My hubby bases the quality of a Mexican restaurant solely on their fajitas. He can remember the taste of pretty much every fajita he's had and can compare them to the one he's eating. It blows me away.
I judge the quality of the restaurant on the enchiladas; one of the things that always appeals to me when I go. If I ever landed my butt in Mexico, these would be the first thing I'd settle down with.
These enchiladas lean away from the creamy end of the spectrum and land more towards the meaty and filling end.
I made mine large-and-in-charge, but feel free to restrain yourself if you have the ability.
These green chicken chile enchiladas come together pretty quickly and I left them pretty tame (spice wise) because of my daughter. So feel free to up the cayenne if you need to!
Simple but delicious!
Green Chicken Chile Enchiladas
Yield: 6-8 enchiladas
5 boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon cumin
3/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (more or less depending on heat tolerance)
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1-2 tablespoons coconut oil
1 white onion, roughly chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
4 ounces diced green chiles (from a can)
1 1/4 mild green taco sauce or enchilada sauce
1 tablespoon sour cream, plus more for serving
1 cup cheese, shredded (Mexican or cheddar are nice)
6-8 large flour tortillas
Chop chicken into 1-inch cubes and place in a medium bowl with lemon juice, salt, chili powder, paprika, cumin, garlic powder, cayenne pepper (if using), and pepper. Stir around with your hands to distribute the spices and place in the refrigerator for 30 minutes or so.
Melt 1 tablespoon of coconut oil in a large saucepan over medium high heat until shimmering. Dump in half of the chicken and spread into a single layer. Cook until no pink remains in the thickest piece, turning pieces about halfway through.
Move cooked chicken to a pan and add more coconut oil if necessary, cooking the remaining chicken the same way.
Leave as much liquid in the pan as possible when moving the second half of the chicken to the plate. If the liquid doesn't cover the bottom of the pan, add more coconut oil and cook the onion and garlic until some pieces have turned crispy on the edges. Remove from heat.
In a medium bowl, combine the green chiles, 1 cup of taco sauce, and the hot onions and garlic, and 1 tablespoon of sour cream.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Pour a little of the green sauce on the bottom of a 9 x 13-inch baking pan and spread to coat. Just enough to keep the tortillas from sticking as they bake...
Divide the chicken between 6-8 tortillas in a fat strip down the middle, but keep it from the edges by at least an inch. Then pour a few tablespoons of green sauce over the chicken and sprinkle with shredded cheese (reserving some cheese to melt over the top).
Place the tortilla in front of you so the ends of the filling are pointing left and right. Fold the left and right sides in to cover the ends of the filling, then fold the side closest to you over the filling as well. While holding all this together, roll the enchilada away from you, tucking in any ends if necessary. Place in the pan, seam side down.
Repeat for all enchiladas and top them all with 1/4 cup taco sauce and remaining cheese.
Bake uncovered on a middle rack for 15 minutes, or until cheese is melted.
Serve warm and topped with additional sour cream.
