This easy, frugal recipe is a great grilled chicken burrito meal for busy weeknights since can just pull it from the freezer. Your family will love it and you’ll love not spending all day in the kitchen!
This Simple Chicken Burrito Recipe makes a great freezer meal!
We love freezer meals around here — mainly because they are a great way to save both time and money. And these Southwest Chicken Burrito Roll-Ups are one of our favorite freezer meals!
This recipe originally came from my husband’s family — and it’s become one of our family’s longstanding favorites, too. It’s so simple to make, it freezes well, it uses inexpensive ingredients, and it’s filling, too.
Why you’ll love this Easy Chicken Burrito Recipe
This recipe is so simple, uses inexpensive ingredients, and freezes really well!
You can easily mix up the ingredients based on what you have in the house (or what’s on sale at the store)… and it’s almost guaranteed to be a crowd-pleaser!
What you’ll need for these Southwest Chicken Burrito Roll-Ups
- 2 cans refried beans (you can make your own refried beans with this easy homemade recipe or this crockpot recipe!)
- 1/2 cup salsa
- 2-4 cups cooked chicken, chopped
- 2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
- 16 tortillas (you can make your own Homemade Tortillas with this recipe)
How to make a Grilled Chicken Burrito
1. In a large bowl, mix together beans, salsa, and chicken.
2. Spread 1/16 of the mixture onto each tortilla.
3. Sprinkle with cheese.
4. Roll up and turn ends under.
5. Stick in a freezer bag or in a 9×13 baking pan and freeze.
6. When ready to bake, thaw and bake in a pre-heated 350º oven for 20-30 minutes until heated through. Sprinkle with more shredded Cheddar cheese, if desired. Serve with salsa.
Tips for making the Best Chicken Burrito Recipe
These burritos are so easy — they are almost impossible to mess up! It’s honestly a great meal for the kids to help out with.
Just make sure you’re using quality ingredients and you shouldn’t have any issues.
Simple Chicken Burrito Recipe Variations
If you like your burritos extra meaty, you can add more chicken. If you like them super gooey, you can add more cheese.
Feel free to add some spices if you want to increase the heat a bit too!
What to serve with this Simple Chicken Burrito Recipe
These burritos go well with chips, salsa, and guacamole.
They also pair well with a nice lettuce salad or even a platter of raw veggies and dip.
Burrito Recipe Chicken Storage
How to freeze a Grilled Chicken Burrito
Place several burritos in a gallon-size freezer bag or a 9×13 covered baking pan and freeze.
You can also freeze individual burritos in aluminum foil or plastic wrap for lunches or on-the-go meals.
How to thaw a Grilled Chicken Burrito
When you’re ready to bake, remove the desired number of burritos from the freezer and let them thaw at room temperature for a couple of hours. Place them in a baking dish and bake in a pre-heated 350º oven for 20-30 minutes until heated through.
Individual frozen burritos can be microwaved in 30-second intervals until heated through.
Southwest Chicken Burrito Roll-Ups
Ingredients
- 32 ounces refried beans (you can make your own refried beans with this easy homemade recipe or this crockpot recipe!)
- 1/2 cup salsa
- 4 cups chicken cooked and chopped
- 2 cups Cheddar cheese shredded
- 16 tortillas (you can make your own Homemade Tortillas with this recipe)
Instructions
- In a large bowl, mix together beans, salsa, and chicken.
- Spread 1/16 of the mixture onto each tortilla.
- Sprinkle with cheese.
- Roll up and turn ends under.
- Stick in a freezer bag or in a 9×13 baking pan and freeze.
- When ready to bake, thaw and bake in a pre-heated 350º oven for 20-30 minutes until heated through. Sprinkle with more shredded Cheddar cheese, if desired. Serve with salsa.
Nutrition
Love this recipe?
Make sure to share and save it on your favorite platform below!
FREE DOWNLOAD: 60 Meals To Help You Avoid Takeout!
