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We’ve made cheese enchiladas for decades, and over the years have perfected them to become a no-fail family favorite.
This recipe was first handed down from our great-grandma Bean Burro down to my grandma, then to my mom, and now to us! We’ve simplified it a bit over the years, but the result is still delicious and authentic.
We make these ALL of the time for our families and friends since it’s a top “Luna recipe request” – and we think it will be the same for your family. It’s simple, cheesy, easy to freeze and great to make for a crowd.
Serve these easy cheese enchiladas up with Pinto Beans, Spanish Rice, or maybe even some Beef Empanadas!
Why we think you’ll love it:
- 10 minutes of prep. Even making a homemade enchilada sauce, this recipe comes together quickly and is a no-fail!
- Authentic flavors. The flavors, spices, and cheese make these enchiladas to die for and ideal for any Mexican meal.
- Perfect for parties. Whether it’s for Christmas or a fiesta, these enchiladas (along with our Chicken Enchiladas) are the star on the menu.
Cheese Enchiladas Ingredients and Substitutions
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil – canola oil or olive oil
- 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons Gebhardt Chili Powder – We prefer Gebhardt brand, but any brand of chili powder works.
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon oregano
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- 2 cups chicken broth – or chicken stock or vegetable broth
- corn tortillas – We usually roll about 12 enchiladas
- Mexican blend cheese – about 3-4 cups. Mexican blend usually consists of Monterrey Jack cheese and Cheddar, but other great cheeses include: Colby Jack, and any other cheeses that melt easily such as Asadero and Oaxaca (also known as quesadilla cheese).
- optional toppings – sliced avocado, sliced black olives, diced tomatoes, diced green onions, diced jalapeno peppers, Pico de Gallo, Homemade Salsa, Guacamole, Avocado Cream Sauce, sour cream, cotija cheese, queso fresco, or cilantro
How to Make Cheese Enchiladas
- SAUCE. Add 2 tablespoons oil to a pot and heat on medium. Pour in 4 tablespoons flour and create a roux by whisking for 1-2 minutes.
- Add 3 tablespoons chili powder, ½ teaspoon garlic powder, ½ teaspoon cumin, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon oregano and mix until clumpy. see our homemade red enchilada sauce for more tips.
- Pour in 2 cups chicken broth, whisking the entire time and until there are no more clumps. Heat for about 15 minutes or until sauce is thickened.
- ASSEMBLE. Place the 11×7-inch baking pan close to the pot of sauce, along with a bowl of shredded cheese, and the tortillas. Dip a tortilla into the sauce until soft and put into the greased dish.
- Add ¼ cup cheese roll up and push to the end of the 9×13-inch baking dish with the seam side down.
- BAKE. Continue doing this with your tortillas until your pan is full. From there, you will pour the excess sauce over your tortillas. Sprinkle the top with more cheese, then bake (uncovered) in the oven at 350°F for 20-25 minutes.
Kristyn’s Recipe Tips
- CHILI POWDER. We only use Gebhardt and believe it makes a difference. The flavor is unmatched, and some powders are more brown and make the enchiladas look very dark and not as red. Trust us – you’ll love Gebhardt too.
- ROLLING. For easy rolling with no cracking, we highly recommend wrapping your corn tortillas in a damp paper towel and microwaving for 30-60 seconds. They should be able to roll very easily.
Cheese Enchiladas
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 2-3 tablespoons Gebhardt chili powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic salt with parsley flakes, or salt
- ¼ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- 2 cups full-sodium chicken broth
- 9 (6-inch) corn tortillas,
- 4 cups Mexican blend cheese, divided
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add flour and cook, whisking together, for 1-2 minutes.
- Add chili powder, garlic powder, garlic salt, cumin and oregano and mix until clumpy. Pour in chicken broth, whisking the entire time until there are no more clumps. Reduce heat to low and cook for 15-20 minutes, or until thickened.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 7×11 inch (or 9×13 inch) baking dish and set aside.
- After the sauce has thickened dip each tortilla in the sauce until soft and immediately put it into the prepared dish. Add ⅓ cup cheese and any meat you wish to add to the tortilla, roll it up and push it to the end of the pan.
