Grilled Chilpotles Chili Chicken Green Chile Enchiladas

After making the Grilled Chilpotles Chili Chicken recipe (found here), I wanted to make enchiladas. This is actually a very easy dish to make and a great way to use leftover chicken. I usually use a red chile enchilada sauce, but I wanted to do something different, so I used a green chile sauce instead. The enchiladas are tasty no matter what color sauce you use, but it’s easier to find the red chile sauce at your local supermarket, while both the red and green chile versions can be found at Mexican supermarkets.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

28 oz. (1 can) Red or Green Chile Enchilada Sauce, El Pato or El Mexicano brands, respectively

5-6 Grilled Chilpotles Chili Chicken Thighs (recipe can be found here), deboned and shredded

8-10 10-inch Flour or Corn Tortillas

8 oz. (1 package) shredded Mexican-Style Four Cheese Blend

1 bunch Cilantro

Oil to coat the pan

Preparation and Cooking Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350⁰F.
2. Debone and shred the meat from 5-6 thighs of the Chilpotles Chili Chicken thighs (recipe can be found here); set aside.
3. Wash and roughly chop the cilantro into 1-inch lengths; set aside.
4. In an oven proof pan (9- x 13-inch minimum), coat the bottom and sides with oil. 8 to 10 rolled tortillas (enchiladas) usually will fit in the pan. Put a thin layer of enchilada sauce on the bottom of the pan.
5. To make an enchilada, take a tortilla and coat each side with some of the enchilada sauce. Put some of the shredded chicken, some of the Mexican-style cheese blend, and some cilantro into the center of the tortilla. Roll the tortilla tightly around the filling and place the enchilada into the pan. Repeat this procedure until all the enchiladas are assembled and the pan is full. I usually assemble the enchiladas in the pan itself so that any excess enchilada sauce goes into the pan and I don’t have to move the enchilada once it’s been assembled. If you do this, just make sure a thin layer of enchilada sauce remains on the bottom of the pan after each enchilada is assembled by adding more sauce as necessary (otherwise the enchiladas will stick to the bottom of the pan).
6. Pour the remaining enchilada sauce into the pan and evenly coat the assembled enchiladas, making sure that all exposed tortilla surfaces are coated with sauce. Evenly coat the enchiladas with the remaining shredded Mexican-style cheese blend.
7. Put the pan into the preheated oven and bake for 25-30 minutes or until the cheese is golden brown.
8. Take the pan out of the oven and using a spatula, separate the enchiladas gently while they are still hot. Add the remaining cilantro to the top of the cooked enchiladas. Allow the enchiladas to rest for 5-10 minutes before serving on individual plates (I actually use 2 spatulas to serve).