White Chicken Enchiladas

ByAlexis
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Welcome to the recipe that went viral on Pinterest! If you haven't seen it yet, make sure you're following me on Pinterest for this and alllll my delicious recipes I'm sharing over there. 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!)

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.

 
Creamy White Chicken Enchiladas on plate with fork

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!).

White Chicken enchiladas in 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.

Welcome, Pinners!  

Thanks for visiting!  There have been hundreds of comments and questions on this recipe (White Chicken Enchiladas) so I want to make some of the answers known upfront.  🙂  

After you make these, you will probably want to try a few of my other VERY popular recipes that are similar

The Recipe:

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White Chicken Enchiladas

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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.

  • Author: Alexis

Ingredients

Scale

10 flour taco shells

2-3 cups cooked, shredded chicken *see notes*

2 ½ cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese

3 Tbsp butter

3 Tbsp flour

2 cups chicken broth

1 cup sour cream

1 can (4oz) diced green chilies

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease a 9x14 pan.

Mix shredded chicken and 1 cup of cheese in a bowl.  Roll up the chicken into the 10 tortillas and place seam down in the prepared pan.

In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium-high heat.  Stir in the flour and stir while cooking for 2 minutes.

Add in the broth and whisk until smooth.  Heat over medium heat until thick and bubbly.  This will take about 15 minutes.

Turn off the heat on the saucepan and stir in the sour cream and green chilies.   Stir well and remove from heat so your sour cream won't curdle.  When it is mixed well, pour your sauce over the enchiladas in the pan.

Top with the remaining 1 ½ cup cheese.

Bake for 22 minutes and then broil on high for 3 minutes at the end to get the cheese bubbly.

Enjoy!

Notes

*To make my shredded chicken, I use 4 frozen chicken breasts and sprinkle with 2 tsp cumin, 2 tsp garlic powder, and ground black pepper (just a bit) and cook on low in my slow cooker all day.  Then they easily shred up when you are ready to make dinner.*

*For a professional shredding tip, toss your cooked chicken breasts into a kitchen aid mixer and mix on low and watch them shred up perfectly before your eyes.  You are a dinnertime champion!

Pro Tips:

  1. This recipe calls for diced green chilies.  Don't let that fool you, these are NOT spicy in the least.  My 3 year old and 1 year old love them.
  2. If you would like, you can substitute Greek yogurt for the sour cream in the recipe.  It is a 1 for 1 substitute.
  3. If you cook your chicken first (rather than using a rotisserie chicken), you may want to add some spices to give it extra flavor.  I like the chicken to have good flavor.  I tend to cook my chicken in the slow cooker with 2 teaspoon ground cumin,  2 teaspoon garlic powder, and a few shakes ground black pepper.
  4. You can make this ahead and keep it in the fridge up to 24 hours.  Just put it in the oven and increase the time a bit.  You will want to make sure they are heated through.
  5. This sauce does not freeze well.  Then enchiladas themselves freeze really well.  I freeze a few pans of them double wrapped in foil and then I just make the sauce the day of.  Thaw them first, add the sauce, cook according to original instructions. (Need more freezer meal ideas?  I've got a ton!)

Yes, your friends and family will lick their plate and ask for you to bring them to every gathering from here on out.

*These are seriously so so good*

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414 Comments

  1. I made these using your tips on cooking chicken in the crock pot with seasoning and adding extra can of green chills - we really enjoyed this recipe. Thanks!

  2. I made this for dinner tonight but I made a few small changes. I've been told I'm picky but I don't see myself as picky, I like a lot of different foods and will try just about anything, I just like my food to appeal to MY taste buds. So I used boneless skinless thighs for more flavor, sprinkled it with cumin, paprika, salt & pepper, poured a cup or 2 of chicken broth in my heated cast iron skillet and added chicken thighs, simmered those in broth for about 20-30 minutes until fork tender. Then I made the sauce according to the directions only adding a little more cumin, paprika and a tiny bit of cayenne pepper and at the end I melted in some cheese. SOOOOOO GOOOOD!! Super easy and yummy, this will be one of my new go to recipes for an easy meal.

  4. Love...love...love this recipe...make it, at least once a month....so easy. ..and I make it low carb with low carb tortillas.....thank you!!

