Go Back
Print Pin

A Layered Mexican Beef Enchilada Designed to Satisfy Your Family

Making enchiladas for your family can be a time-consuming all-day affair. This recipe incorporates the flavors of enchiladas using an easier layering approach that yields a beautiful, filling, and flavor-packed result!

Ingredients

  • 1.5-2 lbs ground beef, ( (85% lean))
  • 2 tbsp Vegetable Oil
  • 1 large white onion, (medium dice.)
  • 2 tbsp tomato paste.
  • 1 small red bell pepper, (medium dice.)
  • 2 jalapeno pepper, (finely diced.)
  • 3 cloves garlic, (minced.)
  • 2 tbsp chili powder.
  • 1 tbsp cumin powder.
  • ½ bunch fresh cilantro, (finely chopped.)
  • ½ can chipotles in adobo, with liquid, Six to Eight 8” tortillas, corn or flour.Juice of 1 lime. (finely chopped.*)
  • 16 oz grated cheese, (4 cheese grated mix works well.)
  • 1 Lime, ( cut into wedges.)
  • 1 avocado, (for garnish.)
  • ¼ cup sour cream, (for garnish.)
  • Salt & freshly ground black pepper, (to taste. )

Instructions 

  • Heat vegetable oil in a large non-stick or stainless steel saute pan, until very hot and nearly smoking.
  • Add your ground beef and brown on high heat, making sure not to overcook the beef.
  • is OK if some pieces of the ground beef are still undercooked when you remove from the saute pan.
  • The goal here is to add color to some of the beef before it finishes cooking later in the sauce. Remove the beef and set aside.
  • Turn down the heat to medium, and cook your tomato paste for 3-5 minutes in the fat and drippings from the beef, making sure to remove any browned beef particles from the bottom of the pan.
  • Add the chopped white onion and continue to cook for another 5 minutes on medium heat, until the onions are translucent.
  • Add your tomatoes and peppers and continue to cook down for an additional 5 minutes.
  • Add your chopped garlic and jalapenos and add the chipotles in adobo. Add your dry spices and continue to cook for twenty minutes.
  • Add the ground beef and continue to cook gently on low heat for another ten minutes until the mixture reaches a slightly dry and not dripping consistency.
  • Turn off the heat, season with salt and pepper, to taste, and add your juice of one lime. Mix in the chopped cilantro and set aside your beef filling mix for later.
  • Add a small amount of vegetable oil to a nonstick pan and fry both sides of each tortilla. Reserve tortillas on paper towels to drain off excess oil.
  • Preheat your oven to 375F.
  • Now, you can begin to build your epic enchilada pie: Start with a tortilla on the bottom of your baking dish, and add a scant layer of finely shredded cheese.
  • Next, add a layer of your beef filling and distribute this filling evenly across the tortilla. Top the layer of beef with another minimal layer of shredded cheese.
  • Repeat this process until you have created a stacked and layered lasagna-type enchilada pie.
  • Top the final tortilla with a layer of cheese and bake at 375F for 20 minutes, until warmed through.
  • To serve, cut the pie into slices and garnish with fresh lime, salted avocado, and salt & black pepper.
  • Add your favorite hot sauce and sour cream if you like!

Notes

To keep the tortillas from turning soggy during baking, fry each side of the tortilla in a small amount of hot oil and drain on paper towels before assembling the layers. It also helps to ensure your filling with the ground beef and vegetables has been cooked down to the point where it is fairly dry before you start layering your beef on your tortillas.
You can bake this in a large casserole baking dish, or even bake it in aluminum foil if you’re short on cooking equipment. As an added bonus, the leftovers re-heat quite nicely.
*Use less of the chipotles in adobo if you prefer less heat in your final dish. But the canned chipotles in adobo are an amazing product if you haven’t been exposed to them yet! Also, Tabasco makes a fantastic chipotle hot sauce.