Spicy Chicken and Black Bean Enchiladas
on Feb 18, 2018, Updated Aug 17, 2023
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Some kick, how much depends a bit on your poblanos.
The “what’s for dinner?” question moment in any family is a bit of a high-tension moment. The answer may elicit enthusiasm – and it may elicit groans. Believe me when I say I have had my share of both, especially when I am testing recipes that aren’t designed to be sure-fire kid pleasers (because gee whiz, how would things ever evolve, right? They aren’t discovering cod on their own, I can tell you that.)
But there are days when I’m gunning for that question to be asked, just waiting with quiet gleeful anticipation, because I know the answer will be greeted with happiness (or really, I know the answer won’t be greeted with complaints, which in my house can be the equivalent of happiness. at least for me). Enchiladas is one of those surefire winners. Just no whining at all.
I’ve made a number of versions of chicken enchiladas in my day, and I will no doubt make a lot more. This recipe is similar to one I made on our new Craftsy Unlimited Cooking show, Real Life Cooking, which I host with Robin Miller, who you may know from her bountiful cookbook oeuvre, and her show on Food Network several years back. Let’s just say she and I are having some fun cooking and talking bluntly about the realities of family cooking. I hope you’ll tune in ( you can check it out with a 7 day free trial, so no commitment).
Spicy Chicken and Black Bean Enchiladas is a surefire dinner recipe that will please the whole family. A great way to use leftover chicken.
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Using Leftover Chicken
This is the recipe I made to show how to use up leftover chicken, which is always a needed thing in my house. When I am cooking chicken, I make intentional leftovers, because I know I’ll need extra chicken during the week to whip up these, or a chicken noodle soup, or a chicken salad, or what have you. And by the way, yes, of course you can make these with rotisserie chicken. I do it all the time. Love me a nice rotisserie chicken, I do I do.
More Spicy Chicken Recipes:
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Spicy Chicken and Black Bean Enchiladas
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon vegetable or canola oil
- 1 ½ cups chopped onion
- 1 cup chopped poblano peppers
- 5 garlic cloves minced
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon pureed chipotles in adobo sauce
- 1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 15 ounce can tomato sauce
- 3 cups shredded cooked chicken a rotisserie chicken is perfect for this
- 1 15.5-ounce can black beans rinsed and drained
- 2 cups (about 8 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese
- 16 6-inch corn tortillas
- Salsa and sour cream to serve
- Fresh cilantro leaves to serve, optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350° F. Coat a 13 x 9-inch baking dish with cooking spray.
- Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, poblano peppers, and garlic; sauté 4 minutes or until the onion and peppers are tender. Stir in the chili powder, cumin, and oregano. Add the chipotle puree, chicken broth and tomato sauce and bring to a gentle simmer; cook for 5 minutes, or until slightly thickened.
- Combine the chicken and black beans in a medium bowl; add half of the sauce mixture. Add ½ cup of the cheddar cheese mixture to the chicken mixture. Toss to combine.
- Heat a dry skillet over high heat. Place one tortilla at a time in the skillet, for 20 to 30 seconds on each side, until warm and browned in spots. Stack them on a plate.
- Working with 1 tortilla at a time, place it on a flat work surface and spoon a generous ¼ cup of the chicken mixture onto 1 end of tortilla. Roll up, jelly-roll style. Repeat the procedure with the remaining tortillas.
- Arrange the enchiladas, seam side down, in the prepared dish (you may need to wiggle that last one into a corner. Pour the remaining sauce over the enchiladas and sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Bake, uncovered, for 20 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbly and the cheese is melted and golden brown. Serve the enchiladas with salsa, sour cream, and cilantro, if desired.
I’m not sure what my family enjoys more, the beer can chicken for Sunday dinner or the black bean chicken enchiladas on Taco Tuesday. Either way, it’s a fantastic food week and that homemade enchilada sauce? I make a double batch so I can keep some in the freezer for enchilada emergencies.
Delicious. Very flavorful!