Poblano Chile Enchiladas – rich and spicy enchiladas filled with roasted poblano chiles and topped with a salsa verde-sour cream sauce – are a must-make for your meal plan this week!
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One way to enjoy great food and save a ton of money is to focus your dishes on rich flavors that can make up for a lack of more expensive ingredients. These are those random, but rich ingredients that make the rest of your pantry zing with flavor. Think vinegar, soy sauce, ethnic sauces, chile peppers, rich cheeses, and the like. Some of these items may be a little pricier than other pantry staples, but they pack a punch of flavor. Usually a little goes a long way.
One of my very favorite dinners in the whole wide world is this one, which just so happens to be BURSTING with the rich flavors I’m talking about. In the early years of our marriage, I discovered a recipe called, “Chile Relleno Enchiladas.” It was very similar to this one, except that it called for red salsa. Red salsa mixed with sour cream looked a little too much like Pepto Bismol. Not really that appetizing. So, as with most recipes, I started tweaking.
The result has been a family favorite for over 20 years! This is the one dish that FishPapa and I “fight over.” That is to say, I keep track. We divide them, even-Steven. They are that good.
When they were little, the kids didn’t really care for them, and that was totally okay with me. More for us! Woe is me, though, the kids are starting to love them, too. I now need to make two pans. Not that that is a bad thing….
How to make this good and cheap:
Here are some of the strategies you can use to make this recipe more economical:
- Stock up on ingredients when they are on sale. When I find regular kitchen staples on sale, I buy a lot. I’m currently using a price book to track prices and that’s saving me money. For this recipe, keeping an eye on the poblano chiles is key. My husband will randomly text me pictures from the produce department when he finds a good batch at a great price.
- Roast and freeze your chiles in advance. This dish comes together quickly if you have this step already taken care of.
- Make your own tortillas. Commercial tortillas are great in this recipe; homemade takes it OVER THE TOP.
Tools I use to make it EASY:
- plastic cutting boards – I have blue boards for veggies and white boards for meat.
- Ergo Chef chef’s knife – I’ve had my set for several years and they work well.
- stainless steel mixing bowl – I’m not sure you have too many of these.
- wire whisk – Be sure to get one with a closed barrel so dishwater doesn’t get stuck in its innards and drip into your food. Ask me how I know.
- rubber spatula – I have two of these; I love them so much.
- 9×13 baking dish or gratin dishes
- box grater or food processor for cheese
Poblano Chile Enchiladas
Ingredients
- 16 oz sour cream
- 1 jar salsa verde I use Trader Joe’s
- 12 corn tortillas preferably homemade
- 6 poblano chile roasted, and cut in half
- 8 to 12 oz jack cheese (shredded) (2-3 cups)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°. Spray a 9×13 inch pan with nonstick spray.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the sour cream and salsa verde. Whisk until smooth. Spread ¼ cup sauce over bottom of prepared dish.
- Soften tortillas by warming them briefly. Roll each enchilada by placing half a chile and a small handful of cheese inside each tortilla. Roll and place seam side down in pan. Continue rolling until all twelve enchiladas are assembled.
- Pour sauce over the top. Sprinkle with remaining cheese.
- Bake for 20-30 minutes until heated through and starting to bubble.
Notes
- Stock up on ingredients when they are on sale. When I find regular kitchen staples on sale, I buy a lot. I’m currently using a price book to track prices and that’s saving me money. For this recipe, keeping an eye on the poblano chiles is key. My husband will randomly text me pictures from the produce department when he finds a good batch at a great price.
- Roast and freeze your chiles in advance. This dish comes together quickly if you have this step already taken care of.
- Make your own tortillas. Commercial tortillas are great in this recipe; homemade takes it OVER THE TOP.
Nutrition
Updated April 22, 2017.
Malinda
This looks so wonderful and just the thing to treat my husband to this weekend. We had an abundance of poblanos in our garden last year and ate them for several weeks straight and occasionally pulled one or two out of the freezer over the winter (huzzah for roasted/frozen poblanos). Our yield this fall isn’t anything like last year, but I can surely eek out six peppers from our garden for this! 😀
centsability
I just made these tonight. They are sooo tasty and super easy to make. They were perfect on a hot night. A question about roasting the poblanos: What is the purpose of poking a hole in them before roasting? Because I realized afterwards that I forgot to do it but didn’t notice any issues (like exploding chiles). Just wondering for next time. Thanks!
