Enchiladas…what’s not to love? Well, except for the leftovers where the processed white flour tortillas soak up all the sauce and turn into a soggy, kindergarten paste consistency that leaves you feeling like a lead brick is sitting in your stomach.
But, besides that…it’s fine.
Or, you can pay $20 for one serving at a restaurant filled with more sodium than you need in a month, plus who knows what being used for the meat filling. They don’t save the pretty cuts for things they are hiding five layers deep in goo and flour paste tortillas, folks. We can do better.
First, let’s just get rid of the flour tortillas altogether. There’s the stomach brick issue solved. We will replace it with minimally processed black bean chips, trading soggy and gross for crunchy and delicious.
Second, let’s make our own homemade sauce. It’s easy, quick, and you can control how spicy you want it to be instead of letting a can decide for you. Plus, you avoid all these unnecessary ingredients:
WATER, TOMATO PASTE, MODIFIED FOOD STARCH, SALT, SPICES, SUGAR, SOYBEAN OIL, DISTILLED VINEGAR, ONION POWDER, GARLIC POWDER, HYDROLYZED CORN PROTEIN, CITRIC ACID (PRESERVATIVE), PAPRIKA.
Sugar, soybean oil, hydrolyzed corn protein…no thanks. We will make fresh enchilada sauce that doesn’t need to be preserved until the end of time.
Chicken enchiladas can and should be good tasting and good for you. Like always, choose your weapons with care and the results will follow. How you feel, how you look, and how your immune system performs is largely affected by your diet.
This meal checks all the boxes. Lean protein, complex carbs, healthy fats, vitamins and minerals, and nothing weird that your body has to fight. And that’s the whole enchilada.
Chicken Enchilada Casserole:
Ingredients:
Sauce –
1 cup low sodium chicken broth
2 cups tomato sauce
1/2 tsp olive oil
3 garlic cloves – minced
2 tsp chili powder
2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp ground pepper
2 tsp chopped chipotle chilies (optional if you want some heat)
Casserole:
4 pasture raised chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces
Beanitos Black Bean chips
1 yellow onion, diced
1 package baby bella mushrooms, chopped
Queso Mama white cheese dip (or make your own)
4 oz grass fed Pepper Jack cheese, shredded
2 avocados, bunch cilantro, 1 cup plain grass fed yogurt, 1/2 lime juice for dressing
1 tsp chili powder, 1 tsp ground cumin, 1/2 tsp onion and garlic powder, 1/2 tsp smoked paprika, 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
Instructions:
To make the sauce, mince the cloves of garlic as small as you can. Heat the olive oil in a saucepan until it starts to simmer, then saute the garlic for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add the rest of the ingredients and bring to a boil, Reduce to a simmer and cook over low heat for 10 – 15 minutes until it thickens. Let cool and keep in a mason jar if making ahead of time.
Dice up the chicken and coat with the spices, then brown the chicken until completely cooked through. Transfer to a bowl and cover with foil. Using the same skillet, cook the onions and mushrooms until soft. Drain any liquid, then add the chicken back with 2 cups of the sauce and the feta cheese, heat through:
Spray a large casserole dish with non-stick, line the bottom with chips, then scoop half the chicken mixture on top. Cover with a layer of cheese dip, then repeat that exactly. Cover the top with more chips and the shredded cheese:
Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes, then let rest for 5 minutes. Make the topping sauce by placing the avocados, cilantro, lime juice, and yogurt in a bowl. Add a pinch of salt and cumin and hit it with a stick blender until smooth and creamy. Try not to eat the whole bowl right then:
Serve with roasted broccoli seasoned with red pepper flakes:
See the list of all Jason Murphy’s recipes at www.mysaline.com/jason-murphy.