Tex-Mex Cheese Enchiladas

No ratings yet

Tex-Mex Cheese Enchiladas

Unlike their Mexican kin, Tex-Mex enchiladas have no meat and no tomatoey sauce. Instead, a smoky chile gravy provides the bulk of flavor in the dish. Dried ancho chiles, along with cumin, garlic, and oregano, are the perfect backbone for our roux-based sauce, and a splash of vinegar brightens it up.

Instead of going with the processed cheese typical of the dish, we opted for a mixture of cheddar for flavor and Monterey Jack for smooth meltability. Finally, while traditional recipes call for frying the corn tortillas one at a time, we found a shortcut that reduces time (and excess grease): brushing the tortillas with oil and microwaving them for a mere minute.

Servings:

Calories: 556kcal

Author: Cook's Country

Ingredients

Gravy

2 dried ancho chiles stemmed, seeded, and torn into ½-inch pieces (½ cup)
1 tablespoon cumin seeds
1 tablespoon garlic powder
2 teaspoons dried oregano
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
salt to taste
pepper to taste
2 cups chicken broth
2 teaspoons distilled white vinegar

Enchiladas

12 6-inch corn tortillas
1 ½ tablespoons vegetable oil
8 ounces Monterey Jack cheese shredded (2 cups)
6 ounces sharp cheddar cheese shredded (1 ½ cups)
1 small onion chopped fine

Instructions

For the Gravy

Toast chiles and cumin in 12-inch skillet over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 2 minutes.
Transfer to a spice grinder and let cool for 5 minutes.
Add garlic powder and oregano and grind to a fine powder.
Heat oil in now-empty skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering.
Whisk in flour, ½ teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon pepper, and spice mixture and cook until fragrant and slightly deepened in color, about 1 minute.
Slowly whisk in broth and bring to simmer.
Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, whisking frequently, until gravy has thickened and reduced to 1 ½ cups, about 5 minutes.
Whisk in vinegar and season with salt and pepper to taste.
Remove from heat, cover, and keep warm. (Sauce can be made up to 24 hours in advance. To reheat, add 2 tablespoons water and microwave until loose, 1 to 2 minutes, stirring halfway through microwaving.)

For the Enchiladas

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 450 degrees.
Brush both sides of tortillas with oil. Stack tortillas, then wrap in a damp dishtowel. Place tortillas on plate and microwave until warm and pliable, about 1 minute.
Spread ½ cup gravy in the bottom of 13 by 9-inch baking dish.
Combine cheeses in a bowl; set aside ½ cup cheese mixture for topping enchiladas.
Place ¼½ cup cheese mixture across center of each tortilla, then sprinkle each with 1 tablespoon onion.
Tightly roll tortillas around filling and lay them seam side down in dish (2 columns of 6 tortillas will fit neatly across width of dish).
Pour remaining 1 cup gravy over enchiladas, then sprinkle with reserved cheese mixture and any remaining onion.
Cover dish with aluminum foil and bake until sauce is bubbling and cheese is melted, about 15 minutes.
Let enchiladas cool for 10 minutes, then sprinkle with remaining onion. Serve.

Notes

Dried chiles vary in size and weight. You’ll get a more accurate measure if you seed and tear them first; you need about 1/2 cup of prepped chiles. You’ll lose some flavor, but you can substitute 2 tablespoons of ancho chile powder and 1 tablespoon of ground cumin for the whole ancho chiles and cumin seeds, decreasing the toasting time to 1 minute.

Nutrition