Chicken Enchiladas are one example. I give credit to my friend Kacie who introduced me to homemade enchiladas - I probably would have never made these on my own! And my college friend Steph gave me the perfect recipe for homemade tortillas. I've tried several others, but none of them compare!
Mmm!! Here's your ingredient list:
Chicken Enchiladas
1 lb chicken breast
1 small jar of salsa
1 packet of taco seasoning
1 large can enchilada sauce
2-3 cups cheese
tortillas
This recipe allows the flexibility for your preferences. I used mild salsa and enchilada sauce with Ortega taco seasoning, but you can use anything you'd like! The cheese can be cheddar, cheddar/jack, or a mexican blend, or some other combination you love.
Homemade Tortillas
2.5 cups flour
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
1 tsp salt
1 cup of water (Warmed in microwave for 45 seconds)
Prep is pretty simple. To get that great, shredded chicken effect, put the chicken in the crock pot. Pour in a packet of taco seasoning and about a cup of water. Cover the chicken with salsa. I used only half a jar of the salsa. Make sure the chicken is entirely covered by either liquid or salsa. Let it cook on low for 5-6 hours.
If you want to make homemade tortillas, you can do that about an hour before the chicken is ready. Combine the 2.5 cups of flour (I did a blend of one cup all purpose, one cup bread, and a half cup whole wheat) with the shortening, salt and warm water. Mix it together until it's moist, but not sticking to your hands. Let it sit for 15 minutes while you warm a skillet. Then take slightly larger than golf ball-sized pieces of dough and roll to 1/4" thick. You can decide how big or little to make your tortillas once you see how the first one rolls out. If your tortillas are sticking badly, you can add a little more flour as you roll them out. Place on the skillet and cook for 20-45 seconds each side. The tortilla will start to bubble when it is ready to flip. Place on a cooling rack to cool.
Next, remove the chicken from the crock pot and shred into smaller pieces. You can return it to the sauce to simmer for another 30 minutes and pick up more flavoring. I personally don't like the big chunks of onion and peppers in salsa so I kept my chicken in larger pieces and after the 30 minutes I shredded it further. I then took some of the liquid out of the crock pot and poured it on the chicken for more flavor. I took just enough to moisten the chicken, but not drown it.
Now you are ready to mix in about a cup of cheese and half the enchilada sauce with the chicken. You'll have a gooey, but delicious mess. Pour a thin layer of the enchilada sauce in the bottom of a 13x9 pan. Place a heap of the chicken mixture into the tortilla and roll it up, placing the fold side down into the sauce. Repeat until you run out of tortillas or space. I was able to fill six tortillas with quite a large amount of chicken in each. Then top off the tortillas with cheese and enchilada sauce. I used the rest of the can of sauce, but it may have been slightly too much. Use your judgement. Bake in the oven at 350 for 30 minutes, until the cheese is melted. Serve and enjoy!!
I LOVE this recipe. And this was my first time making it with homemade tortillas. I will never use store-bought again! The homemade tortillas are thicker and simply taste better. And honestly, they don't take too long to make, especially if you had someone to help you cook them. It is well worth the effort. Tortillas can also be made ahead of time and frozen if needed. Also, once the enchiladas cook in the sauce, the homemade tortillas hold up better than the store-bought ones, which get very mushy.
I will take more pictures next time I make this and edit this post for the recipe index :)
If you try this recipe, let me know how it turns out!
Readers: what is one of your favorite go-to recipes? Are you a mild, medium, or hot salsa fan?
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