Easy Chicken Enchiladas

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This is the first post in a series where I am going to share easy recipes that you can make with a rotisserie chicken, found at your local grocery store. Here in Puerto Rico I can get a pre-cooked, hot-off-the-spit-chicken from Sam’s club for just under $5. I can’t even get a frozen chicken for that price! I have been trying to get creative with how I serve it, so that we do not get burned out on this great money saving dinner staple.

Here is what you will need to make the enchiladas:

1 whole rotisserie chicken with all the meat picked off and shredded. (I buy 2-3 at a time, pick all the meat, vacuum seal and freeze it, so I usually have a packet in my freezer at any given time)
1 pack of 20 (you need 16-18) small tortillas. Use flour or corn, your choice. If you use corn tortillas this recipe is gluten free!
2 cans of your favorite enchilada sauce or one can of enchilada sauce and a can/jar taco sauce.
4 oz Cream cheese softened (half of a standard package)
8 oz bag of shredded cheese, divided into two equal portions.
1 small onion diced finely (optional)

Toppings of your choice: sour cream, salsa, guacamole or diced avocado.

Pre heat your oven to 350 degrees and grease the bottom of your baking dish.

Start off with your shredded chicken in a mixing bowl.

Chicken Enchiladas shredded chicken

Add all of the onion, approximately 1/3 of the enchilada sauce, and half of the shredded cheese to your chicken. Mix well.

Chicken Enchiladas with sauce and cheese mixed

Pour just enough enchilada sauce into the bottom of your baking dish to leave a thin layer. (my baking dish is 9×13)

Chicken Enchiladas sauce in baking dish

Spread approximately 1 tsp of cream cheese onto a tortilla.

Chicken Enchiladas Cream cheese

Fill with desired amount with chicken mixture.

Chicken Enchiladas add chicken mixture to tortillaRoll tortilla and place in baking dish with the seam down so it does not unroll.

Chicken Enchiladas place seam down in dish

Arrange as needed to fill the baking dish.

Chicken Enchiladas in baking dish

Cover with remaining enchilada sauce and top with remaining shredded cheese.

Chicken Enchiladas in baking dish with cheese

Bake at 350 for 45 minutes. Turn up to 400 degrees for last 5 minutes or until the cheese bubbles.

Chicken Enchiladas

Sometimes I make an extra tray of  enchiladas and freeze them.  They turn out great! After placing them in the baking dish, I put them in the freezer for about an hour. I remove the enchiladas and cover with the sauce and return them to the freezer for several hours. After the sauce is frozen, I cover them with foil pressing the foil tight against the top of the food. I do NOT put the cheese on top until I am ready to bake.

I set the frozen enchiladas out at room temperature for several hours then follow the baking instructions above. If you are using a ceramic baking dish (like I am in the photos above)  place the dish into a cold oven then turn the oven on, allowing the dish to warm up slowly will prevent a cold baking dish from shattering when introduced to the heat.

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5.0 from 1 reviews
Easy Chicken Enchiladas
Author: 
Recipe type: Dinner
Cuisine: Mexican
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 6-8
 
Ingredients
  • 1 whole rotisserie chicken with all the meat picked off and shredded.
  • 1 pack small tortillas (you need 16-18) If you use corn tortillas this recipe is gluten free.
  • 2 cans of your favorite enchilada sauce or one can of enchilada sauce and on can/jar taco sauce.
  • 4 oz Cream cheese softened
  • 1 8 oz bag of shredded cheese, divided into two equal portions.
  • 1 small onion diced finely (optional)
  • Toppings of your choice: sour cream, salsa, guacamole or diced avocado.
Instructions
  1. Start off with your shredded chicken in a mixing bowl.
  2. Add all of the onion, approximately ⅓ of the enchilada sauce, and half of the shredded cheese to your chicken. Mix well.
  3. Pour just enough enchilada sauce into the bottom of your baking dish to leave a thin layer.
  4. Spread approximately 1 tsp of cream cheese onto a tortilla.
  5. Fill to desired amount with chicken mixture.
  6. Roll tortilla.
  7. Place in baking dish with the seam down so it does not unroll. repeat with tortillas until chicken mixture is gone, (approximately 16-18 enchiladas)
  8. Arrange as needed to fill the baking dish.
  9. Cover with remaining enchilada sauce and top with remaining shredded cheese.
  10. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes.

