Cheesy Chicken Enchiladas

Tender chicken, melty cheese, and an easy homemade enchilada sauce.

Course Dinner

Cuisine Mexican

Prep Time 1

Cook Time 30

Total Time 50

Servings

Calories 575kcal

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 cup chicken 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 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs
2 tablespoons cilantro chopped
12 corn tortillas
16 oz Colby-jack cheese shredded
sour cream for serving

Instructions

In a large skillet, sauté onions and jalapeño over medium low heat until onions start to soften and turn translucent, 4-5 minutes. Stir in garlic and cook 1 minute more. Increase heat and add chicken broth, tomato sauce, chili powder, sugar, cumin, salt, and pepper to pan and stir to combine. Add chicken thighs and bring to a simmer. Once sauce starts to simmer, cover and reduce heat to medium low. Let simmer covered 15-20 minutes or until chicken thighs are cooked through. Timing will vary depending on size of chicken thighs. Ideal internal chicken thigh temperature for best texture is 175° to 185℉.
Remove chicken from sauce and set aside to rest. Let sauce simmer uncovered until reduced by 1/3. Once sauce has reduced, taste and adjust salt and pepper as needed. Stir in 2 tablespoons of chopped fresh cilantro.
Meanwhile in a second smaller skillet, lightly fry corn tortillas individually in hot vegetable oil. Tortillas should still be pliable for rolling. Set tortillas aside with paper towels between each layer. Once chicken is cool, use two forks to shred and set aside to be used for enchiladas.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees and spray a 9x13 baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
To assemble enchiladas, start by adding 1/2 cup of enchilada sauce to the bottom of a 9x13 baking pan. Evenly divide chicken into each of the tortillas, then divide 1/2 of shredded cheese between all 12 enchiladas, add about two tablespoons of sauce to each enchilada, roll, and place seam side down in baking dish. Pour remaining enchilada sauce over rolled enchiladas and top with remaining cheese.
Cover dish with foil and bake at 400 degrees for 20-30 minutes, or until heated through and hot and bubbly. Uncover and broil 2-3 minutes on high to brown cheese. Sprinkle with additional fresh cilantro and serve with sour cream.

Nutrition