Ingredients for Chicken Enchiladas
The ingredients for this recipe are simple, accessible and inexpensive which are things that I’m looking for these days…hello, post Coved and insane inflation! Here is what you will need:
- Honey – adds the perfect natural sweetness to the chicken marinade
- Lime Juice – gives the chicken a little tang
- Chili Powder – for that smoky heat
- Garlic – flavor
- Chicken Breasts – you can cook your own chicken or buy a rotisserie
- Corn Tortillas – warm them up to keep them from breaking. You could also use flour tortillas if you prefer.
- Mexican Cheese Blend – using this blend makes it easy, but you could use Monterrey jack or pepper jack for more heat
- Green Enchilada Sauce – I tend to buy Hatch brand a lot, but you can buy whatever brand is your favorite.
- Heavy Cream – adds so much depth and richness to the sauce
- Cooking Spray – used for warming up the tortillas
- Cilantro – the pop of freshness that every Mexican dish needs imho
You can scroll down to the end of this post to get all the detailed instructions and measurements for all the ingredients. You can also save or print the recipe there.
Are Enchiladas Mexican or Spanish?
Enchiladas originated in Mexico, where the practice of rolling tortillas around other food dates back at least to Maya times.
How Do I Keep Tortillas from Breaking?
In order to avoid having the tortillas break when you’re rolling the enchiladas you will want to heat them up. You can use flour, yellow or white corn tortillas, but we generally like the extra flavor of the corn tortillas.
We either heat them up in a really hot skillet or as the video shows, place in a towel or plastic wrap and microwave until warm. Now quickly work through the meat and cheese placing the enchiladas seam side down in the dish. That’s it!
What Do You Serve With Enchiladas?
Rice and beans are the classic Mexican side dish duo, and they’re ideal for pairing with thick sauces and meaty mains.
My favorite sides with enchiladas are beans, rice & a simple garden salad which has just enough crunch to balance out the whole meal.
Can Enchiladas be Made Ahead of Time?
You can assemble the enchiladas up to two days ahead, cover, refrigerate, and bake them before serving.
How Long Will Chicken Enchiladas Keep in the Fridge?
I would store for up to three days.
If you’re concerned about too many leftovers, throw them in the freezer.
They will last for 1-2 months and you can have yummy enchiladas any time!
If an easy, flavorful and family friendly dinner recipe is what you are looking for, then this honey lime chicken enchiladas recipe checks all the boxes! We are making enchilada fans out of everyone with these babies!
More EASY MEXICAN RECIPES
Looking for more outrageously good Mexican recipes? Here are a few of our faves:
- Restaurant Style Salsa
- Instant Pot or Slow Cooker Pineapple Mexican Shredded Chicken
- Smothered Honey Lime Chicken Burritos
- Instant Pot or Slow Cooker Smothered BBQ Beef Burritos
- Crock Pot Cafe Rio Chicken Copycat
- Our Favorite Steak Fajitas Marinade
- Authentic Carne Asada Tacos
- Crisp Black Bean Vegetarian Tacos
- One-Skillet Enchilada Ground Beef Casserole
- Instant Pot Ground Beef Burrito Bowls
- ALL OF OUR MEXICAN RECIPES!
Honey Lime Chicken Enchiladas
Description
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup honey
- 1/4 cup lime juice, about 2 large limes
- 2 teaspoons chili powder, up to 1 Tablespoon
- 2 large cloves of garlic , finely minced or 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts, about 2 large breasts, cooked and shredded
- 12 corn tortillas
- 2 cups of Mexican cheese blend, shredded (1 small bag usually is 2 cups)
- 1 can green enchilada sauce, 14oz, mild or medium, to your taste
- 1/2 to 3/4 cup heavy cream
- nonstick cooking spray
- 1 Tablespoon of chopped cilantro, to garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Place the cooked and shredded chicken in a medium sized bowl.
- Set aside.
- In a small bowl, place the honey, lime juice, chili powder and minced garlic or garlic powder.
