Creamy, tangy, and filling, these Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas are an awesome comforting weeknight dinner. Whether you cook a couple of chicken breasts up quickly in a skillet, or use pre-cooked chicken like rotisserie chicken or canned chicken breast, this recipe comes together easily. I smothered these chicken enchiladas with a really quick homemade green chile sauce that only takes about 10 minutes to make, and has a LOT more flavor than store bought canned enchilada sauce, so try not to skip it if you can!
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Chicken Options
I cooked up a couple of chicken breasts in a skillet for these enchiladas (instructions included in the recipe below), but you can take a short cut by using rotisserie chicken or canned chicken breast, if you want to make this recipe even easier. You’ll need about 2 cups of chopped cooked and cooled chicken for the enchilada filling.
Can I Add More Vegetables?
Yes, you can add more vegetables to the enchilada filling, if you’d like. Since you’ll be adding more volume, I suggest either making more enchiladas (maybe 16 enchiladas) or reducing the meat by half to make up for the added vegetables. Vegetables that would go good in these green chile chicken enchiladas include: zucchini (sautéed first to remove moisture), spinach (chopped and sautéed or frozen, thawed), or frozen corn (thawed).
I also suggest making some homemade Pico de Gallo to spoon over top for some added color and flavor!
What to Serve with Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas
There are so many great side dishes that would go with these enchiladas. Try one of the following:
Are These Enchiladas Spicy?
I would consider these enchiladas “medium” spicy. I used pepper jack cheese, which has spicy peppers, as well as a little cayenne pepper in the filling. If your canned green chiles (used to make the enchilada sauce) are spicy as well, your enchiladas will be more on the spicy side.
If you want to make these enchiladas mild, simply swap out the pepper jack cheese for Monterey Jack, skip the cayenne pepper in the filling, and make sure you use mild canned green chiles.
Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas
Servings 6 2 enchiladas eachIngredients
Enchiladas
- 12 6-inch corn tortillas ($0.68)
- 1/2 Tbsp cooking oil ($0.02)
- 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast* ($6.43)
- 1/2 cup sour cream ($0.22)
- 8 oz. pepper jack cheese, shredded and divided ($1.69)
- 2 green onions, sliced ($0.20)
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder ($0.05)
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper ($0.03)
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin ($0.05)
- ½ tsp salt ($0.02)
Green Chile Enchilada Sauce
- 2 4oz. cans diced green chiles ($1.58)
- 2 Tbsp cooking oil ($0.16)
- 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour ($0.02)
- 1 tsp ground cumin ($0.10)
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder ($0.03)
- 1/4 tsp onion powder ($0.02)
- 1 cup water ($0.00)
- 1/2 tsp salt ($0.02)
Instructions
- heat a large skillet over medium-high. Once hot, toast the tortillas for 30-60 seconds on each side, or until browned on the edges (no oil needed). Stack the toasted tortillas on a plate and cover with foil or an upside down bowl to keep them from drying out.
- Turn the heat under the skillet down to medium, add the cooking oil, and swirl to coat the surface. Add the chicken breast and cook for about 5-7 minutes on each side, or until cooked through (165ºF internal temperature). Transfer the chicken breast to a clean cutting board to cool.
- While the chicken is cooking, begin the green chile enchilada sauce. Add both cans of diced green chiles (with liquid) to a blender and purée until smooth.
- Add the cooking oil, flour, cumin, garlic powder, and onion powder to a small sauce pot. Stir and cook over medium, allowing the mixture to come up to a bubble. Once bubbling, continue to cook and stir for 1 minute.
- Carefully add the water and puréed green chiles to the sauce pot and whisk to combine. Allow the sauce to come back up to a simmer, stirring often. Once simmering, turn off the heat, and season with salt (about ½ tsp). Set the sauce aside.
- Begin preheating the oven to 350ºF. Add the sour cream, half of the shredded pepper jack, sliced green onions, garlic powder, cumin, cayenne and salt to a large bowl. Finely dice the chicken, then add it to the bowl with the other ingredients. Stir until everything is well combined.
- Begin assembling the enchiladas. Add about ¼ cup of the prepared filling to the center of each tortilla and then roll it closed. Place the filled tortillas in a casserole dish, seam side down.
- Pour the prepared green chile enchilada sauce over the enchiladas, then top with the remaining shredded pepper jack cheese. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbling around the edges. Serve hot.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Equipment
- Small Blender
- Nonstick Fry Pans
- Color Cutting Boards
- Chef’s Knife
Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!Scroll down for the step by step photos!
