This is a super easy, quick fix for dinner. I made the basic version with just chicken, pasta, sauce, and cheese, but you could get really creative with the add-ins. Try black beans, corn, green chiles, or anything else that usually goes good in enchiladas. I’m sure you could even make this into a delicious vegetable enchilada pasta, too! Sauté up some squash and other veggies instead of the chicken and you’re good to go!
I used homemade enchilada sauce, which only takes a few minutes to make, tastes better, and costs much less than store bought. Of course, you could always use canned instead, but at least check out the recipe because it’s super easy. You could also use shredded rotisserie chicken for this if you don’t have chicken breasts.
I got a couple of good deals that also helped keep the price of the recipe low. 1) This is chicken that I had in my freezer from when it was on sale for less than $2 per pound. 2) The pasta was on sale $1/lb. Both of those ingredients are things you can stock up on when they’re on sale and then save for later. Always keep your eyes open for deals like that when you’re in the store because taking advantage of them will save you a lot in the long run. You just have to remember to actually use it later ;)
Chicken Enchilada Pasta
Chicken Enchilada Pasta
Servings 6Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp vegetable oil ($0.10)
- 1 medium yellow onion ($0.28)
- 2 cloves garlic ($0.16)
- 1 lb chicken breast ($1.95)
- 1 cup enchilada sauce** ($0.40)
- 1/2 cup sour cream ($0.40)
- 12 oz uncooked pasta ($0.75)
- 1 cup shredded monterrey jack ($1.22)
- 2-3 whole green onions ($0.19)
Instructions
- Dice the onion and mince the garlic. Cook both in a large skillet over medium heat with vegetable oil until soft and transparent (about five minutes). Meanwhile, slice the chicken into thin strips. Add the chicken to the skillet and cook until no longer pink (5-7 minutes).
- Make the enchilada sauce or warm up canned enchilada sauce. Whisk in the sour cream. Set aside. Shred the monterrey jack cheese (if not shredded already) and slice the green onions.
- Cook the pasta according to the package directions and then drain well in a colander. Combine the pasta, sauce, and chicken mixture either in the skillet (if it’s big enough) or in the pasta cooking pot. Taste to see if you want more salt or other seasonings. Sprinkle with shredded cheese and sliced green onions. Serve warm.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Notes
Nutrition
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Step By Step Photos
Cook the onions and garlic in a skillet with vegetable oil until softened.
Slice the chicken into thin strips. Thinner than you’d think. The smaller the pieces, the more you’ll have in every bite.
Add the chicken to the onions and garlic, then cook until no longer pink.
Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to the package directions and then drain well.
Either make some enchilada sauce using this recipe (make a half recipe), or warm up some canned enchilada sauce. Whisk in the sour cream.
Shred the Monterrey jack cheese and slice the green onions. Monterrey jack is perfect for this dish because it’s nice and creamy.
Finally, combine the cooked and drained pasta with the chicken and sauce. You can do this in the skillet if it’s big enough, or in the pot that you cooked the pasta in. Either way, have the heat turned off or just on it’s lowest setting to keep it warm. Taste the mixture to see if you want more salt or other seasonings.
Sprinkle on the cheese and sliced onions and let the residual heat melt the cheese. Serve warm!
Yeah, the more I think about it, the more I wish I would have added some black beans! Yum!
This looks so good! I love your recipes. I’m going to try it with ground beef because that’s what I have on hand.
Love a dish that I can customize based on what I have! I admit I made a lot of substitutions on this, just so that I wouldn’t have to go to the store or defrost chicken, but it still turned out! I took a tip from another commenter and did pinto beans instead of chicken. I just added them in with the veggies to heat up. I had a bell pepper and some grape tomatoes in the fridge that needed to get used, so I added those to the skillet. I also added a can of diced green chiles. And all I had was shredded cheddar, so I used that instead of monterrey jack. I’m sure it would be better as written, but it was still yummy, and sometimes you just have to use what you have.
