These easy chicken enchiladas are a show-stopper! This meal will make a great family dinner or just dinner with some amazing leftovers! Switch out the chicken for beef, add onions or fresh garlic, and adjust cheeses to your liking; this recipe is so versatile!
These easy chicken enchiladas are tried and true.
This recipe has been there for me since I moved out on my own at 18. Every time we were having company, this was my go-to recipe, along with my Easy Spanish Rice and some good ol’ pinto beans. It is so easy, but people can’t eat it without the “ooo”‘s and the “ahhh”‘s.
Make sure to try these with this Easy Spanish Rice as a side dish next to these Easy Chicken Enchiladas that only consist of 4 simple ingredients!
Alternatively, this Chile Relleno Souffle is delicious for something a little different. Layers of peppers and cheese topped with a fluffy souffle topping.
Protein
I wanna share my not-so-secret secret with you…get a Costco rotisserie chicken (or from anywhere else, but lets face it, Costco’s is the best). They are delicious, and it makes this recipe that much easier.
I usually try to shred my chicken the day before and put it in a container in the fridge. Feel free to buy pre-shredded chicken or roast up some. Of course you can also change out chicken for ground beef or pork, or even some shredded beef would be delicious!
Maybe you’re not a big meat eater..just toss some veggies in place of the meat. Whatever your palette desires, or whatever you have in your fridge, will be just fine in these easy chicken enchiladas!
Flour or Corn?
So..lets talk tortillas..traditional enchiladas are made with corn tortillas. I have made this recipe with corn tortillas, probably more than I have made it with flour.
The reason I went with flour for this recipe is just personal preference; they are softer and have a more..buttery texture. Delicious. Feel free to do what you want.
Also, side note, if using corn tortillas, I would recommend frying them in a bit of oil just til they start to cook, quickly remove them, then proceed as directed.
…they are softer and have a more..buttery texture.
Cheese
Any cheese will do! I went with simple cheddar for the sake of making it easy, and it tastes great with just that.
A mix of cheeses will always take it up a notch thou. If I had had some Monterey Jack on hand, I would have used that also in these chicken enchiladas.
The only suggestion I really have about cheese is..if you can..shred it yourself. Shredding it yourself allows the cheese to melt so much nicer and gives these easy chicken enchiladas such a fresh taste. In a pinch, of course, you can use pre-shredded but I have to highly recommend taking the extra time to freshly shred it.
Can I add…to these enchiladas?
The answer to the end of this question is yes. Add it! If you like onions, bell peppers, or garlic, throw them in a pan to saute a bit and add it to your protein.
If you want to add some veggies, do it! If you’re trying to sneak some veggies in, zucchini is a really good one cause it’s so flavorless.
Also, feel free to omit the Diced Green Chilies if that’s not your thing. The beauty of these easy chicken enchiladas is how they can be tailored to fit almost all taste buds!
The Ingredients:
Need more dinner inspo?? Check out these other dinner recipes!
Spinach and Mushroom Noodles with Chicken
PrintEasy Chicken Enchiladas – 6 Simple Ingredients
These easy chicken enchiladas will impress anyone you’re making it for! While it is full of flavor it is not full of tons of ingredients. This recipe will make 12 full sized flour enchiladas, you will need TWO 9×13 dishes. Are you ready to make an easy and delicious dish?? Lets get started!
- Prep Time: 45 mins
- Cook Time: 45
- Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
- Yield: 12 Enchiladas 1x
- Category: Easy Meals
- Cuisine: Mexican
Ingredients
- 1lb Shredded chicken breast (about 2 breasts)
- 12 Flour tortillas
- 1 28oz can Red Enchilada (I use La Victoria)
- 1 4oz can Diced Green Chiles
- 4–5 cups of shredded Cheddar Cheese
- 1 6oz can Whole Black Olives chopped or 3.8oz can sliced Black Olives
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Make sure all of your ingredients are prepped. Chicken is shredded. Cheese is grated.
- Warm tortillas in pan on stove top just a bit. They should be warmed but not crispy.
- Now the fun part..time to assemble. Start by putting a thin but well covered layer of sauce at the bottom of BOTH of your 9×13 dishes.
- For each tortilla we will want to have a coating of sauce on it. I usually just toss each tortilla in the saucy mess in the dish, cover the tortilla then make my enchilada.
- Put a small amount of chicken…maybe 1/4 cup of chicken, 1-2 tablespoons of cheese and a teaspoon of diced chilis into a sauce soaked tortilla. (Don’t overstuff)
- Roll that up and repeat. You should be able to make 12 evenly portioned enchiladas, 6 in each dish. With plenty of cheese leftover.
- Once they are all done cover them with any remaining sauce and all the remaining cheese. Then top these beauties with the whole can of olives.
- With any leftover sauce pour it along the edges as the sauce is what keeps them from sticking to the pan so you want them to be nice and moist.
- Cover and bake for 25 mins. Remove cover and bake for an additional 20 mins to get that golden brown cheese on top.
Notes
These portions all work perfectly for me but I do like to keep an extra can of sauce on hand and some extra cheese just in case I’m a little heavy handed on the cheese while rolling them up.
These should end with a decent amount of sauce at the bottom and on the sides because there isn’t anything worse than spending time making a beautiful dish and then it all burns on the bottom.
Keywords: Easy Mexican Enchiladas Simple Ingredients
