Chicken Enchiladas

Okay, so I don’t claim to be a chef…in fact I remember years ago I found out that my room mates used to pretend to have dinner plans when I was cooking! I’ve come along way since then learning from the cooking channels, cooks illustrated (in my opinion one of the best cook books series ever) and a lot of trial and error.  Here’s a recipe that my family loves..its VERY quick and easy!  The full recipe is below.

List of ingredients-corn tortillas(I like white corn-king size), 2 roasted chickens shredded, 1 1/2lbs of cheddar and jack cheese shredded, enchilada sauce(your choice-green or red…I prefer red), chopped green chilies and pitted black olives.

Put the shredded chicken into a skillet(this is a lodge enamel coated skillet…a gift from my daughter and son in-law….awesome!!!) and add the green chilies and generous sprinkle of garlic powder and cumin saute long enough for the flavors come together.  Cool slightly before assembling the enchiladas.

A word about the tortillas…I used to pan ‘fry’ each tortilla prior to assembly…this took WAY TOO LONG!  I saw someone on the Food Network do this method and every since it’s the way I do it…take a cloth napkin(paper towels would work too) and put two or three tablespoons of water on it, wrap them up and place them in a tortilla keeper(or covered bowl) and put them in the microwave on high for 2 1/2 minutes.  They will be steamy and hot and easy to work with. 
Assembly:
Put a small amount of the enchilada sauce in the bottom of a 9X13 pan.

In a pie plate, pour a small amount of sauce, add tortilla and make sure both sides are coated with sauce, add a line of chicken and cheese(amount is your decision-I tend to make mine pretty fat), roll it up and add to the pan.



When your pan is full, pour some additional sauce over them and a little cheese down the middle and some chopped olives

Cover with aluminum foil and bake at 375 degrees for 15 minutes, then uncover and bake for 10 minutes more.   Enjoy!!!

Chicken Enchiladas
 2 whole roasted chickens(from deli at grocery store)
2 cans of chopped green chiles
 1 can pitted black olives(sliced or purchase sliced black olives)
1 1/2 lbs of cheddar and monterey jack cheese-grated
 2-3 cans of enchilada sauce(your choice red or green)
garlic powder and cumin to taste corn
tortillas(# depends on how big or little you make them)-today I made 22 enchiladas)
Shred chickens and add to skillet along with green chiles and a generous sprinkling of garlic powder and cumin. Saute until heated through(about 5-10 minutes). Pour a small amount of enchilada sauce in bottom of 9x13 pan. Steam tortillas in microwave, dip in sauce, add chicken and cheese, roll and place in pan. Bake at 375 for 15 minutes covered and 10 minutes uncovered. Serve with sour cream.
 I also serve them with this rice-NO JUDGING-its delicious and its almost the only pre-packaged food you will find in my house.