EASY CHICKEN ENCHILADAS WITH VERDE (GREEN) SAUCE

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 Whew! Such a long name for a dish...

I have not made Enchiladas for quite some time.  As I was preparing for this dish it dawned on me why I don't make it often enough.  Making Enchiladas from scratch is not only time consuming but also labor intensive.  Too many dishes to wash after everything is prepared and cooked, and too much time spent preparing, cooking and waiting to make this dish.  Regardless though of the mounds of dishes I have to wash and time I have to wait, there is one thing I can't complain about when it comes to this dish.  The end product is a SARAPLICIOUS! meal that everybody can enjoy and appreciate.

For this recipe, I found a way to cut down prep and cooking time by 40 mins.  The secret?!?  Use rotisserie chicken.  Yes, that good ol' stand by food that you can buy at every supermarket.  That juicy fall off the bone finger lickin' good chicken that screams BUY ME! BUY ME!.  For the health conscious you can use the breast meat while for the not so health conscious, you can definitely go for the thigh meat.  So this is the part that is not made from scratch but the sauce is.  Speaking of the sauce, I opted not to add any type of pepper for the sauce since my husband and daughter are not big fans of spicy food.  If you do want to add that kick in the sauce, just add 2-3 poblano peppers, cut in half and seeds removed, to the tomatillos you are roasting and (peel to add) to the sauce mixture.  I figured if I or my son want some heat we'll just add some of that spicy Tapatilo sauce.  A dollop of sour cream and sprinkle of scallions add as perfect garnishing for this dish as well.

Prep & Cook Time: 1 hr
Serves: 8

What you will need: foil, food processor, 2 baking sheets, wire rack, 13x9 baking pan

2 cups shredded rotisserie chicken breast, no skin
15 medium size tomatillos, remove husk and stems; wash and dry
2 tsp vegetable oil
1 medium garlic clove pressed
1 tsp salt
½ tsp pepper
2 ½ tsp sugar
¼ cup chicken broth
¼ tsp cumin
2 cups shredded monterey jack cheese
½ cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
16 corn tortillas
cooking spray

1. Prepare tomatillo sauce. Arrange oven rack to highest position. Turn broiler on high. In a bowl, toss tomatillos in vegetable oil. Arrange on top of a wire rack placed in a baking sheet. Broil for 5 minutes. Flip tomatillos and broil for another 5 minutes. Let them cool for 10 minutes. In a food processor, pulse tomatillo for 5 seconds. Add chicken broth, cumin garlic, pepper, 1 tsp sugar and ½ tsp salt. Pulse for 8 seconds. Taste and add sugar if sauce is still tangy. Mix on low until mixture liquifies. Splatter 1 cup worth of sauce on bottom of baking pan.

2. Prepare and cook enchiladas. Turn oven to 350. Spray each side of tortilla with cooking spray. Lay on baking sheet and cook in oven until soft, about 4-5 mins. While tortillas are cooking, prepare filling by mixing chicken, cilantro and 1 ½ cups of cheese. Add remaining salt to taste. When tortillas are done remove from oven and increase oven heat to 450. Lay tortilla on a flat surface and add filling. Roll enchilada and place on baking dish, seam side down, arranging them side by side. Once all enchiladas are made, pour remaining sauce on top. Use a spatula or the back of a spoon to even out sauce on top of enchiladas. Sprinkle remaining cheese on top and cover with foil. Cook in oven for 20 minutes. Wait 2 minutes before serving.

Enjoy this SARAPLICIOUS! dishIt's been quite some time since the last time I made Enchiladas from scratch.  As I was making this dish, it dawned on my why, it's time consuming and labor intensive.  Too many dishes to wash and too much time that goes by between preparing, cooking and waiting for ingredients to cool down.  But, the payoff is always good - a SARAPLICIOUS! meal.