’s full of flavor and totally addictive? We decided to take a Tex-Mex approach to dinnertime and use chicken, sour cream, Mexican blend cheeses and taco seasoning to create a dinner that was filling and delicious and way healthier than had we used regular pasta as the heart of the dish. The finished product is thick, spicy and jam-packed with flavor, so it’s a great option on any night of the week. There’s no need to go back (again and again) to boring dishes, especially when we’ve got such tasty options that make dinnertime fun and interesting. No excuses, this dinner is the perfect thing to wrap up a long day – check it out and see for yourself!

We love basically any type of Mexican or Tex-Mex-inspired food, taquitos being no exception. While we’re used to having them as a standalone dish, served up with some rice and beans, we grabbed a bunch on our last grocery run and thought we’d try doing something a little differently…. As you probably already know, we love a good casserole – can’t beat throwing a bunch of yummy stuff into a dish and calling it a day – and thus, the taquito casserole was born. Filled with, you guessed it, taquitos, fresh veggies, and lots of spices, we loved this creamy take on a Tex-Mex classic. You could add rice or beans to the dish itself, but we think it’s pretty delicious as is!

Chile rellenos are a go-to for us when we’re getting Mexican food, but can be a little bit involved when you’re making them at home. Fret not though, we decided to take all the traditional elements of said classic, and turned them into a light, flavorful soup that is a great go-to when temperatures start to drop. Filled with chicken and lightly roasted poblanos, this creamy dish will make any night better! Did we mention this was a slow cooker recipe? That’s right, your night just got even better, because why stand over a hot stove after a long day when you could just dice everything up and then pop it in the slow cooker?! After turning that thing on, grab yourself a glass of wine and relax until dinner time…that’s what we did and let us tell you, it was lovely. This cheesy, zesty soup hits the spot, so bust out your slow cookers and give it a shot!

You know those times when you have the energy to cook something, but the thought of making multiple dishes to make up a whole meal is completely beyond you?? We obviously know this feeling well, so we packed everything we could think of into this one recipe, that way, once it’s cooking away we can wipe our hands of it and go get comfortable before putting dinner on the table. Inspired by the time-tested classic, chicken pot pie, we decided to take things in a southwestern, Tex-Mex direction and turn our meal into a chili pot pie. We swapped beef chili in for chicken and used a hearty cornbread topping instead of the traditional, flaky crust. This stuff is ridiculously good. While you’re more than welcome to use store-bought chili – it’s definitely a huge timesaver – we figured we’d make a batch from scratch, then top it with some doctored up box mix cornbread. A little work in the beginning, followed up with an easy fix for some seriously good cornbread to complement the spicy, zesty flavors from the chili.

With a growing family, weekday dinners have a way of getting tougher and tougher. The hardest part is cooking something everyone will agree on and eat! Time for the secret weapon… Doritos! With a name like Doritos Cheesy Tex-Mex Chicken Casserole, how can you go wrong!? Crunchy chips on top of fiesta flavors? Yum! This is a winner-winner Doritos dinner!

Frito corn chips are one of our favorite junk/snack foods and we knew that the way to take this casserole to the (guilty) next level was to include them with our beef, beans and chiles. This dish is loaded with flavor and we can’t wait to make it again!

When you’re thinking about that pool party or backyard BBQ, and you’re wondering what you’re going to prepare that’s going to be easy to whip up and tasty enough to have everybody coming back for seconds, this Mexican coleslaw is the dish that’ll get you through the summer. While we’ll always love traditional coleslaw, we can’t help but feel that this one is way better, since it’s pumped up and chock full of color and flavor. Cabbage and/or coleslaw mix is still the base of this recipe, but we’ve thrown in a bunch of add-ins – corn, bell peppers, black beans, jalapeño and lime juice – that turn this into something special…trust us, you’re going to like this! One of the best parts about this recipe, as with the classic version, is that it’s super refreshing and perfect for days when you need to get a little pick-me-up in the form of a tasty side dish. The taco seasoning and jalapeño kick things up a notch (without being too spicy), and the other add-ins we mentioned above all work together to give this dish more substance, so it’ll fill you up and keep you full. Finally, any dish that you can make in under 10 minutes and that can feed a crowd is absolutely A-okay with us. You can’t go wrong with this!

It’s no secret we love Mexican food, but this dish – with it’s awesome Mexican flavors – pretty much single-handedly made us super excited to eat our veggies. Really, it’s not hard to get excited about this recipe because it’s ridiculously refreshing with its sweet pops of corn, creamy Cotija crumbles, and zesty, spicy flavors that round everything out perfectly. We’ve been serving this up non-stop since we first tried it, so we know it’s just as good for when you’re hosting a party as when it’s just you and the fam on a typical weeknight…. It packs a punch in the best way possible and we can’t get enough!

When we want a complete meal with minimal fuss, skillet dinners are a no brainer, and cheesy Mexican rice is one of our favorites. It’s loaded with beef, beans, rice, sweet corn, and tons of flavor – basically all the scrumptiousness you find inside a burrito, yum! This versatile dish is hearty enough for cold winter nights, yet bursting with bright and zesty flavors, making it one of our year round go-to dinners. The best part is it all cooks up in under 30 minutes, in one skillet – yep, even the rice! It doesn’t get much easier than that!

We have to admit we were a little skeptical about this one at first. We are huge fans of both Tex-Mex and a delicious creamy alfredo, but combining the two? Hmmm….. Let’s just say we were skeptical. But fear not! We’re nothing if not adventurous and after one bite we realized how wrong we were! This dish is so creamy and flavorful, and the zesty south-of-the-border spices are mellowed out by the velvety, made-from-scratch alfredo sauce. And although we didn’t include it in this recipe, we’re betting you could add some diced chilies or even a chopped jalapeno for an added kick of southwestern authenticity! The best part is everything cooks up in under half an hour, in one skillet. Yep, that’s right, even the pasta noodles! And since it’s so hearty, there’s no need to make a side dish, making it a winning option for an easy weeknight dinner!

Breakfast for dinner is in regular rotation at my household – we just can’t get enough! As anyone who knows us can attest, when given the option to order breakfast food, we do, so we love it when we can incorporate “breakfast” foods into other meals in the day. This Tex-Mex Taco Hashbrown Casserole is the perfect breakfast-for-dinner mashup meal that the whole family will love, and we’ll tell you why: it’s extra-crispy and extra-cheesy, and is a meal packed with veggies that will win the key to your heart. Try it for dinner tonight?