Sonic Ched 'R' Peppers are my all-time favorite fast-food, but I don't live near a Sonic anymore, so I'm always chasing after that jalapeño popper flavor. These jalapeño popper chicken enchiladas combine some of my favorite Mexican flavors with cream cheese, tangy pickled jalapeños, and lots of gooey cheese. They're easy, fast, and so so tasty.
If you're looking for a lighter Mexican-inspired recipe, try our Blackened Mahi Mahi Tacos. If you're looking for cheesy, creamy goodness, then stay right here. This recipe also pairs well with our Mexican Black Beans.
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Ingredients
- Cooked shredded chicken
- Green chile enchilada sauce
- Pickled jalapeños
- Canned green chiles
- Cream cheese
- Shredded Mexican cheese
- 6-inch corn or flour tortillas
- Spices: cumin and garlic powder
See recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
Enchiladas are one of those things that sound time- and labor-intensive, but they're really not--once you get the hang of them, they go pretty fast. Here are the step-by-step instructions:
Step 1: Make the filling. Combine the jalapeños, green chiles, shredded cheese, cream cheese, seasonings, and shredded chicken in a bowl and mix until thoroughly combined. The cream cheese should help everything stick together.
Step 2: Dip a tortilla in enchilada sauce. Dump the enchilada sauce into a shallow bowl, and dip each side of a tortilla into the sauce. Then place the tortilla flat into a 9"x13" casserole dish.
Step 3: Fill the tortilla. Fill the tortilla with the filling. I usually use about a quarter cup, but don't always measure precisely. Just add enough so it's full, but not so full that it's hard to roll up. Roll the tortilla around the filling and place it fold-side-down into the casserole dish. Repeat until you've used all of your tortillas or filled your casserole dish.
Step 4: Top the enchiladas with the remaining enchilada sauce and shredded cheese. Dump the remaining enchilada sauce over the enchiladas, making sure to equally distribute the sauce throughout the dish. Then sprinkle the cheese over the top.
Step 5: Bake the enchiladas. We bake ours uncovered at 350°F until the cheese melts and starts to get a little crispy, about 20 minutes.
Suggested toppings
Toppings make everything better, don't they? We love to top these jalapeño popper enchiladas with fun toppings, especially when we're serving them to a crowd. Here are some ideas:
- Sliced avocado or guacamole
- Cilantro
- Pickled or fresh jalapeños
- Crumbled cojita cheese or queso fresco
- Sour cream, greek yogurt, or Mexican crema
- Salsa or pico de gallo
- Shredded lettuce
- Anything else you can dream up!
What to use for the shredded chicken
I use pre-cooked chicken for this recipe to keep it easy. Here are some ideas for getting shredded chicken quickly and easily:
- Shred a rotisserie chicken- This is the option I usually go with. Costco rotisserie chickens are only $5 and super tasty. I buy one, shred it, and throw it into a container to use in recipes throughout the week. You can buy them from most other grocery stores too.
- Canned chicken- This obviously isn't the tastiest option, but it's super easy! Just buy high-quality canned chicken and make sure you drain any liquid out before using it.
- Make instant pot shredded chicken- There are lots of good recipes out there for instant pot shredded chicken, and most of them are super easy. Gimme Some Oven has a great shredded chicken recipe that only takes about 25 minutes.
- Make boiled chicken- Boiling chicken is so fast and easy. Try this boiled chicken tutorial from Delish.
Frequently asked questions
Enchiladas are one of my favorite leftover meals. Store them in an airtight container for up to three or four days. To reheat them, microwave until warm, about a minute or two.
We usually use corn tortillas or cassava flour tortillas. If you're gluten free, stick with one of those two options (or almond flour tortillas, if that's what you prefer). Flour tortillas work for this recipe too, but they have a slightly heavier texture.
You can! Just omit the chicken. They'd be great with spinach if you want to replace the chicken with something. I'd cook the spinach (or get a bag of frozen, microwavable spinach), drain the extra liquid, and then add it to the other fillings.
Jalapeño Popper Chicken Enchilada Recipe
These jalapeño popper chicken enchiladas combine some of my favorite Mexican flavors with cream cheese, tangy pickled jalapeños, and lots of gooey cheese. They're easy, fast, and so so tasty.
6
servings20
minutes20
minutes400
kcal40
minutesPrevent your screen from going dark!
Ingredients
1.5 cups shredded chicken
¼ cup diced pickled jalapeños
4 ounces canned green chiles
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 cups shredded Mexican cheese, divided
¼ teaspoon cumin
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
~10 corn, cassava, or flour tortillas (see note 1)
10 ounces green enchilada sauce (see note 2)
Directions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F.
- Make the filling. Combine the jalapeños, green chiles, 1 cup of the shredded cheese, cream cheese, cumin, garlic powder, and shredded chicken in a bowl and mix until thoroughly combined.
- Dump the enchilada sauce into a shallow bowl, and dip each side of a tortilla into the sauce. Then place the tortilla flat into a 9"x13" casserole dish.
- Fill the tortilla with the filling. I usually use about a quarter cup. Roll the tortilla around the filling and place it fold-side-down into the casserole dish. Repeat until you've used all of your tortillas or filled your casserole dish.
- Top the enchiladas with the remaining enchilada sauce and shredded cheese, making sure to equally distribute the sauce throughout the dish. Then sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top.
- Bake! We bake ours uncovered until the cheese melts and starts to get a little crispy, about 20 minutes.
Notes
- Number of tortillas may vary based on how full you fill them and how big they are. We usually use corn tortillas or cassava flour tortillas. If you're gluten free, stick with one of those two options (or almond flour tortillas, if that's what you prefer). Flour tortillas work for this recipe too, but they have a slightly heavier texture. If you have multiple size options, medium usually works best (about 6").
- If your enchiladas seem dry, you can increase the amount of sauce. Sometimes I'll add a little water to the bottom of the empty enchilada sauce can (or pouch) to make sure I get every drop. If we use Frontera brand enchilada sauce (which only comes in 8 ounce packages) I just add a little water to it to make up the missing 2 ounces.
Michael says
I have two words for this dish - REALLY GOOD! I really liked used rotisserie chicken and felt like it definitely saved me 10+ minutes cooking meat like other recipes. The pickled jalapenos add a nice bite without it being overpowering. I served it with rice which paired nicely with this dish. Definitely going to be a staple in our house!
Kyle says
This was such an easy meal and full of flavor. It was the perfect mid-week meal for the family!
Brenda Sammons says
Recipe sounds delicious but directions don't say when to add the cumin & garlic. To the filling or the enchilada sauce? Thank you!
Mollie says
Hi Brenda! Thank you for this out— I mistakenly left the cumin and garlic powder out of the instructions. Both should be added to the filling. The recipe should include those instructions now!