Chicken & Cheese Enchiladas

Admit it, you love a good homecooked meal. Even better if you are a busy mom of 3 busy boys (like Becca here is) and you can have a good homecooked meal that is good FOR them too! Right? RIGHT! So when Inchie-la-la's were on the family menu, Becca wasted no time snapping some pics so she could share her recipe with us all! We love us some Becca, and we love us some Mexican food that the kids will love.

Chicken and Cheese Inchie-la-la's (or 'Enchiladas' if you're older than 5!)

Everyone seems to have a different method to making this popular Mexican meal. My method is pretty simple, but the results are delicious. :)

Things you'll need:

For the Enchiladas:

*4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

*15 (approximately) yellow corn tortillas

(I use the Guerrero brand)

*1- 28 oz. can of enchilada sauce

(can be whatever flavor is to your liking – I prefer the Los Palmas brand mild sauce)

*Shredded cheese – approximately 3 cups

(I usually shred my own Tillamook medium cheddar, but if I'm more pressed for time I'll buy the shredded Mexican four cheese blend)

*Avocado/Sour cream for garnish

*Chopped onions (optional)

For the Rice:

*Oil (about 2 tbsp.)

*2 cups white rice

*Garlic (I use about 6-8 cloves, but I love garlic :D I'm sure 2-3 would be great)

*Chicken broth or Chicken bouillon cube

*1-8 oz. Can of Tomato Sauce

*Chopped onions (optional)

Let's get started! :)

Boil a large pot of water and place chicken breasts in to boil. This usually takes about 20 minutes. Drain chicken and let sit for a couple of minutes in the colander so it's easier to handle. (We don't want any burned fingers!)

Set oven to 375 to preheat while you prepare the enchiladas.

Shred boiled chicken in a large bowl.

Add about 2-2½ cups of shredded cheese and about half of the can of enchilada sauce to the bowl of shredded chicken. You can adjust the amount of cheese to your taste – here in my house we're all cheese-heads. If you're going to add chopped onions, this would be the time to do so as well.

Mix together.

Pour the rest of the can of sauce into a bowl or something that you can use to dip the tortillas in.

I warm up my tortillas a little bit before I start assembling. It makes them easier to work with. I put the stack of about 15 in the microwave for about a minute

Assembly line time! Dip one tortilla at a time into the sauce and put some of the chicken/cheese/sauce/(onion) mixture into it. Roll it up and place it in the pan.

Repeat this until you're all out of mixture. I'll usually go back and put any extra mixture I have into the ends.

Put shredded cheese on top and place foil over the pan(s) and place in oven.

Set timer for 30 minutes and cook @375.

Rice time!

Place pan on the stove and put approximately 2 tablespoons of oil into pan (if you're just eyeing it, a couple of swirls of the pan works well).

When oil is warm, place 2 cups of white rice into pan and brown over low heat.

Chop garlic. I use this spiffy little table-top contraption I got for a few bucks. It makes it the perfect size. If you're putting in onions, this would be a good time to chop them up as well.

There's a few different ways you can do this next step. You can either use 3 cups of chicken broth, or you can use 3 cups of water with a chicken bouillon cube or two, OR you can do a combination like I do. I buy Trader Joe's Chicken Broth concentrate and will put two of those packets in with a large chicken bouillon cube and approximately 3 cups of water all together. Place whichever method you decide into the pan and stir with the rice.

Add the can of tomato sauce and turn up the heat to boil while you stir.

Place lid on pan and lower heat to simmer. Rice will take about 20-25 minutes to cook. Check on it occasionally and stir to ensure it's not sticking to the pan.

The oven timer should go off about 5 minutes or so before the rice is done. Pull pan(s) out of the oven and place on counter to rest for a little bit so it's easier to handle. If you try to cut them too soon it will be a jumbled mess to take out.

When enchiladas are ready to be cut, place on plate with shredded cheese, sliced avocado and sour cream on top and rice on the side and enjoy! :)

This is really a base recipe and you can always add additional items (olives, spinach, onions, jalapenos, etc.) or even switch it up with a different meat to suit your tastes. These also work awesome as something to prepare ahead of time and warm up or warm up the next day for lunch. My boys love helping make these with me – I hope you enjoy them as well!

Bon appetit!

Becca is a rockin' wife, a mom to three amazing boys,and our resident graphics queen. You can find her designs at PDP Exclusives, or like her on Facebook!