Sour Cream Chicken Enchiladas
This looks complicated but it's rather easy.
PREPARE THE CHICKEN
Ingredients2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 12 oz. bottle Negra Modelo or similar brown beer (substitute chicken broth if preferred)
1 12 oz. can vegetable broth
Directions1. Put the breast halves in an 8 to 12 qt. pot
2. Add beer (or chicken broth)
3. Add vegetable broth
4. Bring to boil then immediately reduce to simmer for 30 minutes
5. Remove the chicken to cool
6. Shred the chicken
7. Pour the broth into a separate container and save it for later
NOTE:
1. My pot requires more of the 50/50 beer/broth liquid to cover three Costco chicken breasts. Add what you need but maintain the 50/50 beer/broth ratio.
2. Boneless/skinless chicken breasts are relatively tasteless so you don't lose any flavor by simmering them, you'll gain some from the beer/broth mix.
PREPARE THE CILANTRO SALSA
Ingredients1 10 oz. can of Ro-Tel Tomatoes
1 12 oz. jar of Jalapeño Slices (Your choice on heat, I prefer mild)
1 Medium to Large Red Onion
Most (2/3 to 3/4) of a bunch of Cilantro
1 Tablespoon of minced Garlic
1-2 Dashes of ground cumin
Directions1. Pulse the above ingredients in food processer or blender until chopped uniformly fine
NOTE: There'll be a lot of this left over. I can't figure out what to do with a part of a can of Ro-Tel Tomatoes so I make more cilantro salsa than needed and blend it into guacamole by adding an avocado and ¼ cup of lime juice. Blend it as much as you like; smooth or chunky.
COMBINING AND COOKING
Ingredients1 Stick of butter
½ Cup flour
1 Dash cumin
1½ Cups sour cream
1 9″×13″ casserole dish
12 7″ corn tortillas
2 Fresh jalapeño peppers, sliced
1 8 oz. Pkg. Shredded Mexican Style cheese
Directions1. Preheat the pit to 350°F
2. Melt the butter in a 4-6 qt. stew pot
3. Slowly sift in ½ cup of flour while whisking the melted butter
(Keep the heat low. You can add more flour if need to thicken the sauce, but go slowly. It takes a bit of whisking to know if you need more.)
4. Add a cup of the broth you set aside
5. Add sour cream and whisk until smooth then remove from heat
6. Add 6 rounded tablespoons of the cilantro salsa
7. Add a dash of cumin
8. Spray the casserole dishes with Pam or equivalent
9. Put 6 tortillas between a few damp paper towels on a dinner plate
10. Microwave the tortillas for 15-20 seconds to warm them
11. Lay a line of shredded chicken down the center of a tortilla
12. Drizzle 1 tablespoon of the cilantro salsa* and 1 tablespoon of the sour cream sauce on the line of chicken on the tortilla
13. Roll up the tortilla (it should be about an inch in diameter, slightly larger than a quarter)
14. Lay the rolled enchiladas in the casserole dish, seam down
15. Do the same with the remaining 6 tortillas
16. Pour and evenly distribute the sour cream sauce over the enchiladas
17. Lay jalapeño slices in a checkerboard fashion every ½″ to 1″
18. Cover the rolled tortillas with Mexican style fine shredded cheese
19. Tightly cover the casserole dish with foil
20. Cook for 30 minutes at 350°F
21. Remove the foil and raise the temperature to 500°-550°F for 15 minutes or until the cheese is brown
22. Serve with sour cream and/or guacamole for toppings
*It's the cilantro salsa that gives the enchilada the Mexican spicy taste. More than a tablespoon here approaches my personal "Too Hot" stage. I leave the cilantro salsa out of some enchiladas and put a toothpick in them so they're easily identifiable.
EDIT:
Notes:1. The hot smoky air flows from the top down in my pellet unit so it works well for browning the cheese at 500°F. Users of other pits may prefer to not brown it or may want to use their kitchen range broiler.
2. Leftover beer broth—add to re-fried beans or cook Mexican yellow rice in it.
2024 EDIT: Removed extraneous characters inserted by Simple Machines update.