This enchilada recipe is inspired by America's test kitchen. I love how they find the best possible way to make a dish by testing it over and over again with different ingredients and different methods until they find the best possible combination of taste, texture, etc. for a perfectly foolproof recipe. Their website says they test each recipe between 30 and 70 times!
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America's Test Kitchen has cookbooks, a magazine, a TV show, an online cooking school and a membership site that allows you to access all of their content. I purchased The Complete America's Test Kitchen TV Show Cookbook 2001-2021 for $25. The America's Test Kitchen Chicken Enchiladas recipe I am about to share with you came from that book which contains over 1,000 pages.
🔪 How to make
Ingredients
For a quick recipe consider using a rotisserie chicken.
- 1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts trimmed & pounded if necessary
- Salt & pepper
- 2 ½ cups of enchilada sauce store bought or from scratch
- 1 cup finely crumbled queso fresco or feta cheese
- 1 4 oz. can of green chiles
- ½ cup minced fresh cilantro
- 12 6-inch soft corn tortillas
- Olive oil spray or you can use olive oil in a little bowl with a brush
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- Lime wedges optional
- Sour cream optional
Instructions
There is a little bit of effort involved ahead of time prepping this recipe because you have to cook and shred the chicken, but then you can clean up while the enchiladas cook in the oven
Step 1
Preheat oven to 350. Pat chicken dry and season with salt and pepper.
Step 2
Combine the chicken and enchilada sauce in a medium saucepan & simmer for 10-15 minutes over medium-low heat. Then flip the chicken over, cover and cook for an additional 10-15 minutes until chicken reaches 160-165 degrees with an instant-read thermometer.
Step 3
Remove chicken from pan and shred into bite-sized pieces. Combine shredded chicken, ½ cup of the enchilada sauce, queso fresco, chiles and cilantro in a bowl. Add salt and pepper if desired. Cover to keep warm.
Step 4
Lightly coat both sides of 6 tortillas with vegetable oil and place on a baking sheet. Bake until tortillas are soft & pliable, about 2 to 4 minutes.
Step 5
Quickly place tortillas on a flat surface and place ⅓ cup of the chicken mixture into each one. Tightly roll each tortilla around the chicken and place in a 9x13 baking dish. Repeat steps 4 and 5 for the remaining 6 tortillas.
Step 6
Increase oven temperature to 450 degrees. Pour 1 more cup of enchilada sauce over the tortillas and sprinkle with the cheddar cheese. Cover with foil and bake for about 10 minutes. Remove foil and bake an additional 3 to 5 minutes to melt the cheese.
Step 6
And bake!
Whew, finally you get to enjoy the world's most perfect enchilada recipe.
📖 Recipe
America's Test Kitchen Enchiladas
Ingredients
- 1 lb. boneless - skinless chicken breasts trimmed & pounded if necessary
- Salt & pepper
- 2 ½ cups of enchilada sauce - store bought or from scratch
- 1 cup finely crumbled queso fresco or feta cheese
- 1 4 oz. can of green chiles
- ½ cup minced fresh cilantro
- 12 6-inch soft corn tortillas
- Olive oil spray - or you can use olive oil in a little bowl with a brush
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- Lime wedges - optional
- Sour cream - optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350. Pat chicken dry and season with salt and pepper.
- Combine the chicken and enchilada sauce in a medium saucepan & simmer for 10-15 minutes over medium-low heat. Then flip the chicken over, cover and cook for an additional 10-15 minutes until chicken reaches 160-165 degrees with an instant-read thermometer.
- Remove chicken from pan and shred into bite-sized pieces. Combine shredded chicken, ½ cup of the enchilada sauce, queso fresco, chiles and cilantro in a bowl. Add salt and pepper if desired. Cover to keep warm.
- Lightly coat both sides of 6 tortillas with vegetable oil and place on a baking sheet. Bake until tortillas are soft & pliable, about 2 to 4 minutes.
- Quickly place tortillas on a flat surface and place ⅓ cup of the chicken mixture into each one. Tightly roll each tortilla around the chicken and place in a 9x13 baking dish. Repeat steps 4 and 5 for the remaining 6 tortillas.
- Increase oven temperature to 450 degrees. Pour 1 more cup of enchilada sauce over the tortillas and sprinkle with the cheddar cheese. Cover with foil and bake for about 10 minutes. Remove foil and bake an additional 3 to 5 minutes to melt the cheese.
- Serve with remaining enchilada sauce, optional lime wedges and optional sour cream.
Notes
Joan
i would make it again. Made this for the first time. Family loved it.
Caroline
The only things I changed was I made my own enchilada sauce, added sauteed onions to the chicken mixture (next time I won't saute them), topped the rolled enchiladas with sliced black olives, and PRESTO. It turned out great, I thought, in my humble opinion.
Lois Ringelheim
Buy an already barbecued chicken in most super markets, remove skin and shred while still warm
Skip the directions for cooking the chicken and just add the shredded chicken to the sauce and follow the rest of the recipe directions. It will taste pretty much the same and save time
Kim
Thanks for that helpful tip!
Dee @ Cocktails with Mom
Oh those look really good. I NEED a cookbook like that. I am trying to get more into healthier cooking.
Bryn
We make enchilladas similar to this on a weekly basis...so good.
One way I speed up the cooking process is boiling my chicken. I buy the chicken tenders or breasts frozen, so I always have some on hand.
Boil a big pot of water, throw in some taco seasoning (or just garlic powder and chili powder), then just throw in the chicken frozen, boil for about 8 minutes, and pull one out, cut it open to check if it's done inside. Take two forks, and shred the chicken up for tacos, BBQ chic sandwiches, enchilladas, etc. The chicken is so moist, and you don't have to worry about thawing it first!
courtney
mm i love chicken enchiiliadas.. these looks soo good! thank you!
st3phanini
This look so yummy and easy to make I can't wait to try it out, I've always wanted to make enchiladas but couldn't find a good recipe and this one looks perfect!
Jeanette
These healthier enchiladas look like the regular "normal" ones - I would never know. Great photos!
Henrietta
It's pretty amazing that something that yummy looking can be good for you! Yum!
Lorie Shewbridge
This sounds really delicious and I like the idea of making the chicken in the crock pot, I love my crock pot.
Your photos are purdy, too!
Now where are mine???
Mary Beth Elderton
Yummy! I was raised on Tex-Mex since babyhood and LOVE it! This recipe is similar to one I make--add a dollop of guacamole to serve.
Jen
p.s. Just noticed your little blurb - I didn't realize you were an architect! I have the same background, though I never got my license 🙂
Jen
Mmmm...enchiladas never get old, and this looks like a really great recipe.
Alison
Wow these look sooooo good! Thanks for sharing it with us Kim!