All right gang – you landed here, looking for enchilada recipes, and that’s what you’re going to get. Here you’ll find timeless classics, variations on old favorites, and maybe even a few you’ve never tried.
Well, I’m already getting hungry – and hopefully, so are you! This first recipe is a variation on a "timeless classic" – and one you’ve undoubtedly seen before – but with a couple of significant differences:
1.) You simply MUST use Las Palmas enchilada sauce – it just makes this dish, and anything else is a poor substitute. If you can’t get Las Palmas in your area, you have my sympathies. Write to me, and I’ll try to find you a source; do an online search and see what you can come up with … or just do your best with whatever’s available. (If you’re really demanding and/or ambitious, you can try making your own - and in upcoming posts, we will be publishing some delicious recipes for enchilada sauces.)
2.) Speaking of being demanding and/or ambitious, if you want true, authentic green chile flavor in your enchiladas (and other Mexican food) you can roast and peel your own chiles (vs. using the canned variety.) Needless to say, this is much more tedious and time-consuming - plus if you've never tried chile roasting, it can be a bit of a challenge at first. But I thought it best to note this here, especially for you gourmet chef types.
3.) To keep my enchiladas from being too greasy (which also makes them healthier) I prefer to dip the tortillas in the sauce to soften them a bit, vs. dipping them in hot oil. Obviously, you can do it either way you prefer, but try it once my way – you may find you like it better as well.
NOTE: I realize you purists out there scoff at the notion of putting Cream-Of-Anything soup in your enchiladas, and I can certainly understand – and relate to – your sentiments. If you simply can’t stand the thought of using this ingredient … don’t! Just increase the Las Palmas, sour cream and/or cheese content, or whatever makes you happy. This recipe – like all the ones you’ll find here – is not “etched in granite” by any means.
Without further ado, let’s get to it …
Jerry's Killer New Mexican Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas
Ingredients:
1 large can (28 oz.) Las Palmas (or other brand, if you must) green enchilada sauce
2 small cans (4 oz. each) Hatch diced green chile (or other suitable brand, such as Ortega)
½ - 1 can cream of chicken or cream of mushroom soup (again, this is optional!)
2 medium to large boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 medium (or ½ large) white onion, diced
1 dozen white or yellow corn tortillas (for a real treat, substitute blue corn tortillas, if available)
1 small can (4 oz.) chopped black olives
1 large can (5.75 oz.) whole, pitted black olives, or 2 small (3 oz.) cans sliced black olives
2 cups grated Colby longhorn or Monterey jack cheese (or 1 cup of each)
1 small container sour cream
1 tbsp. olive oil or vegetable oil
Preparation:
In a large saucepan, combine enchilada sauce, one can of the green chile, cream of chicken/ mushroom soup (if desired) and ½ of your diced onion. Simmer over low heat for now.
Wash, rinse, and dry the chicken breasts, being careful to use proper handling (as you would with any raw meat product.) In a skillet, heat the olive or vegetable oil over medium heat. Brown the chicken breast in the oil (with a little salt and pepper, if desired.) Reduce heat and cover, turning once or twice until nearly done. (You might need to add a little water to prevent scorching.)
With a fork, remove chicken from skillet. On a cutting board, using a filleting knife (or other suitable good, sharp knife) cut the chicken into small (1/4 to 1/2”) squares. Add diced chicken to sauce. Also, if you haven't already done so, this would be good time to preheat your oven to 350F.
Bring sauce up to medium heat, just under boiling. In a large, shallow baking dish, ladle approx. ¾ cup sauce into bottom of baking dish, distributing evenly across the bottom. Dip a tortilla into the sauce, just long enough to soften it a bit, but not long enough for it to fall apart. (Tip: a spatula or large spoon can help to avoid burns and tortilla disintegration! But don’t worry if it takes a little practice to get this part right; you might want to have a few extra tortillas on hand.)
Lay the tortilla flat into the baking dish, in one corner of the dish. Now comes the really fun part: Stuffing with all those yummy fillings! Ladle a little more of the sauce into the middle of the tortilla, then add a couple generous pinches (1-2 tsp.) cheese, approx. ½ tsp. each of chopped black olives, onion, and green chile. Fold the tortilla over the filling, front to back - again, being careful to not tear the tortilla (don't worry about minimal "damage" - they don't have to look perfect.)
Repeat steps in above paragraph for remaining tortillas, overlapping each succeeding tortilla about halfway over the others. (Sort of a semi-layered look is the goal here.) You should now be sufficiently salivating (careful – not in the enchiladas!) And you should have one beautiful dish, nearly ready to pop in the oven. But first, top this beauty off with your remaining sauce and cheese, and give it a good, healthy topping of sliced olives.
Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes, covered, until the cheese and sauce are bubbling (and you can’t stand it any longer!) Remove from oven, remove cover, let stand about 5 minutes. Cut into 3 to 4 inch squares, top with a dollop of sour cream (if desired), serve with refried, whole pinto or black beans – add some Spanish rice if you like, and maybe a nice guacamole salad on the side – and enjoy!
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Can't wait for more? Here's a resource I recommend for enchilada recipes and other great Mexican food recipes - have a look!
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