A chicken enchilada casserole is a baked dish made with Mexican flavors and ingredients, including tortilla chips, chicken, cheese, and enchilada sauce. It is a one-dish meal that combines main course and side dish ingredients, usually cooked in the oven. The casserole includes layers of tortillas, chicken, cheese, and herbs and spices, topped with enchilada sauce. It is often served with melted cheese, sour cream, and cilantro.
A chicken enchilada casserole is a single, oven-baked dish made with Mexican flavors and ingredients commonly used in chicken enchiladas. Cooks may vary the specific ingredients they use based on personal preference, but nearly every chicken enchilada casserole includes soft tortilla chips, chicken, shredded cheese, and enchilada sauce. Other ingredients often found in traditional enchiladas, including peppers, rice, refried beans, and onions, are also commonly found in the casserole version.
Casseroles, in general, are one-dish meals that combine main course and side dish ingredients in a single skillet. This results in an “all-in-one” type of meal that serves as a balanced dinner without requiring any other sides. Most of the casseroles are cooked in the oven, but some are cooked on the stove. A chicken enchilada casserole is usually cooked in the oven.
While different cooks have different recipes, a chicken enchilada casserole must include standard enchilada ingredients to have the overall taste of a chicken enchilada. A traditional enchilada consists of a corn tortilla wrapped in ground beef, beans, cheese, and various chopped vegetables. Enchiladas are also covered in a delicate red pepper sauce specifically referred to as “enchilada sauce.” The term enchilada comes from the Spanish verb enchilar, which roughly means “to season with chili,” making this sauce the key ingredient in an enchilada recipe. Side dishes may also include additional fresh cheese, lettuce, onions, sour cream, and cilantro.
Chicken enchilada casseroles use many of the same toppings, fillings, and toppings as the traditional Mexican dish this meal is derived from, but instead of rolling the ingredients inside a corn tortilla, the cook stacks the ingredients in flat layers. A layer of flat corn tortillas is laid at the bottom of the saucepan. The cook then spreads a layer of partially or fully cooked chicken, in the form of shredded chicken or chicken strips, on top of the tortillas. A mixture consisting of finely chopped greens, grated cheese and various herbs and spices is spooned over the chicken. The cook generally repeats these layers once or twice and often tops the casserole dish with an extra layer of tortilla before cooking it in a preheated oven.
Some cooks may call a recipe a chicken enchilada casserole without actually including the chili sauce that characterizes an enchilada. A more authentic chicken enchilada casserole will include enchilada sauce, but some cooks may stir the sauce into the filling ingredients, while others may spread it over the final tortilla layer. Casserole versions of the chicken enchilada don’t often include as wide a range of toppings as traditional versions of the dish, but melted melted cheese, sour cream, and chopped cilantro are still common. After coming out of the oven, the casserole is cut into square portions which are to be eaten with a knife and fork.
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