Lindsay
OMG!!! I tried these tonight and they were A-Mazing! Thank you for this recipe. I was a little intimidated by roasting the peppers but it wasn’t hard at all : )
Nicole
Hi Fishmama!
I made this tonight and they are delicious! I substituted fat-free greek yogurt for sour cream and added some leftover chicken to the insides. Really yummy and decadent! Thanks for sharing!!
Jen L.
I LOVE enchiladas and am always onthe prowl for new ways to make them. These look scrumptious!!
Amelia
Thank you so much for sharing this super enchilada recipe! My dd27 made it for us tonight and it is great!
I have an Italian Green Bean recipe on my site at present.
Thank you so much for sharing and your courtesy. : ) Blessings!
Jessica Fisher
So glad you liked it! I’m thinking of making it again for my birthday this week. Yum.
Tanya
Ugh. I was trying to link up to your Frugal Friday linky and I ended up linking here…….I’m a dork. I pushed the tab button and something funny happened with that – I think that is where I messed up. Anyway, I’m sorry! Feel free to remove me from this link-up since I don’t have a recipe to share!
Liz - Meal Makeover Mom
My family loves Mexican food … though we tend to go light on the spice. Your recipe looks delicious!
Shelah
I have 2 jars of salsa verde from a bean enchilada that tasted horrible. These jars have been having over my head and making me feel guilty. I bought them and now I need to use them, by gone!
Perfect timing! Since we cook so similarly (though you wouldn’t know that since I don’t write a blog and we don’t actually know each other…bummer), I’m sure I’m going to love it. And what husband wouldn’t love something made with sour cream and cheese…I mean!
FishMama
@Shelah, 😉
Just be careful with the salsa verde. I made a mistake buying a store brand last year and it was terribly, terribly sweet. It made these enchiladas awful. AWFUL. I threw some out, they were so bad.
Jena
Fun swap! Love that linky thingy. 🙂 I’m always looking for what to cook, so this is great! thank you!!
Micah
I love the recipe– I think I’ll try it with some leftover turkey I’ve been needing to use. Thanks!
M@bettycrapper
Looks easy. I wonder, if I could make it several hours before dinner and refrigerate it until needed.
Jessica Fisher
Yes, you can do it several hours ahead. You might want to store the sauce separately.
Brandi
Awesome! But why don’t you make your own salsa verde? It’s so easy! Take 10-12 tomatillos, remove husks and place in sauce pan with enough water to cover. Boil for about 10-12 minutes. Remove tomatillos with slotted spoon & place in food processor (keep water!). Take 1/4 white or sweet onion and put chunks into food processor bowl. Put large handful of cilantro and approx 1 Tbsp salt into bowl. Depending on how hot you want it, add either 1 jalepeno or 1 serrano pepper, with or without seeds, to bowl. Process all and add water from tomatillos as necessary to make it the right consistency. So yummy!
Jessica Fisher
I made it once when we lived in Kansas and every store was out of salsa verde. But, we didn’t like it as well. But, I’m thinking of trying it again. Thanks for the suggestion.
Susie's Homemade
That looks tasty!!
Kristin
Those enchiladas sound really good. I love how it have only a handful of ingredients.
Michelle Z.
I make something really similar with leftover chicken or turkey. All the ingredients are the same except for the poblanos. We always make them the day after Thanksgiving with leftover turkey.
Kristin
Hmmm… I think this would be a grown-ups only dish at our house as well. Maybe we’ll try it for our stay-at-home date night!
Angela
Oops. I must have misread the list and thought this week was Tomatoes. Guess I’ll have to bring the tomatoes back next week….now, let’s see, what can I share this week?
FishMama
@Angela, no worries! I am confusing sometimes.
Jaime @ Like a Bubbling Brook
I’m thinking your enchiladas will be dinner for us on Friday night… YUM! Can’t wait to make them!
Debbi Does Dinner Healthy
The enchiladas look fantastic! We love mexican here so this is a keeper, thanks!