Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Chicken Enchiladas Verdes: My Stand-by Pleaser

Since it's finally started cooling down, I decided to treat Will with my homemade enchiladas verdes. While Will prefers my enchiladas rojos, his stomach doesn't, so we went with using the green sauce instead.
First, cook a sliced onion, a diced clove of garlic and a diced jalapeno in a bit of grapeseed oil and cumin until the onions are tender and the jalapeno is fragrant; try to avoid using anything red like paprika or chili powder when using green sauce because the green sauce has a lighter flavor and can turn brown if you use too many red spices. Meanwhile, poach three chicken breasts in salted boiling water.
Once they're fully cooked, drain the water and shred them with two forks. Once they are shredded, add a fifteen ounce can of green enchilada sauce and your cooked onion mixture; I use Hatch brand because it's New Mexican style; it's from Hatch, so it's considered local; and it has no preservatives.
Now it's time to heat another can of green enchilada sauce in a bowl and some corn tortillas; make sure your corn tortillas are as fresh as possible because if they aren't they will fall apart. The reason you heat the tortillas and sauce is it prevents tearing on the part of the tortillas; the sauce doesn't have to be boiling or anything, but just warm. Dip each tortilla into the sauce and coat it; wipe of the excesses and place it in your baking dish. Scoop a bit of the chicken into the center and roll it up; make sure not to stuff too much in, otherwise the tortilla will rip no matter how fresh or well coated in sauce it is. Repeat until you have filled either one large or two small casserole dishes; don't feel bad if you have leftover chicken because it makes a fantastic enchilada soup. Pour any remaining enchilada sauce over the top of your enchiladas.
Sprinkle grated cheddar and cotija cheeses over; usually, I also put enchilado cheese in with my chicken to amp up the flavor, but I couldn't find any enchilado cheese at my grocery store, so we went without. Bake in a 350 degree oven until the sauce is bubbly and the cheese is melted. Take them out of the oven and let the set for around five minutes; this keeps them from falling apart when you serve them.
Will, as always, garnished his enchiladas with sour cream, but you could easily do this with olives, tomatoes, guacamole and lettuce, if you prefer. They were a little warmer, but we both love the warmth one gets from spicy Mexican food.

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