Creamy Green Chile Turkey Enchiladas

Tip:  Read directions completely before preparing.

Ingredients:

The Turkey Stuffing:

1 ¼ pounds, ground turkey

1 (4 oz.) can of mild Hatch’s green chilies,  drained

1/2 cup chopped onion (about ½ medium onion)

1/2 teaspoon, salt

1 teaspoon, comino (cumin)

The Green Chile Cream Sauce

½ cup chopped onion (about ½ medium onion)

1 can (15 ounce) Hatch’s Green Chile Enchilada Sauce

½ cup milk

½ cup heavy cream

8 oz. sour cream

2 teaspoons Knorr Chicken Bouillon

Assembly:

8 – 6” corn tortillas

1/3 cup canola oil

8 ounces (about 2 cups) cheddar jack cheese, shredded

¼ cup chopped green onions

Directions:

The Turkey Stuffing:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large nonstick skillet, over medium high heat, add about 1 teaspoon canola oil.  Add the ground turkey and sauté until cooked through, about 5 minutes.  Add onions and chopped green chilies and mix with turkey.  Continue cooking about 3 minutes until onion is translucent.

Add minced garlic, mix and sauté another minute.

Remove from pan and set aside.

The Green Chile Cream Sauce:

In the same skillet, over medium heat, add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion softens and starts to turn translucent, about 3-4 minutes.

Add Hatch’s Green Chile Enchilada Sauce.  Add the Knorr Chicken bouillon and stir thoroughly.

Slowly whisk in the milk, heavy cream and sour cream.  Let continue cooking until the mixture is lightly bubbling and has thickened, about 4-5 minutes.  Remove from skillet and set aside.

Assembly:

Softening the Corn Tortillas for Assembly:

In the same skillet, but cleaned, soften the corn tortillas by adding the canola oil and heating over medium high heat.  Once the oil is hot, add one corn tortilla at a time, using a pair tongs.  Turning tortilla over in about 10 seconds.  Once softened bout 5 seconds, remove from pan and set aside.  Continue same process until all 8 tortillas have been softened.

Set up all the ingredients to prepare for rolling the enchiladas.  In an approximately 9” x 11” baking dish place one tortilla and add ¼ cup of turkey, 2 tablespoons of cooked Green Chile Cream Sauce, 1 tablespoon chopped onions, and 1 tablespoon shredded cheese.  Roll up and place at one end of dish.  Continue process until all 8 tortillas have been filled, rolled and placed as shown below.

Top with some of the remaining, if any, turkey, and onions.  Pour the Green Chile Cream Sauce over the top of the enchiladas.  Top with all the remaining cheese as shown below.

Cover dish with aluminum foil and bake for 1 hour, until the enchiladas are bubbling, hot and lightly browned. Serve and Enjoy!!!!

Serves:  8

Nuevo Leon Enchiladas

Nuevo Leon is a state in Mexico and this is one of their traditional Enchiladas recipes. The Ancho Sauce in this recipe can also be used for other recipes.

Tip: Read instructions completely before cooking.

Ingredients:

16 Corn Tortillas

1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 cups shredded cooked chicken, preferably dark meat, such as thighs

2 cups (10 oz.) Queso Fresco

1 cup white onion, chopped

2 cups of Ancho Tortilla Dipping Sauce  (Click for recipe)

Directions:

Heat a 9" or 10" heavy bottomed skillet and add the 1/2 cup oil.  Heat on medium high. One by one, using a pair of tongs, dip the tortillas in the hot oil until soft, should only take about 4 seconds, lay on a plate and continue until all the tortillas are dipped. See photo.

Heat the ancho sauce in a pan until warm. One by one, using a pair of tongs, dip the softened tortillas in the ancho sauce and lay on a plate. See photo.

In a large baking dish, I use 2, 2 quart rectangular baking dishes, lay a tortilla and add some shredded chicken, a little onion and some cheese. Then add 1 teaspoon of the ancho sauce, roll up, set aside in pan. Continue until you have eight in each pan. Pour the remaining sauce over the 2 dishes. Sprinkle the remaining cheese and onions on the dishes. See photo.

