Enchiladas Rojas — Mexican Chile-Sauced Rolled Tortillas
A cornerstone of Mexican home cooking: corn tortillas lightly fried to soften, dipped in a warm red chile sauce, rolled around a filling of shredded chicken or cheese, then topped with more sauce, crumbled cheese, onion and crema. Enchiladas rojas are comforting, saucy and endlessly adaptable — the red sauce, built from dried chiles rather than powder, is what makes them sing, and they come together fast once that sauce is made.
Make a red sauce: toast and soak dried chiles (guajillo and ancho), then blend with garlic, a little tomato, cumin and broth and fry the smooth sauce briefly to deepen it. Warm and lightly fry corn tortillas just until pliable (this stops them tearing or going soggy). Dip each tortilla in the warm chile sauce, fill with shredded chicken or cheese, and roll up, packing them in a dish. Pour the remaining sauce over, scatter with crumbled cheese, and warm through. Serve topped with raw onion, crema, and fresh cilantro.
- Build the red sauce from soaked dried chiles (not chilli powder) for real depth and colour.
- Lightly fry/warm the corn tortillas first so they're pliable and don't tear or turn to mush.
- Sauce, fill, roll and top quickly while warm; finish with onion, crema and cilantro.
Equipment
- Blender
- Frying pan
- Baking dish
Nguyên liệu
Red chile sauce
- Dried guajillo and ancho chiles (stemmed, seeded)
- 2 garlic cloves; 1 small tomato; pinch cumin & oregano
- Chicken or vegetable broth; salt
To fill & roll
- 12 corn tortillas
- 300 g shredded cooked chicken (or crumbled cheese for cheese enchiladas)
- Oil, for frying the tortillas
Toppings
- Crumbled queso fresco (or cotija)
- Raw onion (sliced), Mexican crema, fresh cilantro
Cách làm
- BƯỚC01
Toast the dried chiles briefly (don't burn them), soak in hot water until soft, then blend with the garlic, tomato, cumin, oregano and a little broth until smooth. Fry the blended sauce in a little oil for a few minutes to deepen the flavour; season and thin with broth to a pourable sauce. Keep warm.
- BƯỚC02
Warm the corn tortillas and pass each quickly through a little hot oil in a pan just until pliable and lightly blistered — don't crisp them. This keeps them from tearing or dissolving in the sauce.
- BƯỚC03
Dip a softened tortilla into the warm red sauce to coat, lay it down, add a line of shredded chicken (or cheese), and roll it up. Place seam-down in a baking dish. Repeat.
- BƯỚC04
Pour the remaining warm sauce over the rolled enchiladas and scatter with crumbled cheese. Warm through in the oven (or briefly on the hob, covered) until hot and the cheese softens, about 10 minutes.
- BƯỚC05
Serve hot, topped with sliced raw onion, a drizzle of crema and plenty of fresh cilantro — with rice and beans alongside.
Make ahead
Make the red sauce ahead — it keeps several days and freezes brilliantly, and having it ready makes assembling enchiladas a 15-minute job. Cook and shred the chicken ahead too. Assemble and warm the enchiladas close to serving so the tortillas don't oversoften, and add the fresh toppings at the table.
Storage
Best fresh, as the saucy tortillas soften over time. Assembled enchiladas keep a day refrigerated and reheat (covered) reasonably, though the texture is softer. The red sauce keeps 4–5 days and freezes well — make it ahead. Add the fresh toppings (onion, crema, cilantro) only when serving.
Variations
Enchiladas verdes
Use a green sauce (tomatillos, green chiles, cilantro) instead of red for enchiladas verdes.
Enchiladas de queso
Fill with cheese and onion instead of chicken for vegetarian cheese enchiladas.
Entomatadas / enmoladas
Sauce the tortillas with a tomato sauce (entomatadas) or with mole (enmoladas) for cousins of the dish.
Serve with
Nutrition per serving
Nutrition values are estimates based on the metric measurements. Adjust as needed.
Câu hỏi thường gặp
How do I keep the tortillas from tearing or going soggy?
Warm and lightly fry each corn tortilla in a little hot oil just until it's pliable and softened (a few seconds a side) before saucing and rolling. This step is essential — a cold, dry corn tortilla cracks and tears when rolled, while one that's properly softened (but not crisped) stays intact and holds the sauce without dissolving. Don't skip it.
What chiles make the red sauce?
Dried red chiles — most commonly guajillo (bright, mild) and ancho (dark, fruity), sometimes with a hotter chile de árbol — toasted, soaked and blended with garlic, a little tomato and spices into a smooth sauce, then fried to deepen it. This gives enchiladas rojas their real flavour and colour. Chilli powder is not a substitute for whole dried chiles here.
Should enchiladas be baked or not?
Both ways exist. Many traditional Mexican enchiladas are assembled and served right away (the tortillas are sauced and filled on the spot, not baked to a casserole), staying soft and fresh. Others warm the assembled, sauced enchiladas briefly in the oven to heat through and melt cheese. Avoid long baking, which can turn the tortillas mushy — a short warm-through is enough.
What's the difference between enchiladas and burritos?
Enchiladas use corn tortillas, are dipped in a chile sauce and served saucy on a plate (eaten with a fork). Burritos use large flour tortillas, are wrapped tightly around the filling and usually eaten by hand, without a sauce coating. Enchiladas are a sauced, plated dish; burritos are a handheld wrap. Different tortillas, different format.
Can I make enchiladas ahead?
The red sauce is very make-ahead friendly — it keeps for days and freezes well, so prepare it in advance (along with the shredded chicken). Assemble the enchiladas close to serving so the sauced tortillas don't oversoften, and add fresh toppings (onion, crema, cilantro) at the last minute. Fully assembled enchiladas can be refrigerated a day but are best freshly rolled.
Cooked this? Rate it.
Real ratings from real cooks. We only show a score once enough of you have weighed in — no fabricated stars.