Chicken Enchiladas Rojas with Homemade Enchilada Sauce
Delicious Enchiladas Rojas stuffed with chicken and smothered in a homemade enchilada sauce. As close to traditional as you can get– with an easier (and less messy) assembly method! Serve with your favorite toppings and some Mexican side dishes I’ve gathered for you!
Servings: 6
Ingredients
- 2 large bone-in skin-on chicken breasts about 1 ¾ pounds+ or 4 cups cooked, shredded chicken meat (or you can use the recipe for Slow Cooker Chicken Tacos on my site)
- ½ small onion peeled
- 4 large garlic cloves smashed
- 1 Tablespoon additive-free kosher salt like Diamond Crystal
Sauce
- 12 dried Guajillo chiles* washed, stems and seeds removed, chiles torn into 2-inch pieces
- ½ small onion divided
- 2 cloves garlic
- 4 Roma tomatoes or en equivalent amount of jarred tomatoes
- 1 teaspoon sea salt plus more to taste especially if your stock is unsalted
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil plus a little for greasing pan
- 1 cup chicken or vegetable stock preferably homemade
- chili powder to taste if necessary
- 12 corn tortillas or you can use flour if you prefer
- grated cheese if desired, such as Monterey Jack and cheddar or queso fresco
- optional toppings: sliced avocado cilantro, sliced scallions
Instructions
- To poach chicken: Place the chicken in a saucepan with the onion, garlic and salt and add water to cover. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce heat to low, cover and simmer until the chicken is cooked through, about 25 minutes. Allow chicken to cool in the poaching liquid. Remove the chicken from the saucepan. Remove skin and bones and shred the meat.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Place the dried chiles in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil, lower to a simmer and cook for about 10 minutes, or until very soft. Drain. (Do NOT use this soaking liquid -- it's very bitter.)
- Place the soaked chiles in a blender with half of the onion, garlic, tomatoes and 1 teaspoon sea salt. Process until smooth.
- Thinly slice the remaining onion. Heat a skillet over medium heat and warm the olive oil. Add the onion and sauté for a few minutes, or until just tender. Add the chile mixture and stock to the pan and simmer 15 minutes or until flavors deepen. Taste for seasoning and add chili powder and/or sea salt to taste if necessary. Because my stock is unsalted, I always add an extra 1/4-1/2 teaspoon salt. Blend with a hand blender, if desired. This mellows out the sauce a little, but you don't have to do it.
- In the meantime, warm the tortillas on a griddle or skillet on both sides until softened. Keep warm in a cotton kitchen towel.
- Lightly grease the bottom and sides of a 13 x 9-inch or 12 x 8-inch baking dish with olive oil. Spoon about ½ cup of the sauce over the shredded chicken and toss. You can also mix in some shredded cheese with the chicken if you want.
- Place about 1/3 cup of chicken down the middle of a tortilla and roll tightly. Place seam-side down in the baking dish. Repeat with each tortilla. Cover all the rolled tortillas with remaining sauce. Sprinkle with grated cheese, if desired. Cover and bake until heated through and cheese is melted, about 15-20 minutes. If you want the cheese to brown, put back in oven uncovered for another 5 minutes. Serve immediately with chopped cilantro, diced tomatoes, sliced green onions and sour cream or cashew cream.
Notes
- I've never tried this, but if you can't find Guajillo chiles, I am thinking you can try using 3 Tablespoons of chili powder instead.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3-4 days. Reheat gently in the microwave or oven.
- To freeze, let the enchiladas cool completely. Transfer them (without garnishes) to a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and warm in the oven at 350 degrees F for about 20-25 minutes until warmed through. Garnish and serve!