Heat the oven to 375 degree and bake for 25 minutes.

Serves 8, 2 Enchiladas each. Can be served by themselves or with rice, beans or any side dish you would like.

Tip: Queso fresco is the most widely used cheese in Mexican cooking. The firm-textured fresh white cheese. Its name translates as "fresh cheese" and is slightly salty, with a mild, tangy taste similar to farmer's cheese. Like other fresh cheeses, queso fresco is lower in fat and sodium, despite its salty flavor, than aged cheeses. It's easily crumbled to sprinkle on dishes like enchiladas and tamales, as well as soups like black bean and tortilla. It also makes a tasty addition to cold vegetable salads. And although it softens, it does not melt when heated; queso fresco is classically used in the filling for chile relleños and quesadillas. For a snack, heat some on corn tortillas and top with a dollop of salsa.

Tex-Mex Beef Enchiladas

Tip: Please read directions completely before preparing.

Ingredients:

2 lb ground hamburger meat, 80/20

12 corn tortillas

1/4 cup canola oil (vegetable is fine)

1 small yellow onion, finely chopped

4 cups grated cheddar cheese (Monterrey Jack or Colby)

3 tablespoons flour

1 1/2 tablespoons chili powder (see below)

3 cups beef broth

3 large garlic cloves

1/4 teaspoon cumin seeds (comino)

1/4 teaspoon black peppercorns

1/4 Mexican oregano (regular oregano is fine)

2 allspice berries

1 teaspoon salt

Directions:

Heat a small skillet or frying pan over high heat. Once the pan is hot simply add the cumin seeds, no oil, all at once. Shake the pan to keep the cumin seeds moving and cook, shaking pretty much constantly - until they darken slightly and you can smell the earthy aroma of toasted cumin seeds through your kitchen, about 1 minute. As soon as they are toasted, transfer the cumin seeds to a molcajete (or mortar and pestle) so they cool and stop cooking.

To the molecajete (mortar and pestal) add the garlic, peppercorns, allspice, oregano and grind into a paste. Once ground into a paste, Add 1/2 cup beef broth to loosen all the spices from the molcajete and set aside.

To make the enchilada sauce, in a large skillet, over medium heat, lightly brown the hamburger meat, remove with ladle, being sure to drain as much oil as possible back into the skillet when removing, and once all the meat has been removed, set aside.

In the same skillet, make a light roux by adding the flour to the fat in the skillet and stirring with a whisk constantly, cook a few minutes until the flour has browned lightly

Add the chili powder, add the remaining 2 1/2 cups of beef broth, liquid and paste from molcajete and salt, and continue to quickly stir using a whisk and cook until mixture has thickened and smooth. Set aside and keep warm.

 

For the Enchiladas, you will need a 9x13-inch Pyrex dish, set aside on prepping area. Preheat your oven to 375°F degrees.

Chop the onions, grate the cheese, and set aside.

Heat the oil in a second skillet. Have the corn tortillas ready. Pick up a tortilla with tongs and place it into the hot oil for about 15 seconds. This first step is to soften the tortilla.

Remove the tortilla from the oil, letting the excess oil drip back into the skillet.

Set up your area with all the ingredients you will need to prepare the enchiladas.

Place a tortilla in the 9x13-inch Pyrex dish, add about 1 heaping tablespoon of grated cheese, 2 tablespoons of hamburger meat and sprinkle of onions on the center of the tortilla, add 1 tablespoon of enchilada sauce and roll it up.

Place the rolled tortilla flat-side-down as shown below in Pyrex dish.

Repeat the process with the remaining 11 tortillas. The pan should be full.

Pour the remaining enchilada sauce on top of the enchiladas.

Sprinkle the enchiladas generously with the remaining meat, grated cheese and onion.

Bake for about 20 minutes until the cheese is bubbly. Serve at once. Enjoy!

Servings: Makes four servings of three enchiladas each.

Tip:  Garnish with Creama or sour cream, salsa, Pico de Gallo. Ideas for on the side, dishes, serve, chips and hot sauce, Mexican Rice or Refried Beans.