The Easiest Green Enchiladas Recipe

These cheesy green enchiladas are loaded with taco-seasoned shredded chicken, sour cream, green chiles, and plenty of cheese for a quick and easy weeknight dinner your family will love!

 

Ingredients and Substitutions

• Seasoned Shredded Chicken: I love to use my instant pot shredded chicken for these enchiladas because it’s so quick and easy. You can also use my slow cooker shredded chicken recipe too! If you’re looking for a shortcut you can shred rotisserie chicken and combine it with 1/2 a cup of your favorite salsa and a tablespoon of my chicken taco seasoning (which is made with oregano, garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, chili powder, and salt). These enchiladas can also be made with ground beef, black beans, refried beans, or even seafood!
• Mild Green Chiles: Mild green chiles add a delicious flavor without adding heat. You can skip them if you don’t have any on hand or dice up some jalapenos (without the ribs or seeds) or red bell pepper instead.
• Green Enchilada Sauce: Use your favorite brand of store-bought green enchilada sauce for this recipe.
• Sour Cream: Use full-fat sour cream for the best flavor and texture. You can substitute with Greek yogurt if you prefer but it likely won’t give that same creamy texture to the filling.
• Small Flour Tortillas: I usually use fajita-size flour tortillas for these enchiladas. Soft taco-size flour tortillas will work as well.
• Colby Jack Cheese: Colby jack cheese is my go-to for these, but you can use Monterey jack cheese, a Mexican blend, or cheddar cheese. Remember that pre-shredded cheese is coated in cellulose to prevent it from clumping which can also prevent it from melting. So the best bet is to grab a block and shred it at home.
• Fresh Cilantro: I love to garnish these enchiladas with fresh cilantro. Don’t use just the cilantro leaves though, be sure to finely chop the stems too – they have the most flavor!

How to Make Green Enchiladas

Cook chicken breast along with salsa and taco seasoning in the instant pot using my simple recipe. Shred chicken with two forks, drain any extra liquid from the chicken and combine it with 1/2 a cup of sour cream, and a couple pinches of Kosher salt and black pepper in a medium bowl.

Add a scoop of the shredded chicken mixture to the flour tortillas, top with 2-3 tablespoons of shredded cheese, and roll them up.

Place seam side down in a baking dish. Repeat with remaining tortillas.

Pour enchilada sauce over the rolled-up tortillas and sprinkle with the remaining cheese.

Cover tightly with tin foil and bake for 25 minutes or until the sauce is bubbly around the edges. Remove foil and broil if desired. Garnish with fresh chopped cilantro and serve with sour cream.

Make Ahead Instructions

The best part about this recipe is that you can make it up to 24 hours in advance!

• Assemble enchiladas following the recipe instructions, but before adding the enchilada sauce and shredded cheese on top, cover the enchiladas with foil or saran wrap and refrigerate for up to 24 hours.
• An hour before you’re ready to bake, remove the enchiladas from the fridge and let them sit on the counter for an hour to come to room temp.
• Then top with enchilada sauce and shredded cheese. Bake according to recipe instructions but plan to add a bit of extra baking time to account for the cold temperature.
• Once the sauce is bubbly and the enchiladas are warmed through you can broil if desired, garnish, and enjoy!

The Best Way to Cook Chicken for Enchiladas

• My favorite way to cook the shredded chicken for these green enchiladas is to use my instant pot chicken recipe or my slow cooker chicken recipe. They’re basically the same thing but one cooks super quickly in the instant pot and the other cooks low and slow in the crock pot.
• The best part is that if you’re using my instant pot shredded chicken you can even cook the chicken from frozen! You just have to increase the cooking time by a few minutes. You can find all the details here.
• You can also grab a rotisserie chicken from the grocery store, shred it and combine it with 1/2 a cup of salsa and a tablespoon of my chicken taco seasoning.
• This is a great recipe for using up leftover grilled chicken from the backyard barbecue, too! Dice up the leftover chicken and add 1/ 2 a cup of salsa and a tablespoon of chicken taco seasoning.

