Our absolute family favourite Chicken Enchiladas stuffed with shredded chicken, beans and green chiles, baked with the best homemade enchilada sauce until cheese is bubbly.
This is a melt in your mouth, restaurant quality, easy dinner! Just like our favorite chicken tacos, chicken quesadillas and chicken burritos.
Chicken Enchiladas Recipe
These chicken enchiladas are our family favourite! Along with white chicken chili, of course! It is a filling dinner everyone can agree on and for good reason. Tortilla rolls stuffed with seasoned chicken, beans, green chiles, yogurt, and homemade enchilada sauce, then topped with even more sauce and cheese, and baked until the cheese is bubbly.
This chicken enchilada recipe is an epitome of comfort food!!! And healthier. If you are looking for next level healthy aka low carb loaded with veggies Mexican dish, then this chicken zucchini casserole or low carb chicken enchiladas is for you. Very similar flavor profile to this chicken enchilada recipe.
Hands down, it is my personal favorite Mexican food after carne asada and chicken tortilla soup. The pillowy soft rolls just melt in your mouth and flavours explode. So good!!!
Ingredients for Easy Chicken Enchiladas
- Shell: Whole wheat, white or gluten-free tortillas of medium size will work. I found these 50% corn/50% wheat tortillas and they have a flavour of corn and flexibility of flour dough.
- For the filling: Shredded chicken (cooked boneless chicken breasts). Low sodium black beans, diced green chiles, plain yogurt, shredded cheddar, or Tex Mex cheese. Homemade enchilada sauce.
- Enchilada sauce: Chopped onion, minced garlic, chipotle in adobo pepper, minced. Flour. Oil for frying. Tomato sauce with, low sodium or preferably no salt added.
- Optional toppings for serving: Green onion, avocado, and sour cream.
- Cooking spray: I use Misto, but you can use whatever you have on hand.
How to Make Chicken Enchiladas
- Prep: Cook chicken breasts (I usually make Instant Pot chicken breast) or use leftover rotisserie chicken, and shred it.
- Homemade enchilada sauce: Saute onion and garlic in oil, then add chipotle pepper in adobo with flour, and whisk to combine. It’s gonna be lumpy. Then add the tomato sauce, whisk and simmer for a few minutes. It’s ready!
- Prep: Time to crank up the oven to 350 degrees F and spray 9 x 13 baking dish with cooking spray.
- Make the filling: In a large bowl, combine shredded chicken, black beans, green chiles, some cheese, yogurt and 2 cups of enchilada sauce. Stir, taste and now is the time to adjust salt if you used no salt added tomato sauce. Otherwise, it should be fine.
- Fill tortillas and roll: Scoop about 1/2 cup of the mixture and spread onto a flat tortilla. Roll it up and place seam side down in sprayed baking dish. Do this with the remaining tortillas until you have about 11-12 rolls. They should be rolled tight enough to allow this many to fit.
- Season the top of casserole: Top rolled enchiladas with remaining enchilada sauce and sprinkle with remaining cheese. Making sure to spread evenly and each roll gets its fair share.
- Bake: Spray inside of a piece of foil you will be covering dish with, or I prefer a silicone lid, with cooking spray, so it doesn’t stick to precious cheese, and cover. Bake for 20 minutes, then uncover (carefully) and bake until cheese is melted and bubbly.
- Let enchiladas sit before serving: Remove from the oven, cover again and let rolls absorb all delicious sauce and flavours settle for about 10 minutes. Again, remove cover carefully not to “rip off” the cheese.
Tips and Variations
- Corn tortillas: Use flour tortillas if you can help it. Many store-bought corn tortillas break easily. Unless you know the trick. I have heard of warming them up in a microwave but had no success with this method. However, homemade corn tortillas will roll no problem.
- To keep sodium in check: There are many store-bought ingredients that contain a bit of sodium in this chicken enchiladas recipe. Do your best to keep added salt to a minimum wherever you can. Using a “no salt added” tomato sauce allows you to maintain a lower sodium content.
- Rotisserie chicken: Precooked rotisserie chicken will also contain more sodium than breast cooked at home, but if this is of no concern to you, then, by all means, use it!
- Beef instead of chicken: For a beef enchilada alternative, use some leftover taco meat or fajita filling.
- Beans: Black beans are a classic filling, however, feel free to substitute for pinto beans, lentils, or even refried beans.
- Vegetarian: For a meatless option, swap out the chicken for loaded veggies, such as mushrooms, zucchini, or peppers. Load it up with extra beans and cheese, like veggie quesadillas!
What to Serve Chicken Enchiladas With?
To serve, place enchiladas on a plate and top with your favorite toppings like sour cream or yogurt, cilantro and avocado.
Also these sides would go well:
Storing, Freezing & Reheating
Store leftovers: Keep enchiladas covered in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Or if you have room, just cover baking dish and refrigerate like that. That’s why another vote silicone covers!
Reheat: Reheat leftovers in a microwave, the best way. Or if you would like to reheat in a baking dish, add a splash of water, cover and bake at 350 degrees F until heated through.
