Easy Chicken Enchiladas with Rotisserie Chicken

Chicken enchiladas freeze perfectly and come together quickly for a busy weeknight dinner. This cheesy, stick-to-your-bones deliciousness can be reheated in a flash or made ahead for an easy weeknight recipe. The blend of spices provides the perfect level of smoky heat and it is a great use of rotisserie chicken. Don’t have a rotisserie? This is my go-to recipe for seasoned chicken breast.

This easy chicken enchilada with rotisserie chicken is easily customized and it a nice and hearty meal. This is my next recipe in my Comfort Foods series. I have made this recipe for several new parents and it was requested by my sister-in-law each with each niece. I love this because it is a vegetable and protein-forward recipe that isn’t a typical meal train food. You can only eat so many meatballs.

Can you make chicken enchiladas ahead of time?

Yes and no. If I am dropping this recipe off to someone, I will fully assemble right before dropping off. If I am making this ahead of time more than 2 hours, I will make the sauce and chicken ahead. If you roll the enchiladas too far ahead of time, they can and will get soggy. You want them fork tender, but made too far in advance and they’ll be mush. Assembling takes 5 minutes at most, so you can make the sauce and chicken one night and cook the next.

Of course, the type of tortilla matters when it comes to sogginess. Traditional enchiladas uses corn tortillas that are dipped in sauce, lightly fried, and then baked. These are more Americanized Tex Mex enchiladas and I use flour tortillas here. If you want a life changing authentic enchilada, try this one out. Flour tortillas and corn tortillas that are not lightly fried can get soggy if left too long. I made the mistake of using unfried thin corn tortillas before and they were very soggy.

While I love regular flour tortillas, I have found the “healthy” tortillas actually hold up pretty well here. Your Carb Balance and High Fiber tortillas crisp up nicely and don’t fall apart in the sauce. You do want to avoid the extra thin tortillas though.

Homemade Enchilada Sauce

Do you need to make homemade enchilada sauce? I would. What I love about this recipe is you are chopping pretty much the same ingredients for both sauce and filling. I highly encourage you to maker the sauce, but you can use store bought. My homemade sauce is smokier, thicker, and has a depth of flavor the canned sauce doesn’t. That being said, I always have canned enchilada sauce in my pantry.

My enchilada sauce freezes very well and can be made in advance. Since you only need to use a few tablespoons of chipotle chili, you can double the recipe and freeze half so you don’t waste the can. You can also make my chipotle mayo which is super delicious.

Healthier Chicken Enchilada

These chicken enchiladas are already high fiber and high in protein. One enchilada is already 32 grams of fiber and 27 grams of protein. This one enchilada is better tasting and has better stats than most popular protein bars. That being said, if you would like to make this “healthier,” these are my recommendations.

• Healthier tortillas – This recipe uses Mission Carb Balance tortillas, but you can use higher fiber and lower calorie alternatives. You can also use corn tortillas. If you use corn tortillas, make sure you are cooking them that day because they can get soggy (unless you shallow fry them).
• Cheese swaps – Traditional enchilada rojas has crumbly Mexican cheese like queso fresco. Not only is queso fresco authentic, but it is leaner and a little goes a long way. Bake your enchilada without cheese and top servings with queso. My recipe is also using full fat Monterey Jack. You can use a lower calorie shredded cheese you like.
• Bulk up with vegetables – This is already a nutrient dense recipe, but you can always add more vegetables. I have made enchilada with roasted sweet potatoes, more black beans, poblano peppers, and other tasty vegetables. If you add more than a cup more of ingredients for the filling, you will need to adjust the seasoning.

What to serve with enchiladas

My go-to side is cilantro lime white rice. Take cooked rice, zest and juice a lime, give it a sprinkle of salt, some cilantro, and maybe a dollop of honey and you’re set. I also like to serve refried beans, chips and guacamole, and fresh vinegar slaw.

Yield: 14

Easy Chicken Enchilada with Rotisserie Chicken

Chicken enchiladas freeze perfectly and come together quickly for a busy weeknight dinner.  This cheesy, stick-to-your-bones deliciousness can be reheated in a flash.  The blend of spices provides the perfect level of smoky heat.

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 45 minutes

Total Time 55 minutes

Ingredients

Enchilada Sauce

• 1/2 cup onion, diced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 cups canned tomato sauce
• 2 cups low sodium chicken broth
• 2-4 tbsp chipotle in adobo sauce, chopped
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1 tsp kosher salt

Enchilada Filling

• 1 lb shredded cooked chicken
• 15 oz canned black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 cup onion, diced
• 8 oz, tomato sauce
• 2 cups low sodium chicken broth
• 1 tbsp oregano
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1 lime, juiced and zested
• 1/4 cup cilantro, chopped

• 3-4 cups Enchilada Sauce
• Prepared Enchilada Filling
• 14 burrito sized flour tortillas
• 8 oz shredded Monterey Jack
• cooking spray
• cilantro, lettuce, sliced radish, guacamole, and/or sour cream for garnish

Instructions

Enchilada Sauce

1. Saute onion until translucent with salt, cumin, and paprika.
2. Add garlic and chipotle in adobo, and cook for about 30 seconds.
3. Add tomato sauce and chicken broth. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.  
4. Simmer for about 25 minutes.

Enchilada Filling

1. Saute onions until translucent.  Add shredded chicken, tomato sauce, chicken broth, oregano, cumin, salt, black beans, cilantro, and lime.
2. Allow mixture to simmer for about 15 minutes.

Assemble Enchiladas

1. Preheat your oven to 350°.
2. Spray baking dish with cooking spray. Ladle about ½ c of sauce into a baking dish. 
3. Microwave flour tortillas for about 30 seconds in a stack covered with a wet paper towel.
4. I like to dip my tortillas in remaining sauce, fill with about 1/3 – 1/2 cup of filling and roll tightly. Place tortillas seam side down in the baking dish.
5. Once all tortillas are rolled, pour any remaining sauce over enchiladas. 
6. Top with shredded cheese and bake at 350°F uncovered for 20 minutes.          

Notes

Nutritional information is made with Mission Carb Balance burrito sized flour tortillas. If using corn tortillas or taco size tortillas, this will yield 24 enchiladas.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

14

Serving Size:

1 enchilada
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 288Total Fat: 13gSaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 46mgSodium: 1456mgCarbohydrates: 44gNet Carbohydrates: 28gFiber: 32gSugar: 4gProtein: 27g