Tex-Mex Enchiladas

Tex-Mex Enchiladas

It’s been a gloomy, rainy, and WINDY few days here on the high desert, and my taste buds wanted comfort food. And when you’re a Texas gal like me, sometimes that translates into Tex-Mex. I had some leftover shredded carne asada beef in the freezer, and of course the obligatory package of dried ancho chiles in the pantry. (What, you don’t keep those hanging around, just in case??) So of course, enchiladas are on the menu!

My Texas buddy Adam provided the inspiration for these, because Adam is connoisseur of all food Tex-Mex. No really, he is! I grabbed this recipe out of his archives, because a good enchilada sauce is timeless. Do yourself a favor and read his post about it, you might be enlightened!

Tex-Mex Enchiladas
Adapted from Joe Gracey’s Tex-Mex Enchiladas, via The Unorthodox Epicure

2 cups homemade chicken broth, or water
3 large dried ancho chiles
1 tablespoon oil
1 medium onion, chopped (reserve 1/2 cup)
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons cumin
1 tablespoon dried oregano
Ground black pepper, and salt, to taste
1 tablespoon honey, if needed
2 tablespoons flour
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
12 corn tortillas
3 cups grated Monterrey Jack cheese
3 cups shredded cooked meat, heated through (can be beef, chicken, pork, whatever you have!)
Chopped cilantro, for garnish
Sour cream, for topping

Tear the tops off the ancho chiles and remove as many seeds as possible. Place the chiles in a sauce pan of simmering chicken broth until rehydrated and soft, about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, sauté the onion in a large skillet with a tablespoon of oil until softened.  Add the garlic in the last couple minutes.

Remove the chiles when softened, reserving the liquid. Add them to a food processor or blender along with the cooked onions and garlic and blend to a purée.

In the same skillet, stir in 2 tablespoons of oil and 2 tablespoons flour and cook until starting to turn golden brown. Pour the chile purée into the skillet, along with the reserved chile liquid. Stir in the cumin, oregano, and salt and pepper. Sometimes the ancho chiles can be bitter (haven’t figured out why yet) so add a tablespoon of honey and a bit more salt to mellow it out, if needed. Bring to a simmer and then cook on low for about 30 minutes. Add additional water if it gets too thick.

When ready to assemble: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Using tongs, dip a tortilla into the enchilada sauce on both sides, then place on a plate. Top with 2 tablespoons cheese and 2 tablespoons of meat, roll up and place seam side down in a greased baking dish. Repeat until baking dish is full. Pour the remaining sauce over the enchiladas and top with the remaining grated cheese along with the reserved onion. Heat in the oven for 10 minutes until cheese is melted and dish is bubbling. Remove and top with cilantro and offer sour cream on top, if you want. Serve with pinto beans and Mexican rice.

Download and Print this Yummy Recipe!

Advertisement

17 Cinco de Mayo Recipes

Turkey Chipotle Posole

Yeah, yeah, I am always late to the game. I always forget I have a bunch of recipes you can make for Cinco de Mayo. But heck, don’t let that stop you from making any of these recipes on any other day either! UPDATE: I can NOT get some of my links to work, so if you want to look at a recipe here without a link, please try the search box in the upper right corner. Sorry ’bout that!

Turkey Chipotle Posole (lead-in photo)

Marcos Pollo Tacos

Marcos Pollos Tacos

Chorizo and Beef Enchiladas with Cheesy Hatch Chile Sauce

Chorizo and Beef Enchiladas in Cheesy Hatch Chile Sauce

Mexican-Style Beef and Cabbage Soup

Mexican-Style Beef with Cabbage Soup

Hatch Chile Fire-Roasted Salsa

Hatch Chile Fire-Roasted Salsa

Chunky Guacamole Grilled Nachos with Chicken

Grilled Nachos with Chicken and Chunky Guacamole plus Grilled Mexican Tortilla Pizza

Chile Relleno Chicken Rollups

Chile Relleno Chicken Rollups

Skillet Huevos Rancheros with Homemade Tortilla Strips

Skillet Huevos Rancheros with Homemade Tortilla Strips

 

Chicken Enchilada Skillet

Chicken Enchilada Skillet

Chicken Chile Verde Posole

Chicken Chile Verde Posole

Authentic Tex-Mex Cheese Enchiladas with Chile Gravy

Authentic Tex-Mex Cheese Enchiladas with Chile Gravy

 

Large Batch Taco Mix

DIY Taco Mix (Large Batch)

Carnitas Tacos with Spicy Pickled Red Onions

Creamy Chicken Chili and Beans

Creamy Chicken Chili and Beans

Chicken Fideo Soup

Chicken Fideo Soup (Mexican Chicken Noodle Soup)

Black Bean, Potato, and Chorizo Soup

Black Bean, Potato, and Chorizo Soup

And last but not least!

