These chicken enfrijoladas are a Mexican inspired dinner recipe similar to enchiladas but filled with shredded chicken and cheese and covered in a creamy seasoned black bean sauce. They are delicious topped with cheese, cilantro, tomatoes, and avocados.
Enfrijoladas (pronounced en-free-ho-la-dahs) come from Oaxaca in Southern Mexico and have been around for a very long time! Some believe they have been made as far back as pre-Columbian times (that’s pre- Columbus aka 1492).
I had it at a restaurant once and had to make it at home ASAP. So yummy!
Need tips on how to get your kids excited about trying new dishes like this? Read through my resource guide on How To Make Latin American Food Kid Friendly!
This would be a fun dinner and a movie recipe to pair with the Disney movie Coco or the movie The Book of Life.
We like to serve these with Mexican Rice, Grilled Corn with Cumin Butter and Cotija Cheese, and Homemade Horchata or Agua de Jamaica
They are traditionally made with corn tortillas but if you’ve ever tried to make enchiladas with the store bought corn tortillas you know that doesn’t always end well.
I’ve filled my version with chicken and cheese (always a kid favorite ingredient in my home) but you could just as easily leave the cheese out. For more traditional enfrijoladas, use Queso fresco instead of the shredded cheese.
Really these could be filled with anything you would like. Want a vegetarian option? Do cheese only or fill them with barely set scrambled eggs. The egg version would be delicious for breakfast as well!
Ingredients
- black beans
- chicken stock
- garlic
- cilantro
- onion powder
- cumin
- salt
- chicken shredded
- black pepper
- paprika
- oregano
- flour tortillas
- shredded cheese
For topping:
- cilantro
- tomatoes
- avocado
- Queso fresco
How to make enfrijoladas?
- Grease a 9 by 13 casserole dish with cooking spray. Preheat oven to 425°F.
- In a medium sized bowl, combine chicken, cheese, salt, pepper, oregano, and paprika and mix until chicken is completely coated. Set aside.
- In a blender or food processor, blend or process black beans, chicken stock, garlic, cilantro, onion powder, cumin, and salt to create a smooth sauce. If needed, add up to 1/4 cup water to thin sauce.
- Dip tortillas in the black bean sauce. Fill the dipped tortillas with the shredded chicken mixture.
- Roll up the tortilla and place in the prepared pan. Repeat to fill pan.
- Cover with additional black bean sauce, and cheese if desired.
- Cover with foil and bake for 8-10 minutes until warmed through.
- Serve with additional cheese, avocado slices and fresh tomatoes.
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Other delicious Latin American main dishes:
Equipment
- Box shredder
- Blender
- Shallow dish
- 9 by 13 casserole dish
- Foil
Ingredients
For chicken filling
- 2 pounds chicken shredded
- 4 ounces Mexican cheese about 1 cup
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
For black bean sauce
- 2 16 oz cans black beans undrained
- 2 cups chicken stock
- 6 cloves garlic minced
- 1 1/2 teaspoons onion powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons cumin
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons cilantro
- 1/4-1/2 cup water
To assemble
- 8 flour tortillas
- 4 ounces Mexican cheese about 1 cup
- cilantro optional for topping
- tomatoes optional for topping
- avocado optional for topping
- sour cream optional for topping
Instructions
- Grease a 9 by 13 casserole dish with cooking spray. Preheat oven to 425°F.
- In a medium sized bowl, combine chicken, cheese, salt, pepper, oregano, and paprika and mix until chicken is completely coated. Set aside.
- In a blender or food processor, blend or process black beans, chicken stock, garlic, cilantro, onion powder, cumin, and salt to create a smooth sauce. If needed, add up to 1/4 cup water to thin sauce.
- Pour black bean sauce into a shallow dish and dip tortillas in the black bean sauce. Fill the dipped tortillas with the shredded chicken mixture.
- Roll up the tortilla and place in the prepared pan. Repeat to fill pan.
- Cover with additional black bean sauce, and cheese if desired.
- Cover with foil and bake for 8-10 minutes until warmed through.
- Serve with additional cheese, avocado slices and fresh tomatoes.
Notes
- Cheese and sliced onions
- Scrambled eggs and cheese
These look and sound marvelous. I prefer flour tortillas so that sounds perfect. Thank you for the recipe.