Beth, you’ve done it again! I’m scheduled to work 4-12 hr night shifts starting tonight. I needed to prep some lunches to avoid the ol’ PB&J or Cup Noodle plan I too often fall back on. I had all of the ingredients (minus the can of enchilada sauce- I made your recipe, YUM!) on hand so I even avoided a trip to the store. This was made at 10am and I couldn’t help but have a sneak peek into my work lunches this week. SO delicious! Thank you for rescuing me once again!
You’re amazing Kristi! Thank you!
The link for the enchilada sauce appears to be broken in the recipe. Just wanted to let you know :).
https://www.budgetbytes.com/red-enchilada-sauce/
Thanks for letting me know! I’ll fix it. :)
I had some of your recipe of red enchilada sauce in my fridge that I wanted to use, and I found this! I used a package of pre-cooked trader joe’s Carnitas that I shredded and crisped up while sauteeing the onions and garlic. I also threw in a small can of green chiles, and I used full fat yogurt instead of sour cream! It turned out so good! It’s a very adjustable recipe.
A lot of your other recipes have become my staples, and I’m glad I took a chance on this. I have gotten into the habit of searching for random ingredients I have on hand on your site & app! It’s a great database of recipe ideas. Thanks so much for all of your hard work!
Thank you, Amy!
This was really good, but the enchilada sauce was so spicy. (not a bad thing for us) I substituted pinto beans for the chicken since I made a large batch earlier in the week. I also threw in a whole bundle of green onions and used mature cheddar instead of the Monterrey jack cheese. We will definitely make this again in the future.
I made this tonight without the sour cream (also not a sour cream fan) and it works great! SO delicious! I will be making enchiladas tomorrow with the rest of this sauce! Thanks so much Beth! I just wanted to say that I keep making your recipes and they have all been turning out so great that I feel like a real cook now. I feel so encouraged to keep cooking, and I have saved my husband and I so so much money (probably over 100 in the last month (we were horrible food wasters)). I just bought your cookbook, thank you for everything! xoxo
I’m thinking of making this recipe, but I do have a question. Am I able to reduce the sour cream? My hubby and child are just not keen on sour cream (I happen to love it.) But am wondering if it even really has a sour cream taste to it. Thanks. :)
I think you could easily reduce it to 1/4 cup or even just leave it out and the dish would still be delicious. :) That enchilada sauce is really good by itself, so I think that could carry the dish on its own.
As a novice just trying out a few recipes, this one went off almost perfectly. Put in some minced jalapenos with the onions and garlic, added some roasted corn at the end, turned out lovely. Got a bit frantic when I was trying to do multiple things at once, but that’s more on my own inexperience. Definitely making this again.
Great and easy recipe. I’d recommend salting the chicken while cooking. I substituted sour cream for cooking cream and it was good. I used cheddar cheese instead of the monteray Jack and that was fine. I added corn and it was perfect. Recommended!
Oh wow! I made this tonight and it was amazing.
First I cannot thank you enough for empowering me to try to make my own enchilada sauce. It is SO easy and SO good and SO cheap! THANK YOU!
Second. I loved this. Genius recipe. I ate two bowls. My husband ate three. As you can see we liked it. :)
This is soooooo good. I’ve made this twice once with chicken and the 2nd time with ground turkey and black beans. It’s awesome. It has become a new family favorite. It also stretches a couple of meals and it’s very cheap and easy to make.
I made this a couple weeks ago, and my boyfriend and I both loved it! We added black beans (with the intent to make the leftovers stretch further), and they were a tasty addition, but they changed the color of the dish. It didn’t look so appetizing anymore, but we weren’t serving it to guests or anything, so we didn’t care. :c) Still, that might be something to note for people who are thinking of adding black beans (as many commenters have suggested) but care about presentation. :c)
Hi, I’m new to this site and like what I see. If it’s good enough for you and your family, it’s good enough for company!
