Chicken Enchiladas

Introducing our flavorful and irresistible Chicken Enchiladas! Tender and juicy chicken wrapped in soft tortillas, smothered with a mouthwatering homemade enchilada sauce, and topped with gooey melted cheese. Each bite is a fiesta of flavors, creating a dish that will leave you craving more. Get ready to savor the essence of Mexico in every delicious enchilada, straight from Debi’s kitchen! 🌮🔥

Enchiladas are a popular Mexican dish consisting of tortillas filled with various ingredients, typically including meat, cheese, beans, or vegetables. After rolling or folding the filled tortillas, they are covered in a flavorful sauce, often made from chili peppers or tomatoes. The dish is baked until the tortillas become soft, and the flavors meld together beautifully.

Enchiladas can be served with toppings like shredded cheese, sour cream, guacamole, and chopped cilantro, making them a delicious and versatile meal with a perfect blend of savory, spicy, and tangy flavors.

A Word About the Chicken

Enchilada recipes often call for precooked chicken, which is typically grilled, oven-baked, or from store-bought rotisserie – all cooked using DRY heat, leading to dry chicken. The solution? Cook the chicken over low heat in a liquid, ensuring a tender and succulent result (full instructions below).

Braising is the perfect cooking method for enchiladas as it ensures the chicken stays moist and tender throughout the preparation. When chicken is braised, it is cooked slowly in flavorful liquid, allowing the meat to absorb all the rich and savory flavors. This slow cooking process breaks down the tough fibers in the chicken, resulting in a melt-in-your-mouth texture that complements the other ingredients in the enchiladas perfectly.

The Most Common Enchilada Mistakes

1. Not Frying the Tortilla

Tortillas are like spices stuck in a package, and they need a little wakeup call. When they’re cold, they get all brittle, and that’s no bueno. So, here’s the secret: pan fry them in a tad of olive oil for about 10-20 seconds. This stops the tortillas from soaking up too much sauce and getting all soggy.

2. Using Canned Enchilada Sauce

This, my friends, takes such little effort, yet it has a huge payoff. We have a red enchilada recipe on our site that takes just a few minutes of prep time. It has over 100 comments, and let me tell you, it tastes way better than a can!. You should check it out.

3. Overstuffing the Tortilla

It’s easy to do. We’ve all done it before, however, you want the right amount of filling in each tortilla and you want it to be consistent. To achieve that, I use a ¼ cup measuring cup to fill mine.

4. Not Dipping the Tortilla in the Sauce

The enchilada sauce plays a crucial role in the flavor of the dish, and merely pouring it over the tortillas just won’t do. Instead, after frying the tortilla for a few seconds, use a pair of tongs to dip it right into the enchilada sauce. I recommend using a 9×9 baking dish for this. Just pour the sauce into the dish, dip the tortilla, fill, and roll.

HOW TO MAKE CHICKEN ENCHILADAS:

• SHREDDED CHICKEN ~ Chicken breasts are seasoned with a blend of cumin, paprika, salt, pepper, garlic, powder, and chili pepper and poached to retain moisture.
• TORTILLAS ~ The big question is flour tortilla or corn. It’s your choice. I prefer flour.
• ENCHILADA SAUCE ~ Again, it’s simple to make homemade enchilada sauce and it is ready in about 15 minutes!
• CHEESE ~I use a delicious blend of two kinds of cheese, Cotija cheese, a salty Mexican cheese, stars in the filling alongside shredded chicken. On top, I add Mexican cheese. I’ve discovered that using only Cheddar cheese results in a dish that’s way too oily.

HOW TO SERVE CHICKEN ENCHILADAS

Serve these delicious enchiladas with a side of Mexican rice, extra salsa, guacamole, sour cream, diced avocado and tomatoes, refried beans and a very large Margarita.

Make Ahead and Storage:

• Make Ahead – you can prepare these enchiladas earlier in the day or even the day before, then simply place them directly in the oven when you’re ready to cook.
• Fridge – Store leftovers, covered, in the fridge for up to 3 days. You can reheat them in the oven at 350°F until warm or in the microwave.
• Freezer – you can freeze them BEFORE cooking or AFTER cooking for up to 3 months.

HOMEMADE CHICKEN ENCHILADA RECIPE
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