 

 

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Comments

  1. Those look really good! I wouldn’t have thought about using precooked chicken to save time on these!

  2. Those look great with the cream cheese inside. Thanks for sharing.

  3. Love easy dinners like this. I make one that is really similar too. Thanks for sharing on Merry Monday. Pinned.

  4. Miss Halyn says:

    Can anyone tell me what size dish this is?

    • Ashley says:

      Miss Halyn,
      That is a 9×13 baking dish. You can use that size or several small ones if that works beat for you. 😉

  5. This looks so good! Pinned. I’m always impressed with your creations. Please join us tonight at 7 pm. I can’t wait to see what you have been working on! http://loulougirls.blogspot.com/
    Happy Monday! Lou Lou Girls

  6. Michelle says:

    Just made this tonight and it was SOOO good!

    • Ashley says:

      Michelle,
      So glad that you guys liked it! It is one of our family favorites now :)

  7. Larry Foster says:

    This was simple and delicious. Great chicken enchiladas!!!

    • Ashley says:

      Larry, Glad that you liked them! It is one of our family favorites that is on our regular dinner rotation.

  8. Hi, where do put the topping of your choice..i.e. last ingredient ?

    • Ashley says:

      I like to have extra toppings sitting on the table or where ever you are serving from so that each person can add what they would like. Mu husband Tavis loves to add diced jalapeños and sour cream to his. I prefer some avocado and a little salsa! :)

  9. Katie says:

    I made these for dinner tonight & thought they were great & my boyfriend loved them.
    My only recommendation is to spray your pan with PAM or use a nonstick cooking pan.
    I added a can of Rotel to the chicken, onion & cheese. Delicious!!

    • Ashley says:

      Kaite, The Rotel sounds delicious!! And I have started spraying my pan with pam or oil before adding the sauce. Thanks for the suggestions!! Ashley

  10. These were amazing! So excited to find an easy recipe that everyone loves!! My only issue was that I had trouble working with the corn tortillas. I could not get them to roll up so I made these into tortilla sandwiches. Thanks so much for sharing!!

    • Ashley says:

      Cookie, I totally agree with you, the corn tortillas can be hard to work with. I usually use flour tortillas and only use corn when we are eating with folks who keep a gluten free diet. How did the enchilada “sandwiches”turn out? Were they hard to eat that way?

      • They turned out great! We just pretended we were eating quesadillas. When I mentioned that I would try flour tortillas next time, my daughter informed me that she does not like flour tortillas (I had no idea!) so it looks as if we will be having a lot of tortilla sandwiches in our future. :)

      • jj says:

        You have to warm the corn tortillas first

      • If you put some enchilada sauce in a pan and warm it and dip your corn tortillas before you try to roll them it makes them more pliable and easy to use. They will be really soft and wont break. :)

  11. emily boyd says:

    my kids loved them your creation is the best they are a life saver

  12. Courtney says:

    I just saw this recipe on here and had to try it! My boyfriend and I ran to the grocery store and bought all the ingredients. It is so easy to make and tastes absolutely delicious ! I love to cook for me and him so it was nice to find an easy and also delicious dinner that is very filling ! Thank you for this recipe. I look forward to trying the honey skillet corn bread next !!!!

    • Ashley says:

      Courtney, SO glad you guys enjoyed it. Let me know how you guys like the Skillet Cornbread. It is great to pair with a shop for a filling meal!

