RECIPE: Chicken Enchiladas

These enchiladas have several steps and are a bit of a production; they are SO worth the effort though. Ever since I created this recipe, it’s been one of my family’s favourite meals. The chicken can be poached and shredded a day or two in advance, and the flour tortillas and tomato sauce can also be made ahead if you're going to use homemade versions. If you’ve got all the different components ready to go, the enchiladas can be assembled quickly.

Ingredients:

5-6 chicken thighs or drumsticks

2 tbsp butter

1 onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 tbsp flour

1 ½ cups milk

1 tsp cumin

½ tsp each salt and black pepper

1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

2 cups tomato sauce (I use the same homemade sauce I use in my Baked Pasta)

1 tsp chili powder

1 tsp cumin

2-4 tbsp water

six 10” flour tortillas (I use my homemade Whole Wheat & Flax ones)

1½ cups grated cheddar cheese

Instructions:

Poach the chicken by putting the chicken pieces in a large saucepan and covering with water. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 30-45 minutes, until cooked through. Leaving the poaching liquid in the pot, remove the chicken to a plate to cool. Once the pieces are cool enough to handle, shred the meat off the bone with your fingers or a fork. Return the bones to the pot with the poaching liquid, adding more water to fill the pot if necessary. Bring back to a boil then simmer for an hour or so to make stock (the stock isn’t needed for this recipe, so reserve it for another use later on).

While the chicken is poaching, in a medium saucepan, simmer the onion and garlic in butter until tender. Add the flour and stir until well coated with fat. Slowly add the milk, stirring constantly. Add cumin, salt, pepper, and cayenne and continue stirring until sauce thickens. Add shredded chicken and simmer for a couple of minutes longer.

Mix together the red sauce, chili powder, cumin and water (you want the sauce to be a bit thinner than you’d use for pasta).

To assemble the tortillas, place 2-3 large spoonfuls of chicken mixture in the middle of each flour tortilla, add a couple spoonfuls of red sauce and a sprinkle of cheese (reserve half of the grated cheese for the top of the enchiladas). Roll up tightly and place in a greased 9 x 13” baking pan.

Once all the tortillas are filled, pour the remaining red sauce over the top of the enchiladas, then sprinkle with the reserved cheese.

Bake at 375°F for 25-30 minutes, until heated through and cheese is hot and bubbly.

Serves 6 

I shared this recipe at Recipe Swap Thursday, Full Plate Thursday, Frugal Food Thursday, the Grocery Cart Challenge, Fat Camp Friday and Friday Favourites.