Creamy Chicken Enchiladas are filled with tender shredded chicken and cheese, wrapped tortillas and smothered in a sour cream sauce. Pure comfort!
Serve with a side of Cilantro Tomato Rice or Tomato Basil Rice and a fresh salad for a great meal!
Ingredients
This dish is cheesy, creamy, and absolutely satisfying. It’s easy to make and quite literally my favorite meal (along with Homemade Mac and Cheese of course)!
SAUCE
This meal is also known as white chicken enchiladas or green chile enchiladas because the sauce contains sour cream mixed with a green enchilada sauce (instead of a traditional red enchilada sauce).
TORTILLAS
This dish is traditionally made with corn tortillas however if you prefer flour tortillas, you can certainly use those! To avoid the tortillas cracking when rolling them, heat them first. I place them directly on a low flame on my gas stove to char the edges a bit and add great flavor!
CHEESE
The addition of cream cheese and Monterey jack make these extra creamy. Any cheese you love works well in this reicpe.
CHICKEN
You can use rotisserie chicken, baked chicken breasts, or poached chicken to make this recipe. If you have leftover turkey from the holidays, use that too! (Or try making turkey enchiladas!)
How to Cook Chicken for Enchiladas
Shredded chicken makes the best chicken enchiladas, so start with chicken breasts or thighs (boneless or bone-in will work). I often cook big batches of CrockPot Shredded Chicken to keep in the freezer for recipes just like this!
Season bone-in chicken breasts or thighs (or both) and bake at 350°F for 45-55 minutes (depending on the size of the chicken) or until it reaches 165°F. Remove from the oven and shred using two forks.
How To Make Chicken Enchiladas
Once the chicken is cooked and shredded, you’re ready for the rest of the meal:
- Make Sauce: Combine sour cream & green enchilada sauce.
- Make Filling: Saute the onion, garlic and poblano pepper until softened. Stir in the shredded chicken, cream cheese & canned green chilis.
- Fill Tortillas: Briefly heat the tortillas, either in a non-stick pan, over a gas flame or in the oven (this keeps them from cracking). Fill and roll.
- Bake: Top with remaining sauce and cheese, and bake uncovered.
These Creamy Chicken Enchiladas are also great made into a chicken enchilada casserole in the oven. Layer the ingredients instead of baking and cook uncovered for an hour, at 350°F. Enjoy!
More Recipes You’ll Love
- Beef Enchilada Dip – great for a crowd
- Slow Cooker Chicken Enchilada Soup – easy and delicious
- Beef Enchilada Casserole – family favorite!
- Slow Cooker Chicken Enchiladas Recipe – so easy
- Slow Cooker Shredded Beef – Perfect for Tacos or Enchiladas
- Veggie Enchiladas – perfect for a meatless meal
Did you enjoy these Chicken Enchiladas? Be sure to leave a comment and a rating below!
Creamy Chicken Enchiladas
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 small onion finely diced
- 1 poblano pepper or ½ green pepper
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 4 ounces cream cheese softened
- 4 ounces canned mild green chiles undrained
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- 2 cups cooked shredded chicken
- ¾ cup sour cream divided
- 2 cups green enchilada sauce divided
- 1 ½ cup monterey jack cheese
- ¼ cup cilantro finely chopped, optional
- 10 corn tortillas 6" (or flour tortillas)
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350°F.
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Cook onions, peppers, and garlic in olive oil until softened. Add cream cheese, green chiles, and cumin. Stir until melted. Stir in chicken and ¼ cup sour cream & ¼ cup enchilada sauce.
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Combine remaining ½ cup sour cream with enchilada sauce. Spread ½ cup of sauce mixture in the bottom of a 9x13 pan.
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Gently heat or fry tortillas (I heat mine over the gas stove to add a smoky flavor).
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Add 2 tablespoons cheese to each tortilla. Top with 3 tablespoons chicken mixture and a small sprinkle of cilantro. Roll and place seam side down in the pan. Repeat with remaining tortillas.
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Top with remaining enchilada sauce and cheese.
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Bake 20-25 minutes uncovered. Rest 10 minutes before serving.
Video
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Main Course
Cuisine Mexican
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Can You Freeze Chicken Enchiladas?
Sure you can! These Chicken Enchiladas can be made ahead frozen for another day! I find the best method is to prepare and roll as directed with the exception of the sour cream sauce. Place the green enchilada sauce in a separate container and add sour cream once defrosted (the little bit in the filling will be fine). Defrost both in the refrigerator overnight.
