Ground Beef Enchiladas Recipe

These Ground Beef Enchiladas are so tasty and easy, you’ll never go back to canned enchilada sauce. Corn tortillas filled with flavorful ground beef, melty cheese and a killer homemade red enchilada sauce.

Beef Enchiladas Made Simple

This beef enchilada recipe is really so simple, that you might have all the ingredients you need already on hand. Start with a pound of extra lean good quality ground beef. I prefer to sauté the onions and jalapeños, then add the garlic just before adding the ground beef. This brings out the flavors of the aromatics. A small amount of sugar balances the acidity of the tomato sauce.

How to Make Beef Enchiladas – Time Saving Tip!

Prepare as much as you can ahead, dice and shred and have everything laid out. Once you have everything prepared, set up an assembly line to make the enchiladas. In this enchilada recipe, the beef and sauce is cooked together in one pot. For assembly, rather than separating the meat and the enchilada sauce, I use a slotted spoon to spoon the meat mixture into each tortilla, then top with cheese and roll. Once the beef has been evenly divided into the tortillas, use the remaining sauce in the pan to top the enchiladas and bake.

Good Quality Spices and Fresh Herbs

I love the flavor of cilantro, but if you don’t you can certainly skip it. For freshness, try chopped fresh parsley instead. I also like the extra flavor of smoked paprika in this recipe, but you can substitute regular paprika as well.

Frying the Tortillas for Enchiladas

In a small frying pan, lightly fry tortillas in a shallow amount of vegetable or canola oil. You just want the tortillas to be soft and pliable, not crispy. Lightly frying the corn tortillas prevents them from getting soggy once you bake the enchiladas. The oil acts as a barrier and keeps tortillas from absorbing too much liquid from the sauce.

Beef Enchiladas Recipe

The best part of this recipe is that it’s easily doubled or tripled. It’s a great dinner to make and take. Make one for home and one for a friend or neighbor. These beef enchiladas freeze really well too! Just assemble, let cool completely, cover tightly and freeze.

5 from 12 votes

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Ground Beef Enchilada Recipe

Prep Time

30 mins

Cook Time

20 mins

Total Time

50 mins

 

Seasoned ground beef, melty cheese and an easy homemade enchilada sauce.

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: Mexican

Servings: 6

Calories: 565 kcal

Author: Melissa

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil plus additional for frying tortillas
• 1/2 cup onion finely diced
• 1 jalapeno minced and seeds removed
• 4 cloves garlic minced
• 1 pound 93/7 lean ground beef
• 1 cup beef broth low sodium
• 2 8 oz cans tomato sauce good quality
• 2 tablespoons chili powder
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons cilantro chopped
• 12 corn tortillas
• 16 oz Colby-jack cheese shredded
• sour cream for serving

Instructions

1. In a large skillet, sauté onions and jalapeño over medium low heat until onions start to soften and turn translucent, 2-3 minutes. Stir in garlic and cook 1 minute more. Increase heat and add ground beef to skillet and brown until cooked through. Add beef broth, tomato sauce, chili powder, sugar, cumin, salt and pepper to pan and stir to combine. Let simmer over low heat for 10 minutes or until sauce has reduced slightly. 

2. Meanwhile in a second smaller skillet, lightly fry corn tortillas in hot vegetable oil. Tortillas should still be pliable for rolling. Set tortillas aside with paper towels between each layer. Once sauce has reduced slightly, stir in 2 tablespoons of chopped fresh cilantro.

3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and spray a 9x13 baking dish with non stick cooking spray.

4. To assemble enchiladas, start by adding 1/2 cup of enchilada sauce mixture in bottom of baking pan. Use a slotted spoon to evenly divide meat mixture into each of the tortillas, then divide 8 oz of cheese between all 12 enchiladas, roll and place seam side down in baking dish. Pour remaining enchilada sauce over rolled enchiladas and top with remaining cheese.

5. Cover dish with foil and bake at 400 degrees for 20-30 minutes, or until heated through and hot and bubbly. Sprinkle with additional fresh cilantro and serve with sour cream.

Nutrition Facts

Ground Beef Enchilada Recipe

Amount Per Serving

Calories 565 Calories from Fat 288

% Daily Value*

Fat 32g49%

Saturated Fat 19g119%

Cholesterol 119mg40%

Sodium 1114mg48%

Potassium 569mg16%

Carbohydrates 31g10%

Fiber 5g21%

Sugar 4g4%

Protein 38g76%

Vitamin A 1740IU35%

Vitamin C 4.4mg5%

Calcium 588mg59%

Iron 3.9mg22%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.