Spicy Chicken Enchiladas Verde

For Christmas, I received the cookbook, Perfect One-Dish Dinners, by Pam Anderson. I had seen recipes from this cookbook featured on some of the blogs that I read, and have had it on my wish list for a few months now. As I was first flipping through the book, this enchilada recipe was the first one that caught my eye. I put it on our New Year’s Eve menu, and Brad ended up giving me a night off from cooking because he made the enchiladas! They turned out great, and we even ate leftovers the next night (I think they tasted even better the second day, as things often do.)

We purchased a rotisserie chicken to use in the enchiladas, and it was a nice time-saver. Since the chicken was already cooked, there was no cooking required before assembling the enchiladas. This dish is fairly spicy due to the salsa verde, but I think the flavor was just right. If you prefer less spice, you could always reduce the amount of salsa that you use. (We did use less than what was called for in the original recipe, and the recipe below shows the amount we used.)

The next time you have an enchilada craving, I recommend making these easy and flavorful chicken enchiladas.

Spicy Chicken Enchiladas Verde

Printable recipe

Serves 5

Ingredients:

• 3 cups shredded cooked chicken (we used a store-bought rotisserie chicken)
• 2 cups (16 oz.) store-bought salsa verde, divided
• 8 ounces grated Monterey Jack cheese, divided
• 1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro, divided
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 10 corn tortillas
• Cooking Spray
• 1/4 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
• Sour cream (if desired for topping)

Directions:

1. Adjust oven rack to center position and heat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Mix chicken with 2/3 cup salsa verde, 1 1/2 cups cheese, scant 1/4 cup cilantro, and salt and pepper to taste. Spread 1 cup salsa in a 13 x 9-inch baking dish.
3. Wrap tortillas in two damp paper towels and microwave on high power until warm and pliable, about 45 seconds. Spoon about 1/4 cup chicken filling into a tortilla. Roll up and place seam side down in baking dish. Repeat with remaining filling and tortillas. Drizzle enchiladas with remaining 1/3 cup salsa and sprinkle with remaining cheese. Spray a large sheet of foil with cooking spray. Cover baking dish with foil, oiled side down, and bake until heated through, about 25 minutes. Remove foil, sprinkle with onion slices, and bake for 5 more minutes. Sprinkle with remaining cilantro, let stand for a few minutes, and serve with sour cream, if desired.

Recipe adapted from Perfect One-Dish Dinners by Pam Anderson