How to Make Green Chile Enchiladas – Step by Step Photos
Heat a large skillet over medium-high. Once hot, add the tortillas and toast on each side for 30-60 seconds or until browned (no oil needed). Place the toasted tortillas on a plate and cover with foil or an upside down bowl to keep them from drying out.
Turn the heat under the skillet down to medium. Add ½ Tbsp cooking oil to the hot skillet and swirl to coat. Add two boneless, skinless chicken breasts and cook for about 5-7 minutes on each side or until cooked through (165ºF internal temperature). Transfer the cooked chicken to a clean cutting board to cool.
While the chicken is cooking, begin the green chile enchilada sauce. Purée two 4oz. cans of diced green chiles (with the liquid from the can) in a blender.
Add 2 Tbsp cooking oil, 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour, 1 tsp ground cumin, ½ tsp garlic powder, and ½ tsp onion powder to a sauce pot. Cook and stir over medium until it begins to bubble. Once bubbling, continue to cook and stir for one minute.
Add 1 cup water and the puréed green chiles. Whisk to combine, then allow it to come back up to a simmer (stirring frequently). Once simmering it will thicken slightly. Season with salt (about ½ tsp), then set the sauce aside.
Finely chop the cooked chicken.
Begin preheating the oven to 350ºF. Add ½ cup sour cream, 4oz. shredded pepper jack (1 cup), 2 sliced green onions, ½ tsp garlic powder, ¼ tsp cayenne, ½ tsp cumin, ¼ tsp salt, and the chopped chicken to a bowl. Stir to combine.
Begin assembling the chicken enchiladas. Add about ¼ cup of filling to each toasted tortilla, then roll closed. Place the filled tortillas in a casserole dish, seam side down.
Pour the prepared green chile enchilada sauce over the enchiladas.
Top with the remaining 4oz. (1 cup) shredded pepper jack cheese.
Bake the enchiladas in the preheated 350ºF oven for 30 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbling around the edges. (I garnished with chopped cilantro, but it’s not really needed for flavor).
Serve hot! Side dish recommendations in the blog post above the recipe! :)
Can I prep these and keep them in the fridge for a day prior to cooking?
That should work fine!
This is the first and only enchilada recipe I’ve ever made, and I’ve made it many times. The green chile sauce is what makes it amazing.
Can I freeze the whole pan of enchiladas after baking and cooling—reheat from frozen?
Yes, you can! I’d recommend baking at 350F for 20-30 minutes to reheat from frozen!
I’ll let you know. Making them now
Best chicken enchiladas I’ve ever made! Thanks so much for sharing ☺️
My 22 year old and I liked it. My 13 year old said it was too spicy.
These were great, even the littles ate it up. The food just needed a little extra salt at the end but nothing a shaker can’t fix lol
This was fantastic. Only change I made was to use greek yogurt instead of sour cream since that’s what we have. I can’t wait to eat leftovers tomorrow for lunch.
These were super good!
Delicious!! My husband and I made these tonight and both agreed they are some of the very best enchiladas we’ve had yet. We did make two changes to the recipe. Instead of chicken we used pre cooked shredded pork carnitas, and habanero jack for a spicier cheese. Made the rest of the recipe exactly as written. So tasty, and very easy for the two of us to pull together. Served with sour cream and hot sauce.
Very good green chili enchiladas!
Delicious and easy! Only 30 min of prep. We used leftover Thanksgiving turkey and it turned out great.
This might taste good in the end, no better than any other I’ve made, but it took three freaking hours or more to make all the preparations and all the crap! It made a mess of my kitchen, and I would never put this much time and energy into this recipe ever again for a normal housewife! Maybe if it’s once a year recipe for holiday? Yeah, but not ever an everyday or every week or every month recipe ever!!
Love this recipe and have made it many times! I’m wanting to bring it to a friend who is a new parent and wondering if you’d suggest I bake it and bring it hot? Or assemble it and bring it for them to bake (within 12 hours of me assembling)? Would it hold up to wait before baking?
You can def assemble it ahead of time. Just wrap it well and refrigerate. xoxo -Monti
How much shredded cooked turkey do you think I should use to replace the chicken?
1-2 cups should do it. :)
These were delicious. I cooked chicken thighs in the crockpot with green chilies, garlic, onion, and a little salt to use on the insides. The only thing I would recommend is to spread a thin layer of enchilada sauce in the bottom of the dish before making the enchiladas so that the tortillas do not get tough durng cooking!
