BEEF ENCHILADAS

BEEF ENCHILADAS

Beef Enchiladas with an extra tasty, saucy filling, smothered with a homemade Enchilada Sauce. My time saving trick is to use one base Enchilada spice mix for both the sauce and filling!

I love that there are so many variations of Beef Enchiladas in this big-wide-world. Simple ones, filled with a plain cooked beef filling then topped with enchilada sauce and (lots of) cheese. Fancy ones with the addition of chillies, beans, corn and even olives, sometimes even bacon. Hidden vegetable versions (don’t ever try that on me, I can pick them a mile away). Shredded beef enchiladas, short rib ones.

And today I’m sharing mine.

Regular readers won’t be surprised when I say that this is a little different to most recipes you come across. The main difference being the beef filling which I like to make a bit saucy with the addition of refried beans (seriously, it’s so good!!!!) and extra flavourful by adding spices and a splash of homemade Enchilada sauce.

I also like to add black beans, to fill it out a bit and add a different texture to the filling. Diced vegetables are great to add too – especially red peppers / capsicum.

I make my Enchiladas with a Homemade Enchilada Sauce. Hand on heart, I have purchased bottled enchilada sauce once in my life – and that was only to taste test it. I am not a for snob (remember I’ve professed a secret love of KFC Popcorn Chicken!), but buying Enchilada Sauce is something that never crosses my mind because it is just so easy and fast to make at home and the flavour is just countless times better than what you get in a jar!

Plus, here’s my little time saving tip: one spice mix to flavour both the beef filling AND the Enchilada Sauce. Paprika, cumin, oregano, onion and/or garlic powder and an optional hit of extra heat from cayenne pepper.

How many of those spices have you already got in your pantry? All of them?

Ahhh. These Beef Enchiladas. I really hate using the words “these are the BEST!” for any of my recipes because we all have different palettes, and what I may think is the “best” might not be to someone elses’ taste.

But truly, to me, to this day, even after having consumed more than my fair share of Enchiladas at Tex-Mex restaurants across America, I still think these are better. Way, WAY better than the mainstream chain restaurants!

Hope you had a great weekend! – Nagi x

Beef Enchiladas

Prep Time 10 mins

Cook Time 35 mins

Total Time 45 mins

These beef enchiladas are made extra tasty with a saucy filling made with beef, refried beans and a homemade Enchilada spice mix. This spice mix also forms the basis of a super tasty homemade Enchilada Sauce.

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: Mexican

Servings: 4

Calories: 649 kcal

Author: Nagi | RecipeTin Eats

Ingredients

Spice Mix

1 tsp each onion & garlic powder (Note 1)
1 tbsp each cumin powder , paprika and dried oregano
1/2 - 1 tsp cayenne pepper (optional)

Enchilada Sauce

2 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp plain flour
2 cups chicken stock / broth
1 1/2 cups tomato passata (Note 2)
1/2 tsp salt
Black pepper

Beef

1 tbsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves , minced
1 onion , finely chopped (~1 cup)
1 lb / 500g ground beef (mince)
1 can (14oz/400g) refried beans (I use Old El Paso)
1 can (14oz/400g) black beans, drained (Note 3)

Enchiladas

8 tortillas (or burrito wraps)
1 cup+ grated melting cheese (I like Monterey Jack, tasty or cheddar cheese)
Cilantro/coriander leaves (optional)

Instructions

Mix together Spice Mix ingredients. Set aside.

Enchilada Sauce

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add flour and mix to combine into a paste. Cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly.
Add 1/2 cup chicken broth, whisk straight away then it will turn into a thick smooth paste quite quickly.
Add remaining chicken broth, passata, salt, pepper and 2 tablespoons of SPICE MIX. Whisk, and increase heat slightly to medium high. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes, whisking occasionally at the beginning then constantly towards the end, until the sauce thickens to the consistency of thick syrup. Remove from stove.

Filling

Preheat oven to 180C/350F.
Heat oil in a skillet over high heat. Add garlic and onion, cook for 2 minutes.
Add beef and cook for 2 minutes, breaking it up as you go. Add remaining Spice Mix. Cook for a further 2 minutes or until completely brown.
Add refried beans, black beans, about 1/4 cup of Enchilada Sauce + salt & pepper. Mix (Note 4) and cook for 2 minutes then remove from stove.

Enchiladas

Smear a bit of Sauce on the bottom of a baking dish.
Place filling on the lower third of a tortilla. Roll up then place in the baking dish, seam side down. Repeat with remaining Filling & Tortillas.
Pour Sauce over the Enchiladas, top with cheese, bake for 10 minutes covered (Note 5) then 10 minutes uncovered. Serve hot!

Recipe Notes

You can just use all onion or garlic powder, if you only have one of them. Fresh garlic is not the same, however, as a last resort substitution, you can use 3 garlic cloves, minced, instead of onion & garlic powder. Saute in the heated oil before proceeding with the recipe.
Tomato passata is pureed plain tomatoes that is not seasoned. Unlike crushed tomatoes, it is thick and smooth, like a thick tomato soup. In Australia it can be purchased in a bottle in the pasta aisle of major supermarkets (Coles, Woolworths). You can make your own simply by using a blender to puree canned tomatoes.
America: If you can't find passata in the US (it is available at Walmart, Costco), a great substitute is US canned tomato puree. The next best alternative is tomato sauce. I used Hunts brand (yes, I'm such a food nerd I brought back cans to do recipe testing with!).
Black beans are commonly used in Mexican & Tex Mex cooking. It's becoming more widely available in Australia. It can be purchased in the Mexican or canned beans aisle in most major supermarkets, as well as Harris Farms and Thomas Dux. You can substitute with red kidney beans or another type of beans if you prefer.
The refried beans should loosen as it heats and stir through easily. If not, add a splash of water.
To bake covered, I just pop a baking tray on top on the baking dish. Otherwise, cover with foil.
To make ahead, roll up enchiladas and place in casserole dish (can smear with sauce underneath). Keep sauce separate and top just before baking.
Nutrition per serving, assuming you use lean beef mince (this is a great recipe for using lean beef, you would never know!).