Roasted Tomatillo Chicken Enchiladas covered in a luscious sauce and baked to cheesy perfection. This super easy recipe will keep you coming back for more!
If for some reason, somebody told me that I was only allowed to eat these Roasted Tomatillo Chicken Enchiladas every single day for the rest of my life, I don’t think I would complain too much. Does that put into perspective just how much I love these things? They’re homemade enchiladas that are sure to impress your friends and family, and will definitely keep you coming back for a second serving!
CONFESSION TO MY OBSESSION
Hello! My name is Brenda from The Peppery Skillet, and I am so thrilled to be here sharing this recipe with you today! If you follow me on Instagram or Facebook, you can tell that I really love comfort food. These Chicken Enchiladas are the perfect canvas for the cheesy and comforting tomatillo sauce. Don’t just take my word for it— let’s dive into these enchiladas and make ‘em together!
MAKING THE LUSCIOUS SAUCE
Step number one with these enchiladas is to roast the veggies, because they’re going to be blended into a hot, smoky sauce. By roasting them, you get an amazing char on them, and that is going to add more flavor to your meal. My favorite part about this sauce is that the base is only two steps: char and blend. Later, you’ll be adding other ingredients into the mix, but it doesn’t get too much harder than that.
Once your charred vegetables are blended, you’ll add a small portion to a bowl with your shredded chicken and cheese, then the rest of the sauce will go into a warm skillet with some chicken broth. When it’s in the skillet, and after you add the sour cream and some shredded cheese, you will have an overwhelming desire to stick your hands into the sauce— but don’t do it! Save it for the enchiladas! We’re almost finished.
SUPER QUICK TORTILLA TIP
An important rule of thumb when making enchiladas with corn tortillas is that you’ll need to make them soft enough to wrap around your filling without breaking or becoming overly soggy in the oven. Here’s an easy step-by-step for how I did it:
- Grab a small skillet and add about ½ cup of vegetable oil and warm it over medium heat.
- Dip each tortilla, one by one, into the hot oil to the point where they are completely submerged for about 5-7 seconds
- Place them on a paper towel lined plate to get rid of the excess oil.
By quickly submerging the tortillas, or by briefly dipping them in the warm tomatillo sauce, they soften and are easier to roll.
ASSEMBLING THE ENCHILADAS
I like a lot of filling in my enchiladas, so I use about two heaping tablespoons of shredded chicken and cheese mixture. I always add a lot of cheese in my enchiladas, but I wanted to be reasonable on my ingredient list. I’m never going to say you can’t add more cheese than a recipe asks for. Do what makes your heart happy!
Once they’re all rolled up, place them in an oven-safe baking dish and pour alllll of the luscious roasted tomatillo sauce on top. It’ll melt between the enchiladas, and may even find its way inside. Sprinkle more cheese over the top, then bake them until the cheese is melted and the sauce is bubbly. Beautiful things happen when they’re in the oven, I’ll tell you that much!
I’m so passionate about these Roasted Tomatillo Chicken Enchiladas, and I will profess my love for many months to come. I hope this becomes a weekly staple meal in your household. Show these enchiladas some love and tag #thepepperyskillet and #ohsweetbasil in your photos of this delicious meal! Thanks for being here and I hope these enchiladas make all your dreams come true!
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!
Roasted Tomatillo Chicken Enchiladas
Description
Ingredients
For the Roasted Tomatillo Sauce:
- 8-10 to tomatillos, husks removed and rinsed
- 2-3 jalapeños
- 3 cloves garlic , peeled
- 1 onion, small, peeled
- 1/2 cup cilantro, packed
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 cup chicken broth, low sodium
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- 1/2 cup cheese, monterrey jack, shredded
- salt and pepper to taste
For the Enchiladas:
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 1 1/2 cups chicken, shredded
- 10-12 corn tortillas
- 2 cups cheese, monterrey jack, shredded
Instructions
For the Roasted Tomatillo Sauce:
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil. Roast tomatillos, jalapeños, onion and garlic cloves for 30 minutes, flipping midway to avoid excessive charring. Remove from oven and let it cool for 10 minutes. Add roasted ingredients to a food processor with cilantro and spices, and blend until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Reserve 1/2 cup of sauce. Pour the remaining sauce and chicken broth into a large skillet over medium heat. Allow to simmer for 3 minutes. Add shredded cheese and sour cream, and mix well until combined, allowing to simmer for an additional 3 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
For the Enchiladas:
- Lower oven temperature to 350 degrees. In a small skillet, add vegetable oil over medium heat. Once warmed, add one tortilla at a time, leaving submerged for 5-7 seconds. Remove and place on a paper towel-lined plate.
- In a large bowl, combine shredded chicken, 1 cup shredded cheese, and reserved 1/2 cup tomatillo sauce. Add two heaping tablespoons of the mixture to each tortilla, and tightly wrap them and place each in a 9 x 13 baking dish, seam side down.
- Once all enchiladas are wrapped tightly, pour the roasted tomatillo sauce over the prepared baking dish. Sprinkle with remaining 1 cup of shredded cheese and bake for 10-12 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bubbly. Remove from oven and enjoy immediately.
Notes
Nutrition
Recommended Products
DELICIOUS SIMILAR RECIPES
If you’re on the hunt for other delicious recipe ideas, you should try this Chorizo Dip Queso Fundido. You can also check out this family favorite, Slow Cooker Shredded Mexican Chicken. It can feed a crowd and it’s versatile — my favorite way to enjoy it is on top of some nachos! And there’s these Baked Chicken Chimichangas that are so yummy!
Julie
Hi! I made these and loved them. Do you think the sauce could be made in advance and frozen even? I have some tomatillos that need to be used but want to make this when I have more people to serve it to. Thanks!
Sweet Basil
You could freeze the sauce, but it will be a little runnier when you defrost it. So I would just keep that in mind. Good luck!
Cindy
This is SO delicious!!!! Thank you for sharing. This will become a regular in our home!! Yum!
Sweet Basil
Yay! We love to hear that!
Ellen cassidy
The enchiladas look fantastic. However, hubby is NOT a fan of sour cream. Could it be subbed or left out? Thx
Sweet Basil
How about plain greek yogurt? Or if that is still too close to sour cream, I would go with cream cheese!
Cindy
You don’t use much sour cream, so it blends into the sauce.
Sweet Basil
Thanks for the feedback Cindy!
Crystal Reed
Is this a good make ahead and starve the next day meal
Sweet Basil
Hi Crystal! I’m afraid if you make the enchiladas a day ahead of time, the corn tortillas will get soggy. You could definitely make the filling ahead of time and then fill and roll the enchiladas the day you make them.
Florence Arredondo
You can soften your corn tortillas in a tortilla softener made of cloth, found at grocery stores. This way you will avoid the extra oil and calories. Your tortillas will be very pliable and easy to roll.
Sweet Basil
That’s a great tip! Thank you!