Enchiladas verdes with cheese and sour cream Recipe
Enchiladas verdes are tortilla rolls soaked in a green, slightly tangy sauce made from tomatillos or canned green tomatoes. In Mexico they’re often eaten as a weekday lunch, because you can use up leftover tortillas and cheese. The taste is a bit like cheese-filled crêpes meets a baked casserole, but with a distinct lime-and-herb note.
Enchiladas verdes have that characteristic, slightly tangy sauce made from green tomatoes and lime, which perfectly balances the richness of the cheese and sour cream. The dish shows how Mexican cooking creatively uses leftover tortillas, turning them into a full, aromatic meal with a herb-and-citrus profile. The combination of soft, sauce-soaked tortillas with stretchy cheese feels like comforting baked pasta, but with a much brighter, fresher character.
Chef's tips
When cooking the sauce, make sure it only thickens slightly – if it’s too thick, it won’t soak into the tortillas well, and if it’s too thin, it will just run to the bottom of the dish. Warm the tortillas really briefly, just until softened; if you fry them too long, they’ll get tough and crack when rolled. Taste the sauce before baking – it’s better to add more lime or salt at this stage than to try to rescue bland enchiladas after they’re baked.
How to serve
Serve straight from the oven, with extra lime wedges for squeezing and fresh cilantro on the table so everyone can season their portion to taste. They go great with a light salad of tomatoes, red onion and cucumber or simple Mexican-style beans. To drink, a light lager, lime water or homemade cucumber agua fresca works well – ideal for a relaxed midweek late lunch or dinner.
Ingredients
- corn tortillas - 12 piece
- cheese - 250 g
- green tomatoes or tomatillos - 400 g
- chili pepper - 1 piece
- onion - 1 piece
- garlic - 2 clove
- vegetable stock - 250 ml
- sour cream - 150 ml
- vegetable oil - 3 tablespoon
- cilantro - 0.5 bunch
- salt - 1 teaspoon
- black pepper - 0.25 teaspoon
- lime - 1 piece
Preparation
- Grate the cheese on a coarse grater and set aside.
- Dice the onion and finely chop the garlic. Halve the chili, remove the seeds if you want a milder sauce, and cut into pieces.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a pan. Add the onion and fry for 3–4 minutes over medium heat, until it softens and becomes slightly translucent but not browned. Add the garlic and chili and fry for 1 more minute, stirring.
- Add the green tomatoes along with their canning liquid (or chopped fresh ones), pour in the stock, season with salt and pepper. Cook for 10 minutes over medium heat, until the sauce thickens slightly.
- Transfer the sauce to a blender, add a handful of cilantro leaves and the juice of half a lime, and blend until smooth. Taste and adjust with more salt or lime juice if needed.
- Preheat the oven to 180°C. Lightly grease a rectangular baking dish with oil.
- In a clean pan heat the remaining oil and quickly warm the tortillas for 10–15 seconds on each side, just until softened so they don’t crack when rolled.
- Briefly dip each tortilla in the warm sauce in the pot or spoon a thin layer of sauce over it, place a portion of cheese in the center and roll up tightly. Arrange the rolls side by side in the dish seam-side down.
- Pour the remaining sauce over the rolls, sprinkle with the remaining cheese and bake for 10–12 minutes, until the cheese melts and is lightly browned around the edges.
- After removing from the oven, drizzle the top with sour cream, sprinkle with chopped cilantro and serve immediately, with extra lime juice for squeezing if you like.
Storage
Store the baked enchiladas covered in the fridge and reheat gently in the oven or microwave, adding a splash of stock or water if they seem dry. Add fresh sour cream and herbs only after reheating.