Another great recipe from Budget Bytes! My whole family loved it. I had some salsa verde and a 7-oz can of green chilis, so I added some of the salsa when I blended the chilis. Other than that, I followed the recipe, and served with some homemade black beans. Our tortillas did get a little hard on the bottom like others mentioned, but it’s so delicious we didn’t really care. I think in other enchilada recipes I’ve made they have you put some of the sauce on the bottom of the pan when assembling. Maybe that helps with that; I can try it next time. I will definitely keep some pre-cooked chicken in the freezer, because that would make this a really fast meal! I love that this recipe isn’t laden with tons of cheese, cream cheese, sour cream, etc., but still has amazing flavor and taste! Thanks again for keeping my family’s taste buds happy.
Absolutely delicious! Can’t wait to make it again!
I really loved this recipe! I’m a college student learning to cook for myself, and this website has been a lifesaver. These enchiladas were nice and filling, and have simple ingredients I can throw in other recipes without having to worry about them going to waste.
That being said, question for you, Beth. The ingredient list says 8oz of cheese. When I first made this recipe, I followed those instructions, assuming you meant the 8oz in a cup, rather than 8oz of weight. However, my second time making this, I scrolled down to the image instructions and saw your addition of 4oz (a cup) for the cheese instructions.
For future reference, how can I tell which type of oz a recipe is referencing? Yours and other recipes, especially if I only have measuring cups rather than a food scale?
I often get ounces and fluid ounces confused myself. Liquid ingredients (like broth or milk) should be measured using a liquid measuring cup, like the one we have listed on our shop page: https://www.budgetbytes.com/shop/. These cups measure in cups, fluid ounces and mL. Dry ingredients, like cheese, should be measured using measuring cups (1/4 cup, 1/3 cup, 1/2 cup, etc). A quick way to figure out how much to use (without a scale) is to check the amount listed on the front, bottom-right side of the container/package. For example, a regular-size block of cheese and a smaller bag of pre-shredded are both typically sold in 8 oz. quantities. If an ingredient needs to be divided in the recipe, we will always list it that way in the ingredients list (like this one).
Most blocks of cheese sold in supermarkets are 8 ounces. Check the label on the package and it will tell you how much it weighs.
And, going forward with your cooking- glass measuring cups are used for liquids, and plastic/metal ones are for dry ingredients.
Beth, follow up from my last post. Only change I made was for looks. Add cilantro based on what I think was shown in the picture. If not all is good everyone loved these.
Beth,
All I can say is 🤩… these enchiladas are AWESOME!! This is my favorite thus far. But I know there will be more. So easy to make as well. Thank you!
Hi Beth, loved this recipe and so many more on your site. I make at least 3-4 a month. I just tried this one and the flavors were great. My kids (3 and 6) ate it up. The only issue I had was the bottom of the tortillas was really hard. So hard you could hardly cut them with a knife. I used corn tortillas and fried them according to the directions. What do you think I did wrong?
Hi, AJ! Glad to hear your family loves the recipe! It’s hard to say exactly what’s going wrong, but here’s a few things to try:
– Your pan might be a little too hot. Try turning it down just a little. (Your stove might run a little hotter than the one in our test kitchen!)
– Also, try frying them a little less, just 30-seconds or so on each side to get some color. Too long, and all the moisture will evaporate and they can get too crispy and tough.
– When resting them, wrap them in a clean dish cloth, that will create a little bit of steam so the tortillas are easier to shape and won’t dry out as much.
– If none of those tips work, I might try a different brand of corn tortillas. Some are just better than others. Also, white corn are typically a bit softer than yellow.
Best, Marion:)
Omg, I doubled this recipe to feed a hungry crowd of teenagers and it was so good! Everyone thought it was delicious. I served it with white rice and seasoned pinto beans. A+!
So delicious! Oh wow! I want to eat these everyday. I could only make 11 enchiladas with the amount of filling, but so nicely seasoned and tasty. Repeats perfectly for my work day lunches. I’m wondering if these would freeze well. And if so, should I freeze before or after I bake?
Either or is fine. Just make sure to wrap them individually. ANd if you do it after cooking, drain the excess liquid and allow it to cool completely before freezing. XOXO -Monti
What do you mean Wrap individually? Like wrap and freeze each enchilada on its own?
I live in Texas and not a fan of any Tex-Mex type of food. However, my daughter made this and I hurt myself by eating way to many. I’d do it again though. I would give it 10 stars.
