Chicken Enchiladas

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These chicken enchiladas are the ultimate comfort food, packed with tender chicken, wrapped in soft tortillas, and baked until bubbling and golden. Smothered in a rich, flavourful sauce and topped with melted cheese, every bite is hearty, satisfying, and full of authentic Mexican-inspired flavour. Perfect for family dinners, meal prep, or feeding a crowd, this easy enchilada recipe is one you’ll want to make again and again.

I love this chicken enchilada recipe because the Mexican spice blend has a little bit extra  of each of the herbs and spices so that some of it also serves as the flavour base for the enchilada sauce. I also love a saucy enchilada filling, rather than bits and pieces coming out when slicing into and eating the enchilada so that’s where the refried beans come in. When added after cooking the veggies with some chicken stock, it creates a silky sauce that brings everything together.

Ingredients

Tortillas/flatbreads, olive oil, cheese, chicken stock: Filling: chicken breast, can of refried beans, capsicum, onion, garlic, corn

Seasonings: paprika, oregano, cumin, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, pepper, chilli powder; Enchilada Sauce: tomato paste, plain flour.

What to serve with enchiladas?

My go-to side dish for most meals is usually a salad, like a greek salad. You could also top it with avocado, sour cream or serve some pico de gallo alongside it.

Storing chicken enchiladas

Once baked, they will be soft but still hold their shapes, but will eventually become soggy once cooled and in the fridge. If you’re wanting to prep them in advance, keep the ingredients separate and then prepare them just before baking and serving. Leftovers can be kept in the fridge for 3-4 days. 

What about soggy enchiladas?

You could try using corn based rather than wheat based tortillas, they may hold their shape more than wheat based ones. White and yellow corn tortillas are the most common, with white corn tortillas being the most widely available. White corn tortillas may soak up less of the sauce than wheat tortillas/flatbreads, which might make them less soggy. Most brands will also be gluten free.

Yellow corn tortillas are harder to find, however they soak up less moisture and are better at holding their shape. In saying that, yellow corn tortillas are hard to find in large sizes so are better for tostadas and crispy shell tacos for dishes like birria.

My Best Tips

Season the chicken and let it sit for at least for half an hour – this gives you time to prep your other ingredients, or do it at the beginning of your day, so it’s ready when you’re ready to start cooking – this lets the flavours penetrate into the chicken. Place it back into the fridge while it’s brining.

Swap the refried beans for another canned bean like black beans, kidney beans or pinto beans, however it won’t give the same sauciness as canned refried beans unless you mash them up beforehand. 

Don’t be worried that all the spice mix gets used to make the sauce and coat the chicken. Cooking the chicken leaves some of the seasoning behind in the pan that flavours the dish.

Chicken Enchilada

A comforting Mexican-inspired classic, these Chicken Enchiladas are packed with seasoned chicken, vegetables, and a rich homemade enchilada sauce, then baked with plenty of melted cheese until golden and bubbling.
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Prep Time:45 minutes
Cook Time:1 hour
Servings: 6 – 8

Ingredients

  • 6 – 8 flatbreads/tortillas Note 1
  • 250 g cheese Note 2
  • 2 tbsps of olive oil for cooking the chicken

Enchilada Filling

  • 600 g chicken breast 2 chicken breasts sliced in half, into 4 fillets
  • 1 can refried beans Note 4
  • 1 capsicum diced
  • 1 onion diced
  • 2 garlic cloves crushed/finely minced
  • 2 tbsps olive oil Note 3
  • 150 ml chicken stock
  • 150 g frozen corn

Enchilada Seasoning

  • 2 tsps paprika
  • 2 tsps oregano
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 1.5 tsps salt
  • 1.5 tsps pepper
  • 1.5 tsps onion powder
  • 1.5 tsps garlic powder
  • 1 tsp chilli powder

Enchilada Sauce

  • 100 g tomato paste
  • 650 ml chicken stock
  • 50 ml olive oil
  • 50 g plain flour
  • 1 tbsp enchilada seasoning from the mixture of seasoning above

