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White Chicken Enchiladas

This white chicken enchiladas recipe is so good that you will smile when you think of eating it. Sautéd chicken thighs with shallots wrapped in soft flour tortillas and slathered with a delicious sauce makes for a great meal.

A white plate with chicken enchiladas with guacamole, and beans in front of guacamole, salsa, and sour cream sauce
Photo Credit: Dishes Delish.

Mexican food is my favorite cuisine.

I worked at a Mexican eatery many moons ago as everyone who’s been reading this blog for a while knows since I talk about it so often. This Mexican restaurant was the only one in our area and people flocked there.

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I loved everything I tried there but the enchiladas. They were strictly made with corn tortillas, which I always found too rubbery to eat.

Nowadays, I’ve discovered that I really enjoy eating corn tortillas out at a restaurant but I still make them with flour tortillas at home.

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Ingredients and substitutions

  • Olive oil
  • Shallots – or a Vidalia onion.
  • Garlic paste – or garlic cloves, minced.
  • Cumin
  • Parsley – dried or cilantro
  • Salt – sea salt
  • Ground black pepper
  • Flour tortillas – or corn tortillas
  • Sour cream sauce
  • Mexican cheese – a blend of cheddar, Monterey Jack cheese, queso quesadilla cheese, and asadero cheese.

Helpful tips

  • Do you want to save time with this enchilada recipe? You can buy a rotisserie chicken and shred the meat, just know it may be drier than if you cook the chicken yourself.
  • You can use corn tortillas instead of flour tortillas.
  • You can use shredded chicken breast meat instead of thigh meat.
  • You can use onions instead of shallots.
  • Whenever possible, I use organic because I like that they don’t have any added antibiotics in it and I believe there is a taste difference.
  • I don’t use any spices that would add heat because Christopher is sensitive to spicy food, but if you want to add when you are sautéing the chicken.
  • You don’t have to use my sour cream sauce, but the flavor is outstanding and it is so worth trying these enchiladas smothered with it.
  • I will not be showing you how to make sour cream sauce, as there is a post that explains it on the site. But you will need a saucepan, and here are the ingredients you will need: flour and melted butter – which you will whisk together, chicken broth, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, sour cream, shredded cheddar cheese.
  • I do make my own refried beans, but if you don’t want to, you can substitute it with canned beans.
  • When you bake the enchiladas with the sauce, it does dry out a tad, so feel free to add more after you serve it.
  • If you have leftovers, you can place them into an airtight container and store in the fridge for up to a week. You can reheat it easily in the oven and add more sauce and sprinkle with any remaining cheese on top.
  • You can also store in the freezer for up to 3 months. And for that matter, you can make the enchiladas ahead and store them in the freezer until you’re ready to eat them. You’ll fully thaw the enchiladas, ladle on white enchilada sauce and bake.
A white plate with two enchiladas with chicken sticking out of it with sauce and guacamole - along with beans on the plate
Photo Credit: Dishes Delish.

How to make chicken enchiladas

Pre-step

Get your wok or large sauté pan and a baking dish.

Cut up the chicken into a little bigger than bite sized pieces.

Step one

Gather the ingredients – shallots, cut up chicken, and garlic.

A table with shallots, a plate of raw chicken pieces, garlic, and a wok
Photo Credit: Dishes Delish.

Step two

Heat the wok on medium heat. Add olive oil and once that has heated up, add the cut up shallots and sauté them for 4 minutes.

Step three

Add the chicken, cumin, dried parsley, salt, pepper, and garlic. Sauté for 8 minutes. (A)

Assembling the enchiladas

Step four

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Step five

Get out tortillas, refried beans and sour cream sauce.

For this recipe, I alternated between white flour tortillas and whole wheat tortillas.

Step six

Slather a spoonful of beans in a strip on the tortillas and add a good dollop of the chicken mixture on top. (B)

Left - a wok with cooked chicken and shallots. Right - a little plate with a tortilla with beans and chicken, with more tortillas and a wok in the back
Photo Credit: Dishes Delish.

Step seven

Roll the tortillas around the chicken mixture and line them up in the baking dish, seam side down. (C)

As you can see, I have extra chicken mixture but that’s okay because it means leftovers!

Step eight

Pour sour cream sauce over the enchiladas, and then add shredded cheese over it all. (D)

Left - rolled up enchiladas in a baking dish with a wok in the back. Right - the baking dish with the enchiladas, sauce, and cheese
Photo Credit: Dishes Delish.

Step nine

Bake uncovered for 20 minutes.

a baking dish filled with enchiladas with white sauce
Photo Credit: Dishes Delish.

Yum! Look at how delicious that looks. I plate some chicken enchiladas with refried beans and gather guacamole and salsa.

As I mentioned, the sauce gets a little dried out so I add a little more.

Hmmm. Not enough. I drape some more over the enchiladas, along with some guacamole.

Close up of enchiladas on the white plate with beans, guacamole and salsa
Photo Credit: Dishes Delish.

I hope you enjoyed this creamy white chicken enchiladas recipe.

And as always, may all your dishes be delish!

If you’ve tried this or any other recipe on the blog, I’d love the hear what you thought about it in the comments below.  I love hearing from you!  You can also FOLLOW ME on FACEBOOKTWITTERINSTAGRAM and PINTEREST  to see more of my delicious food and delightful cocktails!

