Beef Enchilada
Enchiladas, a classic Mexican dish, are traditionally made with corn tortillas. However, my family enjoys enchilada just as much with flour tortillas. This versatile dish can be made with an array of ingredients like beans, rice, cheese, meat, and vegetables. Once filled, they’re expertly rolled up and generously smothered with a flavorful red sauce and a generous sprinkle of shredded cheese.
Recipe Steps
An enchilada sauce packet can easily be combined with tomato sauce, but these often contain preservatives and high sodium levels. Creating your own red enchilada sauce takes less than 10 minutes, utilizing ingredients commonly found in your pantry and spice cabinet. Go ahead, check out that enchilada sauce recipe…I’ll wait.
For our enchiladas, we lean towards either ground beef, shredded beef, or chicken taco meat. Leftover Beef Barbacoa makes great enchilada. To simplify meal prep, when I make beef taco meat I prepare a double batch and freeze portions for later use, allowing for quick and delicious mid-week meals. If you are starting with ground meat or chicken breast for your filling, you’ll want to season it with this homemade taco seasoning that eliminates the need for store-bought spice envelopes.
If using flour tortilla for your enchiladas, lay each tortilla in the pan, fill with a couple of tablespoons of meat and cheese, and roll lengthwise. Repeat for each tortilla, placing them side by side.
Making enchiladas with corn tortillas requires a bit more care. If used straight from the package, they tend to crack during rolling. To avoid this, heat the corn tortillas on a gas burner, making them pliable enough to dip into the enchilada sauce, fill, and roll.
Once all tortillas are filled and rolled, spoon additional enchilada sauce over them and sprinkle with cheese. Bake until the cheese is melted. Garnish with cilantro and sour cream, and serve with beans and Mexican Rice.
Beef Enchiladas
Ingredients
- 1 lb. Shredded Beef Taco Meat or Ground Beef
- 8 Corn or Flour Tortillas
- 8-12 oz. Chihuahua Cheese, shredded
Garnish
- ¼ C Cilantro chopped
- 2-3 Tbsp. Sour Cream
- Salsa
Instructions
- If not using shredded beef taco meat previously made, cook and drain a pound of ground beef. Season it to your taste.
- Make your enchilada sauce (either from a packet or see my homemade red enchilada sauce recipe)
- Preheat the oven to 350* F. Grease a 9x13 pan and spoon enough of the enchilada sauce to lightly coat the bottom of the pan.
- If making the enchiladas with flour tortillas, lay the tortilla in the pan. Fill it with a couple tablespoons of meat and cheese. Then roll the tortilla lengthwise. Continue to fill each tortilla and lay it next to the one before it.Making enchiladas with corn tortillas takes a little more effort. If they are used right out of the package, they crack when trying to roll them. If you dip them in the sauce, fill them, and then try to roll the tortillas, they still crack or fall apart. To prevent this heat the corn tortillas on a gas burner flipping them so they don't burn. Now they will be pliable enough to dip into the enchilada sauce, fill and roll.
- When all the tortillas are filled and rolled, spoon some additional enchilada sauce over the pan of rolled tortillas and sprinkle with cheese.
- Place enchiladas in the oven for 15 minutes or until the cheese is melted.
- Remove from the oven when the cheese is melted and garnish with a dollop of sour cream, and chopped cilantro. Serve with Mexican Rice and Black Beans.
Nutrition
Victoria Cook
Hi! I’m Victoria, a home cook turned host and cook for 100+ episodes of a private cooking show. My love for ethnic cuisines inspires me to use a variety of spices and fresh ingredients to make flavorful healthyish meals for my husband and son. I enjoy challenging myself with new recipes and am happiest when I can make them in an electric pressure cooker.