Cinco de Mayo and the Best Ever Chicken Enchilada Recipe

One of my newer passions, beyond tequila and pasta, is Mexican food.  It is starting to nudge right up there I think with Italian these days.  It was probably after I found this recipe that I started to really enjoy Mexican food (beyond the basic taco and chicken fajitas that is).  Followed by a few trips to California where we have experienced some serious authentic Mexican, I am a now a lover.

I have very fond memories of making this for my family. It is another that they ask for on a regular basis.  One of the first times making this recipe, I made a major faux pas from a culinary standpoint.  You know like using salt instead of sugar (which I can sheepishly admit I have also done baking as a kid).  In this case, I accidentally used cayenne instead of chili pepper and Holy Christ was it hot.  But we loved it.  From then on, I altered the recipe as it is now, with a mix of chili powder and cayenne.  And that’s the thing about this recipe and cooking in general, you can ramp up or lower the heat at any time.

This dish is easy to make in about 30 minutes and only takes another 30 to bake up.  It may just take a bit to figure out how to roll the enchiladas the first few times.  Other than that, its easy to make and I am sure will become a family favourite!

Black beans.   I think adding black beans to this recipe might actually be a thing!   And another ingredient that I have turned a corner on as I have started to indulge in different Mexican dishes.  Hmmm.  May also make for another good post —  a black bean salad!  Sta tuned for that post!  

Chicken Enchiladas

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Course Main Course

Ingredients

  

• 6 8 inch flour toritillas
• 1 c low fat milk
• 2 TBSP flour
• 1.5 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder
• 4 scallions sliced, white and greens kept separate
• 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 4 tsp chili powder
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• 2 tsp oil
• 1 c frozen kernel corn
• 1 4 oz can chopped mild green chilies
• 1 430 ml jar medium-hot sala
• 1/2 c tomatoe sauce
• 2 c shredded Monterey and/or med cheddar cheese

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• In a jar with a tight fighting lid, shake together the milk, flour, coriander, cocoa and scallion whites until smooth. Set aside.
• In a large bowl, combine cayenne and chili powder. Set aside.
• Cut chicken into thin strips. Add to chili powder mixture and coat chicken.
• In a large skillet, heat the oil of med-high heat. Add the chicken and cook until lightly brown, stirring frequently. Once browned, approximately 4-6 minutes,
• Add the milk mixture and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Cook about 3 minutes until it starts to thicken up. Add the scallion greens, corn and green chilies and continuing cooking until the flavours have blended, approximately 2-3 minutes longer. Remove from heat.
• While the chicken is cooking, in a small bowl, mix salsa and tomato sauce. Set aside. Shred the cheese and set aside.
• Heat the tortillas in the microwave approximately 1 minute.
• Spray an 11 x 7 baking dish with cooking spray. Spoon approximately 1/8th of the mixture down the centre of a tortilla. Roll the tortilla and place seam down in the baking dish. Repeat until all mixture is used in all the tortilla.
• Spoon the salsa mixture evenly over the wrapped tortillas. Sprinkle the cheese on top.
• Cover with tinfoil and bake for 25-30 minutes
• Remove tinfoil and bake another 5 to 10 minutes until cheese.

Notes

Adjust heat of this dish by adding or reducing the amount of cayenne pepper used. 

Serve with a nice side salad or fried rice.