Ground Beef Enchiladas with Homemade Red Sauce and Golden Cheese
By Isabella Quinn
Prep
20 min
Cook
45 min
Total
65 min
Servings
4
Cook this dish in two steps: cook and refrigerate the red enchilada sauce; cook and refrigerate the beef-stuffed tortillas before baking. Serves four. Add cheese and enchilada sauce to ground beef and refried beans seasoned with Mexican spices and bake until the top is browned.
The sauce is prepared with vegetable oil and flour. Tomato paste is stirred in and cooked for a short time, and stock is mixed in with the tomato paste. Seasoning ingredients include chili powder, cumin, oregano, garlic powder, and onion powder. The beef mixture contains cooked red bell peppers, onions, garlic, paprika, and some of the sauce. Refried beans are layered on tortillas along with other ingredients to keep the filling moist and help hold the wraps together when preparing a compact filling.
Cook the sauce until thick enough to coat a spoon. The sauce will continue to thicken as it cools and can be prepared in advance. Add liquid slowly to avoid lumps in the sauce. Cook tomato paste separately to mellow its acidic flavor. Prepare the beef filling by browning and crumbing the meat and seasoning. Bake until the topping is browned and melted and the sauce bubbles around the edges.
Serve enchiladas with toppings including cilantro, sour cream, avocado, tomato, green onions, a wedge of lime, and other options. Consider prepping other components and toppings separately to refrigerate until serving time, then use them as toppings for the enchiladas. Enchiladas are the prepared component of this meal. An article states that enchiladas should be put together and baked after refrigerated prep rather than completely prepped in advance.
Why we keep this one around
- Sauces and rolled enchiladas can be made ahead of time to reduce preparation time during serving and keep the tortillas from soaking up too much sauce.
- An 11-by-14-inch baking dish makes enough wraps to serve four, with eight wraps to eat over several planned dinners instead of cooking individual servings nightly.
- Chilled sauce can be refrigerated and later loosened with water. Refrigeration and rehydration in large quantities can save time while maintaining the sauce's coating properties.
- Making the spiced beans and tortillas in advance helps reduce other food-preparation tasks during the week. Only one pan of food needs to be prepared for the main dish on busy weeknights.
- Leftover food includes juicy beef and cheese because beef and cheese rolls are covered in sauce. Fresh coriander and other toppings should be added when eating leftovers.
- The recipe gives directions to cook cold ingredients longer. This information can help you cook cold foods and get a hot, bubbling topping and golden cheese.
Ingredients
- •3 tbsp vegetable oil (plus a drizzle for the beef filling)
- •3 tbsp flour
- •3 tbsp tomato puree (tomato paste in the US)
- •3 cups chicken stock (720 ml)
- •1 tbsp hot chilli powder (or to spice preference)
- •1 tsp cumin
- •½ tsp oregano
- •¼ tsp garlic powder
- •¼ tsp onion powder
- •salt and pepper (to taste)
- •1 large red pepper (finely diced)
- •1 medium white onion (finely diced)
- •2 cloves garlic (finely diced)
- •1 lb lean ground beef (500 g; 5-10% fat)
- •2 tsp paprika
- •2 tsp cumin (for the beef filling)
- •1 tsp oregano (for the beef filling)
- •½ tsp salt (for the beef filling)
- •¼ tsp black pepper (for the beef filling)
- •8 6-7-inch flour tortilla wraps
- •½ 435 g can refried beans
- •200 g cheddar (200-250 g; 2-2.5 cups; for topping)
- •100 g Mexican or spicy cheese blend (100-150 g; 1-1.5 cups; for filling, or use more cheddar)
- •sour cream (optional, recommended for serving)
- •avocado (diced; optional for serving)
- •fresh tomato (diced; optional for serving)
- •green or spring onion (finely sliced; optional for serving)
- •fresh coriander or cilantro (finely diced; optional for serving)
- •lime wedges (optional for serving)
Instructions
- 1
Heat 3 tablespoons of vegetable oil in a large pot or pan over medium heat.
- 2
Stir in the flour until blended, then stir in the tomato puree.
- 3
Fry the tomato puree for about 1 minute, then gradually whisk in the chicken stock to avoid lumps.
- 4
Season the sauce with chilli powder, cumin, oregano, onion powder, garlic powder, and salt and pepper to taste.
- 5
Simmer for a few minutes until thickened, then remove from the heat; the sauce will thicken more as it rests.
- 6
Heat a drizzle of oil in a large pan over medium heat, then add the onion, red pepper, and garlic.
- 7
Fry until softened and beginning to take on colour, then add the ground beef.
- 8
Break up the beef with a wooden spoon and fry until browned.
- 9
Stir in the paprika, cumin, oregano, salt, and black pepper, then stir in 1/4 cup or 60 ml of the enchilada sauce. Remove from the heat.
- 10
Preheat the oven to 180C/350F.
- 11
Lay out the tortilla wraps and spread each with a dollop of refried beans across the bottom third.
- 12
Top each wrap with beef and cheese, then roll tightly.
- 13
Spread one quarter of the remaining enchilada sauce in an 11-by-14-inch baking dish, then place the enchiladas seam-side-down in the dish.
- 14
Pour over the remaining sauce, sprinkle with cheddar, and bake for 25-30 minutes until the cheese is golden and gooey and the sauce bubbles around the edges.
- 15
Sprinkle with coriander or cilantro and serve with desired toppings.
FAQ
Nutrition (per serving)
942
Calories
57.77g
Protein
54.01g
Fat
58.43g
Carbs
Reviews
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