I have been making these Enchiladas with Three Pepper Sauce for years. They are similar to Enchiladas Verde or Enchiladas Suizas. Even though there are three different types of peppers in the sauce, Pablano, Anaheim, and Jalapeño, the sauce is very mild. Because the peppers and tomatoes are charred, the flavor is really spectacular.
When I was a little girl, living in Germany, my father used to make enchiladas. My father was a major in the U.S. Army, and he loved to make Mexican food. I’m not sure why he wanted to do this, or even where he managed to get ingredients, but he made flaming salsa and flaming enchiladas on a regular basis. I learned early on to have a big glass of milk with my dinner when the Major cooked.
My mother could never understand how I could gobble up my father’s spicy food. She used to kid me and tell me I was Paul Fierro’s child, and not my father’s. For those of you who want to know, yes I am most definitely my father’s daughter. Oddly enough, when I finally met Paul Fierro, I told my mother she was crazy to not have married him, he was gorgeous, even to a preteen like me! I guess there must have been some osmosis genetic thing going on, apparently, Paul Fierro’s mother made killer enchiladas, and even though I’m not related to her, I make killer enchiladas too.
Equipment for Making Enchiladas
You will find when you make this that it’s a lot easier if you have a food processor and a stand mixer. You’ll want to grate the cheese, chop vegetables and chicken in the food processor, and bring it all together in the stand mixer. Yes, you can do it all by hand, but be prepared for a long day and tired muscles.
My recommendation is the Braun food processor because of its variable speed in both pulse and continuous modes.
Email Me the Recipe
Enchiladas with Three Pepper Sauce
Equipment
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Ingredients
- 2 Poblano Chilis, charred
- 1 Anaheim Chili, charred
- 2 Red Tomatoes, charred
- 1 tablespoon Avocado oil
- 1 Onion, chopped
- 1 tablespoon *Chicken Base
- 12 ounces Hot Water
- 1 teaspoon Oregano
- 1 teaspoon Ground Coriander
- 1 teaspoon Ground Cumin
- 1 teaspoon freeze-dried cilantro
- 1 teaspoon Jalapeno crushed
- 1 teaspoon Paprika, (everything tastes better with Paprika)
- 2 tablespoons Plain Yoghurt
Chicken Mousse Filling
- 1 pound Jack Cheese, grated
- ½ pound Sharp Cheddar Cheese, grated
- 1 pound Chicken, cooked and broken up, bones removed
- 1 Red Tomato, charred
- 1 Onion, chopped
- 1 tablespoon Cilantro, chopped
Enchiladas
- ½ cup Sunflower oil
- 10 Large Corn Tortillas
Instructions
- 1 pound ChickenTear the chicken into pieces. Grate the cheese.
For the Stovetop
- Turn off your smoke detector. Remove the broiling pan from your broiler so that the vegetables do not char too quickly.
- 2 Poblano Chilis, 2 Red Tomatoes, 1 Anaheim ChiliPut the chilies and tomatoes on a baking sheet. Put the backing sheet in the broiler, and turn the broiler on.
- Broil the vegetables until they have charred nicely on all sides. You should check every 5 minutes or so, and turn the vegetables so they can char on all sides.
- Remove the vegetables from the broiler. Let them sit and cool off. Put the broiling pan back in your broiler, and turn the smoke detector back on.
For the Air Fryer
- 2 Poblano Chilis, 2 Red Tomatoes, 1 Anaheim ChiliDepending on how large your air fryer is, put chilis and tomatoes together on your air fryer rack. If they would be touching, remove some and do this in batches. Set the air fryer for 400 and roast for 15 minutes.
- Remove the peppers and tomatoes from the air fryer and put them in a covered bowl. Let them cool.
Three Pepper Sauce
- Remove as much skin as you can from the peppers. It doesn't have to be perfect.
- 2 Poblano Chilis, 1 Anaheim Chili, 2 Red Tomatoes, 1 tablespoon Avocado oil, 1 OnionSet a large sauté pan on the stove and heat it up. Pour the avocado oil in. Add the onion and sauté until it has turned translucent. While that is happening, chop the chilies. You may find this much easier in a food processor. Add the chilies to the pan, and sauté about 5 minutes. Chop the tomatoes and add them to the pan. Important, make sure you add the juice! Lower the heat, cover and let cook about 10 minutes.
- 1 teaspoon Oregano, 1 teaspoon Ground Coriander, 1 teaspoon Ground Cumin, 1 teaspoon freeze-dried cilantro, 1 teaspoon Jalapeno crushed, 1 teaspoon PaprikaPut the oregano, coriander, cumin, cilantro, jalapeño, and paprika in the mortar, and grind it well with a pestle.
- 1 tablespoon Chicken Base, 12 ounces Hot WaterAdd the chicken base to the pan, and the hot water.
- Add the ground spices to the pan and stir all together.
- Cover and let simmer about 20 minutes.
- 2 tablespoons Plain YoghurtAdd the yogurt, and using a stick blender, mix the yogurt into the sauce. You don’t want to puree it completely because you still want to have pieces of vegetable visible. Turn the heat off and set the sauce aside whilst making the enchiladas.
Chicken Mousse Filling
- 1 Red Tomato, 1 Onion, 1 pound ChickenPut the chicken, the one tomato, the chopped onion, and fresh cilantro into the bowl of a food processor. Process the mixture until you have pretty much a mousse consistency.
- 1/2 pound Sharp Cheddar Cheese, 1 pound Jack CheesePut a 1 1/2 cups of grated cheese in a separate bowl. Put the rest into the bowl of a stand mixer.
- Add the chicken mixture to the cheese, and using the paddle blade, mix the cheese and chicken mixture together. You will have a nice chicken cheese mousse.
- On a flat surface, turn the mousse out and use your hands to make rolls about 1 inch in diameter. These will be easy to cut to fill the enchiladas. Set aside.
Assembly
- Have ready a baking sheet and cake rack inside to drain the tortillas.
- Have ready a 9 x 13 inch baking dish. Glass is a good idea.
- 1/2 cup Sunflower oil, 10 Large Corn TortillasGet a shallow frying pan, and put about 1/4 cup of oil in. Heat the oil on medium heat for about 2 minutes.
- You can probably put two tortillas in the hot oil at a time. Cook them just until they puff just a little and curl slightly on the edge. Don’t let the brown because they’ll be hard like taco shells. Immediately remove to the rack so they can drain.
- When the tortillas are cool enough to touch, cut about three inches of the roll of chicken mousse and put it in the center of a tortilla. Roll the tortilla around the mousse and place in the baking dish.
- Do this until all the tortillas are filled, or you run out of room, which ever comes first.
- Ladle the sauce over the enchiladas evenly.
- Cover with the reserved grated cheese.
- Refrigerate until ready to cook.
- Preheat the oven to 350.
- Place the enchiladas in the preheated oven and cook until the cheese is melted and slightly browned, about 30 minutes
- 1 tablespoon CilantroServe with fresh cilantro and sour cream for garnish.
I saw a post somewhere about how to use Campbell’s chicken soup to make enchiladas and I thought to myself, why in the world would you make that when you can make THESE. Just had to share!
Thanks, I appreciate the kind words!