Creamy Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas
First, there is no picture, because we ate them all and I forgot. But, there is an great picture if you click the link at the bottom of the post. These were awesome. First though, I changed the recipe so much I almost didn’t post the original, but it was the inspiration for the idea. Anyway, the original came from melskitchencafe.com, and I give this an 8.5. I put my changes below.
Creamy Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas
Yield: Serves 4-6
Ingredients
- 3 cups cooked, chopped chicken
- 2 (4 oz.) cans of green chiles, lightly drained I only used 1 can
- 1 package (8 oz.) cream cheese, cubed I used half of this and also used light
- 1 can white or black beans, rinsed and drained (you can really use any type of bean you prefer here) I used double this, and also added seasonings to match what I do when I make chicken taquitos—lime juice, chili powder, garlic powder, cumin, onion powder, cilantro, onion, etc. (recipe is on the blog)
Sauce: I eliminated this entirely, and instead just used 2 cups of homemade green chile enchilada sauce (see recipe from the butternut squash enchilada bake from a few weeks ago) and added sour cream (1/4 cup is good)
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1/2 cup chopped onion (about 1/2 medium onion)
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 1/3 cup chicken broth
- ¼ cup milk
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- 1 can (7 ounce) green chile enchilada sauce
- ½ cup sour cream
Assembly:
- 8 ounces (about 2 cups) Monterey jack cheese, shredded Add this to the filling mixture, it’s way easier
- 8 medium (soft taco size) flour tortillas We used 14 small tortillas
- Handful of chopped fresh cilantro (we also added olives when it was finished)
Filling:
Directions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- In a medium bowl, combine the softened cream cheese and green chiles. Mix well. Add the chicken and black beans. Mix to combine. Set aside.
- In a large nonstick skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion softens and starts to turn translucent, about 3-4 minutes. Sprinkle the flour over the onions and stir well. Cook for 1 minute, stirring. Slowly whisk in the chicken broth and milk. As you whisk and the mixture cooks, the flour will get less lumpy around the onions and the mixture will become smooth. Cook over medium heat until the mixture is bubbling and has thickened, about 4-5 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat and stir in the enchilada sauce and sour cream.
- Lightly grease a 9X13-inch baking dish. Spread about 1/4 cup of the sauce on the bottom of the dish. Fill each tortilla with about ½ cup of the chicken/cream cheese filling. Top with a small handful of shredded cheese, a couple tablespoonfuls for each enchilada. Save at least 1/2 cup cheese for the top of the enchiladas. Roll the tortillas up and place seam side down in the prepared baking dish. Continue filling enchiladas until the dish is full (I can easily fit 8 enchiladas in one pan).
- Pour the white sauce over the top of the enchiladas. Top with remaining cheese. Bake for 20-30 minutes until the enchiladas are bubbling, hot and lightly browned. Sprinkle fresh cilantro over the top and serve.
Notes
Make Ahead Instructions: Follow the recipe instructions, letting the sauce cool to warm room temperature before proceeding with filling the enchiladas. Assemble the enchiladas as directed in the recipe with the cooled sauce. Cover the baking pan with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 8-12 hours before baking. Bake according to the recipe, adding an additional 5-10 minutes if needed since the enchiladas were refrigerated. Alternately, after assembling, the baking pan can be covered with a double layer of foil and put in a jumbo-sized resealable bag and frozen for up to two months. Bake from frozen by decreasing the baking temperature to 350 degrees F and baking the enchiladas covered for 1 1/2 hours. Uncover and bake an additional 30 minutes to 1 hour until the dish is hot and bubbly.
http://www.melskitchencafe.com/2010/05/white-and-green-chicken-enchiladas.html
recipe retrieved 3/5/14 from http://www.melskitchencafe.com/2010/05/white-and-green-chicken-enchiladas.html
So we made these as listed this time and they were very good. I wouldn't say loads better than the changes I made originally, but very good nonetheless.
