Chicken Green Enchiladas recipe

Makes 4 large enchiladas. 

Preparation time: 15 minutes. Cooking time: 45 minutes. 

An American friend of mine was kind enough to share this recipe for Chicken Green Enchiladas with me. They are easy to make and the taste is phenomenal. 

There are 2 ingredients in the recipe that are not that common in UK supermarkets: Monterey Jack cheese (I managed to get some from my local Sainsbury's cheese counter) and tomatillos (I buy these from specialist retailers like MexGrocer UK. 

Chicken Green Enchiladas straight from the oven

Ingredients

• 4 Large chicken breasts
• 400g to 500g  shredded Monterrey Jack Cheese
• 1 large white onion
• 5-8 fresh tomatillos or a large can (794g) of tinned tomatillos, drained. 
• 1 green chili (to taste) - I used a jalapeno from the batch I froze back in September. 
• 4 tbsp light chili powder (I ground up some dried green jalapenos)
• Oregano flakes (I used Mexican oregano)
• 1 large garlic clove
• Juice of 1 lime
• Salt & black pepper to taste
• Cumin powder
• 4 Discovery corn tortillas

Method

1. Boil chicken with salt, black pepper, oregano and 2 tbsp of chili powder until chicken is completely done and shreds easily (about 30 minutes). 
2. Let the chicken breasts rest and gently pat, trying not to remove seasoning that is clinging to the meat. Shred the chicken and season liberally with remaining chili powder, cumin, salt & pepper.
3. If using fresh tomatillos, husk and wash them - if using canned, just drain them. Place tomatillos into blender and add garlic, green chili pepper and lime juice. Puree.
4. Finely dice the onion. Add 3/4 of the onion to the shredded cheese.
5. In a heavy skillet, light fry the tortillas in vegetable oil, then pat dry
6. Assemble each enchilada with chicken, a dab of tomatillo sauce and cheese - roll into a tube, like big canneloni, and place, seam down,  in a heavy baking pan. 
7. When all are complete, cover with cheese and sauce.
8. Bake in preheated oven at 180C for12-15 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool. Sprinkle remaining fresh onion over the enchiladas and serve.

 

Tangy, cheesy, juicy chicken green enchiladas.