Tips

• If you’re looking for a way to make this a more well-rounded meal, try spreading an even layer of microwave Mexican rice over the bottom of the pan before you add the enchiladas and sauce. I like to use the microwave pouches of pre-made rice for ease. Instead of microwaving it, you can add it to the bottom of the enchiladas and it will heat up right along with your enchiladas. If you follow me on Instagram, you will see that I make my enchiladas this way almost every time!
• Add as much or as little cheese as you like. I typically use at least 8 ounces of cheese but sometimes will add a bit extra on top and might use closer to 12 ounces.
• The number of enchiladas you’re going to get will depend on how much filling you put in each tortilla and how large your tortillas are. We usually use fajita-size flour tortillas and I’ll end up with about 10 enchiladas. If you’re using soft taco-size tortillas, you’ll end up with less. If you want to stretch them a bit further, put less filling in each one. If you want fewer enchiladas, add some extra filling to each of the tortillas.

Variations

Feel free to add all your favorites to these enchiladas. From veggies to spices to other proteins – these enchiladas are super versatile. Here are some of our family’s favorites:

• black beans
• pinto beans
• diced tomatoes
• diced jalapeno
• a squeeze of fresh lime juice
• shredded turkey
• ground beef
• ground chicken

Can you use corn tortillas for this recipe?

Sure! I like to use flour tortillas because we typically have those on hand for cheesy gordita crunches, crunch wrap supremes, or cheesy quesadillas. But you can totally use corn tortillas in place of the flour tortillas for these green enchiladas, especially if you’re looking for a gluten-free option. Just be sure to warm up the corn tortillas before trying to roll them up. Add about 10 corn tortillas to a microwave-safe plate and cover them with a damp paper towel. Cook in the microwave for 30-45 seconds or until the tortillas are warmed through. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and keep them covered as you fill each tortilla one at a time.

What are green enchiladas made of?

These easy cheesy green enchiladas are made with shredded chicken, sour cream, plenty of shredded cheese, and green chiles wrapped in flour tortillas and smothered in green enchilada sauce and more cheese.

Is green enchilada sauce the same as salsa verde?

While the two are somewhat similar when it comes to ingredients, the big difference is that green enchilada sauce is cooked while salsa verde is not. They are going to give you different flavors so I don’t recommend substituting one for the other.

What’s the difference between green and red enchiladas?

Red and green enchiladas use a lot of the same ingredients, so the main difference is the chiles that are used to make them. Green enchiladas use a green sauce that is made from green chiles, while red enchiladas use a red sauce made from red chiles. 

Why are my enchiladas soggy?

I have a serious aversion to soggy foods, which is why instead of coating the tortillas in enchilada sauce and then rolling them, I prefer to pour the enchilada sauce over the rolled enchiladas. I find that this makes them much less soggy. If you follow my suggestion n the “Recipe Tips” section of this post and add a layer of Mexican rice to the bottom of the pan of enchiladas, I find that this prevents the enchiladas from getting soggy as well because the sauce has somewhere to go instead of pooling at the bottom of the pan.

Storage, Freezing, and Reheating

• Storage: Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week. Note that the enchilada sauce may make the tortillas soggy so I love to reheat them in the air fryer at 400 degrees so they get a little bit crispy on the oustide.
• Freezing: To freeze enchiladas, make as instructed and wrap them in plastic wrap and then place in freezer-safe bags. Freeze for up to three months. Thaw overnight in the fridge and then let sit out on the counter for about an hour before baking. Plan to add some extra baking time to account for the cold temperature.
• Reheating: Reheat enchiladas by transferring them back into a casserole dish or large skillet. Bake in a 350 degree oven until warmed through.

Serve With

• Homemade Fried Tortilla Chips
• 5 Ingredient Blender Salsa
• Roasted Tomato Salsa
• Avocado Cream Sauce
• Creamy Chipotle Sauce
• Creamy Street Corn Dip
• Smoked Queso Dip

More Easy Family Dinner Recipes

Print