Move Over Lasagna—Pastel Azteca Is Saucy, Layered, and So Much More Fun

Why It Works

A deeply flavored salsa roja made from charred tomatoes, dried chiles, and warm spices creates a savory backbone for the dish.
A blend of requeson, crema, and queso Oaxaca adds layers of creaminess, tang, and melting richness for ultimate comfort.
Lightly frying the tortillas builds structure and adds flavor, preventing them from disintegrating under layers of sauce and cheese.

I didn’t grow up eating pastel azteca specifically, but I did grow up with its close relatives. My mom made saucy enchiladas, and my tía was known for her oven-baked chilaquiles. So when I dig into a slice of pastel azteca, it feels instantly familiar, like a greatest-hits remix of the flavors and textures I’ve loved throughout my childhood.

Although often referred to as “Mexican lasagna” due to its layered structure, pastel Azteca stands firmly in its own tradition and is not directly inspired by lasagna, though it does have similarities. It’s built on the foundations of Mexican home cooking: crisped tortillas take the place of noodles, shredded chicken is coated in a deeply spiced salsa roja instead of a bolognese, and stretchy queso Oaxaca fills in for mozzarella. A rich blend of requesón and crema steps in where ricotta might otherwise go in an Italian lasagna. The result is a saucy, cheesy, and warmly spiced dish, with layers of chicken, vegetables, and chile-driven flavor that are distinctly and unmistakably Mexican.

It’s a bit of a running joke in my family that many Mexican dishes share the same core ingredients—tomatoes, chiles, tortillas, chicken—and yet still manage to taste completely different from each other. If anything, pastel Azteca shows just how endlessly adaptable those building blocks can be. It pits the brightness of salsa roja against the richness of cheese and crema, striking an unexpectedly perfect balance of ingredients that all come together harmoniously on the plate.

Each bite reveals a stack of textures and flavors: tortillas fried just enough to hold their shape, a spoonable mixture of chicken and salsa roja, a cooling layer of crema blended with requesón, and generous handfuls of melty cheese. The tortillas, crema mixture, saucy chicken, and cheese are layered in that order and repeated three times to build a casserole that bakes up rich and deeply flavorful, with crispy edges and bubbling pockets of dairy throughout.

Serious Eats / Lorena Masso

Types of Pastel Azteca

There are many varieties of pastel Azteca, also known at times as tortilla casserole. A popular variation uses salsa verde made from tomatillos, green chiles, and cilantro for a fresher, more herbal flavor. Some versions incorporate mole instead of salsa, while others layer in roasted poblano peppers, Hatch chiles, or Anaheim chiles for added depth. Vegetarian adaptations might feature zucchini, mushrooms, or bell peppers. There are even dairy-free riffs that swap in mayonnaise for crema, though most pastel Azteca recipes rely on crema for tang and cheese for its gooey richness.

Origins of Pastel Azteca

The name pastel Azteca translates to “Aztec Cake.” Despite the name, there’s no evidence that it resembles any dish enjoyed by the Aztecs. The earliest ancestor of pastel Azteca may date back to the 16th century, when Spanish colonizers introduced dairy products to the region.

According to Pati Jinich’s research into Mexican casseroles, the first written recipe resembling pastel Azteca appears in El Cocinero Mexicano, an 1831 cookbook. Even earlier, pre-Hispanic tamal pies known as tamal de cazuela were baked in earthen pits and featured similar sauces and fillings.

You’re more likely to find pastel Azteca in home kitchens than restaurants—it’s a popular potluck dish, beloved for its crowd-pleasing nature and ease of scaling up for gatherings.

Building the Saucy Chicken Mixture

The soul of the dish is the savory salsa roja, a savory, earthy sauce built from charred tomatoes, cumin, and oregano. Roasting the tomatoes adds smoky depth, while deglazing the pan with chicken stock ensures that every caramelized bit is carried into the sauce. A touch of chicken bouillon powder (a classic move in Mexican home kitchens) adds a subtle but essential hit of umami, while dried California chiles bring gentle sweetness and tang that amplify the natural brightness of the tomatoes.

Once the sauce is blended, it’s folded into shredded chicken, which acts as a tender, neutral base that readily absorbs all that flavor. The goal is a saucy, warmly spiced chicken mixture that’s bold enough to hold its own between layers of crema, cheese, and tortillas. It should be moist but not soupy—just wet enough to stay flavorful after a trip through the oven.

Frying the Tortillas

The corn tortillas are fried just shy of fully crisp—not quite tostadas, but sturdy enough to layer without falling apart. They need to remain pliable enough to bend around the edges of the casserole dish but hardy enough to withstand being loaded with saucy ingredients. Frying 15 tortillas may seem like a daunting task, but since each one takes only 30 seconds to fry, the process is completed in just a few minutes.

Shallow-frying is key here. Unlike deep-frying, which causes tortillas to puff and crisp aggressively, shallow-frying gently toasts the surface while leaving the interior pliable. This method creates just enough structure to keep the tortillas from falling apart once layered with sauce, without turning them brittle or chip-like. It also allows the tortillas to absorb the salsa roja more evenly, softening into the casserole without dissolving or disintegrating. The goal is a tortilla that retains its shape through baking, yet remains tender with each bite.

Serious Eats / Lorena Masso

Finishing the Pastel Azteca

Although the ingredients are all fully cooked before assembly, the baking process allows the flavors to meld while the cheese melts into gooey submission. The final blast of heat from the broiler does more than melt cheese, it also crisps up any tortilla edges peeking out from the sauce, adding just the right amount of crunch to contrast the creamy layers below. The final touch is a sprinkle of cilantro, which adds freshness and a bright pop of color. A sprinkle of fresh cilantro adds a bright, herbal note to round out the flavors. Be sure to let the dish rest for at least 10 minutes before slicing, allowing the molten cheese time to settle and making it easier to serve.

Pastel Azteca is a very forgiving dish; you can taste and adjust the flavors of each component as you go. And while the recipe is a bit time-consuming, the payoff is significant because it makes enough to feed an entire soccer team, probably with leftovers. As is the case with most casseroles, it freezes beautifully, allowing you to keep a slice on hand for whenever you need a hearty, comforting meal on a weeknight.