Update January 2013: This recipe has been around a long time! I originally posted it in 2008 and we are still making it today. I’ve added a few more details to the recipe and updated the picture, but basically, it’s as delicious today as it was five years ago.
I am particular when it comes to enchiladas. To start, I prefer the sauce creamy with a kick, instead of red and spicy, and I like a lot of flavor to the filling. The meat filling in these enchiladas is unique in that it is marinated after it has been cooked. The shredded chicken or pork soaks up the honey, lime and other seasonings and the flavor blend is beyond delicious.
This recipe works great with chicken and pork! Also, a delicious addition is to saute onion and garlic in a bit of olive oil and add it to the meat mixture or sauce.
Ingredients
- 6 tablespoons honey
- 5 tablespoons lime juice (1-2 large limes)
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 pounds chicken, cooked and shredded (3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts)
- 8-10 fajita-size flour tortillas
- 1 pound Monterey jack cheese, shredded
- 16 ounces green enchilada sauce (like the Herdez brand)
- 1 cup heavy cream, sour cream or half-and-half
Directions
- Whisk together the first four ingredients in a small bowl. Pour the marinade into a Ziploc bag (or other covered container) and toss with the shredded chicken. Refrigerate and let it marinate for at least 1/2 hour and up to 8 hours. Lightly grease a 9X13-inch pan with nonstick cooking spray and pour about 1/2 cup of the enchilada sauce on the bottom of the pan. Fill flour tortillas with chicken (reserving the leftover marinade) and shredded cheese, saving about 1 cup of cheese to sprinkle on top of enchiladas. Mix the remaining enchilada sauce with the cream (or sour cream/half-and-half) and leftover marinade. Pour sauce on top of the enchiladas and sprinkle with cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes until brown and crispy on top.
Notes
*Freezable Meal: Freeze prior to baking. To bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake enchiladas, covered (without thawing first) for 1 hour. Uncover and bake 30 minutes longer, until brown and crispy on top.
Mel, I couldn’t find green enchilada sauce at my market. I ended up buying Ortega mild green taco sauce. Not too sure about this… will that work???
Brenda, I haven’t used the green taco sauce but I’d say give it a go and see how it turns out!
I made this last night and subbed greek yogurt for the heavy cream. They were delicious! My husband loved them too. Can’t wait for leftovers!
Can I substitute a jar of green salsa instead of green enchilada sauce or will it mess up the recipe? Can’t wait to try these!
Karen – I’ve never tried that substitution so quite honestly, I don’t know how it would work. Let me know if you try it – sorry I’m not more help!
Yum! I made these but tweaked them just a bit. I cooked the chicken in the marinade in my slow cooker for 3 hours and it was so tender from the “low and slow” and the lime juice. Then I shredded the chicken, and followed the rest of the directions exactly. They were amazing. The chicken was sweet from the honey and tart from the lime and so tender… How did I just discover this blog?!
Boy, oh boy! These are FANTASTIC! I made them a month ago for a family get-together and everyone raved. I actually used a rotisserie chicken and was very pleased with the results. I’m making them again tonight and cannot wait to dig in! Thanks Mel!
I tried making theis with a block of cream cheese instead of the cream. I just put the chicken in a saute pan and melted the cream cheese into it. Also added some carmelized onions. Holy cow! This was a winner!
I made thesea few weeks ago and then again today. I make 2 8×8 pans since we have a small family. Last time I baked one and froze the other, and when I baked the frozen one (like 4 days later, I couldn’t wait any longer) they came out all soggy. This time I made 2 pans again but baked both of them. Can I freeze it after baking it? I found this on another site and asked but they never responded.
Rachel – I’ve never frozen these after baking so to be honest, I’m not sure how they would fare but if the first time they turned out soggy, it’s worth a try. The other option is to freeze them without pouring the sauce on top and whip up the sauce right before baking the frozen enchiladas (pouring on top during baking). Good luck!
Just made this tonight for Cinco de Mayo, and can I just say MMMMMMMMMMMMM! The kids scarfed it, the husband totally went to town, and I loved it – great recipe! I made it with sour cream, and the sauce was perfect!
I was looking for ideas for our Cinco de Mayo dinner at home and I immediately went to your website because I know I’ll find a great recipe that will be easy to prepare and that my family will enjoy. True enough, I found this recipe and paired it with your Mexican rice. So delicious! The honey lime and chili were a great flavor combination. Plus my kids helped me with filling the tortilla with the chicken and cheese. We had fun preparing this and eating it too! Thank you Melanie! =)
These taste amazing. A hit in our house. Thanks!
I made these AGAIN and have commented before and just may comment every time that I make them to say thanks love your blog these are awesome!
[...] Mels Kitchen Cafe again does not disappoint. [...]
These were so good my husband actually thought they were take-out from our favorite Mexican place–we fought over the leftovers!
Have you ever tried using half & half for the sauce instead of cream? I’m going to make your chicken gnocchi soup this week as well as these enchiladas (again!) and I wondered if I could use the fat free half & half for both–?
Melanie – I’ve never tried that but I definitely think it would sub fine.
Made this last night for a small, casual dinner party, big hit! I made a few modifications becasue we do like things with a little kick (sprinkled about 1/8 t cayenne into marinade and cut 2 T honey out). Sauteed a small onion with 2 cloves garlic to add to chicken mixture. Finally, did a mixture of reduced fat sour cream (1/2 c) with 1/4 c half and half for sauce and added 2 T hot sauce to this for the sauce. Amazing! The only thing I would change is to maybe make a little extra marinade next time. There wasn’t much left to mix in with the sauce as the chicken seemed to soak a lot of it up. It was still excellent. Thanks for another great recipe and it was simple to boot!
Yum! Will have to make these very soon!
Mel ~ I realize I’ve posted about this recipe already…we do love it. I just wanted to mention that your note about adding an onion and/or garlic is now gone…not that it is critical to the recipe but I do think it makes a very nice addition. I also think if you do add this that making a bit more marinade might be worthwhile since the onion/chicken mixture will soak up most of it. This is a great recipe and I’m keeping it handy for Cinco de Mayo!
these were so good. I’m going to make again but with shredded pork. Such a keeper And very easy.
[...] we tried Honey Lime Enchiladas which a friend posted a link to on facebook so I jumped at the change to check it out. They were a [...]
Another MKC winner! I was a l title short on chicken (leftover costco rotisserie yum) so I added a can of black beans. Wonderful!