Perfect Enchiladas

My new favorite recipe for enchiladas comes from Pioneer Woman. The sauce is so good we eat it just with chips and have used it on other things like pork tacos....yuuummm!

*Picture from PW

They are a bit time consuming, but you can get the sauce and meat prepared ahead of time to cut down on the prep time.

Ingredients

FOR THE SAUCE:
1 Tablespoon Canola Oil
1 Tablespoon All-purpose Flour
1 can (28 Ounce) Enchilada Or Red Sauce
2 cups Chicken Broth
½ teaspoons Salt
½ teaspoons Ground Black Pepper
2 Tablespoons Chopped Cilantro
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FOR THE MEAT:
1-½ pounds Ground Beef
1 whole Medium Onion, Finely Diced
2 cans (4 Ounce) Diced Green Chilies
½ teaspoons Seasoned Salt
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FOR THE TORTILLAS:
10 whole (to 14) Corn Tortillas
½ cups Canola Oil
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TO ASSEMBLE:
3 cups Grated Sharp Cheddar Cheese
½ cup Chopped Black Olives
1 cup Chopped Green Onions
½ cup Chopped Cilantro

Preparation Instructions

Step #1 – The Sauce.
In a large saucepan over medium heat, add oil and flour and whisk together to make a paste, cooking for one minute. Pour in the red sauce, chicken broth, cilantro, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 30-45 minutes.

* My note: I find the sauce is still pretty runny after the suggested cooking time, which is fine for the enchiladas...but when we used it for pork tacos, I let it simmer for several hours and it thickened up really nicely.

Step #2 – The Meat.
Brown the meat with onions in a skillet. Drain off fat. Stir in 2 cans diced green chilies and seasoned salt. Set aside.

Step #3 – Tortillas.
Heat canola oil in a small skillet over medium heat. One by one, using tongs, fry tortillas in oil until soft, not crisp – about 30 seconds per side. Remove to a paper—towel lined plate. Repeat until all tortillas have been fried.

Step #4 – Assembly.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Pour ½ cup red sauce in bottom of baking pan. Spread to even out. Dip each tortilla into red sauce, then remove to work surface. Spoon meat, a little grated cheese, a little black olives, and green onions in the center of tortilla. Roll up and place, seam down, in baking pan. Repeat until pan is filled. Pour extra red sauce over enchiladas. Top with remaining cheddar cheese.

Bake for 20 minutes or until bubbly. Sprinkle cilantro over enchiladas before serving.