I’m home!!! I’m home, I’m home, I’m home! And after a fun few weeks traipsing around Europe, a 9.5 hour plane ride with a 1-year-old kicking the back of my seat and crying half of the ride, and a nearly lost luggage fiasco, boy did it feel good to walk in the door to my loft last night. And I had three things on my must-happen-immediately list:
1. a big ol’ glass of ice water
2. a full night to catch up on some zzzz’s in my own bed
3. and MEXICAN FOOD
Oh man. I rarely go 3 days without eating Mexican food, so 3 weeks without my chips and salsa felt like an eternity! We did pass by a few “Mexican” restaurants in Germany and Austria and even considered stopping in one evening. But one peek at their menus full of BBQ wings and New York steaks and shrimp scampi (true story) suggested we might be better waiting until we got home. So we did. And now I fully intend to make up for lost time…beginning with this white chicken enchilada casserole recipe!
It’s kind of a riff on my (red) Chicken Enchilada Casserole recipe, which has become a bit of a hit on the blog. But as you can tell, this is the “white”, creamy, green-chile-y, total comfort-food-y version. Although this version is even slightly healthier than traditional white enchiladas, and easy to make by “stacking” the enchiladas into a casserole instead of rolling them all up. Interested? I think you will be… :)
I’ve actually been eating white chicken enchiladas as long as I can remember. Mom used to make them with the cream of chicken soup shortcut when we were kids. Then for years I made them with sour cream. But recently I’ve switched to using plain Greek yogurt in the cream sauce, which provides some extra protein and I can’t even taste the difference! (If you don’t have Greek yogurt, though, you can totally use traditional sour cream.)
But in addition to the yogurt, the key to the sauce is to add an entire can of flavorful Old El Paso chopped green chiles (always a staple in my pantry for Mexi dishes), lots of chicken stock, and cumin. It’s a simple sauce, but surprisingly full of flavor just beyond the typical creamy base.
Then once you’re sauce is ready, it’s time to start assembling your enchilada casserole! This is basically your typical white enchilada recipe, but instead of rolling them all up, you just stack the ingredients layer by layer.
We begin with some halved soft flour tortillas. Then top those with a layer of the sauce.
Then add a layer of cooked shredded chicken (I used rotisserie as a shortcut). Follow that with a layer of white beans, which work great as an extra filler and protein source.
Then add a layer of shredded cheese. If you like milder food, I recommend using Monterrey Jack cheese. But I love making mine with Pepper Jack, or even the Habanero Jack cheese for some extra heat.
Then repeat all of those layers, followed by a final round of just tortillas, sauce and cheese. Bake it all up until it is cooked.
Then top the final casserole with some fresh avocado and cilantro as a garnish. And then serve it up!!!
Seriously, whether you eat Mexican food all the time (like me) or just occasionally, I’m positive this will satisfy any craving. I served it to three different groups of friends, and then all gave it raving reviews before I left for Europe. And now after looking at it, I’m realizing that there’s basically no choice — I must make it again for my Mexican foodathon this week. It’s too good and too easy not to enjoy again.
Three cheers for good Mexican food! :)
White Chicken Enchilada Casserole
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 cups chicken stock
- 1 (4 ounce) can Old El Paso chopped green chiles
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 cup plain Greek yogurt or sour cream
- 24 Old El Paso soft flour tortillas, halved
- 2 cups shredded cooked chicken
- 2 (14-ounce) cans White Northern beans, rinsed and drained
- 3 cups shredded Pepper Jack cheese
- 1 avocado, peeled, pitted and diced
- ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 9×13-inch baking pan with cooking spray, and set aside.
- Heat butter in a large saute pan over medium-high heat. Add flour, and whisk to combine. Cook for 1 minute until lightly browned, stirring frequently. Add half of the chicken stock, and whisk until combined. Then add the remaining chicken stock, green chiles, and cumin, and whisk until combined.
- Let the mixture continue heating until it reaches a simmer and thickens slightly, about 2-3 minutes. Stir in Greek yogurt (or sour cream) and whisk until combined. Remove from heat and set aside.
- To assemble the enchiladas, place 8 tortilla halves in the prepared baking pan so that they cover the bottom of the pan. Spread about 1/3 of the cream sauce evenly on top of the tortillas. Sprinkle half of the chicken on evenly on top of the sauce, followed by half of the beans, and 1 cup shredded cheese. Repeat with a second layer of tortillas, cream sauce, chicken, beans and cheese. Then add a final layer of just tortillas, cream sauce and cheese.
- Cover the casserole with aluminum foil. Bake for 20 minutes. Then remove the aluminum foil and bake for an additional 15 minutes, uncovered, until the cheese is melted and begins to brown around the edges and the casserole is cooked through.
- Remove pan, and sprinkle with avocado and fresh cilantro. Serve warm.
Did you make this?Let me know how it turned out in the comments below!
I made this and it was HEAVENLY!!!!!
The leftovers were even better!!!!!!
This is a saved recipe for future use!!!!!
We’re so glad you loved it Jennifer — thanks for giving it a try! :D
Just the kind of recipe I was looking for, thank you! I made it for the first time this week and am enjoying the leftovers which are especially good with fresh avocado and cilantro, as well as salt, pepper and red pepper flakes added after reheating.
A couple discoveries to share: If using standard 9-inch flour tortillas, I think 6 halves per layer are enough. This means only 9 full tortillas are needed (note: to follow your recipe to include 8 halves per layer, you should still revise the ingredients to list 12 full tortillas, not 24). I will probably fry the full tortillas in a little vegetable oil prior to assembling as they came out a little dry in the finished casserole. I’d also increase the heat because it’s a little bland for me. I’ll probably increase the cumin, add salt & pepper and be sure to get hot green chiles and the hottest pepper jack I can find. Hope this is helpful.
Thanks for sharing these tips Judy, we’re so glad you enjoyed this! :)
Tried it, really liked it!! Got great reviews and everyone had seconds! Will be making this again. Thank you!
Thanks Rachel, we’re glad to hear that! :D
I made the White Chicken Enchilada recipe amd it was very good. I used Montery Jack cheese because some kids were eating it. Pepper Jack would no doubt give it more zing but it was still good with the non-spicy cheese too. One comment of note: the ingredients list contains an ERROR. It is NOT 24 tortillas halved, but rather 12 tortillas that you cut in half to make 24 pieces. I only discovered this as I read through the entire recipe after purchasing the 24 that were listed.
We’re happy to hear you enjoyed them MJ! And oh my goodness, thanks for catching that!
Thanks for this recipe!! I made it for my husband’s birthday the other night and he is still enjoying the leftovers. It might be even better the next day.
You’re welcome Lisa, we’re happy your husband enjoyed this! :D
Sounds fantastic! Another gotta try recipe. Thanks.
Not really a fan of hot food.. could I use Salsa Verde instead of the green chiles?
No worries Danielle, we think you could definitely do that! :)
Wow, this looks to die for! I am planning to try it out this weekend. We’ll see how it goes. Thank you for making it look easy because I know a lot goes into getting the recipe just right. Love the site by the way!
Thanks Laura, we hope you’ll love it! And thanks for your sweet words about the blog, we’re happy you’re a fan! :)
Added Chalula to the sauce and used monterey jack cheese. Great recipe- turned out really well.
Awesome, we’re glad you enjoyed it! :)
You make the food look so amazing!! This is a perfect dish to try out tonight. I’m so excited!!
Thanks Mary, we hope you enjoy the casserole! :)