Meal time just got so much easier!
Reader Interactions
Money Saving Mom® Comment Policy
We love comments from readers, so chime in with your thoughts below! We do our best to keep this blog upbeat and encouraging, so please keep your comments cordial and kind. Read more information on our comment policy.
How many months can you freeze these? I just don’t want to waste them
They should be good for at least 4-8 weeks in the freezer.
Your links to the refried beans and tortillas aren’t working. But the recipe sounds yummy!
Thanks for the heads up! We will work on that! -Jordan, MSM Team
The homemade refried beans & tortilla recipes are not showing up ?
Has anybody tried reheating these in the microwave like the frozen burritos from the store?
You totally can microwave to heat. You might need to flip them over halfway.
You totally can microwave to heat. You might need to flip them over halfway.
These are AWESOME! I’ve been making and freezing these for a few years now. I mix all the ingredients together, including the cheese, because it saves me a lot of time and not have to worry about running out of cheese if I’ve been too generous on a few burritos. My kids love these and it’s so nice they can just take one out of the freezer and pop it in the oven. We don’t thaw to bake, it takes about 30 minutes to heat all the way through from frozen. I’ve also made these with cooked ground beef instead of chicken and they turn out just as wonderful.
Can you cook these before freezing? Mine are usually used as grab and go meals as my children eat out at their sports classes several times a week
I make something like this but i use egg roll wraps to keep the carbs down
Mmmmm…yummy. I love anything that even comes close to resembling anything mexican. ;0) Sarah, from http://www.mealplanningmommies.com did a great chimichanga recipe that reminds me of this one, and I LOVED it so much that I have made it several times in the last month.
The lard question is in regard to the tortillas….sorry.
I’ve been making them for about 19 years (my husband is from Mexico). There are a few choices like Lard, Butter or Crisco. I use the baking Crisco that comes in the bars and not the round can. For me I think it sticks better, but you can use butter. Use a unsalted butter if you put salt in the tortilla mix, or u can omit the salt and use a salted butter. I find that Blue Bonnet works the best. It’s just really about preference. Just don’t use cooking oil, that is a mess waiting to happen..
Do you have a recipe? I’ve got one, but I want a more authentic one and the one listed in the recipe isn’t coming up for me
I can’t remember the last time I let lard in the house. Can you substitute butter for the lard and get away with it??
If you cook bacon you can use the bacon fat
Do you make your own tortillas? I have been making mine for the last couple of years, but I am not sure exactly how to get them just right for making burritos. I make breakfast burritos, which my husband loves, but if I use homemade they are too thick and not big enough. Any suggestions?
I use my corn press to flatten my flour tortillas as well. Then after I press it, I will roll it out with my rolling pin just a little bit more. It makes it a little bit thinner, like what you see in the grocery store.
OK, I can do this, I’ve decided. This will be my first frozen food venture. I’m excited.
I make something similar to these, but also add rice and a handful of frozen corn. Instead of baking them I “grill” them on all sides in a non-stick skillet so the tortilla gets crispy. Love them!
Does the rice freeze well?
Does this make 8 or 16 servings? It says 16 tortillas, 16 servings, but only uses 1/8 of the mixture on each tortilla. Did I miss something? Is sounds delicious, but I want to get it right. Thanks!
Spread 1/16 of mixture onto one tortilla.
Yum yum yum! I’m definitely going to make this during my next round of freezer cooking!
Speaking of freezer cooking…do you have any great recipes for large famlies 🙂
Just a quick tip. If you stick the tortillas in the microwave for a few seconds before rolling, they’ll be soft and won’t crack.
I make these all the time now! I love that they are so quick and easy. I’ve actually found that there is no need to thaw them. I put them into the oven straight out of the freezer, and bake for about 30 minutes. Turn out wonderful! Yum! My 13 month old daughter can eat a whole one all by herself, she loves them! 🙂