ReplyDeleteSo, I think this is the best version. You make the sauce as it is listed. Then, you grill the chicken. To the filling, when you add the cream cheese and lime juice, I also added 1 tsp. chili powder, 1/2 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp. onion powder, 1/4 tsp. garlic powder. We added about 1/3 cup of cilantro to the filling as well. We used pepperjack cheese and put green onions on top. Oh, and we do add all the green chiles that it calls for.
ReplyDeleteUpdated version
ReplyDeleteCreamy Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas
Yield: Serves 4-6
Ingredients
Filling: In addition to these ingredients, I add spices to the filling. After the cream cheese is softened, I also add 2 Tbs. fresh lime juice, 2 tsp. chili powder, 1 tsp cumin, 1 tsp. onion powder, 1/2 tsp. garlic powder, 1/3 cup of cilantro
• 3 cups cooked, chopped chicken We use grilled, but you could also do a rotisserie chicken
• 2 (4 oz.) cans of green chiles, lightly drained
• 1 package (8 oz.) cream cheese, cubed
• 1 can white or black beans, rinsed and drained
Sauce:
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1/2 cup chopped onion (about 1/2 medium onion)
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1/3 cup chicken broth
• ¼ cup milk
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon pepper
• 1 can (7 ounce) green chile enchilada sauce see note below about chili verde
• ½ cup sour cream
Assembly:
• 8 ounces (about 2 cups) Monterey jack cheese, shredded We use pepperjack
• 8 medium (soft taco size) flour tortillas We used about 8 large flour tortillas that are the Costco kind that you buy uncooked and cook yourself before assembling
• Handful of chopped fresh cilantro (we also add green onions when it comes out)
http://www.melskitchencafe.com/2010/05/white-and-green-chicken-enchiladas.html
You can also buy salsa verde at the store
Green Chile Sauce
by Robb Walsh from Fine Cooking
Issue 73
• 7 to 8 oz. tomatillos (about 5 medium)
• 1 qt. homemade or low-salt chicken broth
• 1-1/4 to 1-1/2 lb. fresh Anaheim chiles (6- to 8-inch chiles), roasted, peeled, and seeded, coarsely chopped
• 2 tsp. minced yellow onion
• 1 tsp. dried oregano (or 2 tsp. chopped fresh oregano)
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 tsp. kosher salt; more to taste
• 1/4 tsp. ground white pepper
• 2 Tbs. cornstarch, dissolved in 2 Tbs. water
• Your favorite hot sauce (optional)
Put a medium saucepan of water on to boil and remove the papery outer skin from the tomatillos. Boil the tomatillos until soft, 5 to 10 min. Drain and purée in a blender or food processor. Return the tomatillos to the saucepan along with the chicken broth, chopped green chiles, minced onion, oregano, garlic, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and then reduce the heat and simmer for 10 min. Add the cornstarch slurry; stir well. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sauce is thickened slightly and reduced to 4 to 4-1/2 cups, another 5 to 15 min. Adjust the seasonings if needed, including hot sauce if the sauce isn’t spicy enough to suit your taste.
Recipe retrieved 8/3/15 from http://www.finecooking.com/recipes/green-chile-sauce.aspx
So, we made Mexican chicken in the crock pot for t his, and I honestly t hink t he plain, shredded chicken was better.
ReplyDeletedon't crowd the pan at all or the tortillas won't cook properly.
ReplyDeleteCook the tortillas first. We cook the chicken for 12 minutes on high in a pressure cooker with canned chili verde (4 chicken breasts). We add olives, green onions, and fresh cilantro to the top. It needs about 30 minutes at 375. I just use milk in the sauce and add 1/2 tsp. better than bouillon. I only used 1 1/2 T. flour. I add 1/2 tsp. salt to the cream cheese mixture.
ReplyDeletecanned chicken is fine
ReplyDelete