  13. Not a fan of cream cheese, do you need it or substitute with something else??

    • Ashley says:

      Julie, I’m sure it would be fine without the cream cheese, what do you normally use as a substitute? Maybe mix a little sour cream or plain greek yogurt into the chicken mixture? I have not tried either of those options but they would add a creaminess that will now be missing from he ask of cream cheese. It is worth a try. Let me know what you try and how it turns out!! I always love to hear about variations on my favorite recipes!!

  14. meghan says:

    Can you make it without the cream cheese? My hubby doesn’t like cream cheese.

    • Ashley says:

      You can make it without the cream cheese but it might not be quite as flavorful. Does your husband like sour cream? Maybe try spreading a little of that on each tortilla, it will add back in a little creaminess that will be missing from the cream cheese. Let me know if you give it a try!

  15. carolineg203 says:

    I just wanted to let you know that I followed your recipe and made these tonight. They were excellent! And so easy to make. I’ll definitely be saving this recipe and making it again :)

  16. Tara says:

    So if I were going to freeze them, do I freeze before they are cooked? I’d love to make this as a frozen dinner for a gluten free couple going through a hard time!

    • Ashley says:

      Tara, yes you freeze them before you bake them. I freeze them for an hour or so, then pull them out and put the enchilada sauce on the top and return them to the freezer. Letting the tortillas freeze a bit before baking them keeps them from getting soggy. Cover them with foil and freeze. Keep the last of the shredded cheese on the side and tell them to put it on top just before baking. :)

  17. I have made this twice now and both times it was a big hit with the family. The second time I made it with green Enchilada sauce . This is easy and doesn’t cost a lot to enjoy good Mexican food.

  18. elizabeth pierson says:

    we are making this tonight for dinner cant wait to try it!!! thanks for the awesome idea!!

  19. Carrie says:

    I made these tonight and my husband loved them. Is there a balance with the enchilada sauce so the tortilla doesn’t get soggy? I smothered it pretty good so I wonder of I did a little much. Even then my husband was a big fan! Thanks again!

  20. akexia says:

    I’ve made them once before, & they are great! Got some in the oven right now. Thanks for the recipe!

  21. Erica says:

    Love love loved this recipe! Made it tonight for dinner and it was amazing. Thanks for sharing!

  22. My husband was begging me to find a chicken enchilada recipe for months but I never found one I liked until this one. Now he asks for these almost every week!

  23. Felicia Hendricks says:

    Loved this recipe. I’m vegetarian so I used fake meat but it cooked beautifully.

  24. Kat says:

    What size cans of enchilada sauce did you use?

  25. Taylor says:

    I am so excited I found this recipe on Pinterest! I will DEFINITELY be making these this coming week with a side of rice and refried beans. I’m sure it’ll be a HUGE hit with my family!

  26. Amanda says:

    Is it fine if you substitute the cream cheese with sour cream? or does it need to be cream cheese?

    • Ashley says:

      Amanda, You can substitute the sour cream or leave it out all together. I haven’t tried it that way (since i LOVE cream cheese so much…) but I’m sure it will be delicious!!
      Ashley

  27. Danielle says:

    Can you prepare all the toritas the night before and the next day just add the sauce and cook? That way it’s already put together when coming home from work and you basically just pop it in the stove?

    • Ashley says:

      Danielle, Yes you can. If you choose to do that I would grease the bottom of the pan but do not add any enchilada sauce to the bottom. The sauce will make the tortillas soggy. Add the all the sauce to the top before you bake them. Let me know how it turns out!! :)

      • Danielle says:

        I actually prepared the chicken the night before. Put the sauce and all the ingredients with the chicken and kept it in a bowl over night so it was ready the next night for when I came home from work. Then when I was ready to make dinner, I added a little extra sauce to the chicken mixture and proceeded with the recipe the same way. Adding the sauce to the pan and adding all the chicken to the shells and such. Turned out good. Everyone liked!