Made this tonight for my husband and I. So easy and SO delicious! I’m pretty sure we’ll be eating this all the time now. Thank you for the recipe!!
Just made this tonight…I already make your enchilada sauce and keep it in batches in the freezer, so this was super-easy. The three of us loved it, and went back for 2nds. We will have it again – but halve the recipe in the future so we don’t have to have leftovers.
This is one of my kids’ favorite dishes. I found that about a pound of chopped summer squash is a must in this dish as well as bell peppers. Tomatoes are nice if I’ve got them on hand.
Funny thing is, the last time I made this, I added white northern beans and left out the chicken. There were no leftovers that night.
Made this for dinner tonight – husband and mom both loved it. I liked it alright, but I’m not a big fan of Mexican food so that was no surprise. But I gave it a go for the hubby, it was nice to find something with those flavors we can both enjoy.
I have to say I am obsessed with your blog! Your step-by-step photos are extremely useful for a kitchen novice like me! Thank you!
Back to the recipe…. It is very hard to find sour cream where I live – is it possible to use yogurt instead? would that greatly alter the taste? Also,you have another enchilada sauce recipe where you use some unsweetened cocoa powder; do you recommend using it here as well?
Yes, I love the unsweetened cocoa powder in all my enchilada sauce now. It makes it more earthy and delicious. Although I don’t like yogurt in place of sour cream, many people enjoy it just the same. So, I think that’s just a personal preference.
I made this tonight for dinner, but I added black beans and bell peppers. So tasty and easy!
I made this tonight for dinner and made your enchilada sauce for it too. I love when such a simple and inexpensive recipe tastes absolutely wonderful! Will make again and add some crushed tortilla chips as a topping for a bit more texture.
Fantastic recipe! This is the first recipe of yours I have tried and I was not disappointed. I was a little skeptical about enchilada pasta, which I shouldn’t have been. This dish was easy to make, tasty and affordable. What more could you want?
2 nights in a row we have used your recipes and 2 nights in a row we have LOVED dinner. This was yummy! I only made 1/2 a recipe but froze the other 1/2 of the ingredients so we could have it again in a week or 2.
I made this tonight, it was my first venture into “real” cooking. Never cooked with chicken before, never cooked with pasta and i’ve certainly never tried to make my own sauce. I followed the instructions in this recipe though and even though there was a few points where I thought I had messed it up I stuck with it and the end result was delicious.
The sauce may have been a bit watery but I was converting from American to British measurements on the fly, such a rookie mistake but it still turned out ok.
Thanks for the recipe! i’ll definitely be trying your other ones soon.
Made this the other day because I only thawed out chicken for 2 and had people come over so I knew this would go further and wow, everyone loved it! And it made a ton and I had leftovers for lunch the next day! Great great recipe!
I just made this and substituted greek yogurt for the sour cream, it was delicious!!
I am going to make this tonight and certainly adding beans, but think I am going to add corn as well. I have some fresh corn still on cobs and some frozen corn and don’t know which would be best for cooking with this dish?
The fresh corn would probably taste awesome, although you’d probably want to cook it somehow first (roast or boil), since it won’t cook much once added to the pasta. Frozen corn is already partially cooked, so that would be easiest. You could just add that to the skillet frozen and let the heat from the pasta/sauce warm it up.
That was soooooo good! I roasted the corn and added a jalapeno, a banana pepper, and a green bell pepper to add some extra veggies. This site is my go to place for recipes and has really helped me get into cooking even on my shoestring budget.
Took the extra few minutes to make the enchilada sauce and it was amazing. This recipe was so successful with my picky family. They loved it and so did I! The only changes I made were throwing in half a can of black beans and baking it for twenty minutes so the cheese melted. thank you SO Much for this awesome recipe!
I tried this with the green enchilada sauce with an extra can of chopped green chilies. It was delicious!! Thanks for the recipe!
