Chicken Enchiladas
This is one of those recipes that causes me to sit and stew for hours over what the heck to call it. My title choices were:Chicken & Green Chile Enchiladas
Green Chile & Chicken Enchiladas
Enchiladas with Chicken and Green Chile
Enchiladas with Green Chile and Chicken
Green Enchiladas (grody!)
Chicken Enchiladas with Caramelized Onions, Green Chiles, and Other Really Good Stuff
So I did what I normally do when I feel myself overwhelmed with recipe title options: I stripped it down to its bare bones and called it Chicken Enchiladas.
I feel cleansed.
These are delicious! I whipped them up yesterday in an effort to use some chicken, corn tortillas, and chunks of cheese that I needed to use, and they wound up being super tasty. Now, these chicken enchiladas are not to be confused with my White Chicken Enchiladas here on my website, which have more of a white sauce approach, and they are not to be confused with my White Chicken Enchiladas in my second cookbook, which is similar to the one on my website, but that has roasted peppers throughout, and they are not to be confused with my Easy Green Chile Enchiladas, which I learned to make while on a visit to Albuquerque in 2012.
Wait. Now I’m confused. So I’ll just move forward with this recipe. A pretty easy, throw-together dinner!
Sprinkle
some boneless, skinless chicken breasts with lots of seasoning: I used a
little Cajun spice, cumin, and chili powder. Because of the other
ingredients in this dish, it’s best not to use seasoning mixes that
contain salt. But otherwise, season away!Note: While I cooked three breasts to begin with, I only wound up needing two. The third one was graciously gobbled by my beloved.
Heat some vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium heat and cook the chicken on both sides…
Until it’s totally done in the center. This’ll take a good 8 minutes or so.
Meanwhile, chop up an onion…
And when you pull the chicken out of the skillet…
Throw the onion into the skillet!
Stir the onions and let them cook around in all that flavorful wonderment…
Until
they’re extremely dark and caramelized and luscious. Remove them from
the pan and set them aside. These will play a pivotal role in the flavor
of the enchiladas, so don’t underestimate them!
Turn the heat to low and pour in 3 cans of green chile enchilada sauce. And guess what? You can use regular enchilada sauce instead! This recipe is totes flexible that way. And that is why I ultimately decided not to incorporate “Green Chile” in the recipe title. I didn’t want to pigeonhole it.
Oh, and yes: You may roast your own green chiles, place them into a bag to allow them to sweat, peel them, and puree them with other ingredients of your choice if you would prefer to make your own green chile enchilada sauce. But that wasn’t how I rolled yesterday.
Let
the sauce warm up in the skillet. And here you can see what I love
about this kind of dish: I cooked the chicken in the skillet, then
removed it cooked the onions in all the chicken flavor. Then I removed
the onions and warming up the sauce in all the chicken and onion flavor.
Layers of flavor, baby!
While
the sauce is warming up, brown some corn tortillas either on a hot
skillet or over your stovetop burner. Doesn’t take very long.
You’ll want to soften them a bit, and you’ll want to brown them so they have a few little black flecks on them. 
Meanwhile, use a fork to shred the chicken finely…
And
because we’re being obsessive about layering all the flavors in this
dish, pour the juices from the chicken plate right into the enchilada
sauce…
And stir it around. 
Also
grate up a whole bunch of cheese. I will pretend that this is a
cheddar-jack combination, but it’s actually—wait for
it—cheddar-mozzarella. I had a block of mozzarella cheese that was much
closer to its expiration date than the Jack, and I made a judgment call.
Sorry to cross continents!
Now you’re all ready, both physically and emotionally, to assemble the enchiladas.
First, pour about 2 cups of the sauce in the bottom of a large casserole dish…
And spread it into an even layer.
Then, one at a time, dunk the tortillas into the sauce…
Sprinkle some cheese down the middle…
Along with some chicken…
And some of the dark, delicious onions.
Yum!
Then just roll it up…
And put it seam-side down in the sauce.
Then just keep going until the pan’s all filled!
Scoop whatever’s left on your pan after all the enchiladas are assembled…
And do the same with the onions if you have any left!