  28. DeEbony says:

    This looks great and I cannot wait to try this for dinner tonight. Do you add sides with this dish or eat the enchiladas alone?

    • Ashley says:

      I usually serve these by themselves unless I’m feeling really “healthy” then I might serve with a salad. But I bet a side of rice and beans or an appetizer of chips and guacamole would be delicious!!

  29. shamulu says:

    They tasted good, but stuck to the pan so bad, I don’t know if I’ll ever get it clean!

    • Ashley says:

      Glad to hear that you enjoyed them but sorry to hear that they stuck so badly! Did you grease the baking dish first? I grease mine sometimes but not always, there is something about the ceramic that it doesn’t seem to stick to. Hopefully they don’t stick so bad next time!!

  30. I made these tonight and they were a big hit! I actually used queso instead of cream cheese as no one in my family is a big fan of that and it turned out wonderfully! I served with Spanish rice and refried beans. Will be adding this to my regular dinner cook book!

  31. eileenkriordan says:

    This sounds fantastic! I was wondering if you could make a small, but important edit to your recipe though. Rotisserie chicken – particularly store bought – is often NOT gluten free. Seasonings can contain gluten in them (it is used as a de-caking agent) and most rotisserie chickens have seasonings on them. It is a very sneaky way for a Celiac to be “glutened” (I speak from experience). This recipe can be gluten free with plain pre-cooked chicken, which most of your Celiacs or other gluten-intolerant audience may know. But friends of those with gluten issues may not be aware of this and be inadvertently “gluten-ing” their friends at dinner. Thanks!

    A New Celiac

  32. Ivy says:

    Making this for dinner tonight, what do I use the jar taco sauce for?

    • Ashley says:

      Ivy, I like to mix the taco sauce and the enchilada sauce sometimes to change up the flavor. :)

  33. Sam says:

    Did everything like the recipe except I sprayed the bottom of the pan and the enchiladas with olive oil and baked the enchiladas before adding sauce or cheese at 450 for 15 minutes to get them a bit crispy. Then I added the sauce and cheese and baked for 10 more minutes. My daughter, who usually complains about this dish, finished her plate!

  34. Joelle Collins says:

    This is one of my favorite dishes to serve when we have a lot of people over. Everyone always compliments my cooking when I make this. It’s easy to make 1 batch of chicken and 1 batch of ground beef with this recipe too. Thank you for sharing! I don’t change anything.

    • Lisa Grafton says:

      I make enchiladas very similar to this but use green chili enchilada sauce and also make a mixture of cooked rice and black, kidney, or chic peas and put appx. 1/4 to 1)3 cup on tortilla shell then add appx 1/4 cup of the chicken mixture. This not only tastes great but makes the chicken mixture go further.

  35. Yanely Goodman says:

    I’d like to prepare these the night before. I noticed some people have said to freeze them other said to not put the enchilada sauce in the bottom and just put it over the top when ready to bake. What is the best suggestion? If I don’t put the enchilada sauce in the bottom to avoid them getting soggy, is it ok to refrigerate them instead of freeze? I want to prepare the dish the night before, then I work the next day, so when I get home I’d like to pop them in the oven with ease. Let me know what is the best suggestion. Thanks!

    • Eileen Hughes says:

      I’m NOT the best cook & get easily intimidated by complicated recipes – THIS one i’ve probably made TEN TIMES ALREADY because i keep getting ASKED to make it after i’ve brought it somewhere – plus i refer everyone here to get your awesome recipe that has video and pics that really helped me so – I use a bit more cream cheese – they don’t call me Extreme Eileen for nothing – lol – THANK YOU FOR THIS AWESOME RECIPE

  36. Julie H says:

    I made this and it was very delicious and easy- however I was quite upset that my enchiladas stuck to the bottom of the pan even with a layer of sauce on the bottom. I’d like to make it again but will be spraying the bottom of the pan in hopes they don’t stick again!!!

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