Charro, or Borracho Beans

Cinco de Mayo Charro, or Burracho Beans

Happy Eating Y’all!

Turkey Chipotle Posole

Turkey Chipotle Posole

As a lot of you know, I’m a spicy kind of gal, and I like spicy food. This posole, which is a traditional Mexican soup/stew, makes good use of leftover turkey or even chicken. I bought a deli-roasted turkey breast recently for a quick week-night dinner, but with the daughter not eating at home that night we were left with a bunch of leftover cooked turkey breast.

We had a cold snap, and what better thing to make in a cold snap is a nice spicy, warming stew? This ended up making more than I thought it would, but ate the rest for lunches.  Don’t scrimp on the toppings, as the cabbage, lime, and radishes really complete this. And you can always cut way back on the spices/chiles for a milder version.

After opening a few cans and a little chopping, dicing, and processing, this posole comes together in a snap all in one pot. I always freeze any leftover canned goods, clearly labeled, for future use. I can’t imagine ever using an entire can of chipotle peppers in a recipe unless I am feeding an army. And my local grocer only sells 30-ounce cans of hominy, which, after draining the liquid, yields about 2 cups of hominy. Hominy freezes well too.  Even if it’s already warm in your neck of the woods, do try this flavorful posole, if anything to warm your heart. Plus it also gives you good reason to open a bottle of Mexican beer to wash it down! UPDATE: A kind reader reminded me that Cinco de Mayo is coming up. So hey, why not make it for that day?!

Turkey Chipotle Posole

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 to 1 canned chipotle in adobo sauce (or less), diced fine
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup chopped carrot
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 teaspoons Ancho or Pasilla chile powder (or other or less)
2 cups cooked and shredded turkey or chicken
4 cups homemade or low sodium turkey or chicken broth
1/2 cup tomato puree
1 corn tortilla, processed fine
1 cup hominy, white or yellow is fine
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
Ground black pepper and salt or Mrs. Dash, to taste
Shredded cabbage, sliced radishes, and lime wedges, for garnish

Puree, Peppers, and Hominy

Open up all those cans and chop/slice/dice all the veggies.

In a Dutch oven or soup pot, heat one tablespoon of oil over medium-high heat. Add the next 6 ingredients (through the chile powder), and cook for 5 to 7 minutes until vegetables are tender.

Spicy Veggie Base

Add the remaining ingredients except the garnishes, stir to combine, and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 45 minutes or until ready to eat.

Posole Ready to Simmer and Cover

Ladle into bowls, and garnish with fresh sliced cabbage, sliced radishes, and a lime wedge to squeeze into the stew. (Don’t forget the beer to wash it all down!)

Turkey Chipotle Posole

 

Download and Print this Yummy Recipe!

 

Egg in Carne Guisada Heaven

Egg in Carne Guisada Heaven

Here’s a surprise mid-week post from me! I made this for lunch a couple of days go from leftover Carne Guisada I made over the weekend. Carne Guisada is heaven. It is one of my go-to crockpot meals that just screams delicious Tex-Mex. I make this as often as I can. Get the recipe here —–> Carne Guisada

Carne Guisada Simmering

And as usual, I had leftovers. So what better way to make use of the leftovers than to plop an egg in the middle and cook to your liking?

Egg in Heaven ~ Almost

Oh man, this was so scrumptious! I let the egg white set on the bottom, then covered it with a lid for one minute to set the top.

Egg is Now In Heaven

Mind you this is a 5-inch cast-iron pan, a mini. So yes, I ate it right out of the pan. Slurp, slurp! Hardly any cleanup!

Unorthodox Enfrijoladas

Enfrijoladas ~ photo by Adam J. Holland ~ The Unorthodox Epicure

Well, these are not really unorthodox, they are actually quite authentic. But this new recipe came to me from my good foodie friend Adam J. Holland, who has a most interesting foodie blog called “The Unorthodox Epicure” with a fun sidebar called “Confessions of an Aspiring Food Snob.” He is neither unorthodox nor snobby, that I can tell. But he’s a fellow Texan and cooks some great authentic Tex-Mex as well as authentic Mexican food, therefore he’s OK in my book, ya heah????

I made these last night, and hoo-boy, were they delicious! My entire family enjoyed them. It took hardly any prep time and cooked up pretty darn quick. That’s a win-win in my book! I halved the recipe since there are only three of us, but it still ended up making 8 Enfrijoladas (although I did add both grilled chicken AND cheese to the insides of them). There was one left in the end. All thumbs up. Thank you Adam!

