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These Red Cheese Enchiladas are an old family favorite recipe that is authentic and simply delicious!! They are cheesy, saucy, and loved by all.
The Best Cheese Enchiladas
We’ve made cheese enchiladas for decades, and they are INCREDIBLE!!
With our Hispanic heritage we have been surrounded by amazing cooks our whole lives. This recipe was first handed down from our great-grandma Bean Burro down to my grandma, then to my mom and now to us.
Minor tweaks have been made over the years, but we are confident they are even better than the restaurants and are perfect served with Pinto Beans, Spanish Rice, or maybe even some Beef Empanadas.
Why we love them:
- Simple. Even making a homemade enchilada sauce, this recipe comes together quick and is no-fail!
- Delicious. The flavors and spices and cheese make these enchiladas to die-for and perfect for any Mexican meal.
- Perfect for parties. Whether it’s for Christmas or fiesta, these enchiladas (along with our Chicken Enchiladas) are the star on the menu.
Ingredients
- vegetable oil
- all-purpose flour
- Gebhardt Chili Powder – our favorite chili powder (but any brand works)
- garlic powder
- oregano
- salt
- cumin
- chicken broth
- Corn Tortillas
- Mexican Blend Cheese – “Mexican blend cheese”, is what is typically used in restaurant enchiladas. It is a blend of cheeses usually consisting of Monterrey Jack, Cheddar or Colby Jack, and cheeses that melt easily such as asadero and oaxaca (also known as quesadilla cheese).
How to Make Cheese Enchiladas
- BEGIN SAUCE. To make these enchiladas, you have to begin with the enchilada sauce. This is made by adding oil to the pot and heating on Medium heat. Pour in flour and create a roux by whisking together for 1-2 minutes.
- SPICES. Add chili powder, garlic powder, cumin and oregano and mix until clumpy.
- BROTH. Pour in chicken broth, whisking the entire time and until there are no more clumps. Heat for about 15 minutes or until sauce is thickened.
- ASSEMBLE. Get your pan close to your sauce, along with a bowl of shredded cheese, and your tortillas. Dip each tortilla into the sauce until soft and put into the greased dish.
- FILL + ROLL. Add 1/4 cup cheese and roll up and push to the end of the pan.
- 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) at 350 for 20-25 minutes.
PRO TIP: Easy Rolling
Our favorite way to make sure tortillas roll up easily is by wrapping the corn tortillas in a damp paper towel and microwaving for about 30 seconds. You can also flash fry them in oil for a few seconds on each side before dipping them in the sauce. Either method makes for easy rolling.
Cheese Enchiladas
Restaurant-Style Red Cheese Enchiladas are an old family favorite recipe that is simply the best!! They are cheesy, saucy, and so yummy.
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 4 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 3 tbsp Gebhardt Chili Powder
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp oregano
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 2 cups chicken broth
- Corn Tortillas
- Mexican Blend Cheese
Instructions
- Add oil to pot and heat on Medium. Pour in flour and whisk together and cook for 1-2 minutes.
- Add chili powder, garlic powder, cumin, salt and oregano and mix until clumpy. Pour in chicken broth, whisking the entire time and until there are no more clumps. Heat for 15 minutes or until thickened.
- After you have made your sauce, you will want to dip your corn tortillas in the sauce until they are soft and immediately put it into a greased 11×7 pan.
- From there you will add cheese (I use the Mexican Blended Cheese), roll it up and push it to the end of the pan.
- 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. (You can also prepare this in advance and refrigerate until ready to cook).
- Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes.
Video
Notes
MAKE AHEAD OF TIME. These can made ahead of time, covered and refrigerated for 24 hours in advance.
STORE in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
FREEZE by making a disposable tray, covering tightly with foil and placing in a freezer bag for up to 3 months.
Nutrition
Calories: 64kcal, Carbohydrates: 4g, Fat: 4g, Sodium: 480mg, Potassium: 62mg, Vitamin C: 5.4mg, Calcium: 5mg, Iron: 0.4mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Recipe FAQ
What are the best toppings for cheese enchiladas?
- Fresh vegetables: sliced avocado, sliced black olives, diced tomatoes, diced green onions, diced jalapeno peppers
- Salsas: Pico de Gallo, Homemade Salsa, Guacamole, Avocado Cream Sauce
- Dairy and cheese: sour cream, cotija cheese, queso fresco
Can I add meat to these enchiladas?
