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The quintessential Tex Mex recipe, these Tex Mex Cheese Enchiladas are the definition of Tex Mex. Warm corn tortillas filled with creamy, melty cheese and smothered in a homemade mild, chili gravy enchilada sauce.
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Pin It NowAll about these Tex Mex Cheese Enchiladas
These Tex Mex Cheese Enchiladas are pure, classic, comforting Tex Mex. Soft corn tortillas filled with melty cheese, topped with homemade Chili Gravy. The essence of Tex Mex food itself. While many consider fajitas to be the classic Tex Mex meal, these enchiladas are it for me and many others. There are so many reasons to love these cheese enchiladas:
- Classic Flavoring
- Extra melty cheese
- Great prep ahead meal
- Perfect for gifting to others
Table of Contents
- All about these Tex Mex Cheese Enchiladas
- Ingredients
- How to Make
- What is the Difference Between Tex Mex Enchilada Sauce and Mexican Red Enchilada Sauce?
- What kind of cheese is used in Enchiladas?
- Serving Ideas
- FAQs
- Storage & Reheating Information
- More Tex Mex recipes to Try
- Tex Mex Cheese Enchiladas Recipe
Ingredients
- Corn Tortillas: the best option for making enchiladas, ensure they are fresh tortillas to help prevent breaking and splitting.
- Butter: the fat used to make the roux for the chili gravy. Butter adds more flavoring than using oil.
- Flour: thickens the sauce.
- Beef Broth: gives a bold flavoring to the sauce, it’s highly recommended to use beef flavored broth in this recipe.
- Salt & Pepper: kosher or sea salt and fine ground black pepper.
- Chili Powder: all of our recipes are made and tested with Gebhardt’s Chili Powder, it’s a mild chili powder that’s used in most Tex Mex cooking.
- Garlic Powder & Onion Powder: aromatic flavoring.
- Cumin: ground cumin gives an earthy flavor to the sauce.
- Oregano: use Mexican Oregano if you are able to.
How to Make
- Prepare the enchilada sauce. Classic Tex Mex enchiladas use Texas Chili Gravy. It’s quick and easy to put together, and has a classic authentic Tex Mex flavor. Bold, authentic, and perfect!
- Cook the tortillas. Fry the tortillas in some hot oil in a skillet on the stovetop just briefly enough to warm and not to crisp them.
- Dip the tortillas into enchilada sauce. I actually find it easier to use a brush and paint the sauce on the tortillas on my cutting board. Either way, you will get sauce all over your hands and your work space so be prepared.
- Fill with cheese and roll. My cheese of preference is Monterey Jack cheese. Pour a small amount of sauce into the bottom of the baking dish, then lay the enchiladas side by side into the dish.
- Pour remaining enchilada sauce over the top.
- Bake for 10 minutes. Sprinkle with additional shredded cheese and continue baking until the cheese is completely melted.
What is the Difference Between Tex Mex Enchilada Sauce and Mexican Red Enchilada Sauce?
Traditional Mexican enchilada sauce is made by blending dried and toasted Chile peppers, onions, garlic, and tomatoes with broth.
Tex Mex enchilada sauce is referred to as Chili Gravy, it is a combination of traditional Mexican enchilada sauce and gravy. Made with a roux and seasoned with chili powder. It is the flavor of true Tex Mex. This is the sauce that you will get on your enchiladas at most Mexican restaurants in Texas. And it’s rare to come across it outside of the state.
What kind of cheese is used in Enchiladas?
Monterey Jack is a nice melting cheese for Tex Mex Enchiladas. If you’re looking for a more authentic Mexican style enchilada you could use a manchengo cheese, which grates and melts nicely for enchiladas.
Serving Ideas
- Toppings: top with some Mexican sour cream and pico de Gallo.
- Combination Plate: just like at the restaurants, serve with a side of Mexican rice and refried beans topped with extra melted cheese.
- Drinks: pair with a cold, refreshing classic margarita, or a frosty frozen margarita. For non-alcoholic options try our Agua Frescas, this Agua de Jamaica, or some Homemade Horchata.
- Dessert: end the meal with light and fluffy Sopapillas, or a slice of cold, creamy Tres Leches cake.
FAQs
Enchiladas should be made with soft corn tortillas. The corn tortillas have a nice warm, corn flavoring since they are made with corn flour. They also maintain their structure when baked with the sauce. Flour tortillas have a tendency to break down and get a chewy, sticky bite to them.
Texas Chili powder most always refers to Gebhardt’s chili powder. This is a classic Texas seasoning (est in 1896) and is made of a combination of chile peppers, garlic, cumin and oregano. It’s a flavor that is embedded in classic Tex Mex flavors.
No, typically Tex Mex sauce isn’t spicy, it’s incredibly mild. This is one of the differences between Tex Mex and Mexican food.
Storage & Reheating Information
- Make Ahead Instructions: prepare the enchiladas ahead of time following directions up to baking. Instead of baking, cover with foil and store in the refrigerator until ready to bake. Increase baking time as needed to ensure cheese is fully melted.
