Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas
Seasoned shredded chicken wrapped in corn tortillas with green chiles and cheese covered in red or green chile sauce.
Servings: 10
Calories: 386kcal
Ingredients
- 1 4 lb chicken (4-5 cups shredded chicken meat)
- 1.5 tablespoons granulated onion
- 1.5 tablespoons ground cumin
- 2 teaspoons granulated garlic
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 cup chopped roasted green chilies canned or jar (505 brand preferred)
- 4 cups shredded Mexican-style cheese
- 1/3 cup coconut oil for softening tortillas
- 20 6-inch corn or flour tortillas
- 16 ounces Frontera green enchilada sauce or any favorite
- 16 ounces Frontera red enchilada sauce or any favorite
Instructions
- ROAST CHICKEN FIRST PER 2nd RECIPE CARD IN POST (If using rotisserie chicken, start at STEP 2)
- Once the roasted chicken is cool enough to handle, separate meat from bone, skin, and connective tissue by pulling chicken meat apart into small shredded pieces with your fingers. Save and freeze the bones and for making chicken stock at a later time, if desired.
- Mix together the granulated onion, cumin, granulated garlic, sea salt, and pepper in a small bowl. In a large bowl, sprinkle spice mix over shredded chicken and toss until well incorporated. Toss with green chiles until well mixed, and then with the cheese.
- Warm oil in a 10 inch skillet with sloped sides, over low heat (the oil should be hot enough to quickly soften the tortilla but not fry it). With a pair of tongs, dip each tortilla into the warm oil to coat both sides and softened about 20 seconds. Using the tongs, drag the tortilla up the side-edge of the skillet to drain off excess oil, then set the tortilla on a plate to be filled.
- Fill with 1/3 cup of the shredded chicken mixture across the middle and roll the tortilla around it by folding the two sides in, with one overlapping the other. Place the rolled tortillas seam-side down in a 13x9 pan (the recipe makes enough for two 13x9 pans). At this point, you can bake and serve or freeze for later.IF FREEZING FOR LATER: Line the pan with parchment, plastic wrap, or foil so the enchiladas will easily release once frozen—if you plan to bake in this pan from the freezer, do not line the pan. Place the rolled enchiladas on the lined pan, cover the pan with foil, and freeze. Save space in the freezer by transferring the frozen enchiladas to a zip-type freezer bag.
- Bake enchiladas uncovered at 350°F for 30 minutes, or until the edges of the tortillas just begin to brown. Pour sauce over enchiladas enough to cover the tortillas and pool in the bottom of the pan about a 1/4-inch. Top with shredded cheese and bake an additional 10 minutes, or until the sauce and cheese is hot and bubbly. S
- Serve hot garnished with sour cream and fresh avocado.
Video
Notes
NOTE: 1 (4 pound) chicken will render about 5 cups shredded meat (18 oz in weight) or you can use about 1.5 lbs of boneless-skinless chicken breasts. If using a rotisserie chicken, taste the chicken for flavor. If it tastes like it is already well-seasoned, reduce the onion, salt, pepper, cumin, and garlic in the seasoning by 1/4 to compensate for the already seasoned bird. Rotisserie chicken from Costco or Sams will be big enough for this recipe, otherwise, if using rotisserie chicken from a grocery store you will like need two to yield enough meat.
Make-Ahead:
Line the pan with parchment, plastic wrap, or foil so the enchiladas will easily release once frozen—if you plan to bake in this pan from the freezer, do not line the pan. Place the rolled enchiladas on the lined pan, cover the pan with foil, and freeze. Once the enchiladas are frozen transfer to a zip-type freezer bag for longer space-saving storage.Recipe Variations:
To save time dipping and rolling, the chicken and tortillas can be layered with enchilada sauce in a casserole dish and baked for 45 minutes. This method will taste the same but will be different in texture as the tortillas absorb more of the sauce and are less firm. Cut into squares and serve. How to Roast Green Chiles Roasting chile peppers:- Place whole chiles on a foil-lined baking sheet about 6 inches under the broiler in the oven, and broil on high until well blistered and dark brown/black all over (you'll have to keep an eye on them and turn them over on the pan with tongs).
If grilling, place peppers directly on the grill grates and cook on high. - Once roasted, transfer peppers to a plastic bag to steam, about 15 minutes.
(Now is the time to put some kitchen gloves on.) - Carefully remove the chiles from the bag, let cool if need be, cut the chiles open with a knife to remove seeds, and chop the chiles.
Nutrition
Calories: 386kcal | Carbohydrates: 34g | Protein: 15g | Fat: 22g | Saturated Fat: 14g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 43mg | Sodium: 1407mg | Potassium: 171mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 914IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 351mg | Iron: 2mg