White Chicken Enchiladas with Sour Cream Sauce {Recipe}

ByAlexis

These easy White Chicken Enchiladas are made with flour tortillas, shredded chicken, melty cheese, green chiles, and a delicious sour cream sauce.

White Chicken Enchiladas are ALL the rage, and for good reason. The flavor is incredible.  Bold flavor but not spicy.  Creamy comfort food, yet not too rich.  These are a winner in all categories and will satisfy even the pickiest eater. (Yes even with green chilies and sour cream!)

White Chicken enchiladas text overlay with ribbons and a plate with white chicken enchiladas and a fork

This recipe gets all the accolades and compliments.  Everyone loves these creamy and cheesy chicken enchiladas. Creamy White Chicken Enchiladas has been the #1 recipe on my site every year since 2012.  It's just a classic favorite.

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Not your everyday Enchiladas...

These are not your typical enchiladas.  Traditionally, enchiladas are made with corn tortillas and a red or green sauce.  These are a "whole other thing"….and so so good.

 
Two foil pans ready to cook white chicken enchiladas sitting on a wood table

I have a big family and we love to have big Fiesta Night dinners.  Tacos, taquitos, nachos, and of course these enchiladas are a must.  There are never any leftovers (I blame the Sour Cream and green chillies!).

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Easy Chicken Enchiladas Recipe

This is a great recipe for a busy schedule.  If you have a busy day, cook the chicken in the slow cooker and then shred it and assemble the enchiladas, and make the sauce at dinner time.

If you have a busy late afternoon, make the the full recipe up to 12 hours in advance and keep in the fridge and just bake them at dinner time.  

White Chicken enchiladas in glass pan from oven

I like to put these on the Menu for Monday because I can cook the chicken in the slow cooker on Sunday and assemble everything and stick the pan in the fridge.  Then when we get home Monday from school, activities, appointments, and general chaos that comes with the beginning of the week, I can pop these in the oven and know that we will all be looking forward to a delicious dinner.

Ingredients for White Chicken Enchiladas

There are so many ways to make this your own.  This recipe will give you the confidence to experiment.  Onions, bell peppers, jalapenos, black beans, taco seasoning, chili powder, and all kinds of things to add as you cook the chicken and assemble the filling.  Start with the basic recipe and then experiment as you like.  

If you like to punch up the flavor and enjoy spicy, add chili powder to the chicken, add diced jalapenos to the sauce and use pepper jack cheese.
  • Flour tortillas- I used a taco size tortillas, but you can also use the smaller ones and get more individual enchiladas.  The flour tortillas do not become soggy or gummy.
  • Cooked, shredded chicken- I have shared several ways above to make delicious and moist chicken and easy ways to shred it quickly.
  • Monterey Jack Cheese- you can use any kind of melting cheese.  Cheddar jack, pepper jack, and Mexican blend all work well here.  If you are using mozzarella, mix it with cheddar for texture and melting.
  • Butter and flour- this will be used to make roux as a base to thicken the sour cream sauce.  
  • Chicken Broth- use prepared chicken broth or bouillon base and water
  • Sour cream- use full-fat sour cream.  Full-fat Greek yogurt can also be used.
  • Green chiles- these are diced and mild. They are not spicy, and they add great flavor. 

See the recipe for quantities.

Hand rolling chicken and cheese together into a burrito
*You can add all the broth at once and stir while it cooks, coming to a simmer for 15 or 20 minutes and is nice and thick. Stir continually.
*Or you can add in only small amounts (½ to 1 cup of broth) at a time and let each addition thicken before adding more, it will only take about 10 minutes to simmer and thicken.  Stir continually.
Stainless steel pan pouring sour cream sauce over the chicken filled burritos in a glass pan
a round plate holding the white chicken enchiladas with a fork in front of a glass bowl of salad

Serve with your favorite taco toppings and a side salad or fresh veggies.

If I am making this to serve a large family or big group, I figure 1.5 enchiladas per person and then go heavy on the side options. I like to warm up pinto beans (or refried beans) and corn and serve chips with salsa. There is always more sour cream and fresh avocado. Fresh lime wedges and diced tomatoes are wonderful. We also like sliced black olives and jalapenos. 

Variations and Substitutions:

  • Use corn tortillas.  Tradiitional enchiladas use soft corn tortillas.  Warm up the tortillas first so that when you roll them up, they won't split.
  • Add chili. powder and taco seasoning to the chicken
  • Add green chilies and onions to the chicken when cooking it.

What's The Best Way To Make Shredded Chicken?

*Slow cooker- use 4-5 boneless chicken breasts and cook on low with ½ cup water and seasonings for 6 hours.  Shred and enjoy.