Thank you Grizelda! xoxo -Monti
It was a delicious recipe me and my family enjoyed it. I’m trying to cook healthier. I really used the calorie and carbohydrate details thank you
Can I make the sauce and filling the day before?
Yes :)
Hi. This looks so good. Do you think this would work, if I made it, and froze the whole dish. I’d like to take it on vacation with me.
Unfortunately, I haven’t tried freezing this one so I don’t know for sure, but sour cream doesn’t always freeze so well so it might be risky.
Would you be concerned that flour tortillas would get too soggy?
They will definitely absorb some of the liquid and get soft, so I guess it just depends on whether or not that bothers you. I actually don’t mind it, it’s just like if you order a wet burrito or something, but I think it’s definitely a personal preference sort of thing. :)
This recipe is a keeper! I’ve made this recipe numerous times I like to add roasted cauliflower with taco seasoning, roasted corn (from Trader Joe’s), and black beans to bump it up. I did make too much filling for this Cinco de Mayo and am wondering if freezing the filling would keep well?
Usually, things with sour cream don’t freeze all that well because it tends to break down, but I haven’t actually tried it with this one to know for sure.
Just made these last night (and eating the leftovers as I write this), they were delicious!
Only had room for 8 on my pan so I had a little enchilada filling leftover and after a taste, I think it would make a fantastic chilled wrap on its own, maybe even with the enchilada sauce as dressing.
Do you think these would freeze well? I’m wondering how the filling would hold up since it has sour cream in it.
I’d have to try it to know for sure, but another issue you might run into is the tortillas splitting.
I had to use jalapeno havarti cheese (Aldi) as a substitute the second time I made this. My hubby liked it so much better, that he asked me to use it all the time. For the record, my son and I loved this the first time, which is why it was even made a second time. Sooooo good.
WOW. As a native Texan, I can honestly say these enchiladas are incredible. I happened to have some salsa verde chicken leftover (literally just chicken cooked in salsa verde in the Instant Pot, then shredded), so I wanted a recipe to compliment it, and this was a winner. Made as instructed otherwise, and paired with the warm corn and avocado salad. We couldn’t stop eating both.
Made this with some slight alternations. Not sure what the weight of my chix breast was but I used only one out of a pack totaling 2.3 lbs, and used some frozen spinach I was trying to get rid of the sub the rest. I mixed half the spinach into the enchilada puree along with some chipotle peppers in adobo. This filling resulted in about 17 enchiladas, a perfect fit for a 9 X 13. Wonderfully good, the chipotle peppers lent so much flavor to the sauce I didn’t even need a topping.
These were fantastic! I’ve made your black bean enchiladas many times, and this was a bit more of a decadent treat. I took your suggestions and added zucchini and corn to my filling, along with yellow onion. I think all three of those worked really well in this. I used soy curls as my vegan chicken alternative, and I added the dry spices in the recipe as well as some poultry seasoning, chili powder, and smoked paprika as I pan seared them in some vegan butter, since I really wanted the curls to have a good flavor. I used store bought vegan substitutions for the sour cream and shredded cheese, and added an extra squeeze of lime juice for more tang. I made a double batch of the green chile sauce, since I read some comments suggesting that, but I think I would have been totally fine with just the amount in the recipe because I have quite a lot left over. I’m sure I’ll find a good use for it, it’s a great sauce. My husband loved this dish and we actually polished the whole thing off in one day. 10/10 will make again.
So delicious!! My husband announced that it was a keeper, and then we fought over the leftovers. Definitely going to make again! :)
I have made these twice now and my entire family loves them. My husband said they are the best enchiladas he has ever had. They are very filling. I made two little adjustments. Instead of water I used bone broth and I cooked the chicken in the crockpot so it is tender and pulls apart easily. We had these with your Quick seasoned black bean recipe which is also great. I just drained and rinsed the beans and used a cup of bone broth in the beans. Previously I was using a canned green chile enchilada sauce that costs way more than this and with this I know what is in my sauce. Thank you so much for the delicious recipes.
WHOA DOGGIES!! We used your Lime Crema recipe in place of the sour cream and all socks in this house are currently knocked off!
These were really good! In an effort to make this vegan, we replaced chicken with white beans and spinach and replaced the cheese and sour cream with vegan alternatives, but the star of this dish is definitely still the homemade enchilada sauce. I followed others’ suggestions to increase the amount of enchilada sauce (about 1.5x the amount) and that was the right move as it really packs the flavor for the dish. Thanks for another great recipe!
