Decadent cream cheese enchiladas with chicken and green chile. Use a rotisserie chicken and quick enchilada sauce and these creamy enchiladas are ready to bake in about 20 minutes.
Left to my own devices this past weekend I curled up with Julia Child’s memoir, My Life in France, and was so moved by her story that I set my sites on roasting a whole chicken for Sunday dinner. It all felt very French and very Julia until I got to the store and fell prey to the rotisserie chickens sitting in their display hot and ready and already cooked.
I had a moment of shame somehow feeling like I was cheating on Julia, but buying a rotisserie chicken shortened my shopping list and also meant I just got time back to finish Julia’s book instead of prepping and roasting a chicken.
Once I got home with the chicken I decided to make chicken enchiladas with it. It wasn’t a roast chicken, but I think Julia would have approved. I mean, I was in the kitchen cooking, right? If a shortcut helps make that happen, then yay.
So a classic roasted chicken turned into a cozy chicken and cream cheese enchiladas inspired by one of the giants of the culinary world. Inspiration can happen in the weirdest ways sometimes.
With a couple of short-cuts, these creamy chicken enchiladas are easy to prep in about 20 minutes. Pop them in the oven for 30 minutes and you’ll have a cozy and comforting dinner.
Ingredients for Cream Cheese Enchiladas
- Cream cheese
- canned diced green chiles
- mild cheddar cheese
- shredded or cubed cooked chicken
- Flour tortillas
- Store-bought or homemade enchilada sauce
Using a rotisserie chicken for these enchiladas makes it so easy and you can use your favorite store-bought enchilada sauce or try my quick homemade version. With these two short cuts, the prep time is only about 20 minutes.
For the cream cheese, it helps to leave it out at room temperature for several hours to soften it. If you’re like me and forget to do that, you can also cut the cold cream cheese into cubes and use an electric mixer to mix it with the other ingredients.
Assemble the Enchiladas
- Spread a thin layer of the enchilada sauce in the bottom of a baking dish.
- Combine the cream cheese and green chile in a bowl. Divide the mixture evenly among the tortillas.
- Top the cream cheese with the chicken and cheddar cheese and roll up the tortilla. Place each in the baking dish.
- Pour the rest of the enchilada sauce over the top of the rolled tortillas. Sprinkle cheddar cheese over the top of the sauce.
- Cover the dish with foil and bake the enchiladas for 20 minutes at 350°F. Remove the foil and bake for another 10 minutes or until the sauce is bubbling and the cheese is melted.
Happy enchilada-making!
More Enchilada Recipes
Love enchiladas? Me, too! Here are a few more of my favorite recipes for you to try…
- Creamy Poblano Chicken Enchiladas
- Salsa Verde Chicken Enchiladas
- Easy Enchiladas with Black Beans and Spinach
- Black Bean Enchilada Pie
Chicken and Cream Cheese Enchiladas
These rich and cheesy chicken enchiladas are the ultimate comfort food. Use a rotisserie chicken to make the prep work really easy!
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 4 ounces diced green chilis, drained
- 2 cups cooked chicken, cubed or shredded
- 2 1/2 cups shredded mild cheddar cheese, divided
- 6 (8-inch) flour tortillas
- 2 cups storebought or easy homemade enchilada sauce
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spread a thin layer (about 1/4 cup) of enchilada sauce in the bottom of a 9×13″ baking dish.
- In a medium bowl combine the cream cheese and green chilis and stir well. Divide and spread the cream cheese mixture evenly among the tortillas.
- Top one of the tortillas with some chicken, 1/4 cup of cheddar cheese and then roll it up and place it in the baking dish. Repeat with the remaining tortillas. Pour the sauce over the top of the tortillas and top it off with 1 cup cheddar cheese.
- Cover the dish with tin foil and bake at 350°F for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking it for 10 more minutes, or until the sauce is bubbly and the cheese has melted. Allow to rest for a couple of minutes before serving.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 enchilada
- Calories: 584
- Sugar: 7.6g
- Sodium: 1675.9mg
- Fat: 34.9g
- Saturated Fat: 17.7g
- Unsaturated Fat: 10.3g
- Trans Fat: 0.4g
- Carbohydrates: 36.8g
- Fiber: 2g
- Protein: 30.5g
- Cholesterol: 119.9mg
Keywords: green chile chicken enchiladas, cream cheese enchiladas, chicken enchiladas
Cari Snell says
Hey April! FYI Your recipe (chicken enchiladas) is to be featured this coming Friday, Jan 15th! Please let everyone know that your recipe was chosen out of only 365 per year! All the best, Cari http://www.canigettherecipe.com
Marillyn Beard says
We HEART roast chicken around here! Great for quick meals and so tasty! Love the recipe :o)
Tasty Eats At Home says
I have been known to pick up a chicken from the grocery on more than one occasion! They are perfect for dishes such as this. I do love reading My Life in France though. I’m almost finished – great read!
Table Talk says
Ahh, the rotisserie chicken….I could teach a year’s worth of cooking classes based on all of the things you can make with one. —Taking advantage of this short cut in your Enchiladas is a smart idea.
April Cavin says
@ncI117 thanks so much! I use a Canon Rebel xsi– I really like it 🙂
Mardi @eatlivetravelwrite says
Great book – great recipe!
Jessie says
rotisserie chicken always makes my sense of smell go wild because it smells so good! I love these enchiladas, they look delish
Nicole says
YUM – this looks great and you are so talented not only with cooking but with taking the pictures!! what kind of camera do you have?
Diana Bauman says
I love roast chicken! This looks wonderful.
Olive says
I agree with you on rotisserie chicken, they have this irresistible aroma that makes it hard to concentrate on grocery shopping. I love your green chilli chicken tortilla, yummy-looking!
Daydreamer Desserts says
Great post! You can never really go wrong with grocery store bought rotisserie chicken, so moist and yummy. Your enchiladas look beautiful, I’m sure they turned out fantastic!
bucatar maniac says
Great recipe!
Divina Pe says
That roast chicken must be really tempting and I think I would have done the same. But at least you made something wholesome with the roast chicken and create a really delicious meal.