I am an enchilada lover, and generally the saucier and the cheesier the better. On occasion (like now), the mood strikes for something just a little bit lighter. These Chicken & Corn Enchiladas do the trick. Not too rich, but with plenty of big chunks of chicken, not to mention lots of corn, Mexican spices and just the right amount of cheese to bind everything together. Let’s top it off with some Grilled Tomatillo Salsa, a nice, bright accompaniment to any number of dishes. For serving, how about a generous dollop of sour cream (um…and guacamole of course) and we’ve got a winner. This recipe makes a generous dozen and a half enchiladas, because a crowd usually assembles when the word ‘enchilada’ is spoken. Feel free to cut it in half for your less ravenous crowds.
I won’t lie to you – this takes a little time to pull off. If you find yourself in a bind, just grab a jar of your favorite enchilada sauce and go from there. You can always save the grilled tomatillo business for later. It’s pretty good though, so if you happen to have some time on your hands for grilling, I’d strongly suggest going for it. The smokey flavor of the charred chilies, tomatillos and onions from the grill are pretty hard to resist. If you’ve got some cooked chicken on hand, the enchiladas come together in a snap. I used blue corn tortillas just for the fun of it, but regular corn tortillas are just right also. I get a big charge out of layering them in a nice baking dish, then burying them alive with all kinds of salsa, cheese, and extra corn.
Don’t forget to get that extra salsa out there for serving. Besides, it’s just so darned pretty I can barely stand it.
Time to dig in!
Happy Cinco de Mayo everyone!! Thanks so much for reading today!! xoxoxo
Chicken and Corn Enchiladas with Grilled Tomatillo Salsa
Ingredients
- FOR THE ENCHILLADAS
- 5 cups cooked chicken cut into about ½ inch dice
- 1, 7 ounce can diced green chilies
- 2 cups frozen corn kernels thawed
- 1 cup grated cheddar cheese plus extra for sprinkling on top
- 1 cup grated Monterey Jack cheese plus extra for sprinkling on top
- 6-7 sliced green onions
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 18 corn tortillas
- Sour cream and your favorite guacamole for serving optional
- FOR THE GRILLED TOMATILLO AND GREEN CHILI SALSA
- 2 pounds tomatillos husked and rinsed
- 4 cloves garlic peeled
- 2 Anaheim Chilies 2 Jalapeno Chilies, and 2 Serrano Chilies
- 1 white onion peeled and sliced into ½ inch rounds
- Juice of 1 -2 limes depending on taste.
- 4 tablespoons canola olive, or avocado oil
- Salt to taste
- Agave nectar to taste
- 1 bunch cilantro washed and roughly chopped (optional)
Instructions
- FOR THE ENCHILLADAS
- In a large bowl, combine the chicken, chilies, corn, cheeses, and onions. Toss gently and add salt, chili powder and cumin. Taste, and adjust seasonings to suit you.
- To assemble:
- Heat a cast iron skillet over medium high heat until good and hot. Add just a little bit of oil to the pan.
- One by one, add a tortilla to the skillet and flip over with tongs when softened on one side (this will just take a few seconds). When the second side is softened, place the tortilla on a cutting board and top with a generous ¼ cup of the filling. Roll up the enchilada and place in a 13x9 inch baking dish that has been well sprayed with cooking spray.
- Repeat the process until you’ve used up all of the tortillas.
- Note: If you have filling left over – no worries. Just tuck it in along the sides of the baking dish.
- Note: You will probably need two baking dishes if you make the entire recipe.
- Top the enchiladas with the Grilled Tomatillo Salsa (or other favorite salsa of your choice), sprinkle on cheese and additional corn.
- Bake for about 20-30 minutes or until heated through and bubbly.
- Serve with lots of sour cream and guacamole if like such things – as I do.
- FOR THE SALSA
- Toss the tomatillos, garlic, chilies, and onion with oil and sprinkle with salt. Grill in a grill basket over medium high heat until tomatillos and garlic are softened, onions are softened and slightly charred, and peppers are charred.
- Allow to cool and remove skins, seeds, and membranes from the chilies. Chop chilies, onion, and garlic finely. Remove stems from tomatillos and chop coarsely. Toss with oil, lime juice and salt. Taste and add agave if you need to add some sweetness. If you like a ‘juicer’ salsa, mash with a potato masher until the consistency you like.
- NOTE: Those Serrano chilies can be really spicy, so if you are a wimp like I am, you might want to cut the amount in half or leave them out all together.
- NOTE: The tomatillos, onion, and chilies all grill to doneness at different times, so you might want o stagger the grilling and do each ingredient separately and mix them all together when done. If not, just keep an eagle eye out on everything and you should be just fine.