These hearty sweet potato and ground beef enchiladas are ready to serve in less than an hour! A few key shortcuts make these easy enchiladas doable on a weeknight or make them up to a day ahead to bake for dinner later. Topped with lots of cheese and enchilada sauce this a hearty and comforting dinner.
These ground beef enchiladas are one of my favorite easy dinner recipes. They cure a Mexican food craving, they’re super easy to make, and the combination of beef and sweet potatoes in the filling is great.
But what I love best about this recipe is how easy it is. There are shortcuts galore with this dinner making it doable on a weeknight but (!) you can also assemble the enchiladas ahead of time to bake later.
And it ranks high on the comfort-food gauge. Cheese, savory fillings, saucy red enchilada sauce, and more cheese go a long way to take the edge off a long day.
So, with a quick 15-minute potato and ground beef filling and even quicker wrap and roll assembly operation, this dish is ready to serve in under an hour. Most of that time, by the way, is oven time, otherwise known as hands-off time.
Ground Beef Filling
It starts with the beef and sweet potato enchilada filling:
- Ground beef
- Chili seasoning
- Frozen diced sweet potatoes
- Salt, pepper, and dried oregano
- Fresh cilantro and lime juice
I used frozen diced sweet potatoes because it’s just too easy. They cook a lot faster than fresh and you get to skip the whole wash, peel, and dice part which saves time.
Chili seasoning is a mix of different spices, which also makes this easy. No need to tear apart your spice cabinet looking for ten different spices. Use your favorite brand, or you can also use your favorite taco seasoning.
- It starts with the beef in a skillet and, once it’s about half-way cooked, you can add the chili seasoning, sweet potatoes and other spices.
- Cook it all together until the sweet potatoes are tender. Add the cilantro and lime juice right at the end and the filling is done.
How to Assemble Enchiladas
To assemble the enchiladas you’ll need the filling, corn tortillas (or flour tortillas), store-bought or homemade enchilada sauce, and shredded cheese (I use a combo of cheddar and Monterey jack cheese).
You definitely want to warm up your tortillas beforehand so they don’t crack and break while you’re rolling them. I just spread them out in a (mostly) even layer on a baking sheet and warm them up in the oven for a few minutes. Or, you can nuke them in the microwave, too.
- Spread some enchilada sauce in the bottom of your baking dish. Just enough to coat the bottom is enough.
- Scoop some of the beef mixture onto a warmed tortilla, roll, and place it seam-side down in the baking dish. This recipe makes enough for 12 enchiladas.
- Top the enchiladas with the rest of the sauce and all of the shredded cheese.
That’s it – they’re ready to go in the oven.
Layer it instead: Or, feel free to skip the rolling and make layers of the filling with the tortillas like lasagna. Start with sauce on the bottom, followed by tortillas, and then filling. Repeat with all the rest.
Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil and pop them in the oven. I like to bake them for about 15 minutes at 350°F while they’re covered and then uncover them and bake them for 10 minutes more.
Rest the enchiladas for a couple of minutes before you serve them. I like to squeeze fresh lime juice and a sprinkling of chopped cilantro over the top for garnish.
Tips for Making Beef Enchiladas Ahead
You can make these enchiladas up to a day in advance:
- Make the filling and assemble the enchiladas.
- Tightly cover them with plastic wrap and keep them in the fridge until you’re ready to bake them.
- When you’re ready to bake them remove the plastic wrap and cover them with foil.
- You can take them out of the fridge about 30 minutes ahead to take the chill off them and bake them for the recommended time. Or, you can bake them straight from the refrigerator but you will need to add 10 minutes or so to the bake time.
Toppings and Sides
You can, of course, top your ground beef enchiladas with your favorite toppings like lettuce, tomato, green onions, and sour cream.
Add some chips, salsa, and guacamole for the very best experience.
Maybe make a batch of citrus margaritas or margarita wine spritzers, too?
Pro tip: The answer is always “yes”.
Happy cooking!
More Delicious Enchilada Recipes
Love enchiladas? Here are three more of my favorite recipes if you’re looking for more ideas ❤
- Creamy Poblano Chicken Enchiladas | Chicken enchiladas topped with a creamy sauce flavored with fresh poblano peppers and cilantro.
- Black Bean Enchilada Pie | Instead of rolling up the filling the tortillas are stacked in a dish with the black bean filling layered in between.
- Chicken Enchiladas with Slow Cooker Salsa Verde | The homemade salsa verde and chicken cook together in the slow cooker so all you have to do at dinner time is assemble the enchiladas and bake them.
- These Skillet Enchiladas I found on Leite’s Culinaria look delicious, too!
📣 Do you love this recipe? I would love to know! Leave a comment below the recipe along with your recipe star rating.
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Beef and Sweet Potato Enchiladas
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
Description
These hearty beef and sweet potato enchiladas are made with corn tortillas, savory beef and quick-cooking frozen diced sweet potatoes. They’re ready to go in under an hour or make and assemble them a day advance to bake later for an easy dinner.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 pound ground beef (90% lean)
- 2 tablespoons dried chili or taco seasoning
- 1 (10-ounce) package frozen diced sweet potatoes
- 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon chopped cilantro, plus extra for garnish
- Juice of 1 lime, divided
- 2 cups store-bought or homemade enchilada sauce
- 12 corn tortillas, warmed
- 4 ounces shredded Monterey jack cheese
- 4 ounces shredded cheddar cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the ground beef and cook it, breaking it up with a spatula, until it’s half-way cooked through, about four minutes. Add the chili seasoning and stir to coat it in the beef.
- Add the diced sweet potatoes to the pan with the beef and stir. Cover the pan and cook it all for about five minutes or so, lifting the lid occassionally to give it a stir. Add the salt, pepper, oregano, cilantro and the juice from 1/2 a lime. Stir well to combine and remove the pan from the heat.
- Spread a thin layer of enchilada sauce in the bottom of a 9×13″ baking dish. There should be enough sauce to fully coat the bottom of the pan.
- Fill each tortilla with the beef mixture, roll it up, and place it seam-side down in the baking dish.
- Pour the rest of the enchilada sauce over the top of the enchiladas. Sprinkle both kinds of cheese in an even layer over the sauce. Cover the dish with tin foil.
- Bake the enchiladas, covered, for 15 minutes. Uncover them and bake them for 10 minutes longer. Squeeze the other half of the lime over the top of the enchiladas, garnish with chopped parsley, and serve.
Notes
Tips for making enchiladas ahead: You can make and assemble them up to a day in advance. Tightly wrap them and then pop them in the oven when you’re ready to bake them. You will need to add 10 minutes or so to the bake time if they’re baked straight from the fridge.
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 2 enchiladas
- Calories: 492
- Sugar: 6.3g
- Sodium: 1303.2mg
- Fat: 23.5g
- Saturated Fat: 10.7g
- Trans Fat: 0.6g
- Carbohydrates: 41.5g
- Fiber: 5.6g
- Protein: 29.2g
- Cholesterol: 84.6mg
Keywords: beef enchiladas, sweet potato enchiladas, enchiladas recipe
The nutrition information in this recipe is an estimate only and was calculated using Nutrifox, an online nutrition calculator.
Post, photos, and recipe updated from the archives. First published in August 2014.
Suzi says
I made this and it was so easy and good. I shared some with my neighbor and she loved it too.
★★★★★