 |
| Fresh out of the oven! |
Enchilar: Spanish word meaning 'to add chili pepper to'.
Enchilada is the past participle of this word.
Now my friend Nita had never had ground beef enchiladas, as ground beef is not the traditional authentic type of meat typically used when making enchiladas. She always has used either shredded chicken or pork, but never ground beef. She also typically uses a green sauce with her enchiladas, while I use a red sauce.
Rosarita's Red Enchilada Sauce that is. I've tried other brands of enchilada sauce in the past, but nothing compares to Rosarita's as many other brand I have tried are too bitter, acidic or have too much of a smokey flavor etc. Rosarita is somewhere right in the middle, not too spicy but very flavorful. As far as tortillas go we always buy the Guerrero brand tortillas as they taste best in my opinion. Anyways I wanted to show my friend Nita what ground beef enchiladas with Rosarita's red enchilada sauce was all about, and so the adventure began.
But first things first, I made us some cocktails.
 |
| Cookin' + Cocktails |
What I really do enjoy about cooking with others is that you get to see how other people do things in the kitchen. We all have are own methods and techniques, and I'm always open to learning a new thing or two, especially on a dish I have cooked many times. But we'll get into that it a minute. Here's what we did for dinner that night...
Noonie's Classic Enchiladas
Prep Time: 10-15 mins
Bake Time: 20-30 mins or so
Supplies:
Corn tortillas
(I prefer the Guerrero White Corn ones)
Ground Beef
Onions, finely chopped
Cheddar Cheese, grated
Enchilada Sauce
(Rosarita's really is best!)
4-5 T. Oil
Basic Idea:
-Get your oil warmed up in a frying pan
-Fry tortillas for about a minute on each side,
just so they are slightly crispy but not crunchy
-While tortillas are frying, brown ground beef with onions
-While beef is cooking I usually add a little salt + pepper,
as well as a tablespoon or so of the enchilada sauce to give it a nice flavor
-Once your meat + tortillas are finished..
-Once your meat + tortillas are finished..
-Put a little beef and cheese in the middle of your fried tortilla and roll,
continue this step until all your tortillas + meat are gone
-Place rolled tortillas in a 13x9 baking pan,
prior to putting the tortillas in the pan throw in a tablespoon of enchilada sauce
to coat the pan to prevent sticking
-Pour your enchilada sauce over the rolled tortillas, sprinkle with cheese cover with foil
-Bake in oven for about 20 minutes or so, or until cheese is melted and sauce is bubbling
Tips I learned from Nita:
*If you like your enchiladas moister and on the softer side don't fry them as long. I personally like a little crunch to mine but a happy medium is good too :)
*Before rolling your fried tortilla dip it into some enchilada sauce, this ensures the enchilada is covered with that flavorful sauce which not only gives it an extra shot of flavor, but it also ensures the enchiladas won't get dried out!
*Be sure to cover your enchiladas with foil before cooking them! This also ensures your enchiladas won't get dried out or be too crunchy! Now growing up we never covered our enchiladas with foil and they usually did turn out a little crunchy on the ends of the enchiladas which I personally love! But I know not everyone likes that little crunch, which is why I would suggest the foil if you want softer, moister enchiladas.
My enchiladas are always a hit, and after picking up these little tips from Nita they are even better than before!!
 |
| Coating the pans with sauce to prevent sticking |
 |
| Meatin' up the enchiladas |
 |
| Cheesin' up the enchiladas with some help from mi amiga :) |
 |
| Rollin' them bad boys up! |
Time lapse of the enchiladas
Recorded this thru Vine
 |
| These didn't last long! |
Okay so as promised here are a few ideas you could try in order to modify this recipe to make it a little healthier; although there aren't many modifications that I can think of that you could do with enchiladas. I mean come on they are enchiladas. But here are a few I could think of.
-Use less oil when frying the tortillas.
-Use ground turkey instead of ground beef or
-Use veggies instead of meat
-Go light on the cheese, maybe just sprinkle some on top
rather than stuffing each individual enchilada with cheese or
-Use reduced fat cheese
-Serve "healthy" sides with the enchiladas
I like to serve corn and either refried black beans or rice along side my enchiladas. If you've never tried refried black beans I highly suggest you give them a try! Even if you don't like black beans! I myself don't like black beans, but I was hooked once I tried refried black beans! The brand of beans we really like is La Costena. We've always got a can in the cupboard.
You just can't go wrong with this delicious, quick to prepare meal! What I also really like is that there are so many different varieties of enchiladas you could make, and they really never disappoint!
Until next time..Cheers!!
