White Chicken Enchiladas
Sometimes we love to change up Taco Tuesday. Honestly, I could do tacos or any Mexican dish any night of the week. Having an easy way to get dinner on the table that everyone enjoys is the joy in my life. These White Chicken Enchiladas should be in your meal plan for the week ahead!
Years ago, I started learning how to Freezer Cook. All that is, honestly, is making meals ahead of time and having them in the freezer for a quick and easy option for a weeknight meal. I still cook from the freezer, but I have modified it so I don’t have whole meals, just pre-cooked options to make my life easier.
You can learn more about Freezer Cooking and get free recipes here.
Quick Freezer Options
My newest obsession is having pre-smoked meats in my freezer so that I can quickly thaw them to make a casserole or other dish without having the lengthy process of cooking the meat before we can have dinner on the table. I do this for two reasons.
First of all, I moved to a house with limited freezer space and am still saving up the money to purchase a chest freezer to place in the basement. I lost a lot of square footage in the move to the new house, and I am learning to adjust accordingly. To give you an idea of just how much I have downsized, my old house was 4000 square feet. The new one is barely 1300. So, yes, I have significantly less room now.
Second of all, I’m obsessed with smoking meat now. I buy anything I can on sale and smoke it for later. From whole chicken to pork butt to roasts, I will figure out a way to smoke that and then get it into the freezer for use later. If the meat is already cooked, it makes cooking time so much quicker. No more having to slice and cook meat for the crockpot. No more cooking and shredding the chicken for a casserole. This is exactly why making these White Chicken Enchiladas is so easy.
White Chicken Enchiladas- The Inception
Most of my family loves enchiladas from the Mexican restaurant. I am a much pickier eater, and I have a severe sensitivity to heat. That red enchilada sauce that I despise? By using this homemade white sauce instead, I can avoid it altogether. I also keep the heat down by using mild green chiles. But you can use as much heat as you want. They now have a hot version you can use instead, or throw in some Tabasco to kick up the spice.
We also love to use Monterey Jack cheese in this recipe. I love the mildness of it, but you could easily use Pepper Jack in its place to have more heat. I love when people change recipes in order to make it as they want it.
Can these be made into a freezer meal?
Yes and no. I do a lot of the prep work ahead of time to make things easier when I start cooking. Have the chicken already cooked and shredded for the White Chicken Enchiladas. You could also go ahead and shred your cheese and roll the chicken and cheese into tortilla shells. Then place them into the pan as the recipe directs and freeze. The sauce is not good once frozen, however. It separates and just gets downright inedible.
How can I prepare the chicken for White Chicken Enchiladas ahead of time?
If you own an Instant Pot, the simplest way I know is to use my recipe for Perfect Instant Pot Roast Chicken. If you do not own an Instant Pot, you could also season and sear the skin on the chicken and place it into a Crockpot for the day to cook. (I’m all about easy. LOL) Or go the old-fashioned route and roast it in the oven. Any way you would like to cook it is fine. Or you can just grab a pre-cooked rotisserie chicken from the grocery store. The options are unlimited here.
White Chicken Enchiladas
White Chicken Enchiladas
Ingredients
- 10 soft taco shells
- 2 cups cooked shredded chicken
- 2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
- 3 tbsp butter
- 3 tbsp flour
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 1 cup sour cream can also use Greek yogurt instead
- 1 4oz. can diced green chilies
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F.
- Grease a 9×13 pan with butter or cooking spray.
- Mix chicken and 1 cup of the shredded cheese. Roll up in the tortilla shells. Place seam side down in greased baking pan.
- In a medium sauce pan, melt butter. Sprinkle in the flour, whisking constantly and cook for 1 minute.
- Add chicken broth and whisk until smooth. Heat over medium heat until thick and bubbly, about 5 minutes.
- Gently add sour cream to mixture, taking care not to boil. (You do not want to curdle the sour cream.). Stir in green chilies.
- Pour sauce over enchiladas in the 9×13 baking dish.
- Top with remaining 1 cup shredded cheese.
- Bake for 25 minutes. Place under the broiler for an additional 3 minutes to brown the cheese.