Guacamole and more sour cream sauce draped over the enchiladas with beans on the plate as well

White Chicken Enchiladas

Make dinnertime extra special with this quick and easy white chicken enchilada recipe. It’s guaranteed to be a crowd-pleaser!
5 from 9 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Dinner
Cuisine: Mexican
Keyword: chicken enchiladas, chicken enchiladas with white sauce, white chicken enchiladas
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes
Servings: 9 enchiladas
Calories: 300kcal

Ingredients

  • 4 shallots (sliced in rings and chunks)
  • 5 chicken thighs (boneless and skinless, cut up to bite sized pieces (approximately 1.2 pounds))
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 3 teaspoons garlic paste (or 3 cloves garlic, chopped)
  • 1 teaspoon cumin (ground)
  • 1 teaspoon dried parsley
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon pepper
  • 9 6 inch flour tortillas (I used flour and whole wheat)
  • 1 cup refried beans
  • 1 cup sour cream sauce (homemade)
  • 1/4 cup Mexican cheese (shredded)

Instructions

  • Heat sauté pan or wok on medium and once that heats up, add oil.
    2 tablespoons olive oil
  • Once that heats up, add shallots and sauté for 4 minutes.
    4 shallots
  • Add chicken, cumin, parsley, salt, pepper and garlic and sauté for an additional 8 minutes.
    5 chicken thighs, 3 teaspoons garlic paste, 1 teaspoon cumin, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/8 teaspoon pepper, 1 teaspoon dried parsley
  • Spread refried beans on flour tortillas.
    1 cup refried beans, 9 6 inch flour tortillas
  • Add chicken mixture on top and roll up the tortilla and place seam side down in the baking dish.
  • Repeat until you fill the baking dish, I used 9 tortillas.
  • Ladle sour cream sauce on top of enchiladas and sprinkle the cheese on top
    1 cup sour cream sauce, 1/4 cup Mexican cheese
  • Bake uncovered for 20 minutes.
  • Serve
  • Smile
  • Enjoy
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Notes

Make as many as you want or until chicken mixture is done. I only had room for 9 enchiladas.  I also alternated between white flour tortillas and whole wheat flour tortillas.  I’m not adding the extra sour cream sauce in the calorie count.

Helpful tips

  • Do you want to save time with this enchilada recipe? You can buy a rotisserie chicken and shred the meat, just know it may be drier than if you cook the chicken yourself.
  • You can use corn tortillas instead of flour tortillas.
  • You can use shredded chicken breast meat instead of thigh meat.
  • You can use onions instead of shallots.
  • Whenever possible, I use organic because I like that they don’t have any added antibiotics in it and I believe there is a taste difference.
  • I don’t use any spices that would add heat because Christopher is sensitive to spicy food, but if you want to add when you are sautéing the chicken.
  • You don’t have to use my sour cream sauce, but the flavor is outstanding and it is so worth trying these enchiladas smothered with it.
  • I will not be showing you how to make sour cream sauce, as there is a post that explains it on the site. But you will need a saucepan, and here are the ingredients you will need: flour and melted butter – which you will whisk together, chicken broth, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, sour cream, shredded cheddar cheese.
  • I do make my own refried beans, but if you don’t want to, you can substitute it with canned beans.
  • When you bake the enchiladas with the sauce, it does dry out a tad, so feel free to add more after you serve it.
  • If you have leftovers, you can place them into an airtight container and store in the fridge for up to a week. You can reheat it easily in the oven and add more sauce and sprinkle with any remaining cheese on top.
  • You can also store in the freezer for up to 3 months. And for that matter, you can make the enchiladas ahead and store them in the freezer until you’re ready to eat them. You’ll fully thaw the enchiladas, ladle on white enchilada sauce and bake.

Nutrition

Serving: 2enchiladas | Calories: 300kcal | Carbohydrates: 8g | Protein: 14g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 63mg | Sodium: 600mg | Potassium: 202mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 250IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 47mg | Iron: 1.1mg
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From lighting up stages with her BA in theater to food journalist, Elaine Benoit's journey is a testament to passion's transformative power. As the CEO of Dishes Delish, she offers a blend of healthy, comforting recipes and exquisitely crafted cocktails. Beyond the kitchen, Elaine voiced her culinary adventures on her podcast, "Dishing," and co-owns Food Blogger Help, extending her expertise to guide budding food bloggers to success. Whether it's for a heartwarming dish or insights into food blogging, Elaine's diverse experiences make her a beacon in the culinary digital landscape.

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27 Comments

  1. Fantastic Layneey 🙂 I’m going to give these a try when hubby is home next time! What a great blog girl!

  2. Recipes like this leave me weak in the knees. There’s nothing like comforting, Tex- Mex style Mexican food! I’ll use a dairy free sour cream substitute and cheddar to make these dairy free for my diet. They look so delicious.

  3. Chicken Enchiladas are a favorite around here and these sound so good. I have to go check out your sour cream sauce too. Yummy!

  4. This really is an easy recipe! Love the quick assembly — when I make enchiladas, it’s a production!

  5. Isn’t it funny how Mexican cuisine can vary so much from region to region? I’m sure it’s much different here in the Midwest as well! I love making enchiladas with flour tortillas as well and I am SO looking forward to trying these! 🙂

    1. Thank you Nicole and yes, very interesting about the variety of Mexican cuisine! I remember when I lived in CA, it was different even in the different regions there!

  6. I am with you about enchiladas with flour tortilla and organic chicken. That serving was for two? That is what Liam will have by himself. He loves enchiladas

    1. Thanks Laura!! I’ll have to check what I put for servings because we had it a few days as leftovers!! Still delicious!

  7. Chicken enchiladas are a big favourite in our household – these look especially delicious!

  8. I love enchiladas of any kind, but especially those made with flour tortillas. Your sour cream sauce sounds divine, especially paired with Colby on top. I think this will be dinner this upcoming week!

  9. I never get tired of these enchiladas. Between the chicken, the veggies, the soft tortilla, and the sauce, they’re always good eating!

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