Easy Chicken Enchiladas

   Of all my recipes I am most proud of this one!  I have combined my mother's chicken enchilada recipe, with my mother-in-law's chicken fajita casserole with the convenience of the crock pot.   Once a very time consuming process of poaching and cubing the chicken, mixing the sauce and carefully filling and rolling each enchilada has become super easy.   The filling gets a lot of great flavor from the taco seasoning and cilantro.   Mmmmm!

Ingredients:

3 large boneless skinless chicken breasts            3.84
26 oz cream of chicken soup (divided)               2.39
16 oz light sour cream                                        1.98
1/2 onion--chopped                                             .15
2 cans chopped green chilies                              1.56
1 envelope taco seasoning                                    .50
20  small flour tortillas (6 inch)                             3.52
16 oz pepper jack or Monterrey jack cheese       4.36
1 bunch cilantro                                                   .74
               
Directions:

Place raw chicken in a medium to large crock pot.  Top with chopped onions and green chilies.

In a small mixing bowl stir together 2/3 of the chicken soup, all of the sour cream and the package of taco seasoning. 

Pour this soup mixture over the chicken and turn the crock pot to low.  Cook 4-8 hours.   Now go run some errands, go to school, work or church.  When you're ready for dinner turn off the crock pot.  Chop the chicken into cubes or shred with two forks.

Then put the chicken back in the crock pot and stir well.  Add chopped cilantro for taste.

This is the filling for your enchiladas.  Now shred the cheese onto a plate and open the tortilla packages.  Grab 3 8x8" pans and place a little of the enchilada sauce in the bottom of each pan to prevent sticking.  Take each tortilla and place one large spoonful of sauce in the center and top with about a Tablespoon of shredded cheese 

Carefully fold the tortilla over the sauce and place seam side down in the pan.  I was able to fit six tortillas in each 8x8" pan.

Now spread two spoonfuls of the reserved cream of chicken soup over top of the rolled tortillas with the back of your spoon.

Sprinkle the top with 4 Tablespoons of cheese.

Once all three pans are filled with chicken enchiladas cover with foil.  Label and freeze two of the pans.   Once frozen and thawed they will bake at 350 degrees for 30-45 min. 

I put one pan directly into the oven to bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes just to melt the cheese since the filling was already hot from the crock pot.  I was able to make three pans of enchiladas for $6.35 each dinner.  Not a bad way to stretch one package of chicken breasts!  This would also be good with a package of boneless skinless chicken thighs.

Here they are hot from the oven.  We like to eat ours topped with salsa.

These would also be good with black beans or rice mixed into the filling. 

Enjoy!
Christie aka Keeza