The Whole Enchilada

Last Sunday I wasn’t feeling well, so Ayla and Tahnee offered to make dinner.  I had planned enchiladas filled with leftover pork roast, and they said they’d give it a shot.  They did a fantastic job!  I appreciate them doing that, if they hadn’t we’d probably have had hot dogs or sandwiches.  I really felt crummy.  I got a break from cooking, and they learned a new skill.  Twofer!!! 

I’ve had several requests lately for my enchilada sauce recipe.  I dislike the canned stuff very much, and my sister-in-law gave me this recipe about 25 years ago, she got it from a missionary friend.  Here it is:

3 Tablespoons vegetable oil

2 Tablespoons flour

½ Tablespoon chili powder

15oz can of tomato sauce

½ teaspoon oregano

½ teaspoon cumin

½ teaspoon garlic powder

1 ½ cup beef broth

Heat oil and flour in saucepan, stirring 1 minute to make a roux.  Add remaining ingredients and simmer at least 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Chicken broth will work for this too.  I usually make my own broths, but you can use canned or even boullion in a pinch. 

Once you have the enchilada sauce, you have many options available.  We like our enchiladas made with flour tortillas, although traditionally I think they’re made with corn tortillas.  Most of my family loves them stuffed with leftover roast beef, and cheese.  Every time I cook a roast, I trim a small piece off the end before I serve it and freeze it for enchiladas.  I shred it up, dump a little sauce on it, and use that as filling for some of them.  Personally, I like cheddar cheese and finely diced onion.  IMO, that’s the perfect filling.  Simple, tasty.  No frills.  Ground beef, shredded chicken, refried beans, Spanish rice, use your imagination.  Anything you think sounds good, give it a try.  It might not be traditional but it might turn into your signature party dish!

Before assembling, I spread a little sauce in the bottom of a 9x12 baking dish.  Then I dip the tortilla in that, smear it around really good to cover the tortilla, then add fillings and roll up.  I squeeze the dish pretty full, but usually have to make a couple dishes full, because everybody will want leftovers for lunch the next day.  When I’m finished I pour the remaining enchilada sauce over everything.  Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes.  Serve with sour cream, sliced olives, salsa, whatever you want.      

A few weeks ago I made these, and I ended up with 4 small dishes of them because everybody wanted something different!  Two people needed no cheese, but wanted roast.  One person wanted roast, cheese and diced onion, one wanted roast, cheese, no onion.  And I wanted cheese and onion.  Normally I don’t cater to everyone’s whims like that but seriously, it wasn’t that big a deal. I had the assembly line going, an assistant, 4 small baking dishes, and we cranked them out in no time.  I used diced onion and cheese on the top of each pan to indicate what was in each one so we didn’t have to figure it out after baking, since many of my dishes are identical.  It was kind of nice, having my very own pan of cheese and onion enchiladas.