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Authentic Beef Enchiladas. This easy ground beef enchilada recipe is loaded with juicy ground beef, melty cheese, and drenched with a homemade Tex Mex Enchilada Sauce.
These ground beef enchiladas are easy to make and loaded up with authentic flavor that will make you think you’re eating at your favorite Mexican restaurant! It’s all thanks to using a homemade taco seasoning on the ground beef and a homemade enchilada sauce.
How to make beef enchiladas:
- Cook the ground beef until no longer pink. Drain the grease and then sprinkle the meat with the homemade taco seasoning and stir with tomato sauce.
- Make the homemade enchilada sauce, which is made by creating a roux with oil, flour, seasonings, and then stirring in broth.
- Fry the corn tortillas briefly in hot oil, this will help the flavor of the corn come out in the enchilada and also help make it so that your tortillas hold up and don’t rip or break.
- Dip the tortillas into the enchilada sauce.
- Add your filling, the ground beef and shredded Monterey Jack cheese.
- Roll the tortillas and add to a baking dish. Top with enchiladas with remaining sauce and sprinkle with extra shredded cheese.
- Bake the enchiladas for about 10 minutes at 350 degrees just until the cheese is melted.
Frequently Asked Questions about this Beef Enchilada Recipe:
Can I use canned enchilada sauce?
While this recipe does include a homemade enchilada sauce, you can substitute for a canned enchilada sauce, my recommendation would be to use the Hatch Brand, Tex Mex Enchilada Sauce. You will need one 15 ounce can.
Can I use Flour Tortillas instead?
While I love flour tortillas, enchiladas are traditionally made with corn tortillas. They soak up the sauce and the texture is easier to cut into and enjoy with enchiladas. That being said..yes you can substitute with flour tortillas. You won’t need to fry them before hand. But I would still dip them in the sauce prior to adding the filling.
What to serve with these ground beef enchiladas:
Authentic Beef Enchiladas
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 tablespoon Chili Powder
- 1/2 teaspoon Salt
- 3/4 teaspoon Cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon Dried Oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 1/4 teaspoon Onion Powder
- 1/4 cup tomato sauce
Homemade Enchilada Sauce
- 1/4 cup oil or butter canola, vegetable, or avocado oil
- 1/4 cup all purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 2 cups beef broth LOW or NO SODIUM
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
Enchiladas
- 1/4 cup canola oil
- 12-15 white corn tortillas
- 1 cup Monterey Jack Cheese shredded
Instructions
- Ground Beef
- Cook the ground beef over medium heat. Break the beef up while it cooks, cook until browned and no longer pink.
- Turn the heat off. Drain the grease. Add the seasonings to the meat, stir to combine. Then stir in the tomato sauce. Set aside.
- Homemade Enchilada Sauce:
- Heat the oil or butter in a medium size skillet over medium heat.
- Add in the flour and stir to mix. Will be a thick mixture. Allow this to cook for just 1-2 minutes.
- Add in the spices. Stir to form a thick paste.
- Stir in the broth and tomato paste. Stir until smooth. Continue to heat to just below a simmer, sauce will thicken slightly.
- Enchiladas:
- Preheat oven to 350℉ degrees.
- Spread enchilada sauce into the bottom of a glass 9x13 baking dish. Set aside.
- Heat vegetable or canola oil over medium heat in a medium size skillet.
- Once the oil is hot enough to bubble up when a tortilla is dipped in, gently lay the tortilla into the oil using tongs. Allow the tortilla to cook in the oil for about 10-15 seconds, then flip and cook the other side. (Tortillas will not be browned and crisp, we still want them flexible)
- Once all tortillas have been fried, dip into the enchilada sauce. Or brush the sauce on.
- Lay the tortilla down and add a spoonful of ground beef and a small sprinkle of cheese.
- Roll the tortillas and lay into a baking dish, seam side down. Continue until the dish is filled.
- Spread leftover sauce over the top of the enchiladas. Sprinkle with leftover shredded cheese.
- Bake for 10 minutes until the cheese is melted.
- Serve warm and enjoy.
Equipment
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Excellent recipe. Thanks for sharing it. easy to make and delicious. Takes a little longer than stated. Made the enchiladas as per recipe. Next time I would probably use Masa flour instead. Also I would make more sauce. Barely had enough to make 15 that fit into saucepan. The homemade sauce really makes this meal.
thies redcipe loks rly awthentik.
Excellent recipe, the enchilada sauce is fantastic and the beef just as good. The only change I made was to use Mexican oregano in the beef and sauce. I always have these ingredients on hand, so this recipe really works well in our household. Thanks for sharing, we really enjoyed it.
These sound great. Can I make in advance and freeze them before baking?
These were excellent. Better than my favorite Mexican restaurant.
Oops. I forgot to rate the recipe in my comment. Rating it here.
This was my first time making homemade red enchilada sauce, and I’m so happy that we picked this recipe to try. We were out of garlic and onion powder, so we substituted fresh equivalents while the ground beef was still cooking, or in the sauce using an immersion blender to make it smooth at the end, but otherwise followed instructions.
They came out fantastic! My husband said they took him back 40 or so years of when he would get enchiritos from Taco Bell with his younger brother. Fun times.
We will definitely be making these again.
I don’t eat meat, so didn’t taste these. But my family gave them a big thumbs up, even though I used canned enchilada sauce due to lack of time.
Great recipe! I don’t care for any tomato in my enchilada sauce. It’s a gravy, so I left it out. Your spices are right on, mild, not too spicy for me. Thank you!
My husband, who grew up on homemade Mexican food, absolutely loved these enchiladas! I was brought up on pot roast and chicken strips, so I’m not the best Mexican food cook, and it is hard to please him when I do attempt it. Thanks for this recipe that not only pleased our palates and filled our tummies but also supercharged my marriage! 😂 I’ll be making this again and again!
That’s wonderful Kip! I’m so glad it was a winning recipe for both of you! Hopefully you’ll try some other recipes on the site. I love cooking the foods my husband grew up with and sharing them with our children 🙂