How 'Bout Some Enchiladas!

Don't these look yummy? Enchiladas are very easy to make. It is an excellent cost effective dish too. It's cheesy, rich, creamy, spicy as you like it, and utterly fabulous when home-made.

First I like to get all my ingredients prepared. I chop an onion, tomatoes, and cilantro for later.

The corn tortillas must be limped before dipping into the enchilada sauce, so I use about a 1/4 inch of vegetable oil in the pan and heat it up til it bubbles. 

I have my grated cheddar or jack or even feta ready to go.

This time I used flaked crab (codfish flakes) but often I use just cheese, beans, onions and enchilada sauce. Shredded chicken or pork would be delicious also.

I have heated my can of green chile verde enchilada sauce and also added a crushed clove of garlic, 2 TBSP. of butter and some tomatoes to enrich the sauce. My friend and I had once tried as many enchiladas in Sun Valley, California and North Hollywood as we could in our quest to find the best enchilada. I determined that the best sauce had the addition of butter and garlic with a little hot sauce.

So, you limp the tortillas in the hot oil just for a few seconds in order to soften them up and get rid of the raw corn texture. Flip them for another few seconds and take right out to drain and pat out the oil with paper towels.

Now the tortillas are dipped into the warm enchilada sauce and then laid into the baking dish ready to be layered with ingredients.

Here I have started with a tbsp. of beans (pork & beans) can you imagine? It's what I had on hand & worked fine. Sometimes I use black beans, vegetarian refried beans, or simply refried pinto beans. My friends used to pressure cook pinto beans on a daily basis as a staple for their vegetarian diet.

Then I sprinkle the crab, tomatoes, onions, cilantro, cheese, some hot sauce few drops, and roll them up. I continue until the pan is filled then top with more sauce and cheese.

This batch was lacking extra sauce because I only used one 12 oz. can of green enchilada sauce. Two would have been better.

Baked at 375 degrees for about 45 minutes or until bubbly. They come out tender, easy to cut with a fork, and delightful.

Garnish with fresh lime wedges and cilantro. ENJOY!

My mother-in-law had never eaten enchiladas but she really liked them. I'm a California girl originally, so we learn all these Mexican dishes by heart.

I love to cook and give my family new things to try. Hope you try to make enchiladas sometime. You can use them as a side dish to a big salad and also serve sliced mangos or pineapple.

Nice summer dish.

Aloha folks! Thanks for reading. See http://www.amaryllisofhawaii.com/ for my cookbook and all my Amaryllis of Hawaii series.

Heliconia