*Oven roasted- Drizzle olive oil over 4-5 boneless chicken breasts and season with cumin, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes.  Shred and enjoy.

*In a large pot filled with chicken broth, boil chicken breasts for 20 minutes or so until cooked through.  Shred and season.  

*You can also buy a rotisserie chicken and shred it for a quick solution.  Even faster, I love buying the packaged shredded rotisserie chicken from Costco. 

Top Tip

*For an easy way to shred chicken, you can use a stand mixer with the paddle attachment and shred it on low while the chicken is hot.  you can also use an electric hand mixer with beaters just be careful not to mash or pulverize the chicken.

Storing Leftovers

Store leftover enchiladas in an airtight container for up to 4 days in the refrigerator.

Can I freeze White Chicken Enchiladas?

This recipe, as a whole, does not freeze well.  The chicken rolled up in the flour tortillas will make the tortillas gummy when thawed. The sour cream sauce doesn't freeze well and separates when thawed.  To use your freezer in meal prep for this recipe, cook your chicken with prices and any mixins.  Cool and then freeze in a zip top freezer bag for 2-3 months.  You can then thaw and roll it up in the tortillas, make the sauce, and bake it as directed.

More Enchilada Recipes

Do you love all enchiladas?  I have recipes for more!

414 Comments

  1. Made these last night and was so disappointed. Sauce was basically tasteless, and even though I added onions, green peppers, cumin, and cayenne to the chicken the enchiladas were so, so bland. There are much better recipes out there.

  2. So I altered this recipe after making this many times. My family loves the recipe as is, but the rolled enchiladas are kind of difficult for my little ones to eat. I used this same exact recipe for the sauce but instead made a casserole dish with penne pasta. I made shredded chicken in the crockpot (4-6 chicken breasts, a taco seasoning packet, and 1 cup of salsa, cooked for 6 hours on low, or until chicken shreds, sometimes I add a can of black beans as well for extra fiber because my kids don't complain about it) then I layered cooked penne pasta 1/2 cup shredded cheese and half of the chicken then made another layer with the rest of the noodles,chicken and cheese. I poured the prepared sauce over the top then topped with a bit more cheese and baked for 20 min. Absolutely fabulous!!! and much easier for little hands.

  3. I am going to try these but substitute Trader Joe's green enchilada sauce for the canned green chilis- it has green chilis and tomatillos in it and it is SO good. I have just been eating it on eggs but wanting to make enchiladas with it- I think this would do the trick.

  4. Flavors bland, but has potential. I doubled the amount of chicken. Will try seasons suggested. Chilis not spicy just added extra level of flavor consider a work in progress

  5. It was interesting to see a Kindle ebook with a single recipe - this one! - on sale at Amazon. White Chicken Enchiladas (Recipe Singles) [Kindle Edition] by Argentina Puckett. It's a basic "copy and paste" job with an asking price of 99 cents.

  6. I LOVE this recipe... But I never know what to serve with it! Spanish rice doesn't seem right, and neither do any white starches such as potatoes, etc. ???? Help - suggestions?

  8. this was delicious!!! i subbed corn tortillas and made it a layered dish more like a lasagna. the sauce is awesome!!!! i recommend you definitely use the cumin garlic and salt in the chicken mixture and add in a little of the sauce in each layer. i came straight from the dinner table to write my review because it was so tasty! thanks!!

  10. I made these and I spiced up the chicken meat but for the most part cooked it as listed. We LOVED them!
    Thanks for sharing such an easy and tasty recipe 🙂

  11. Made this last week. It was awesome. 🙂 I did season the chicken with a few different spices. And my kids loved it . Thanks

  13. we enjoyed these tonight and will be making them again, My picky daughter (17) would
    rather have a wrap from Mcdonald's but this just might keep her home for a meal...
    thanks,
    Carol N<><

  15. Do you warm up the corn tortillas on a skillet or fry them before rolling up the chicken mixture?

  16. OMG! These were awesome! The only thing I changed was to make additions. I added 1/4 cup of fresh cilantro to the chicken and then I added a handful of fresh sliced mushrooms on top of them before I added the sauce! It was divine!

  17. We enjoyed this recipe. It wasn't overly spicy which is perfect for my family. They enjoyed the cheese and sour cream sauce so much better than the red sauce. Thank you for sharing this recipe. Will definitely make again.

  19. Thanks for the recipe! I loved it. Very easy and tasty. I used some cajun spices on the chicken and it made it a little spicy but so YUMMY!

  20. I have made these for years. Have never added the chicken stock. This is one of our favorites. I used to make a casserole using the same ingredients, but I would tear the flour tortillas into small pieces and just mixed everything together and put it into a
    buttered casserole dish and topped it off with a layer of cheese. You can also layer it like lasagna. Just a couple of ways to add a little variety.

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