Easy Chicken Enchiladas

These easy chicken enchiladas are quick enough to assemble on a busy weeknight. You’ll really be a fan of the chicken and cream cheese filling! Plus I’ll show you how to make my homemade enchilada sauce!

Update: This recipe was originally published in 2023 and has been republished with all new photos.

Is there an entree that gets the whole family more excited than chicken enchiladas? I think not. My kids go crazy for these. The good news is they’re easy enough to whip up even for a weeknight dinner.

This easy chicken enchiladas recipe doesn’t require much work at all and it’s made with simple ingredients.

It’s really all about the filling. I use a blend of cream cheese, salsa, and shredded chicken. This makes the texture of each enchilada just spectacular.

We make our own red enchilada sauce in this dish. It’s an easy recipe that uses canned tomato sauce, chicken stock, and seasonings. You can of course use a store-bought enchilada sauce if you prefer but I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised by how simple it is to make your own.

Then of course everything is topped with shredded cheese so that it’s deliciously gooey comfort food.

If you’re craving a green enchilada sauce I suggest you try my Easy Salsa Verde Chicken Enchiladas.

Ingredients for Easy Chicken Enchiladas

• Canned tomato sauce: You can find canned tomato sauce in the grocery store on the aisle with canned tomatoes. This will add a rich tomato flavor to our enchilada sauce.
• Chicken stock or broth: A little chicken stock or chicken broth helps thin and flavor the tomato sauce to create a yummy enchilada sauce.
• Fully cooked shredded chicken: Any fully cooked shredded or chopped chicken works beautifully here. To save time I like to purchase a store-bought rotisserie chicken and just give it a quick chop. Leftover chicken will work too.
• Salsa: Use your favorite store-bought salsa. We’ll add it to the baking dish underneath the enchiladas, inside the filling, and a generous serving on top. It’s a fun shortcut to add so much flavor!
• Cream cheese: The cream cheese helps give us a creamy chicken filling! Regular or low fat both work great.
• Tortillas: I prefer flour tortillas for enchiladas but corn will also work.
• Shredded monterey jack, Mexican blend, or cheddar cheese: You have several options for shredded cheese here. Pick whichever you like!
• Seasonings: Chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, and salt add more flavor to the easy chicken filling in these enchiladas.

How to Make Easy Chicken Enchiladas

Let’s start by making our own enchilada sauce. Combine all enchilada sauce ingredients in a bowl and stir.

Spread ½ cup of enchilada sauce on bottom of a 9 x 13 baking dish. Set remaining sauce aside until after enchiladas are assembled.

In a large bowl, stir together shredded chicken, salsa, cream cheese, salt, garlic powder, and onion powder. Add ¼ cup of the chicken mixture down the center of one tortilla. Carefully roll it up and place seam-side down in the baking dish. Repeat with all remaining tortillas until you have 8 filled tortillas in your dish. 

Pour remaining enchilada sauce over your enchiladas. Spread the shredded cheese over the sauced enchiladas.

Cover with aluminum foil. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove foil from top and bake uncovered for 10 to 15 minutes. Enchiladas should be heated through and cheese should be melted when done. I like to serve finished enchiladas with a dollop of sour cream. For fresh flavor I recommend topping with pico de gallo, fresh chopped cilantro, sliced jalapenos, and/or avocado before serving!

What Chicken is Best to Use?

Any fully cooked chicken works great! So boneless and skinless chicken breasts or thighs are both great options. I typically either boil chicken breasts or shred a store-bought rotisserie chicken (to save time). The flavor in this dish doesn’t come from the chicken so how you cook it truly doesn’t matter.

What Cream Cheese is Best to Use?

You can use any cream cheese you like. I’ve tested this with a regular cream cheese and also with a low fat version… they both work beautifully! So pick whichever you prefer.

What Shredded Cheese is Best to Use?

I like a Mexican blend or cheddar for these enchiladas but mozzarella also works!

Can You Add Beans to These Enchiladas?

This recipe is made without beans but you can absolutely add a can of drained black beans or refried beans to the filling for some extra fiber.

Enchilada Toppings

There are so many ways to dress up your enchiladas for serving. Here are a few of my favorite toppings:

• Sour cream
• Fresh cilantro
• Avocado slices
• Guacamole
• Slices of lime
• Crumbled cojita cheese
• Pico de Gallo
• Store-bought salsa or my 5-Minute Easy Blender Salsa
• Diced red onions
• Shredded lettuce
• Jalapeno slices
• Sliced black olives
• Chopped green onions

How to Store Chicken Enchiladas

Store cooked leftover enchiladas with all their saucy goodness in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

Can You Freeze Enchiladas?

Absolutely! Once the enchiladas have completely cooled add them to a freezer safe container (a freezer bag works great or wrap each enchilada in aluminum foil). They’ll remain good in the freezer for up to 4 to 6 months. Of course you’ll want to add an extra toppings after reheating and not before freezing.

How to Serve Chicken Enchiladas

I love to serve these homemade enchiladas with rice and a simple salad.

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