- Yes, 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).
Can cheese enchiladas be made ahead of time?
- These can made ahead of time, covered and refrigerated for 24 hours in advance.
How to store cheese enchiladas?
- STORE in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- FREEZE by making a disposable tray, covering tightly with foil and placing in a freezer bag for up to 3 months.
This looks great, but there are a few things that are a bit confusing, and or missing. You don’t say how many tortillas you’ll need, or how much queso. It’s good to know quantities before heading to the store. Also, you use the term “fry” the tortillas in the red sauce. When I think frying, higher heat and oil, and you mention turning down the heat on the sauce before you do this. Again, when I think frying, I think of a higher temp, and oil. I quess you mean “dip” the tortillas in the red sauce? Not picking on you, just want to get it right.
The amount of tortillas vary. I use a 9×13 pan and can fit 9-11 tortillas. It just depends on how tight you roll them up. As for the frying, it’s called flash frying, where you dip the tortillas in the sauce, before adding however much cheese you’d like. After you’ve rolled all your tortillas, you pour the excess sauce on top. There isn’t queso in this recipe. Hope this helps and hope you enjoy them!!
OK, so your response explains why I was confused. If you look up the definition of flash frying, you will see that it is the process of frying something at a very high temperature in oil, not dipping something in a sauce at at low temperature. That is not flash frying. The literal translation of queso is cheese, and does not necessarily mean queso fresco, which is what I believe you’re referring to when you said there isn’t queso in this recipe. All that said, your recipe still sounds great, I will try it this weekend, and I’m sure it’ll be delicious! Thanks.
Found your recipe on Pinterest. Looks good. Can’t wait to try it. On your site you said since moving to Texas you can’t find Bueno Chile Puree. I live near Fort Worth, and Albertsons is a major store in the DFW metroplex area. Bueno’s store locator website shows it to be sold at Albertsons and some Brookshires. Plug in your zip code and see if any is near you. Hope this helps.
https://buenofoods.com/store-locator/
Thanks Kathy!! I’m back in Arizona, so I can find it now 🙂 If you love enchiladas, you’ll love this recipe! Thanks so much for checking it out!
HEB has Bueno Red Chile and Green Chile in the freezer section. Not sure if you have an HEB nearby.
I do..I love HEB!!! Thanks for the heads up!!
Hi, this might be a silly question, but do you buy a certain kind of corn tortillas to keep your enchiladas from falling apart?! I feel like I’ve tried all kinds of methods of preparation – flash frying in oil, sauce, steaming, heating in a pan, etc – but my enchiladas never seem to hold up once they’ve been cooked. It’s always sooo annoying because I feel like I spend endless time rolling. I’ve even fried them so much that they are almost crispy (not to mention I have to roll while they are still scalding so that they are still bendable) and still no dice. I’d love any suggestions you have!
The only suggestion I can give is buy fresh corn tortillas. If they are older they are more likely to crack. I don’t flash fry mine in oil for any of my enchiladas. I just dip them in the sauce to make them soft and it works out great. 😉
When I make enchiladas I don’t roll them I layer them with like a Casserole It’s so much faster , I put just a little sauce them my corn tortillas layered in my baking dish . I use hamburger meat I mine but just cheese is fine . After my tortillas are on bottom I put my hamburger meat in sauce cheese and onions if you like then more tortillas and continue your layers till pan is full with tortillas on top then poor sauce over them and top with cheese . Then bake in oven till Bubbly and hot . I just buy can enchilada sauce and use lots of it the more sauce the better.
How Many Enchiladas Does This Make.
You can find Bueno Red & Green chile at Albertsons grocery stores!!! I’m from New Mexico but living in Dallas now and am so happy that I finally found my Bueno red chile!!! I LOVE your website Lil’ Luna!!!
I’ll have to look at Albertson’s!! Thanks! SO glad you like the site. ;D
I’m assuming it’s from too many ads but I’m unable to look at your site or read the recipe. It keeps freezing which is an unfortunate thing that happens w/ many otherwise good blogs due to excessive pop ups. So you are losing traffic even making this comment my computer keeps freezing so I just have to “X” out of your site.
OMG! I found this on pinterest and made it tonight and it got rave reviews! I never knew it was that easy to make a red enchilada sauce. I’m never buying cans of that stuff again! Thanks for the awesome recipes!
Can this meal be frozen?