To bake, combine the sour cream with the enchilada sauce. Pour over the enchiladas and bake as directed.
Just excellent! I made the recipe as a casserole exactly as posted. The house smells wonderful as it’s baking. I’m sure this will be a repeat! Thx!!
Thanks for trying our recipe, Kathy!
5 star without question, everyone that I serve at our home raves about it and wants the recipe. Then they call us in a week and cooking it theirselves. I make sure i always have the ingredients on hand.
Amazing very delicious enchiladas. Highly recommend
Soooo delicious. Quick easy and tastes like gourmet better than I’ve eaten in some Mexican restaurants. 10 stars thx Holly.
We love it!!!!!!!!
Das gab es schon öfter bei uns. Dieses Enchilada Rezept erinnert uns an unseren Aufenthalt in Mexiko in Izamal auf einer Hacienda.
Vielen Dank für das Teilen dieses Rezeptes. Wir genießen es jedesmal.
Ihr seit unsere Seite für mexikanische Rezepte.
Thank you! So glad you are enjoying our recipes, Nicole!
Thanks for sharing recipe, they came out amazing. Can’t wait to try out more of your dishes.
That’s great to hear Pamela! You made my day!
Chicken Recipes
This tasted amazing! I shared recipe with my daughter. I served with 7 layer bean dip and pico de gallo. This is my go to site for recipes.
Yay Karan! Thank you for the kind words. So happy to hear you love the enchiladas!
We have a cooking class, in adult daycare… and the recipe we made for chicken enchiladas was a bit modified.. and we used cream of chicken soup, and no green peppers, and chilies…in ether the filling, or the sauce… (because of allergies, in some of the clients)…but the dish came out good though.. when I make my own, I’ll include the green peppers and chilies.
My son said these were better than our favorite Mexican restaurant makes and better than his mother-in-law’s even though she is Mexican. I loved them. Be sure to slice some jalapenos on top before you bake. This is not listed in the recipe, but is in the picutre.
Want to try this as it sounds good.
These are the best chicken enchiladas that I have ever made, and maybe the best I’ve ever eaten! I do not like the texture of melted cream cheese, so I substituted an equal amount of whole milk ricotta. Great results. I have always had problems with corn tortillas falling apart, but your technique of warming them over a gas burner completely solved that problem, and the light char added flavor. Thanks Holly. Excellent recipe!
So glad you loved these as much as I do Russ!
Made these a couple of times. They are so darn good.
Yay! So happy to hear that Wanda :)
This was the best chicken enchilada recipe! I made it tonight for my family & we all loved it! I cooked the chicken breast seasoned with Adobo seasoning in the crock pot with 1 can broth for a few hours on high & easily shredded. I used corn tortillas lightly crisped in a pan with spray canola oil & for the enchilada sauce, I used Hatch chile enchilada sauce. Thanks again for another 5 star recipe!
Oh Yum Mary! That sounds so delicious.
This sounds amazing. I lived in NM for 50 years. Learned from my restaurant working friends of an easy way to make a green enchilada sauce… Combine diced New Mexico green chile (fresh, frozen or canned) in a blender with a can of cream of mushroom soup (or cream of chicken soup). I use cream of mushroom soup usually.
Then you can pour it on your enchiladas for the oven or even just heat it up on the stovetop like soup and then spoon it on the enchiladas that way. It really makes a delicious green chile sauce.
That sounds delicious, thanks for sharing Jeff!
These Creamy Chicken Enchiladas is absolutely delicious!!! I fried the corn tortillas in some oil and added Pepper jack and Monterey to the filling and as a topping. I also added some green onions to the top as well. I wound up making 20 of these bad boys, and they are ALL gone. I will be making this recipe again. Thank you so much for sharing Ms. Holly!!!!
I love that it’s a different chicken enchiladas but not a fan of spicy so instead of the green spicy sauce what do you recommend? Love that it’s chicken and spinach but cannot handle spicy and feel like red enchilada sauce won’t work any suggestions
I have a friend who also doesn’t like the spicy enchilada sauce. She doctor’s up spaghetti sauce with the seasonings she prefers and serves with enchiladas and they are fantastic without the heat. I hope this suggestion helps Tina!
Excellent dinner.
We all enjoyed the enchiladas; but, I was wondering if you had any recipes for making a green chilli sauce instead of using the premade enchilada sauce??
Hi Ed,
I am so glad your family enjoyed the recipe! I don’t have a green chili sauce recipe. But, I do have a homemade enchilada sauce recipe you can check out here
https://spendwithpennies.com/enchilada-sauce/
I love the chicken to try myself.