Andrea's Almost-all-the-way Authentic Green Chicken Enchiladas

I grew up around great cooks. It all started with my grandma, who loved making us feel at home by stuffing us to the brim with some of the best Mexican food known to humanity. No one could make Mexican food like my grandma, which made it hard to ever go to Mexican restaurants. My mom and aunt followed suit, and are amazing cooks in their own right. Growing up in Southern California, both of them were exposed to different styles of cooking, like Italian, Asian and American. Because of this, I am used to gobbling up home-style cuisine from all over. Now, I'm going to share some secrets of that amazing cooking with you.

Now, before we start, it's important to mention the following about Mexican cooking: no two women will EVER make it the same. Aside from the different region styles of cooking, each family has a "secret" recipe trick that they guard carefully, sharing only with the other women of their family. Heck, even some daughters-in-law miss out on the awesome flavors.

Second, most of these recipes are learned by watching; exact numbers are almost never written down. You have to do it "por ojo," or to taste. This leads to highly individualized flavors. With that been said, this will be highly reflected in most of my original cooking recipes.

With that all said... on to the enchilada!

Ay, que enchilada!

A good enchilada will always be followed by one thing: seconds. They're gooey. They're spicy. They're hearty. I combine mine with Spanish rice, sour cream, and an empty stomach. There are far more complex ways to make enchiladas, and you can make your own tomatillo sauce, but this is a recipe that my mom taught me to make when I'm dying for good Mexican food but don't have hours to sit and stew tomatillos, garlic, and peppers.

Andrea's Almost-Authentic Green Chicken Enchiladas

4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves **I prefer dark meat, so I swapped out the breast for 8 thighs
18 (6 inch) corn tortillas, torn in half
1 (28 ounce) can green chile enchilada sauce
1 (7 ounce) can salsa verde
1 (16 ounce) package shredded Monterey Jack cheese

1/2 small onion

1/2 cup chicken broth
Season salt to taste
Salt to taste
Garlic salt to taste
Pepper to taste

Cajun seasoning to taste

6-8 tablespoons canola oil

1 small container of sour cream for topping

You should be able to see flecks of pepper. Taste the chicken, love it.

1. Set your oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Boil your chicken in a pot, completely covered. This will take approximately 25 minutes. You want your chicken to fall apart easily, as you'll be shredding it. Pull your chicken out of the pot, and set aside the chicken's broth for the enchilada sauce.
3. Pull apart your chicken into large chunks, and once they have cooled, season your chicken with garlic salt, pepper, and Cajun seasoning. This allows for flavor throughout your enchilada.

You can choose spicier sauces, if you dare.

4. Once your chicken has been seasoned, take your two green sauces and the 1/3 cup of chicken broth and put them in a large sauce pan, putting them to simmer down. Stir occasionally. 

**Remember, these sauces, while fine the way they are out of the can, are very basic. If you want more of an authentic flavor, throw in a dry habanero pepper, as well as salt, garlic salt and season salt to get rid of the canned taste. Allow your sauce to simmer on low. It will stay on low for the remainder of your enchilada prep time.

So saucy.

5. As your sauce simmers, shred your cheese and cut your onions. These will be part of your stuffing, along with the chicken. To make enchilada assembly easier, I strongly suggest having all of your stuffing nearby, with the casserole dish that you will place your enchiladas on nearby. You'll be moving quickly, and you need to make sure that you aren't wasting time scrambling for parts of your enchiladas.

6. Pour canola oil into a frying pan, leaving it at medium high. This should be right next to your green enchilada sauce, which should still be simmering. 

Be careful when working with hot oil.

7. Once the oil is hot enough to fry, place one tortilla in the oil, flipping it to cover both sides in oil for approximately 5-8 seconds. 

8. Immediately move the tortilla to the green sauce, coating both sides heavily with sauce. Be careful to use a wide spoon or spatula, as you don't want to have the tortilla tear. **Make sure that you use a different cooking utensil for flipping your tortilla in the oil and coating the sauce. Otherwise, the oil will splatter. 

Pick up the tortilla from the middle.
It allows for less tears.

9. Place tortilla onto a plate for enchilada assembly. Sprinkle onion, cheese and chicken onto the tortilla, then roll it onto a casserole dish. This will be a little messy, so be prepared to catch drippings from the sauce.

I won't judge you if you lick your fingers while assembling.

10. Once you have all of your enchiladas rolled, place more cheese and sauce onto the enchiladas. 

Though tempting, don't eat these before putting them in the oven!

11. Place enchiladas into the oven for 20 minutes. The cheese on top should be completely melted. and the sauce on top of the enchiladas should be thickened.

12. Serve immediately, with a dollop of sour cream on top of the enchiladas. Add to the flavor with some Spanish rice, and watch just how quickly these enchiladas disappear!

You know it's good when you're dying for seconds while still eating the first serving.