- Repeat with all the tortillas until your pan is full. Pour remaining sauce over the tortillas. Sprinkle the top with remaining 1 cup of cheese.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bubbly.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Recipe FAQ
You can add any kind of meat you like! We’ve added rotisserie chicken, Shredded Chicken, Pork Barbacoa, and even shredded beef (our Beef Enchiladas are basically this recipe with the addition of beef).
Assemble the enchiladas, cover the pan with plastic, and refrigerate for 24 hours. Wrap the pan again with aluminum foil and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge before baking.
Store leftovers in an airtight container(s) in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, or in the freezer for 2-3 months.
Complete The Meal
Sides
Homemade Spanish Rice Recipe
45 mins
Mexican Street Corn Recipe
13 mins
Mexican Cornbread
50 mins
Canned Refried Beans
10 mins
Desserts
Chocolate Tres Leches Cake
4 hrs 45 mins
How to Make Flan
9 hrs 10 mins
Cheesecake Chimichanga
30 mins
Carmelitas
45 mins
More Enchilada Recipes
Collections
This recipe was first shared February 2013.
I like the simplicity of this recipe. I can’t wait to try it!
Hope you enjoy the enchiladas!
WOW – made this tonite – it turned out so good! Tasted better than I get at our local restaurant.
Awe, that makes me so happy to hear! I’m so glad it tasted like restaurant quality. I love it! 🙂
Kristyn I made the enchiladas with you sauce last month and they were perfect! Today I made them again and the corn tortillas broke apart when I rolled them. I used the same technique. Any recommendations you can give me will be appreciated!
I have found that it depends on the type of corn tortillas you use. I like to use the Kroger brand because they don’t break apart so easily. Although I have found that the white corn tortillas of the Kroger brand tend to break apart more easily than the Kroger yellow corn tortillas. I wish I could say that all corn tortillas are the same but in my experience I have found that the quality varies greatly. The best thing I would suggest would be to try out different brands of corn tortillas to see which ones hold up the best. I wish I had an easier solution for you! Hope this helps!
I use different tortillas and found that you need to heat them up (either pan or microwave) before dipping them. Be cautioned that this means they are already soft so you just need a very quick dip into the sauce BUT they won’t fall apart when you roll them.
This is by far my favorite enchilada recipe, my family loved it, too!! Using Gebhardt chili powder makes it 💯. Thank you!!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! I agree Gebhardt is the best!
Ok this was the most frustrating recipe. First of all, no matter what I did I could not get the lumps out of the sauce. Second, while barely dipping to coat the tortillas, they fell apart all over the pan. Gonna have to make some modifications to this to convince me to make it again.
Thanks for the feedback and for giving the recipe a try!
Trudi,
When I made these for last week’s Super Bowl party, I had the same problem with the corn tortillas. As soon as I dipped them in the warm tortillas sauce, they fell apart. Thank goodness I had some flour tortillas on hand so I used them.
Great recipe in its simplicity. Given we live overseas, we always have New Mexico red chili powder in the pantry since it is difficult to find in Italy. The red sauce is just spicy enough to not offend anyone. We improved the recipe by adding a few chopped onions in the enchiladas and removing the foil during the final minutes of the baking to brown a bit.
Sounds tasty! Thanks for sharing what you do.
How many tortillas do you use and how much Mexican cheese? They feed 6 people, so is that 2 enchiladas per person? Thanks!
About! I honestly just eyeball the amount of cheese and I use however many tortillas it takes to fill my pan. There is usually always enough for each serving to include 2 enchiladas, sometimes more if I make them small.
What Mexican cheese ? What substitute would you recommend
They have Mexican Cheese blends at most local grocery stores. You could also use Monterrey Jack cheese, cheddar or Colby Jack or a combination of them.
Great enchilada sauce! Easy and makes great cheese enchiladas
Thank you!! So glad you enjoyed the sauce!
These are sooo good. Only sub made was using better than boullion no chicken base with water (instead of chicken broth) to make them vegetarian. They are now a favorite at our house and super easy to make!
Oh I’m so glad that you enjoyed the enchiladas!! Thanks for sharing!