- Whisk together thoroughly to combine.
- Pour this mixture over the chicken and cover with plastic wrap.
- Allow to marinate while you prepare the tortillas, 30 minutes or up to 1 hour, in the refrigerator.
- Heat a large griddle till a drop of water skitters across (about 350 degrees F).
- Spray the surface with non-stick cooking spray or a oil it with a little bit of canola oil in between each round of tortillas.
- Heat tortillas about 20 seconds on each side till warm and flexible and some golden brown spots have appeared.
- Remove the tortillas from the griddle and keep them between a couple of paper towels until ready to use.
- Spray the sides and bottom of a 9x13-inch baking dish lightly with cooking spray.
- In a medium bowl combine the enchilada sauce and the heavy cream.
- Spread about 1/2 cup of the mixture in the bottom of the oiled baking dish.
- Add a large spoonful (about 2 tablespoons) of the chicken mixture to the center of each tortilla in a line.
- Cover the chicken with a large tablespoon (or big pinch) of cheese, then roll the tortilla up from one side to make a rolled enchilada - it will be more of an over lap on the seam side that rolled tightly.
- Place the enchilada seam side down in the baking dish starting at one end with the long edge parallel to the longest side of the pan so that you end up with two columns of six enchiladas each.
- Repeat with the remaining chicken, cheese and tortillas.
- You will use about 1 1/2 cups of the cheese for the filling and set the remainder aside for topping the enchiladas in the pan.
- Add the remaining marinade mixture to the enchilada sauce and cream mixture, if desired.
- Pour this mixture over the top of all the enchiladas.
- Sprinkle with the remaining cheese.
- Bake the enchiladas for 30 to 35 minutes, until the cheese is melted and bubbly and starting to brown on top.
Notes
Nutrition
Recommended Products
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Bean and Cheese Smothered Enchiladas
Simple, classic, meatless enchiladas that even the kids will rave about.
Nicole O’Malley
So delicious!!! I have been making these for years and finally decided to leave a comment so that you know how much we love them. Thank you for the recipe! These are soooo good!
Sweet Basil
Thank you so much Nicole! This is one of our very favorites too!
Callie
These were delicious! They will be my go-to enchiladas recipe from now on! Instead of shredded chicken, I used ground turkey, but still used the honey lime sauce on the meat while cooking. I added a little bit of pre-cooked rice to soak up the juice. Thanks for the recipe!
Sweet Basil
Hi Callie! So glad you enjoyed this recipe and I love how you improvised with the ingredients you already had! Thank you so much for taking time to leave a comment!
Bonnie Johnson
I have been making your enchiladas for years. I love them and they are always a big hit with dinner guests. I want to modify the filling to make it make it vegetarian for a friend. I plan to marinate black beans and sweet potatoes in your marinade ingredients and then follow the recipe as written. Do you think this modification will work? I guess what I am asking is if you think the ingredients will still be complimentary to one another? Thank YOU!
Sweet Basil
Hi Bonnie! Yes, I think that should be great! We do have a sweet potato enchilada recipe if you want to try something different: https://ohsweetbasil.com/sweet-potato-enchiladas-with-sweet-corn/
Enjoy! And let us know how it goes!
Bonnie Johnson
Thanks for your response! I will let you know if my modification works or not. I will also explore your sweet potato enchilada recipe.
Cassie
Made these tonight- very good! Definitely will make again. Thanks Cade & Carrian!
Sweet Basil
Yay! Love to hear it! Thanks for the feedback!
Lori M
My whole family loved the enchiladas. Amazing ! I’ve never been able to find a great enchilada recipe until now! Our family loves it and that’s hard to find a recipe everyone likes. Thank you !!!
Sweet Basil
This is the best news! We love when people find meals the whole family loves! Thanks for taking time to give us some feedback!