I did take some initial prep photos thinking I might actually do a blog with my own photos on this, but a crazy thunderstorm rolled through as we were cooking this all outside on the propane burner/grill, so by the time we got it all moved inside there was no time with a hungry family to do any more foodie shots after having do all that and preheat the oven.

So sit right back, click on the link below, and enjoy his blog and recipe:

The Unorthodox Epicure Enfrijoladas Recipe

Authentic Tex-Mex Cheese Enchiladas with Chile Gravy

Authentic Tex-Mex Cheese Enchiladas with Chile Gravy

I was on a mission to both redeem and console myself after the prior night’s dinner disaster. I was wanting some Tex-Mex. Gooey, cheesy, spicy Tex-Mex. The kind of stuff you get at those mom and pop shops in the little towns scattered between the wide-open roads and ranches of Texas.

I’ve made plenty of Tex-Mex dishes in the past, and have a standard chile con carne recipe used for a lot of them. But mostly, when I cook up a Tex-Mex dish I don’t rely much on a recipe. It’s my take that any taco, burrito, tostada, or enchilada are just different shapes and cooking methods for pretty much the same ingredients, right?

Spices for Chile Gravy

But there was one dish I had yet to conquer, and that was the Authentic Tex-Mex Cheese Enchiladas with Chile Gravy. And what better place to start than the recipe from the Enchilada Queen herself, Sylvia Casares? She hails from the small town of Brownsville, Texas and currently owns two enchilada restaurants in Houston as well as offers cooking schools and catering.

I found a scaled-down version, time-wise, of her recipe in Texas Monthly magazine. I took my time and cooked everything linearly, instead of concurrently. Basically, I didn’t do any “meanwhile” cooking. But please, feel free to multitask on this one, I was enjoying each individual process so that I could become more familiar with each step for the next time I make these.

When the enchiladas came out of the oven, I was all set to take a plated shot (as best I could, as they come out of the pan pretty messy), but when I went to pick up the plate to move it to the table, it slipped out of my hands! In my spastic move to keep it from tumping upside down onto the floor, I smashed my other arm right on top of the plate, making a mess of not only the plate, but my shirtsleeve. The dish didn’t crash to the floor, but I was left with a pretty pitiful-looking plate of enchiladas and beans. And a dirty shirt. Thank goodness I had the foresight to wear an old camping shirt for this foray. I just sighed and thought “forget it, I’m hungry.” And sat right down to eat the mess.

The Ill-Fated Shirt

Ohhhh, but it was sooo good! I got a thumbs-up from the hubby and two thumbs up from my daughter. Even when she had the leftovers the next day she said “Mom, these are really really good! Are you going to make them again sometime?” The answer is a definite Yes!

I’m giving you the full recipe below as printed in Texas Monthly, but I did scale it down a tad since the dish I use for enchiladas only holds 9 rolled tortillas, which makes about two meals for my family of three. The full version makes 12 enchiladas. Suggested serving sides are refried beans and Mexican rice.

Authentic Tex-Mex Cheese Enchiladas with Chile Gravy
From Sylvia Casares via Texas Monthly

Prepare the Chile Gravy
1 1/2 cups white onion, roughly chopped
5 garlic cloves
1/4 pound lean ground beef
2/3 cup vegetable oil
2/3 cup flour
2 cups beef broth (I used homemade)
3 tablespoons chile powder (I used half New Mexico Red and half Ancho)
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon cumin
1/8 teaspoon cayenne
1 teaspoon ground black pepper

Combine onion and garlic in a blender (or food processor) and purée on high for about one minute or until smooth.

Onion Garlic Puree

Add purée, ground beef, and 1/2 cup water to a small saucepan and simmer over low heat for 30 minutes (skim froth from surface). Note from me: Don’t freak out if your onion/garlic/meat mixture turns a bit green in the first part of cooking it. It’s a natural reaction and all turns brown eventually.

In a large skillet, heat vegetable oil over medium heat until hot. Lower heat, add flour, and stir continuously until the roux turns a light golden brown.

Heat beef broth and 2 cups water over low heat in a small saucepan or in a microwave oven. Combine all spices and add to flour mixture along with broth and ground beef and cook over low heat for about 5 minutes or until mixture is the consistency of gravy.

Authentic Chile Gravy

Let rest for at least 10 minutes before using. Makes about 5 cups.

Prepare the Tortillas Dipped in Guajillo-Árbol Chile Sauce
7 guajillo chiles, stems and seeds removed
2 árbol or ancho chiles, stems removed (I used Ancho)
12 corn tortillas

Put chiles and 1/2 cup water (I used about 1 cup) in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, lower heat, and simmer for 15 minutes, adding water if needed. Let cool 15 minutes.

