Green Chicken Enchiladas

Enchiladas are a staple home cooked meal for millions of households around the world. This classic Mexican dish is a favorite with its rich flavors delivered through a delicious spicy Sauce. The dish is loaded with cheese, giving it a wonderful texture and slight sense of decadence. In this article we will share with you how to make your very own homemade Green Chicken Enchiladas. The spicy green sauce is made using Poblano Peppers and gives this dish so much amazing flavor. It sure beats that package Enchilada stuff, and we guarantee you’ll never buy that pre-made Enchilada Sauce ever again!

How to make tasty Green Chicken Enchiladas

For this recipe it is all about the Sauce. This rich, spicy, and fragrant sauce is made by roasting Poblano Peppers, Jalapenos, Onion, and Tomatillos until they are lightly charred. Roasting the Vegetables (and Fruits!) are the key to releasing their wonderful flavors. They will sweeten as they roast, which makes for an amazing Enchilada Sauce

Allow them to cool and then you will need to peel away the skin and remove the seeds. This is very easy to do, and you can simply use your hands. If you want a little bit more heat in the dish then you can keep some of those seeds (especially the Jalapeno seeds!). Once they are peeled, into the Blender they go!

We also add Lime Juice and some Cilantro to the Blender. There will be more than enough liquid to get things going due to the Tomatillos, but if you do need to add some liquid for it all to blend, I recommend a bit more Lemon Juice and some Olive Oil

Once blitzed, you can check the sauce for seasoning and adjust if necessary. We’ve already added some Salt and Pepper when the Peppers are roasted, but you may want to add a little more at this stage. Once you’re happy with the flavor, set the Peppers aside

Poaching Chicken is an easy and effective way to produce tasty meat for the Enchiladas

What I love about Poaching the Chicken in this recipe is that it’s relatively effortless, and you can cook it the same time as you’re roasting the Peppers. This will save time, and the method yields a fantastic flavor

To poach the Chicken, bring a big pot of water to the boil and then add the Chicken along with a generous number of Black Peppercorns and Salt. Bring the water back to the boil (the temperature will have reduced once the Chicken is added), and then remove from heat, cover and let sit for 40 minutes

The residual heat of the Pot will keep the water warm for this entire duration and will slowly poach the Chicken. This is a fantastic method to cook Chicken Breasts, as they will be perfectly cooked and be super-moist. Not only that, but they’ll also absorb the flavors from the Poaching liquid

Once cooked, allow the Chicken to cool before shredding it into strands. This is a very easy method, and you can simply use your hands. Just tear the Chicken apart to form strands, following the natural fibers of the Chicken

Combine the Green Sauce with the Chicken (and add Cheese!)

Simply add enough Green Sauce to get a good, even coating over the Chicken. Depending on how much Chicken you’re using, you likely won’t need to use all the sauce. This is a good thing anyway, as you’ll need to reserve about ½ cup to top over the Enchiladas before they are baked

We do the same thing with the Cheese. Finely shred the Cheese and mix it into the Chicken. This is the best way to incorporate Cheese into our Green Chicken Enchiladas and ensures an even mix throughout. For the cheese, you can use many different types. The classic Mexican melty cheese is known as Oaxacan. If you can’t get your hands on that, you can replace it with Mozzarella. I also like to use Cheddar Cheese for its sharp, strong flavor

Building the Enchiladas

Once you’ve got your filling, simply load up some large Tortillas with the filling. Roll them into tubes and then place them into a large baking pan. Use the biggest pan you’ve got, and try to fill the Tortillas as much as you can

To keep the whole thing stable, place the open side of the rolled Tortillas on the bottom of the pan. This will keep everything together. Try to load as many as you can into one pan. You’ll have lots of filling, so portions won’t be an issue!

To finish, pour over the remaining Green Chili Sauce and Cheese and then bake until golden brown. This will take about 20 – 30 minutes, and is really just done to get the Cheese cooked, as everything else in the dish is already cooked

Allow the dish to cool before serving

Perhaps the most challenging step in our Green Chicken Enchiladas recipe is the last step. That is, waiting about 5 – 10 minutes once it’s cooked to allow the Enchiladas to cool. It’s almost impossible to resist diving in immediately, but allowing it to rest will keep the structure of the Enchiladas intact so they don’t break apart when serving

This is a hearty, rich dish that is so flavorful. For the best result I highly recommend serving the dish alongside a fresh Pico de Gallo. The lightness of the Pico will help break through the heaviness of the Enchiladas. Oh, a little bit of Sour Cream won’t hurt either!

Green Chicken Enchiladas Recipe

Ingredients

• 4 large Chicken Breast
• 1 tbsp. Black Peppercorns
• 2 tsp. Salt
• 8 Large Tortillas (Flour or Corn)
• 2 cups Cheddar
• 2 cups Oaxacan Cheese
  
  

For Sauce

• 4 Medium Poblano Peppers
• 1 lb. Tomatillos
• 1 Brown Onion
• 1 Jalapeno
• Juice of 1 Lime
• 1 cup Cilantro
• 1 tbsp. Olive Oil
• 1 tsp. Salt
• ½ tsp Pepper

Equipment needed: Blender or Food Processor

Instructions

Preparing the Green Chili Sauce

1. Place the Peppers, Tomatillos, Brown Onion, and jalapeno on a sheet pan and season with Olive Oil, Salt and Pepper. Roast for 45 mins in the oven at 400F until slightly charred
2. Remove from oven and allow to cool. Peel and discard the skin and seeds from the Peppers then place in Blender along with Lime Juice and Cilantro. Blitz until smooth
3. Taste for seasoning and adjust if necessary. Set aside
   
   

Cooking the Chicken and making Enchiladas

4. While the Peppers are roasting, bring water to boil then add Chicken, Peppercorns and Salt. Bring it back to a boil then cover and turn off heat. Leave for 40 minutes to Poach
5. Remove from water and allow to cool then shred into strands with forks or your hands
6. Add the Cheese and Green Chili Sauce into the Chicken and mix well to combine. Leave enough Chili Sauce and Cheese for the Enchilada toppings (about ½ cup of each)
7. Place 4 tbsp. of Chicken mixture inside a Tortilla and fold over tightly then place into a light greased baking pan. Ensure the two sides of the Tortillas that meet up are placed facing down. Repeat to fill the baking pan
8. Top with remaining Green Sauce and Cheese mix then bake for 30 minutes at 375F. Allow to cool for 5 minutes before eating
   
   

Recipe Notes

• You can keep the Jalapeno Seeds for an extra spicy Enchilada
• Try to add as many Tortillas into the Baking pan as possible. Get them nice and compact in there
  
  

We guarantee you’re going to love our Green Chicken Enchiladas recipe and there’s a good chance they’ll become a regular meal on rotation in your household. The big flavors and hearty servings make this a fantastic family meal. You can prep the Chicken and Sauce in advance too, making it an easy weeknight dinner

You can also find a full recipe for our Roast Poblano Pepper Chili Sauce here

For more fantastic Mexican recipes, check out some of these favorites of ours:

• Texas Breakfast Tacos
• Mexican Street Corn
• Grilled Steak and Onion Tacos
• Shrimp Aguachile Recipe
  
  

Happy Cooking!