Transcription
Hi everybody. Welcome back. It's a beautiful breezy day and today I'm going to be preparing a delicious chicken and enchilada casserole. Now, this is a very simple recipe, but it's a winner.
Now, the first thing I'm going to do is boil my chicken. Now, this is 1 and 1/2 lbs of boneless chicken thighs and I've got five cups of water. Now, you can use uh chicken breast if you'd like, but I like using dark meat. So that's why I'm using the thighs. And I'm going to put in half of a small onion, one garlic clove, one teaspoon of salt, and half a teaspoon of pepper. So, I'm going to replace the lid and I'm going to wait until it comes up to a boil. Then I'm going to lower it down to a simmer. This could take anywhere between 15 and 20 or 25 minutes. Just depends on the size of your chicken thighs.
So, my chicken is ready. Now, you want to make sure that you check your chicken and make sure that it's well cooked. And there it is. I'm going to let it cool down a little bit. I'm going to pass my broth through here. Just like this. And I want four cups. Look at how pretty this broth is. I'm going to set it aside because I'm going to be using it in just a little bit. I'm going to chop up my chicken. Now, you can use a rotisserie chicken if you want, but I just think that the rotisserie chicken will just take the flavor off the path that we want it to go. You know, they usually add some seasoning in there that, you know, just doesn't give it that authentic flavor that I like. So, that's why I like to just prepare my own chicken. So, I've got all my chicken cut up. I'm going to cover it up just for a little while until I'm ready to use it. You want to make sure that you keep it covered so it doesn't dry up on you. And I'm going to do the same with the broth.
Now, I'm going to clean up my area because I'm getting ready to start with my enchilada sauce. I've got three tablespoons of butter. This is regular salted butter. I'm going to move the butter around until it melts. Now, you can use store-bought enchilada sauce, but once you make it homemade, you'll never want store-bought again. This is so easy to prepare and delicious. Now, I'm going to add 3 tablespoons of all-purpose flour. We're going to make a roux. Now, it's not just a matter of bringing in the flour and the butter together and start with the other ingredients. You're going to take out that raw flavor out of the flour. You see how pale it is? It's going to start getting a beautiful golden color. A lot deeper than this. That's where the nutty flavor comes out and that's where you make a winner enchilada sauce. Now, as you can see, it's a beautiful golden blonde.
Now, I'm going to add 2 and 1/2 tablespoon of chili powder, 1 tbsp of paprika, and I'm going to whisk it around like this because you want everything to get a little toasty so it can release its flavor. 2 and 1/2 teaspoons of garlic powder, 1 and 1/2 teaspoons of onion powder, 1 teaspoon of ground cumin, one teaspoon of Mexican oregano. I've got two teaspoons of tomato paste, half a teaspoon of sugar. That's going to be the perfect balance with all these spices here. Half a teaspoon of ground pepper and two teaspoons of chicken bouillon. I've raised up the temperature a little bit higher than low. Now I'm going to add my chicken broth, just slowly, a little bit at a time. And I'm going to whisk it a little more. Continue whisking. You want it to get nice and smooth. And there's the rest of the chicken broth. Now, as you can see, it's starting to boil. I'm going to move it over to the other burner because I want it set on real low heat. I'm going to replace the lid and I'm going to let it simmer on low. Every now and then, I'm going to come in and I'm going to give it a quick whisk because you don't want that film to form up on top. Just like that.
Now, I'm ready to prepare my tortillas. I'm using 12 corn tortillas. I like to use a Mission brand, just in case you're wondering, but you can use your favorite. I've got some hot oil right here in this small skillet, and I'm going to pass them through the oil really quick and then bring them out. As soon as it bubbles, I flip it over. And now I'm ready to remove it. I'm going to put it right here on this plate. I think that when you fry them like this, it brings out the flavor of the corn. As soon as it bubbles, you want to flip it over. Just a few seconds like that. Now, I'm going to take it out and I'm going to repeat the process until I have them all done. So, I'm done with my tortillas and I removed the excess oil and they're ready to go.
Now, before I assemble my chicken enchilada casserole, I'm going to grate my cheese. I've got a big block right here of American cheese. Now, when I make an enchilada casserole, I like to use American cheese. If I don't use American cheese, because I don't have any, I'll use Kobe Jack. But you can use cheddar, whichever one you like. But the enchiladas, the way I grew up with them was with American cheese. So, I'm going to grate it. And I need about 2 and 1/2 cups. Now, my mom worked at the high school cafeteria for many years, and you know, the teachers would announce, "Oh, today we're going to be having burgers or meatloaf, whatever." And when they announced that we were going to be having enchiladas, all the kids would get super excited and all they used was American cheese. So, I've kept up the tradition. So, I've got everything ready to assemble my chicken and enchilada casserole.
I'm going to be using this dish right here. It's a 9 by 9. And I'm going to spray it lightly with a little bit of nonstick spray. Look at this. Look at how beautiful this looks. So, I'm going to get one of my tortillas and I'm going to pass it through my enchilada sauce like this. And I'm going to put it right here on this corner. And I'm going to do another one. I'm going to put four of them in here. Very easy and fun. See? Just like that. I'm going to add a little bit of the enchilada sauce on top like this. I should have done it on the bottom, but I forgot. I'm going to put it on top, and it'll work just perfectly like that. Now, I'm going to add the chicken. And the best way to do it is with your hands. And I've got some freshly chopped onions here. Now, I could have put these in with the enchilada sauce, but I like them fresh like this. There's something about the flavor of raw onions. Now, I'm going to top it with a little cheese. Now I'm going to repeat the process. We're going to do three layers. I know a lot of you have been using my recipe and I really appreciate that and I'm sure you know it's delicious. And here's the last one. Beautiful. I'm going to add some of the enchilada sauce right on top before I add the rest of the cheese. Now, if you have a little bit of the enchilada sauce left over, that's fine. Later, when you serve your family, you can add a little bit more of the enchilada sauce on their plate. That's good. Now, I'll put the rest of the cheese on top. Perfect.
Now, I'm going to cover it up with aluminum foil, just like this. And I've got my oven preheated to 375°. And I'm going to put my casserole dish in the oven for about 20 minutes or until it gets nice and bubbly.
So, my time is up. My chicken enchilada casserole is ready. Let's take a look. Oh, look at that. See how it's still bubbling? Cuz it's really hot. So, I'm going to let it sit right there for about 10 or so minutes until it cools down just a little bit cuz it'll be a lot easier to serve and it'll still be nice and hot to enjoy.
So, my 10 minutes are up. Now, it's time to serve. Look at that. Now, we're going to be enjoying it with some Mexican rice. And we like to enjoy the enchilada casserole with a light salad right on the side like this. M. I'm going to top it with a dollop of sour cream because it's a perfect combination and some pico de gallo. The pico de gallo is delicious. Look at that. And here it is. Now it's time for the taste test. Mhm. [Music] Oh my goodness sakes. This is unbelievable. Super delicious. You're going to love it. So, this is my famous chicken and enchilada casserole. If you like my recipe, give me a thumbs up. Send me a comment and tell me what you think. And if you haven't subscribed, please do. Thank you.