Instructions

  • Mix all the enchilada seasonings together, save one tablespoon and put it to the side; this will be put into the enchilada sauce.
  • Slice the two chicken breasts in half to create four fillets.
  • With the remaining seasoning, add it to a bowl with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and toss everything to coat. Note 3
  • Make the enchilada sauce: heat up the olive oil in a pot, add in the flour and quickly mix together with a whisk to make a roux. Once the flour and oil have been incorporated, add in the tomato paste and whisk until combined. Add in the chicken stock in 2 to 3 parts, whisking each part in until combined before adding in the next part. Once the chicken stock has been added, add in that one tablespoon of spice mix that was put aside in step 1.
  • Put a pan onto a medium high heat, and add in 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Once heated, add in the chicken breast and cook until seared and golden on both sides, around 2-3 minutes per side. Once cooked, place on a plate and allow to cool for 5 minutes before slicing into chunks.
  • If the pan is looking dry, add in a little bit of olive oil, around half a tablespoon and cook diced onions for 5 minutes or until soft and slightly golden.
  • Add the capsicum and cook for 3 minutes or until soft. Add in the garlic and cook for up to 1 minute, keeping an eye on it, as it can burn very quickly.
  • Add in the refried beans, chicken, corn and stock to the pan and stir everything together. It should be thick and slightly saucy, rather than thick like cookie dough.
  • Before assembling the enchiladas, pour one ladleful of enchilada sauce over the base of a large baking dish and spread it across to cover the whole base.
  • Assemble the enchiladas: spread the filling over the flatbread/tortilla, sprinkle some cheese across (Note 2), roll the tortilla and place into the baking dish on top of the enchilada sauce, seam side down. Repeat until all tortillas are filled. Pour the remaining enchilada sauce evenly over the top of the tortillas, sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top and bake until the cheese has melted and started to become golden. Note 5
  • Allow to cool once removed from the oven and serve with salad or topped with sour cream, avocado or pico de gallo.

Video

Notes

Note 1 – Flatbreads/tortillas
I usually use flour flatbreads/tortillas, they’re the most common,  sometimes cheaper and most widely available in Australia, especially if you’re looking for something that’s wholemeal or lower in calories. I really enjoy the Coles bakery that makes white flatbreads. You could try using corn based tortillas rather than wheat based tortillas, they may hold their shape more than wheat based ones. White and yellow corn tortillas are the most common, with white corn tortillas being the most widely available. Yellow corn tortillas are harder to find, however they soak up less moisture and are better at holding their shape. Furthermore, yellow corn tortillas are hard to find in large sizes so are better for tostadas and crispy shell tacos for dishes like birria.
Note 2 – Cheese
Keep half the cheese – 125g – for sprinkling over the top of the enchiladas once the sauce has been poured on and is ready to be baked. The other half can be split between each enchilada. 
Note 3 – Olive Oil
There is a lot of oil in this dish, however some of it can be substituted. When mixing the chicken and enchilada seasoning, the oil can be substituted with 2-3 tablespoons of chicken stock if you’re trying to be calorie conscious. I wouldn’t substitute it anywhere else as you need fat to make the enchilada sauce and cook the meat. 
Note 4 – Refried beans
They’re mashed up pinto beans and it can usually be found in the international aisle or ethnic section of your supermarket. Most supermarkets will have something, I’ve been able to find them in Coles, Woolies and IGA. If you can’t find any, grab a can of your favourite beans – kidney beans, black beans – drain them, add them into the pan at the same step as the refried beans, mash them up and continue as usual. Refried beans have other things added to them like jalapenos and some herbs and spices, so you’ll miss out on those but adding your own beans will help bulk things up, creating a nice sauce with some added fibre. 
Note 5 – Assembly
How many enchiladas this makes will depend on how large the tortillas you have are and how big your baking dish is. I always keep a stock of Coles bakery made flatbread in my freezer because they’re my favourite and they only come in a pack of 6, so I have extra when I make dishes like this. The filling can easily spread over 8 medium to large size flatbreads/tortillas and might only make 6 if they’re larger, depending on the brand you buy. You may need to spread it over two baking dishes if your dishes aren’t big enough. I’m able to make 8 enchiladas but can only fit 6 into my largest baking dish, so the others are put into a smaller one with some enchilada sauce and cheese.
Posted In: Mains

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