Beef Enchiladas
Love the sauce on these enchiladas and especially love that I dont have to stock canned enchilada sauce
Love the sauce on these enchiladas and especially love that I dont have to stock canned enchilada sauce
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 2/3 cup water
- 1/4 teaspoon cumin
- 1 medium onion chopped
- 1/2 teaspoon oregano
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley chopped
- 1 pound lean ground beef browned
- 1 cup cheddar cheese shredded
- 1/3 cup green bell pepper chopped
- 2 whole green chilies chopped
- 1 15 ounce can tomato sauce
- 8 corn tortillas (6 inch diameter)
- shredded cheese, sour cream and green onions for garnish
- Carbohydrate 27.3322616581309 g
- Cholesterol 77.8454234409335 mg
- Fat 17.9881435271266 g
- Fiber 4.49107500670656 g
- Protein 25.9191902505948 g
- Saturated Fat 9.0114762227673 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (308g)
- Sodium 610.102770451694 mg
- Sugar 22.8411866514243 g
- Trans Fat 1.6011860624253 g
- Calories 372 calories
Step-by-step
- Heat oven to 350 degrees.
- Cook beef in 10-inch skillet over medium hat 8 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until brown; drain. Stir in onion, sour cream, 1 cup cheese, the parsley and pepper. Cover and set aside.
- Heat bell pepper, water, chili powder, oregano, cumin, chilies, garlic, and tomato sauce to coiling stirring occasionally; reduce heat to low. Simmer uncovered 5 minutes. Pour into ungreased pie plate, 9 x 1 1/4 inches.
- Dip each tortilla into sauce to coat both sides. Spoon about 1/4 cup beef mixture onto each tortilla; roll tortilla around filling. Place in ungreased rectangular baking dish, 11x7x1 1/2 inches. Pour remaining sauce over enchiladas.
- Bake uncovered about 20 minutes or until bubbly. Garnish with shredded cheese, sour cream and chopped green onions.
Working within the boundaries of a standard 10-inch skillet requires careful heat management to brown one pound of lean ground beef thoroughly without scorching the rendered fats against the pan floor. Too many cooks crowd the cooking surface or rush the initial eight to ten minute browning phase, resulting in gray meat chunks that release excess moisture into the sour cream and cheddar cheese filling mixture. Drain that excess liquid completely before mixing in the chopped onion, fresh parsley, and pepper, or the final baked rolls will become soggy at the base. Controlling these early moisture levels ensures the filling holds its structural integrity once spooned inside the corn tortillas.
Dipping individual tortillas directly into the simmering tomato and green chili sauce softens the masa sufficiently for rolling, but timing is everything during this assembly step. Leaving the 6-inch corn tortillas in the hot liquid for longer than a few seconds causes them to tear apart entirely along the edges, making them impossible to wrap around the beef filling without spilling the contents into the baking dish. Warm the sauce just to a gentle simmer in a wide pie plate to maintain an optimal temperature that softens the starch without dissolving the structure of the tortilla. Working methodically from the pie plate straight to the ungreased 11x7x1 1/2-inch rectangular baking dish prevents the wrappers from cooling down and stiffening up prematurely.
Swapping the cheddar cheese for lower-fat alternatives or omitting the sour cream alters the moisture balance significantly, often leading to a dry interior texture after twenty minutes in a 350-degree oven. Full-fat dairy products release just enough fat during the baking cycle to keep the beef mixture rich, whereas fat-free substitutes break down into a watery or grainy paste when heated. Similarly, using water instead of low-sodium beef broth in the sauce base reduces the savory depth, demanding careful adjustment of the chili powder, oregano, cumin, and garlic quantities to compensate for the missing umami. Respecting these component ratios preserves the intended flavor profile without requiring heavy salt additions at the table.
Baking the assembled dish uncovered for approximately twenty minutes allows the remaining sauce poured over the top to thicken properly while the cheese melts into bubbly pockets across the surface. Pull the dish from the oven the moment the edges begin to brown slightly and the center reaches a bubbling state, as prolonged baking dries out the exposed tortilla tips until they turn brittle. Finish the plates with fresh chopped green onions and extra sour cream just before serving to introduce a sharp, cooling contrast to the spiced tomato coating.