  5. Hi! My husband LOVES these enchiladas, in fact I'm making them for his birthday tomorrow. I'm wondering can I make them ahead of time tonight, sauce and all? Will they keep until tomorrow evening? Thank you so much!

  7. I always like to try new recipes as is the first time. These were amazing!! I've made them several times now and have yet to make an alteration (although the lime juice sounds pretty great!). I have recommended them to all of my friends. Thank you for sharing!

  8. What is a soft taco shell?
    I have never seen soft taco shells in a grocery store and I have lived in Los Angeles my whole life. Generally a soft taco in a restaurant means that they will place the filled taco in hot oil and cook just soften the tortilla unless you tell them you do not to fry it. Even then, chances are, it will come softened in oil.
    Perhaps you mean fresh tortillas? Assuming corn verses flour? What size tortilla are you using? Assuming you are using corn tortillas, are you softening the tortillas in oil first? If not, how do the enchiladas hold together after baking?
    Thanks, Sandy

  9. Going to make a pan for my family & another for a friend recovering from surgery! Thanks for sharing this simple easy recipe.

  10. I made these for dinner tonight and my husband, who is a very picky eater, ate 4 of these. I think dinner was a huge success. 😉 I think they were delicious also. Thank you for the keeper recipe.

  11. I am definitely planning to make them sometime soon! I love tasty yet simple recipes!

  12. after pinning your recipe over 2 years ago via Pinterest, I finally made this dish for a Cinco de Mayo cooking club lunch this week & the entire tray was devoured. While it was mild compared to typical enchiladas...it was really good. Would defiantly make again. Thank you for creating this alternative!

    Here is a a link to my version (i tweaked the types of cheeses added & also used corn tortillas): http://michelmobababy.blogspot.com/2015/05/white-chicken-enchiladas.html

  15. FINALLY - a white enchilada recipe that doesn't have "cream of" crap in it. Definitely making this. Thank you!

  16. I made the chicken on high for 3hrs, w/3 Tbsp of minced garlic, generous amt of garlic salt, salt&pepper, also some lime juice. Sorry I didn't measure. I did what was suggested, added 8 oz of chilis and lime juice. For the topping I added shredded chicken with the cheese on top.

  17. Tried it with a few modifications. Instead of chicken broth, I used a can of green enchilada sauce and enough water to add up to the equivalent 2 cups. I also used a mixed variety of cheese I had on hand and added freshly minced onions and Cilantro to the chicken mixture. The adults loved it! The double whammy of chilies turned the kids off, but they begrudgingly ate it. I will probably make this again, but just make a separate pan for the kids without any of the cream sauce.

  18. I love this recipe! I normally do not have green chiles on hand, so I made a variation on the filling. I sauteed garlic, onion, and bell pepper in a little butter. I added the shredded cooked chicken to the pan. Then, I added several shakes of Tapatio hot sauce and a few TB of chicken broth and mixed it well while warming through the chicken on med-low heat. The tapatio added heat without really changing the color of the chicken. I drained any excess liquid and put the chicken mixture in a bowl. The result was amazing and I think anyone who complains that the original recipe is bland could make adjustments like I did and be very happy. The key component is the sour cream sauce.... so incredibly yummy and did not require milk! Thanks for this great recipe, I make it every couple of months.

    1. Thanks for sharing! I am going to have to try it the way you make it 🙂 I like spicy but my kids not so much. I will be sure to recommend your tips to others looking for extra flavor. And I agree, the sour cream sauce is what makes it.
      Lexi

  19. Great recipe. 2 things different, add an extra 4oz can of green chiles and add 1/2 squeezed lime to the sour cream / green chile sauce. Fantastic recipe though, very good and sure to please the dinner party!

    1. Oh yum! I like the idea of adding a squeaze of lime to the recipe. Delish! Thanks for sharing

  20. I made these tonight for dinner exactly as you instructed except, I made half with chicken and the other half of the pan with leftover pork roast I had from the night before. OMG! They were both good, but the pork was out of this world. If you haven't tried it with shredded pork roast yet, I highly recommend that you give it a try. Thanks for the recipe!

    1. Thanks for the tip! I do have some shredded pork in the freezer. Such a great idea to use it in these. I am looking forward to trying it.
      Lexi

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