Chile Peppers Cooking

Purée the chiles and water in a blender or food processor on high speed until liquefied. Pass the purée through a strainer to remove any skins.

When almost ready to assemble the enchiladas, dip tortillas in the guajillo-árbol chile sauce one at a time and put on a plate. Cover and set aside for 30 minutes.

Guajillo-Ancho Chile Sauce

Assemble the Enchiladas
1 cup vegetable oil
Chile Gravy
Tortillas Dipped in Guajillo-Árbol Chile Sauce
5 cups grated cheddar cheese (reserve 1 cup for garnish) (I used cheddar for the tortillas and Monterey jack for the top)
1 cup white onion, diced

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Heat oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Place one tortilla at a time in the hot oil and quickly turn with tongs or a nonstick spatula. Total time in oil should be about 5 seconds. Stack on a plate and use immediately in next step.

Enchiladas Smothered in Chile Gravy

Distribute a row of about 1/3 cup (about 2 ounces) of cheese down the middle of each tortilla. Roll up and place side by side in a 9-by-11-inch baking pan. Pour the chile gravy over the enchiladas and garnish with reserved grated cheese and diced onion. Bake until sauce bubbles and cheese is melted, 10 to 20 minutes; do not allow to brown. Makes 12 enchiladas (serves 4 to 6).

Enchiladas Ready to Bake

Download and Print this Yummy Recipe!

 

Cinco de Mayo Charro, or “Borracho” Beans

Charro, or Borracho Beans

I spent a good amount of time the other night cooking almost five pounds of burger and over a pound of ground turkey to make the taco filling for my employer’s Cinco de Mayo Taco Bar Potluck. For some insane reason, I also signed up to make some Charro beans for the potluck portion. The team I’m on pitches in all the taco makings (such as the taco meats I cooked), and since I’m on the organizing team I really didn’t have to do that. But I did. So there I was, all in a sweat after work, with four to five pots and pans cooking a variety of ingredients at the same time.  I posted this recipe over a year ago embedded within my Grilled Tri-Tip Steak recipe, so thought I’d dredge it back up for you so you can take a gander at it and see if this is something you would like to make for your own Cinco de Mayo fest! I tried to clarify my directions from a year ago, so I hope that helps.

This is a tried and true Tex-Mex recipe. These beans are served all over the Austin area, but I’ve found nary a restaurant serving this in my dinky Pacific Northwest town. In a nutshell, they are dried pinto beans cooked for a long time with a spicy tomato-chile mixture, along with bacon or some kind of pork. My version reduces the cooking time greatly by using a pressure cooker. If you don’t have a pressure cooker, increase the cooking time by several hours, adding water as needed. The difference between Charro beans and Borracho beans is that you add a bottle of Mexican beer to the the Charro beans. Borracho means “drunk” in Mexican, lol. Enjoy!

Cinco de Mayo Charro, or “Borracho” Beans

2 cups dried pinto beans, soaked overnight and rinsed
2 cups homemade or low salt chicken broth (or sub all water)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 onion, chopped
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 slices cooked bacon, chopped (or 2 tablespoons bacon bits)
1 can Ro*Tel tomatoes (or diced tomatoes and green chiles)
Black pepper to taste
1 bottle or can of beer (preferably Mexican)
Large handful of cilantro, chopped, and more for garnish

Dried Pinto Beans (Soaked and Rinsed)

After soaking and rinsing the beans overnight, add them to a pressure cooker with the chicken broth and enough water to cover the beans by an inch or so. Cover the pot with its lid tightly with the pressure regulator on top, and heat over medium high heat until the regulator begins to rock. Turn the heat down until regulator is rocking gently, then cook for 25 minutes.

Meanwhile, add the oil, garlic, and bacon to a heated skillet and saute until the onion starts to get translucent. Add the can of Ro*Tel tomatoes and grind a bunch of  black pepper over it, cook for about five minutes longer, then set aside.

After the beans have cooked 25 minutes, take the pot off the heat and let the pressure reduce on its own. Do  not cool it by running under water, as you will have to let the pressure come down naturally or you will have a foaming mess on your hands. This will take about 15 or 20 minutes. When you can open the lid easily, stir in the tomato mixture, and beer (if using). Take a potato masher or the back of a spoon and smoosh some of the beans to help thicken up the broth. Cook  for another half hour or so.

Garnish with additional cilantro,  if you prefer. This makes a mess of beans, but they are so yummy you’ll find they will disappear quickly. Eat them in a taco or burrito, or sop them up with tortilla chips. These taste even better the next day, too.  Olé!