Verde Enchiladas: Fulfill a New Year’s Resolution

Dec. 31, 2020: Looking for an easy recipe for New Year’s Eve/Day?  Or maybe your New Year’s resolution is to cook more often?  This recipe for Verde Enchiladas is seriously plate- licking good!  The key is to cook the chicken breasts in the crock pot (or dutch oven) for a few hours in the enchilada sauce before you put them in the oven.

Pro tip: Don’t shred the chicken into tiny pieces; let it be in chucks so it stays super moist.

While I have used a recipe in the past, it seems more and more like I am making it up as I go along.  It turns out amazing each time.

For a recipe, check out this one by clicking this link.

For my version of verde enchiladas, I go by feel.  I have made these a few hundred times it feels like.

I start with organic chicken breasts from Trader Joe’s.  There is something about the organic chicken breasts that adds to the juicy flavor!  

I start by simmering them in verde enchilada sauce, layering them.  I use Hatch Green Chile Enchilada Sauce.  I love HATCH! It’s made in New Mexico and has excellent flavor.

Let them simmer in the crock pot for a few hours.

Transfer the chicken to a big bowl.  Cut them up in the bowl, but don’t shred them to death. I like to pour some of the sauce from the crock pot on them to keep them nice and moist.

Spray the cooking pan good with Pam (leftovers are key!). I’m obsessed with this All-Clad pan we got as a wedding present.

OK, back to the filling.  The filling includes sour cream, cream of chicken soup, greek yogurt and lots of cheese to use as the filling (see the recipe below).

Keep the recipe semi-healthy by using Mission’s wheat tortillas.  

Make an assembly line to put together the enchiladas.

Start by adding the filling and lay the chicken on top of it.  I don’t cut my pieces of chicken up super small because I like them to be super juicy when eating!

After the tortillas are filled up and placed in the pan, pour Hatch Valley Salsa and Trader Joe’s Salsa Verde on top of the enchiladas.  Read Trader Joe’s own blog on Hatch Valley Salsa by clicking here.

Use two different of verde salsa kinds to add to the flavor.

Finish with a few more handfuls of cheese on top!  They are now ready for the oven!

Cook them at 350 for about 45 minutes.  They smell amazing!

When they start to bubble and the cheeses start to brown, they are done.  

While there were a number of steps to get to this point, they are worth it!  Trust me! They are so juicy and so rich!  Be warned: everyone will beg for a doggy bag!

If you are getting ready to watch the College Football Playoffs (or the Super Bowl in Tampa this year!), lay out a spread of fresh fruit and veggies prior to the meal.  Throw in a block of cheese and some salami! Bam!