I plan on trying a vegan version of this as well, but with shredded tofu! I really appreciate all of Beth’s vegan and veggie recipes, but even most traditional recipes on this site can be made vegan easily. Can’t wait to try it.
I love enchiladas and was super excited to see this recipe! I used shredded queso quesadilla (it’s actually cheaper per oz at Walmart than Aldi’s block cheese), and added some crushed red pepper to mimic pepperjack.
I used a meat tenderizer to pound the chicken breast down to get maximum flavor with my cast iron, and patted them dry/sprinkled them with some extra spices beforehand.
My little ninja shake blender blended the green chilis easily, but I wish I would have poured the cup of water in there after to get all the remnants out. I should have read the comments!
Lastly, I used an individual nonfat Greek yogurt container (they’re 50 cents at Walmart) because I didn’t want to have sour cream leftovers. Will make again. 🤤
Made this last week and found it delicious and filling using most of the meet from a rotisserie chicken. Between cutting that chick off the bone and toasting all of the tortillas I felt that there were a lot of moving parts and ingredients. That will likely get better as I make this recipe again. I’ll also probably cut the chick with beans and/or sweet potatoes or other stuff to spread it out and lighten things up. Still, knowing how to make enchiladas is a great skill and seems like it would lend itself to endless variations. Thank you!
This recipe was super creamy and delicious, and a new favorite in my household! I served it with some refried beans and seasoned rice, and added a bit of cayenne to the sauce and it turned out great!
Excellent enchiladas! I had trouble blending the green chilies since it was a small amount for the size of my blender, so I added the cup of water to blend together, problem solved! I will probably try the other commenters suggestion of adding an extra can of chilies and a little more water to make more sauce because it really is that good! More would not be a bad thing 😉
I used this green enchilada sauce in place of the red when making sweet potato and black bean enchiladas (my vegetarian riff on your sweet potato and chorizo enchiladas). Result was delicious! Only change I made was adding a handful of cilantro to the sauce since I had some on hand.
Absolutely delicious flavors and I will add this into my rotation. We love enchiladas in our house, and this was a nice change up from the various red sauces and even a tomatillo-based green sauce. My only criticism was that there wasn’t quite enough sauce – it’s the highlight of the dish and the tortillas basically absorbed it all. Next time I will make 50% more sauce (three cans of chiles + 1.5 cup liquid). My only variation from the recipe was using broth instead of water because I had some left over. I don’t know how much of a difference it made, but the sauce was delicious so I will probably do it again.
Simple and delicious
I fixed this for dinner last night and it was very good! I already had everything I needed, including cooked chicken so it was quick and easy to come together. It was great to make the chili sauce with ingredients I had in my pantry. The only substitution I made was using chicken broth that needed to be used in place of the water. Also fixed your cumin lime slaw and mango slices on the side for a great dinner. My husband had requested enchiladas and said this was a “keeper”! He’s eating the leftovers for lunch. Your recipes never disappoint Beth. Thanks so much!
Ummm….tasty as usual in recipes from you. The only thing I did different was use fresh jalapenos – the rest was your recipe – everybody I served it to was happy as well.
glassy~
Looks so good. That would be approx. 3 cups of diced chicken?
These were delicious and easy to make. I did not have pepper jack cheese, so had to use an Italian cheese blend of shredded cheese that I had. Am going to buy some pepper jack to have for next time. I will definitely make these again!
These are sooo delicious, Beth!
Thank you for this amazing recipe ☺️Zz
Hi Beth! This looks amazing! Any thoughts about how one might best substitute pressed tofu or another veggie protein for vegetarian guests? Would it be completely insane to consider substituting cooked white beans? Thanks!
We have a few awesome vegetarian enchilada recipes. My two favorites are Spinach White Bean Enchiladas with Pepper Jack Sauce and Sweet Potato Enchiladas
I will be using this for my post Thanksgiving leftover make overs for sure and sub in the cooked turkey. I always make some form of enchiladas with leftover turkey and this will be perfect!
This reminds me of my food tour in New Mexico. And since enchiladas are always on the menu here, these will be happening soon!
Could you use flour tortillas for this?
Most definitely!
I’ll be making these for dinner today, as I already have all the ingredients in my pantry. Perfect!!
Btw, Beth–will we ever see a classic pancake recipe from you? :) I’ve been looking around, but could never find it. You’re the only American food blogger I trust and I’d love to see pancakes from you!
Cheers from Poland!