Freeze uncooked: It is nice to make enchiladas as a freezer meal or an extra batch. Assemble enchiladas up to the point of adding cheese on top, make sure to cool, wrap tightly with a few layers of plastic and then foil on top, and freeze for up to 3 months. To bake, thaw in the fridge overnight and bake next day.
More Favorite Mexican Recipes
- Skillet beef enchiladas
- Mexican chicken and rice
- Chicken tostadas
- Chicken burrito skillet
- Taco skillet
Chicken Enchiladas
Ingredients
- 1 small onion finely chopped
- 3 large garlic cloves minced
- 1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce + 1 tbsp sauce minced
- 2 tbsp any flour
- 2 tbsp oil for frying
- 24 oz tomato sauce no salt added
- 3 large cooked boneless chicken breasts shredded
- 14 oz can low sodium black beans rinsed & drained
- 4 oz can diced green chiles
- 1/2 cup plain yogurt
- 1 1/2 cups cheddar or Tex Mex cheese shredded, divided
- 12 medium whole wheat or any flour tortillas
- Cooking spray I use Misto
- Cilantro, green onion, avocado and sour cream for serving
Instructions
- Cook chicken breasts using your favorite method or use leftover rotisserie chicken. I usually make Instant Pot chicken breast.
- In the meanwhile, make enchilada sauce. Preheat medium pot on medium heat and add oil. Then add onion and garlic, saute for 4 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add chipotle in adobo pepper with sauce and flour, whisk until combined.
- Add tomato sauce, whisk and simmer for a few minutes. Turn off heat.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and spray large 9" x 13" baking dish with cooking spray. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, add chicken, black beans, green chiles, yogurt, 1/2 cup cheese and 2 cups enchilada sauce. Stir with spatula to combine and adjust salt to taste, if necessary.
- Scoop about 1/2 cup mixture onto flat tortilla and wrap. Place seam side down in previously prepared baking dish. Repeat with remaining tortillas and chicken mixture and packing enchiladas tightly in a baking dish. I usually end up with 11-12 rolls.
- Spread remaining enchilada sauce on top and sprinkle with remaining 1 cup cheese.
- Spray inside of a piece of foil you will be covering dish with, or I prefer a silicone lid, with cooking spray, so it doesn't stick to precious cheese, and cover. Bake covered for 20 minutes. Then uncover and bake for 5-10 more minutes or until cheese has melted and is bubbly.
- Remove from the oven, cover and let enchiladas stand for 5-10 more minutes. Serve hot with cilantro, green onion, avocado and sour cream, if desired.
Notes
- Store leftovers: Keep enchiladas covered in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Or if you have room, just cover baking dish and refrigerate like that. That's why another vote silicone covers!
- Reheat: Reheat leftovers in a microwave, the best way. Or if you would like to reheat in a baking dish, add a splash of water, cover and bake at 350 degrees F until heated through.
- Freeze uncooked: It is nice to make enchiladas as a freezer meal or an extra batch. Assemble enchiladas up to the point of adding cheese on top, make sure to cool, wrap tightly with a few layers of plastic and then foil on top, and freeze for up to 3 months. To bake, thaw in the fridge overnight and bake next day.
- Corn tortillas: Use flour tortillas if you can help it. Many store-bought corn tortillas break easily. Unless you know the trick. I have heard of warming them up in a microwave but had no success with this method. However, homemade corn tortillas will roll no problem.
- To keep sodium in check: There are many store-bought ingredients that contain a bit of sodium in this chicken enchiladas recipe. Do your best to keep added salt to a minimum wherever you can. Using a" no salt added" tomato sauce allows you to maintain a lower sodium content.
- Rotisserie chicken: Precooked rotisserie chicken will also contain more sodium than breast cooked at home, but if this is of no concern to you, then, by all means, use it!
- Beef instead of chicken: For a beef enchilada alternative, use some leftover taco meat or fajita filling.
- Beans: Black beans are a classic filling, however, feel free to substitute for pinto beans, lentils, or even refried beans.
- Vegetarian: For a meatless option, swap out the chicken for loaded veggies, such as mushrooms, zucchini, or peppers. Load it up with extra beans and cheese!
Nutrition
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I’m happy to report that these enchiladas were absolutely amazing!!!
Perfectly paired with your delicious Instant Pot refried beans. Both so easy to make, this is a big win!
Eating leftovers tonight, yay!
That’s so great! It sounds like you have a new favorite!
Hi Olena,
I’m dying to make this recipe but I can’t find chipotle pepper in adobo sauce here in the Greater Vancouver area. Any suggestions?
TIA
Smoked paprika would be great. You can find it in Ethnic/Mexican section of Superstore and I’m sure Save on and Thrifty’s.
Thank you, I looked at my local Super Store and Walmart in the Mexican section for months and couldn’t find it.
Went to Safeway yesterday and fund it! Bought few cans 🙂
Really, interesting…Maybe shortage like everything else…Yes, buying a few cans at a time is a good idea and I freeze leftovers and use as needed.