- Storing Leftovers: store in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Freezing: Wrap dish with two layers of plastic wrap and then a layer of foil to prevent freezer burn. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight by removing from the freezer and placing in the refrigerator. Be sure to remove the plastic wrappings before baking.
- Reheating: cover the dish with foil and bake at 350 degrees F for about 20 minutes or until warmed through completely.
More Tex Mex recipes to Try
Tex Mex Cheese Enchiladas
Ingredients
Enchilada Sauce
- ¼ cup oil or butter
- ¼ cup all purpose flour
- ½ tsp ground black pepper
- ¾ tsp salt
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- ½ tsp dried oregano
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 2 cups beef broth can sub with another type use a LOW or NO SODIUM
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
Enchiladas
- ¼ cup avocado oil
- 15-20 white corn tortillas (6 inch)
- 2 cups monterey jack cheese shredded
- ½ cup onion diced, (optional)
Toppings
- Tomato diced
- Cilantro diced
- Sour Cream
- Avocado sliced
- shredded lettuce
Instructions
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. Bring the mixture to a simmer then reduce the heat to low. Stir occasionally. Cook about 5 minutes until sauce is slightly thickened.
Enchiladas
- Preheat oven to 350℉.
- Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the tortillas one at a time carefully to the oil to cook. Cook for about 30 seconds on each side, just to soften the tortillas, don’t cook until crisp. Then remove from the oil and place on a plate, cover with a paper towel or a clean towel to retain the heat.
- Pour a small amount of the enchilada sauce into a casserole dish, spread around so the bottom of the dish is covered in sauce.
- One by one dip each tortilla into the enchilada sauce, or brush the enchilada sauce onto each tortilla, then sprinkle a small handful of monterey jack cheese onto a tortilla, sprinkle with diced onion if desired, roll it up and place in casserole dish with the seam side down. Continue until the casserole dish is full.
- Pour the remaining sauce over the top of the enchiladas.
- Bake in the oven at 350℉ degrees for about 10 minutes or until the cheese is completely melted. Sprinkle with additional cheese and bake for an additional 5 minutes.
- Serve enchiladas topped with shredded lettuce, diced tomato, cilantro, and a drizzle of sour cream.
Video
Notes
- Make Ahead Instructions: prepare the enchiladas ahead of time following directions up to baking. Instead of baking, cover with foil and store in the refrigerator until ready to bake. Increase baking time as needed to ensure cheese is fully melted.
- Storing Leftovers: store in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Freezing: Wrap dish with two layers of plastic wrap and then a layer of foil to prevent freezer burn. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight by removing from the freezer and placing in the refrigerator. Be sure to remove the plastic wrappings before baking.
- Reheating: cover the dish with foil and bake at 350 degrees F for about 20 minutes or until warmed through completely.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Photography by KJandCompany.co
These are so so yummy! I use pepper jack to spice it up a bit. The homemade sauce really makes the dish. I was pressed for time once and used a canned sauce and it was not nearly as good. Thanks for a great recipe!
My first time making !!! Yum but my sauce was a little dark, would I be able to add a little cream to lighten the sauce ? Thanks 😊
I’m going to try these with your sauce, the only tinnnnnny change is to use Munster cheese. Try it, it’s so good!
I am delighted to find the gravy recipe!! Left Tx about 16 years ago. First to New Mexico, were I discovered all NM Mexican were actually from Wisconsin (EVERYTHING Mexican was made with Cheddar cheese a greasy stringy mess).
I always used Monterey Jack and onion in my enchilada. I never saw yellow cheese used in Mexican food until I left Texas.
I had used a sauce that I can’t find anymore and I don’t believe is still produced. I’ve tried some that were made with lots of Chili Power and Paprika and is gritty to my taste. This recipe sounds perfect!
I’m so excited for you to try this recipe! I hope you come back and let me know what you think of it 🙂
I keep going over the RECPIE to find what chili powder you used from Amazon and unable to find it again. I made the sauce tonight and tomorrow I will have my Enchiladas, my mouth is watering now.
I always use Gebhardt’s Chili Powder! Here’s a link to it on Amazon: https://amzn.to/2Dzj56G (affiliate link)
Yum! My husband and I loved this!!! so easy!!!!
only question I have is what would you do to spice it up a bit…
my family loves spicey
Hi Mickey! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! If you want to add a bit more of a kick to the sauce, you can add some crushed red pepper to the sauce while making it. Start with a small amount, and add to taste. Hope that helps!
I just made the gravy for the first time. Yum! I can’t wait to eat it with my Enchiladas tomorrow. I am going to make Mexican Beef Enchiladas. Can’t wait. Thanks for sharing
Okay, we had some leftover brisket in the freezer. So I made brisket enchiladas with this chili gravy. Topped the enchiladas with tomato, green onions, and some sliced olives right before eating. Turned out to be a really fun dinner, great comfort food for our snowy day yesterday! Thanks for sharing the gravy recipe, it’s something I’ve never tried before. These enchiladas would be great to take to a friend/family member who needs a meal brought in. Thank you!
Yum!! That sounds delicious!