Marquee
I made these yesterday and the only change was to use gluten free tortillas. I absolutely love them! By far the best enchilada recipe I’ve ever had! Normally I load mine up with sour cream and guacamole but on these, the flavor is so good that I don’t feel like I need them! Thanks for this recipe!
Sweet Basil
Thank you so much Marquee! These are a favorite in our house for sure! Thanks for taking time to give us some feedback!
Tammy
What brand of green sauce do you use?
Sweet Basil
Hi Tammy, we use hatch or las palmas!
Jamie
These enchiladas are a favorite at our house and have been for years now! I make them at least twice a month if not more and cook it all exactly as the recipe says, using rotisserie chicken. Perfect every time!!!
Sweet Basil
You made my day Jamie! So glad you enjoy these!
Caroline
Hi
I’m wanting to make these ahead of time to give to a friend whose mother passed away. What do you recommend doing? Baking them and then having her reheat? I’d appreciate your suggestions!
Sweet Basil
We make these for grief or babies all the time and I prepare them, wrap the pan in foil and let them bake the whole thing themselves and I’ve found that works best.
TexasGal
Enchilada sauce is phenomenal. Next time I will add more chili powder and lime juice. And I will use less honey. The combination of corn tortillas and honey made it a little too sweet for our tastebuds. Overall a fast, delicious dish using a rotisserie chicken!
Cynthia
The best enchiladas I have ever made! Thank you so much! I hate to cook but these are easy to make and sooooo worth it. Thanks again for helping me.
Sweet Basil
I’m so glad you enjoyed them. Thank you for leaving your kind words!
Pamelpam
I’ve copied this recipe and will definitely make it, but I won’t come back to this site. Way too many obnoxious ads that cover parts of the page. Was difficult to copy recipe and this comment box is half covered so I can’t proofread this before posting. Way too many other options for recipes than to waste my data plan on downloadsof ads that slow the process.
Sweet Basil
Hi Pamela,
You shouldn’t have had that issue as we don’t have ads that should be covering that section or the comment box. Were they popping up? That could be intrusive ads from a previous site that is now spamming you. To be completely honest, we would give anything to totally be rid of ads as we don’t want a single one. Unfortunately they are what pay our bills since this is a 50-60 hour a week job keeping a food blog running. I keep hoping one day… I’m sorry they bothered you and we will certainly look into things. Best of luck and we are so, so sad to lose you. I hope one day you’ll return. xoxo
Karly
As always, so happy I stopped by. These look SO. darn. good. Need to make these soon!
Courtney
Looks amazing!!
How did you cook the chicken if I am not using rotisserie chicken? Thank you!!
Sweet Basil
Hi Courtney, if you use breasts just season with salt and pepper on both sides and bake in a 350 oven for 30 minutes. I like to cover with foil while baking but it’s up to you. Enjoy!
Gloria
Hello! I made the dish last night. I believe I mess up on the tortilla. I placed 1 to 2 table spoons of chicken in the center of the tortilla and added one table spoon of Mexican shredded cheese and rolled tortilla. The chicken was dry after it was cooked in the oven. Did I suppose to add the enchilada sauce and heavy mixture over the chicken and roll tortilla?
Gloria
Sweet Basil
Hi Gloria, you place the chicken and cheese in the tortilla and roll it. Place a little sauce in the bottom of the pan and then add all of the rolled tortillas. Finally, pour all the rest of the sauce over the top and add cheese. The chicken has its marinade and that sauce so it should be very moist.
PoorWilson
Just made this tonight. Man, it is delicious! I thought I was being extra clever using ground chipolte peppers instead of chili powder. I dipped a finger in that marinade and popped it in my mouth and immediately regretted that decision! It was CRAZY HOT! So I knew the kids couldn’t hang and dumped the marinade. I thought I was in the clear… I didn’t have any more limes! Time for a lightning trip to the store. I ended up using about 1.5 tbs of that smokey chipotle pepper.
I also used flour tortillas (i had ’em on hand) and bought some salsa verde from Smith’s. I also forgot to put the cream back in the fridge from some Chicken Picatta last night so I used sour cream instead.
