If you read Sunday’s post, you already know what these are doing here today. If you didn’t, the short version is: I’m a Texan, it’s Cinco de Mayo week, and I’m cooking what I actually cook on Cinco de Mayo, which is Tex-Mex, made by a Texan, with full honesty about what it is and isn’t. (Go read Sunday’s post for the long version. It’s worth it. I promise.)
These enchiladas are my staple. They’re the meal I make when I want to feed people. They’re the meal I take to friends who are sick or struggling or have lost someone, because they freeze well, they reheat beautifully, and they’re substantial enough to feel like real food when nothing else does. Renee makes them now and takes them to her mom, which is one of the highest compliments a recipe of mine has ever received. Several other friends have the recipe in regular rotation. They travel.
I’ve been making the chicken version for years. The vegetarian version came later, when Renee and I had a girls weekend and we each wanted to make something for the other. I figured out a substitution that wasn’t just “remove the chicken and call it a day”; the zucchini and corn and black beans actually do the work, and the result is its own thing. Now I make the vegetarian version regularly even when nobody at the table is vegetarian, just because it’s good. Here are the recipes for both.
A few things to know going in.
Use Hatch chiles if you can. I’m a Hatch chile evangelist and I will not apologize for it. The flavor is just better than generic green chile. Medium heat is my default, but mild and hot both work depending on your preference and your audience. If you can’t get Hatch, any roasted green chile will do; the recipe will still be good, just less specifically Hatch-flavored.
This recipe makes more filling than you need for one pan. That’s intentional. Either make a second smaller pan to freeze (split the sauce and cheese accordingly; there’s enough), or save the filling and eat it on its own. It’s good with rice or quinoa. It’s good rolled into a flour tortilla as a quick lunch the next day. It’s good on top of chips with cheese melted over it as a deeply unfussy version of nachos. Don’t waste it.
These freeze beautifully. Wrap a fully assembled (but unbaked) pan tightly in foil and freeze. To bake from frozen, 350°F for an hour: covered for the first 40 minutes, uncovered for the last 20 to brown the top. This is one of the best meals to have in the freezer for a future bad day.
Let’s go.
Notes
I am not picky about brands for canned or jarred ingredients, but if you can find Hatch green chiles, use them. This is one of the places I use the ones I roast every fall and freeze.
Tomatillos: The Kroger and Publix tomatillos near me are La Costeña and they’re fine. If you can find a tomatillo-based salsa you like, use that instead; it adds another layer of flavor. I buy different salsas when I travel and try them in this recipe; don’t be afraid to substitute if you have a regional favorite.
Medium Hatch is my default heat level. Mild works for kids or heat-cautious eaters. Hot works if you want the sauce to talk back.
I used cheddar or jack cheese in this recipe. Use whatever you love. Pepper Jack? Go with it. Queso Oaxaca? Yes. Queso Fresco or Cojita? Absolutely. What I will recommend is that if you buy cheese in a block and shred it yourself, rather than use pre-shredded cheese. You can use the bag cheese, but just know that it’s coated in something to keep it from sticking together, which also keeps it from melting smoothly. It will be meltier and smoother and taste better if you grate your own.
The recipe scales easily. Doubling it gives you two pans, one for now and one for the freezer.
This is forgiving food. Don’t stress.
Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas
Ingredients
For the filling:
- 3-4 cups shredded cooked chicken rotisserie works great; otherwise quick-poach 2-3 chicken breasts
- 1 medium yellow onion diced
- 4 cloves garlic pressed or finely minced
- 1 12- oz bag frozen corn
- Olive oil or spray oil for cooking
For the sauce:
- 1 28- oz can tomatillos drained, OR 16 oz tomatillo-based salsa (don’t drain the salsa)
- 12 oz roasted green chile 1 12-oz jar or 3 flat cans, preferably Hatch
- 1 8- oz block cream cheese cut into 4-5 chunks
For assembly:
- 1 package corn tortillas yellow or white
- 8 oz 1 block of cheddar or cheddar-jack cheese shredded
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F while you’re assembling the tortillas.
- Roast the corn. In a dry skillet (preferrably cast iron, but any large skillet will do), roast the frozen corn over med-high heat, until the kernels start to lightly brown. You don’t need to thaw the corn first. Move the roasted corn to a bowl (this will become your filling bowl).
- Cook the onions and garlic. Heat a little olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook gently until translucent and just beginning to brown. Add the garlic, stir well, and cook until fragrant and soft, 2-3 minutes. Transfer the onion and garlic to the filling bowl.
- Add the shredded chicken to the filling bowl with the onion and corn. Stir to combine.
- Drain the tomatillos if using canned (don’t drain if using salsa). Add tomatillos (or salsa), green chile, and cream cheese chunks to a blender and pulse until just blended. If you don’t have a blender, an electric hand mixer or stand mixer works; as a last resort you can mix by hand, but you must mix until the cream cheese is fully broken down and integrated.
- Combine. Add about 1/2 to 3/4 cup of the sauce to the filling bowl and stir to combine. You want enough sauce that the filling holds together on a spoon, but not so much that it’s runny.
- Assemble. Pour a thin layer of sauce in the bottom of a 9×13 baking dish and spread it out evenly. Take one corn tortilla, spoon in about 2 tablespoons of filling (regular kitchen spoon, not measuring spoon), top with a small amount of shredded cheese, and roll. Lay the enchilada seam-side down in the pan. The enchiladas may unroll a bit; just keep tucking and squishing them together. As you go, some may split a little on top. That's fine. They still taste good. Keep rolling and adding enchiladas until the pan is full. Cram them together; they help keep each other rolled and supported.
- Top. Pour the remaining sauce over the rolled enchiladas. Top with cheese.
- Bake. 20-30 minutes at 350°F, or until the cheese is bubbly and any visible tortilla edges are starting to crisp and brown.
- Serve. With pico de gallo, guacamole, sour cream, salsa, or whatever else makes you happy.
Notes
Vegetarian Version
Instead of chicken, use 4 medium straight zucchini, diced into roughly 1/4-inch pieces, plus 1 can black beans (drained and rinsed). The corn stays. The technique difference: cook the zucchini in the same pan you cooked the onions in, slowly over medium heat in 2-3 batches, with just a little oil to prevent sticking. You want the zucchini to release most of its moisture and start to brown. Don’t overcrowd the pan or it will steam and turn mushy. Add each batch to the filling bowl as it finishes. Add the drained beans to the filling bowl with everything else. This version is genuinely satisfying as its own thing, not a sad substitute. The roasted corn and browned zucchini have real depth. The beans add substance. You don’t miss the chicken. You can also play with the vegetarian version: swap mushrooms for the zucchini (cooked the same way), try different squashes seasonally, add spinach or other greens.P.S. Zach calls this dish “those chile enchilada things”. He’s been calling them that for years. He has never once gotten the actual name right. He also eats them faster than any other meal I make, so he can call them what he likes.
P.P.S. If you make these for someone going through something hard, attach a note that says they freeze well and reheat at 350°F covered with foil for 25-30 minutes, or microwave individual portions. People in crisis don’t always remember how to cook anything, even reheated food. The instructions help.
P.P.P.S. Renee, if you’re reading this: Thank you for being the friend whose dietary needs prompted me to figure out a vegetarian version that wasn’t lazy. The recipe is better because of you, and so am I.
