Easy Chicken Enchiladas

These gluten-free enchiladas are particularly easy to put together if you have leftover cooked chicken.  I used a mixture of white and dark meat that I had leftover from a rotisserie chicken.

I have also made this recipe easy by using a jar of salsa.  It may not be a traditional enchilada recipe, but if it tastes good and saves time, then I’m all for it.

If you’re in a real hurry, you could omit the onion and garlic and add a little onion powder and garlic powder to the chicken and salsa.

If you have a little extra time, you could omit the salsa and add chopped canned or fresh tomatoes as well as your own peppers and chilies.

Corn tortillas are not the most pliable tortillas in the world.  It helps to heat them.  I give directions for heating them in the oven, but you could do it in a skillet or microwave.  The tortillas I used were a little too old and really wanted to fall apart.  An easier method it to simply fold the tortillas in half like a taco.  This idea comes from Lynn’s fold over enchiladas.

I made a large dish or enchiladas with regular cheese and a smaller dish with Daiya cheese.  I started out making the large dish by folding the tortillas in a traditional manner.  They were a mess, but by the time I put cheese over them and they baked, nobody cared.

With the smaller dairy-free dish I decided to try Lynn’s method and I have to agree, it works much better.

Easy Gluten-Free Chicken Enchiladas

• 2 c. chopped cooked chicken
• 16 oz. salsa
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 Tb. high heat oil of choice (I used Spectrum organic palm oil shortening)
• 2 tsp. ground cumin
• 12 corn tortillas
• shredded cheese (use desired type and amount, I used cheddar)
• 10 oz. enchilada sauce (read the label to be sure it is gluten free)

Preheat the oven to 350°.  Place the tortillas in a large baking dish and cover them with a damp paper towel.  Place them in the oven for 5 – 10 minutes while it preheats.  This will help soften the tortillas.

In a large skillet, heat the oil.  Add the onion and sauté until tender.  Add the garlic and cook for a couple of minutes.

Add the salsa, cooked chicken, and cumin to the skillet.  Heat through.

Remove the tortillas from the oven and put them on a plate.  Grease the bottom and sides of the baking dish.  Spoon a little enchilada sauce into the bottom of the dish and spread it around evenly.

Spoon about 1/4 cup of the chicken mixture into the middle of each tortilla.  Fold it in half and place in the dish, stacking them next to each other, or fold it into a traditional style fold and place the folded edges down to keep them closed.

Spoon the remaining enchilada sauce over all the filled tortillas.  Put shredded cheese on top.  Bake for 15 minutes.

View Printable Recipe