Long story, well, still pretty long… this was AMAZING!
The sweet from the honey added with the tartness from the limes was fantastic. The icing on the enchillada cake was that smokey chipotle.
Everyone ranted and raved. My 4 yo and his bestie asked for seconds… then thirds.
I pinky swear that this is going into the “friggin awesome chicken” recipe box that exists in my head.
Thank you so much for a wonderful and delicious dinner!
Sweet Basil
I love it when the kids ask for more of a recipe! So sorry about the chipolte though, I’ve totally tried that too and it didn’t go over well.
Andrea
You mentioned using Cilantro rice in this recipe. Do you have a link for the rice recipe and do you substitute it for the chicken or add with the chicken. I will be making this next week for the family
Sweet Basil
Here you go! https://ohsweetbasil.com/cilantro-lime-rice-cafe-rio-copycat.html
Cheryl Almas
I’ll have to try these but do not want to use cream, what could I substitute with?
Sweet Basil
Hi Cheryl, You could use coconut milk, or even a thinned out plain yogurt.
Christine
I am making these enchiladas tonight for dinner at the request of my 7-year-old! This is one of our go-to meals during the week. Both of my girls LOVE them, so does my husband!
Sweet Basil
Christine,
Thank you so much for the sweet comment. We love them too! Sometimes we fill them with our cilantro lime rice too which is so good!
Whitney H.
I made this last night with a rotisserie chicken and it was soooo good! I added some cumin powder and red pepper flakes to the chicken mixture. I didn’t have cream so I used some milk. I will make this again and again for my family. Everyone, including my picky 4 year old, really loved this dish. I served a salad with it and it was perfect! The leftovers are just as delicious Thanks!
Sweet Basil
That’s awesome!! I’m so glad to hear it. You can add our cilantro lime rice inside too and that’s so yummy!
Amanda
I had this pinned for months and tried it tonight! It was a HUGE hit amongst my husband, father, mother, and brother. It’s getting added to our staple family recipes! Thank you!
Sweet Basil
YAhoooo!!! I’m so glad!
swalady
These sound amazing but my hubby is allergic to honey. Is there a substitute that you would recommend?
Sweet Basil
Oh darnit! That’s too bad. You could just do sugar, brown sugar or even half the amount of agave if you like agave.
Helen Payne
I love to cook, but I believe these were the best thing I have ever made! My husband loved them, and he is a very finicky eater.
Sweet Basil
Yay!!! I am going to call that a win! Thanks for taking the time to comment, Helen. It means so much to us!
Marianne Pernick
Looks wonderful, but 1 hour/15 minutes prep???? Not in my lifetime can/will I spend that much time .
Sweet Basil
That’s just because you have to cook the chicken. This is easily resolved if you buy a rotisserie chicken and use that. 🙂 Then it’s just wrapping and baking!
Gloria Armbruster
Thank you for sharing your talent for people like me.
I’m up in age now & don’t cook very much any more but your recipe sounds pretty easy & luscious. HNY to you and your family. By the way
when I use corn tortillas (which I love) they fall apart.
What’s the secret?
Gloria Armbruster
Sweet Basil
Hi Gloria,
The trick is to use very high heat when making the tortillas soft. Because they are baked with juices you’ll still have them break a bit out of the pan though.
LINDA BUTLER
If you make your own green sauce, oh my, it will taste better all the way around, oh so much better, and I make my own tortilla’s too, I have not found a canned green sauce I like, home made is so worth it. try it
Sweet Basil
Linda, I haven’t found a green sauce recipe I love yet. Where did you find yours? I’ve been thinking of canning it if I find a good recipe.
Beverly B
A friend of min gave me your website. Are you on Pinterest?
Sweet Basil
yup, http://www.pinterest.com/ohsweetbasil
Bambi Borkowski
Absolutely delicious!! The only thing I might change next time is the amount of honey for a little less sweetness. I cooked the chicken breast in my nesco with a little water in the bottom and some chopped garlic for additional flavor. Used flour tortillas and fried them just a little before stuffing.