Finally, pour on the rest of the enchilada sauce in the skillet…
And sprinkle on the rest of the cheese. 
I like to sprinkle on a little chili powder on top, then it goes in the oven for about 30 minutes.
Bada BING!Oh my, did this ever smell good.
Now, this is the hard part, but it’s very important: You need to let the pan sit about 15-20 minutes before you serve up the enchiladas. They stay together much better this way, and they’ll still be nice and warm.
Serve a couple on a plate, sprinkle on some diced tomatoes, and add a dollop of sour cream. 
Then add some chopped cilantro. I’ll say it again: Bada BING!
In
the absence of a more cerebral description (I used all my brain power
figuring out the recipe title), this was very, very yummy.Here’s the handy dandy printable!
Recipe
Chicken Enchiladas
- Prep Time:
- Cook Time:
- Difficulty:
- Easy
- Servings:
- 8
Ingredients
- 16 whole Corn Tortillas
- 2 whole Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
- Cumin, For Sprinkling
- Chili Powder, For Sprinkling
- 1/4 cup Vegetable Oil
- 1 whole Large Onion, Diced
- 3 cans (15 Oz. Size) Green Enchilada Sauce, Or Use Red If Preferred!
- 3 cups Grated Cheddar/Jack Cheese, More If Needed
- Sour Cream, For Serving
- Diced Tomato, For Serving
- Chopped Cilantro, For Serving
Preparation Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350 F.
One at a time, hold tortillas over the stovetop burner (heated to medium heat) to brown slightly, about 30 seconds per side. Set warmed tortillas aside.
Sprinkle both sides of the chicken breasts with the cumin and chili powder. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat and cook the chicken on both sides until done in the middle, about 4-5 minutes per side or until juices run clear. Set it aside on a plate to cool, then shred it finely with a fork.
Throw the onions into the same skillet and stir them around to cook for 4 to 5 minutes, until deep golden brown and caramelized. Remove them from the pan and set them aside on a plate. Pour in the enchilada sauce and reduce the heat to low, allowing it to warm through.
Pour 2 cups of sauce into a 9 x 13 inch casserole dish. To assemble the enchiladas, dip a tortilla into the sauce then lay on a sheet pan or plate. Sprinkle some cheese down the middle, followed by some chicken, and finally, some of the caramelized onions. Roll it up tightly, then place it, seam side down, in the pan. Repeat with the rest of the tortillas.
Pour the rest of the sauce over the enchiladas, then sprinkle on the rest of the cheese. Give it a final sprinkling of chili powder, then bake it for 30 minutes, or until hot and bubbly.
Remove it from the oven and let it sit for 15-20 minutes before serving. Serve 2 enchiladas at a time, topping with a dollop of sour cream, a sprinkle of diced tomatoes, and a sprinkling of cilantro.
One at a time, hold tortillas over the stovetop burner (heated to medium heat) to brown slightly, about 30 seconds per side. Set warmed tortillas aside.
Sprinkle both sides of the chicken breasts with the cumin and chili powder. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat and cook the chicken on both sides until done in the middle, about 4-5 minutes per side or until juices run clear. Set it aside on a plate to cool, then shred it finely with a fork.
Throw the onions into the same skillet and stir them around to cook for 4 to 5 minutes, until deep golden brown and caramelized. Remove them from the pan and set them aside on a plate. Pour in the enchilada sauce and reduce the heat to low, allowing it to warm through.
Pour 2 cups of sauce into a 9 x 13 inch casserole dish. To assemble the enchiladas, dip a tortilla into the sauce then lay on a sheet pan or plate. Sprinkle some cheese down the middle, followed by some chicken, and finally, some of the caramelized onions. Roll it up tightly, then place it, seam side down, in the pan. Repeat with the rest of the tortillas.
Pour the rest of the sauce over the enchiladas, then sprinkle on the rest of the cheese. Give it a final sprinkling of chili powder, then bake it for 30 minutes, or until hot and bubbly.
Remove it from the oven and let it sit for 15-20 minutes before serving. Serve 2 enchiladas at a time, topping with a dollop of sour cream, a sprinkle of diced tomatoes, and a sprinkling of cilantro.
