Spicy Chicken Enchiladas

These are probably the best chicken enchiladas I've ever had. I tweaked a couple of recipes from the internets and this is my version. (As of 12/30/13, the chicken enchiladas have now been updated again for maximum tastiness.)

Note that I made mine pretty spicy - but you can scale back as needed!

Ingredients!

Foodstuffs:

3 chicken breasts, poached and shredded
1 cup sour cream
2 cups shredded cheese (your choice, I like cheddar)
16 oz. jar of salsa
10 oz. can of enchilada sauce
corn tortillas (I use 6 inchers, easy to fit lots in a dish and control serving size)
1/2 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon oregano
1 onion, diced
handful of pickled jalapenos or half of one green bell pepper, diced
2+ cloves of garlic, minced

Tools:

large skillet
pot for poaching chicken
9x13 baking dish

Note: if you're not a fan of spicy foods, reduce to chili powder to 1 teaspoon, use mild salsa and green pepper instead of the jalapenos. :)

This recipe makes a pan and a half of enchiladas, so I normally user both a 9x13 dish and an 8x8.

Poach Your Chicken!

Make sure to cut any excess fat off the breasts before you put them in the pot!

Then, place them in a pan and cover them with 2-3 inches of water and bring to a boil. Once it's boiling, reduce heat to a simmer, cover and let it do its thing until it reaches 165 F internal temp. This often takes 10-16 minutes.

When it's done, take the pot off the heat and lie the breasts on a plate to rest.

(For a more in-depth guide to poaching chicken breasts, click here!)

I had a little bit of homemade taco seasoning on hand, so I added a couple of pinches of that. You can add bay leaf, cumin, chili powder - anything that will work with the rest of the flavors in the recipe.

While this is going, mince and dice the veggies.

Shred the Chicken.

Your chicken should be done and resting at this point. When it's cool enough to touch, you can start shredding.

You can either use two forks or tongs and a fork. Your choice, kitchen lord.

Just try to get the chicken into good bite size pieces.

Cook the Veg and Add the Chicken

Add your onion, jalapenos (or green pepper) and garlic to the skillet with a little oil.

Let them cook for a few minutes over medium heat and then add 1/2 tablespoon of chili powder, and a teaspoon each of cumin and oregano.

After that, dump the shredded chicken in and stir it around until it's coated with spices and oil.

Finish the Filling + Preheat the Oven

Now add 1 cup of sour cream, 1 cup of cheese (the other cup will be reserved for topping the enchiladas), and the salsa to the skillet. Let this mingle and heat up for a moment. The cheese should be completely melted and the filling should be pretty thick.

Turn off the heat and let it hang out. You'll also want to preheat the oven to 350 F.

Now we'll assemble!

A Tip for Pliable Tortillas

To make assembling easier and break less tortillas, heat up a dry skillet over medium heat.

Throw a tortilla in and let it hang out for a few seconds on the first side, and then flip and let it heat until pliable. It doesn't take very long at all - as soon as they easily bend both ways they're ready!

Wave them to cool them a bit before filling.

Assemble + Bake

Pour a super thin layer of enchilada sauce in the

Take a corn tortilla and hold it in your palm. Fill it with one to two spoons of filling, and roll it up gently. Then place it fold side down in the pan. Continue until you've filled the pan. (And start a second one if wanted!)

Once your pan is packed, cover them in the enchilada sauce and last cup of cheese, and pop them in a 350 F oven for 20 minutes.

Eat!

Let them rest for a few minutes (at least 5-10) once out of the oven to cool to a tolerable mouth temperature.

You're now an enchilada master! And I promise they'll take less time to put together the more you make them.