Sweet Basil
ok, totally googling what a nesco is!
Bambi Borkowski
For you younger gals, a Nesco is a roaster.
Elmer Young
wow those were the best
Sara
These were so delicious, they were a big hit at our last party. Making them again, and wanted to make extra to freeze…what’s the best way to freeze them? Without the sauce on top, I would imagine?
Sweet Basil
Just in case anyone else wants to know, you can freeze them if you tightly wrap with saran wrap and foil, but cream tends to separate so I usually play it safe and add the sauce on top and then cheese once I’m ready to bake.
Maggie
These were great! Just made them tonight. I loved the sweetness of the chicken mixed in with all the spicyness!! I added Spanish rice in the enchiladas as well as a can of diced tomatoes and green chilis. Yummy! This is a keeper.
Sweet Basil
That sounds delicious with the extra mix ins!
Melissa
Im planning on making Enchiladas this weekend, …Im missing a few of the ingredients needed for your recipe – but I’ve pinned it to make very Soon! =)
Looks awesome!!
Jen
These were so amazingly good!!!!
Jenny
I made these two nights in a row for a potluck and family dinner. It was so delicious and everyone loved it! I served the enchiladas with Spanish rice and a side of sweet corn salsa with lime juice, cilantro, red onion and jalapenos.
Sweet Basil
sweet corn salsa?! Do share!! That sounds amazing!
Erika@BeBookBound
I made these tonight and EVERYONE loved them (INCLUDING the toddler)! This is a keeper!
Sweet Basil
If a toddler loved it, well you all should celebrate with cookies! That’s such a big deal! We never know if our toddler is going to eat what we make or not. Even when it’s something she’s enjoyed before!!
Lynsey K
I found this recipe on Pinterest a few weeks ago. I made them for dinner this past Monday (today is Wednesday) and my husband wants me to make them again for dinner….this week!
in his words: “the corn tortillas really brought the enchiladas home”
BIG hit! printed and put in my family recipe binder.
thank you! I cannot wait to try more of your recipes!
Sweet Basil
I’m soglad! We totally feel the same about the corn tortillas. They give a whole new flavor to the dish.
Jennifer
These are amazing! My husband loves them; he has it on the very short list of his favorite foods that I make.
Sweet Basil
THat makes me so happy!!! I happen to adore them as well.
Danica
I made with flour tortillas, and I doubled the recipe to freeze so we have ready to go food after our baby comes!
Karaline
@ Elizabeth, i boiled it and then shredded it.
that being said, these are fabulous! i put in a teaspoon of cummin and used sour cream instead of heavy cream in the sauce. i love these things!
Elizabeth
How did you cook the chicken? I'm debating what the best method would be for this.
Margret
We tried these last Sunday and they were a “HITT” in our home…we actually dont care for anchiladas and loved them:)
Margret
Made these last Sunday and they were a “HITT” at our house…loved them and we actually don't care for enchuiladas:)
micah, danielle, sophie, and angus
These were wonderful! My husband said it was a sweet little surprise while still having that mexican kick. This is a permenant recipe for our family. Thanks!
Aggie
Thank you for the kind comments on my blog! 😉
I haven’t made enchiladas in a while…I love the flavors in this one! They look great!
FREE CHEAP OR A REALLY GOOD DEAL!
okay….yum-o! These were really good! I made them with whole wheat tortillas instead of corn tortillas because that is what i had! Thanks they were great!
Cameron Family
I tried this recipe and loved it! The chicken has the best flavor! I used flour tortillas though because it was what I had on hand! Thanks for another great recipe!
Matt and Jill
Yum! Those look so good. I’m going to have to try them! I love that checking your blog has become my own personal cookbook. Thanks!
Cafe Johnsonia
These enchiladas are going to take over the world.
I made them last Sunday and then again on Tuesday. I love them.