Excellent recipe! I’ve made this twice now and it has been a big success with my friends and family. I’ve noticed that some cilantro added to the mixture after it’s finished can be a very nice addition, especially considering the low cost (most grocery stores I’ve been to sell it for 80 cents). I know many people tend to avoid purchasing fresh cilantro because it tends to spoil fast. However, I’ve found that if you dice up the cilantro and then refrigerate it, it can last for well over a week before spoiling. Thanks for the wonderful recipe!
Yum! I made this with black beans and mushrooms. So simple but packed with flavor (especially doused in cholula).
Also, I get the split chicken breast with ribs, and I cut the meat off. There’s still some meat still attached to the bones, so you can boil them up with some veggies to make some broth.
I am making this tonight, and as I think about it and look at it, my mouth waters. I might be using a lot of excess chicken, so I think I’m going to take some of that, the other half of the enchilada sauce, and make my hubby some enchiladas to take to work with him.
Kay – I think I would do ground beef and just have it be like a deconstructed beef enchilada/taco/burrito :D A can of pinto beans added to it would go lovely with the beef.
My husband is allergic to chicken, suggestion on what cut of beef I could use instead?
My husband is allergic to chicken, suggestions for what cut of beef I could use?
I realized I had no sour cream as I was about halfway through making this. Substituted in some plain Greek yogurt and it’s delicious! Definitely a keeper.
Wow, this is another winner, thanks! I had no idea how much I love love enchilada sauce, until I made this one. So creamy and awesome.
Love it. As usual, tastes great. (But I always go overboard on the budget still lol.)
I made this last night with spaghetti noodles and minus the sour cream. It was so mummy.
I made this last night with spaghetti noodles and minus the sour cream. It was so mummy.
I live on a sheep farm so I don’t notice a gamey flavor anymore. Funny enough lamb is cheaper for me then chicken, so it works better for keeping your amazing recipes budget friendly.
Victoria – If you’re okay with lamb’s slightly gamey flavor, then I think it would work just fine :)
Would lamb burger substitute ok with this?
I made this with black beans and salsa (and without sour cream or yellow onions). It was really good, but next time I will remember to buy the ingredients I left out this time :)
Looks amazing :) I made something similar in a vegetarian style where I did use black beans. Worked out great!
nice information about chicken breast recipes i m interested in non-veg that too chicken specials i wish to find some sea foods also
I made this for dinner tonight and it was a big hit! LOVE LOVE LOVE the enchilada sauce. never again will i buy it in a can!
Oh my! I must try this, and I just happen to have defrosted a 10 pound bag of chicken this morning. :D
this is such a great recipe for both vegetarian and non veg version. anytime there is pasta involved- i am in!!
I always love your recipes. There should be a whole pinterest board on my page for your blog because I practically pin every one. Thanks for the great ideas!
seaward – Don’t second guess yourself! ;) I’m sure a vegetarian version would be just as yummy! It’s all about the pasta, sauce, and cheese. The chicken is just a bystander, for sure.
I’ve been a vegetarian for 10 years, but when I see your recipes like this I always end up second-guessing myself. :)
Gonna make it with seitan!
OMG Beth, what a WONDERFUL idea!!! I am going to thry this for sure. One thing I am going to do is, a favorite, cook some boneless skinless chicken thighs in enchilada sauce in my crockpot. Then make this pasta. I sometimes use red sauce (La Victoria) or green. Chicken is heaven cooked this way. And so easy. Low heat for 8 hours. Perfect.
Looks amazing, I also love your enchilada sauce!
Merci du partage, j’ai également pris votre recette de sauce rouge enchilada. J’aime beaucoup votre blog.
Omgosh! Yum. Love following you on FB. I made your sweet potato/chorizo/poblano enchiladas not too long ago (with the AMAZING homemade sauce!) and mmmmm, it was so incredible. I froze four of them and there are two left, waiting to be devoured. But this dish looks incredible and that homemade sauce is so easy and flavorful!
Sounds very yummy! Will be trying this.
I’ll try it! You haven’t steered me wrong yet!