I am sure that my daughter was born in a hispanic or latin family in her previous birth. Anytime I ask her what she would like for dinner, the answer is either fajita, quesadilla, chili but her favorite is enchilada. So today’s recipe is enchilada.
I feel key to a good enchilada is the sauce, if you get the sauce right you got 70% dish right. I learnt to make this sauce from Iris ( pronounced as ‘ee-ra-is’), she comes from the Jalisco province of Mexico and this is how her mom makes the sauce.
Chicken Fajita Enchilada
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Ingredients:
Filling:
1 lb chicken, I make it with minced chicken or the rotisserie chicken and both taste good
1/2 Green bell pepper cut in short strips
1/2 Red bell pepper cut in short strips
1/2 onion sliced
2 tbsp homemade mexcian seasoning
oil
2 cups of shredded mexican style cheese
Sauce:
2 Roma tomatoes
8-10 Tomatillos
1 jalapeno
2 cloves of garlic
1/2 onion cut in big chunks
1-2 dried red chili , you can use chipotle, guajillo or ancho chili
2-3 tbsp cilantro
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6-8 tortillas
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Method:
Step 1:
Make the sauce
Preheat the oven 400F.
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Clean the tomatillos. Arrange tomatoes, tomatillos, garlic, onion, jalapeno in a baking dish. Sprinkle with oil and salt.  Bake it in the oven till you see the tops of the vegetables browning. I like mine a little smoky so I leave them in till they get black spots. If you like your salsa smoky, add the dried guajillo chili to the roasting vegetables for the last 5 mins.
If you are not planning to roast the dried chili with the vegetables. soak it in warm water for 15-20 mins( longer is ok).
Grind the roasted vegetables with a cup of water( you can also use chicken stock) With chopped cilantro, soaked dried guajillo chili and salt.
Step 2:
Prepare the filling
If you are using the rotisserie chicken, de-skin & de-bone the chicken, you should be left with cooked shredded chicken.
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In a pan heat some oil. Add sliced onions and saute until nicely browned ( I like mine almost caramelized).
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Once the onion are done, add the shredded chicken and sliced bell peppers.
Cook for a few mins, add ‘Fajita seasoning ( see note)’. Â Cook until all the flavors come together. Add chopped cilantro and take it off the heat.
Once the meat mixture is cooled to room temperature, mix in 1 of the the shredded cheese and keep the mixture aside.
Step 3:
Assembly
Take a baking dish. Cover the dish with a thin layer of the sauce to prevent the tortilla from sticking to the dish. Take a plate and pour the rest of the sauce in that plate.
Dip the tortilla in the sauce, flip over to coat both sides.
Spoon heapful of the chicken & cheese mixture on the center.
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Roll it up and arrange the roll on the baking dish.
Finish arranging the rest of the tortillas in the baking dish.
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Cover this with the remaining cup of shredded cheese.
Bake it in a 350F oven till everything heats through and the cheese melts ( about 25-35 mins). If you think that the cheese is melting but the enchilada is n heating through, you can cover the dish with an aluminum foil while baking, take it off during the last 7-10 mins for the cheese to get golden brown.
Serve it with a dollop of ‘fresh crema’!
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Notes:
Vegetarian option: You can make a vegetarian version very easily. I make mine with sliced portobello mushroom, zucchini, carrots. My mom is a pure vegetarian and she loves it.
Spice mix: I Â make my own Mexican seasoning which I use in all mexican dishes like fajita, taco, enchilada and even chili.
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5 Comments
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Welcome
Hola I am Anagha, and welcome to my Kitchen.
I love to eat and hence I love to cook. I love to travel and take pictures.
Ha ha Ana i feel the same about Abbas but it is Afghani family not Mexican. 😀
I would love to learn a few afghani recipes from you Kausar. Please feel free to post those to my FB page https://www.facebook.com/thesaffrontouch
Do u have the recipe for ur Mexican seasoning posted already? If not can you please share the recipe plz
Hi Rashmi, I have not posted that recipe but will do that in the next few days. In the mean time, dotry this recipe with a store bought fajita seasoning.
[…] these lend not only the heat but a nice smoky flavor to the dish. I also use these chilies in the enchilada sauce I […]