Mexican Mondays - Easy Beef Enchiladas

Happy Monday folks!  I've got another installment of Mexican Mondays for you and this time we will be using the Taco Seasoning Mix I posted earlier and the Fast and Easy Enchilada Sauce I posted last week to make Easy Beef Enchiladas.  You could just as easily substitute shredded chicken for the beef if you want or used ground turkey or ground chicken for this recipe.  They all work just as well.  I'm not a big fan of ground turkey as it seems to be a dry meat once you brown it off but it might work for this recipe since you'll be using the enchilada sauce in the filling.   

This is also another thumbs up man meal from my hubby.  I can only eat one as they are pretty filling to me but he can easily eat two or three.  I usually serve this with rice and beans and pick de gallo if I can get some decent tomatoes and cilantro, if not I try to find some ripe avocados and make guacamole.  I like flour tortillas in this recipe, but feel free to use corn if you would rather.  Both work just as well.  It's a fairly forgiving recipe so feel free to make changes!

A word, this is not a 20 or a 30 minute meal.  It does take a little prep and a little time, but overall I would rate this a fairly easy recipe, just takes several steps.  The left overs, if there are any, refrigerate and heat well the next day.  This is definitely something I can cook and we'll eat for at least two or three days so be aware it makes a good bit.  I would imagine they would freeze ok, but I've never tried it.   So without further ado....

Easy Beef Enchiladas

1 to 2 Tablespoons Taco Seasoning Mix or your Mexican seasoning blend of choice
1 batch of my Fast and Easy Enchilada Sauce
1 lb of ground beef
1 medium onion diced
1 medium bell pepper diced 
2 to 3 cloves of garlic minced or about two teaspoons
1 package of shredded sharp cheddar cheese or a Mexican cheese blend
salt and pepper to taste
8 to 10 small flour tortillas 
9"x 13" baking dish 
nonstick spray

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  

In a large saute pan heat a little canola oil or olive oil and brown off your ground beef.   Once cooked through, remove from the pan and drain on a paper towel lined plate.  This will keep your enchiladas from being greasy!  In the same pan, add more oil if necessary, and saute your onion and bell pepper until the onions are translucent with a tablespoon or so of the Taco Seasoning Mix and salt and pepepr.  At the end add the garlic cooking a few minutes making sure to not burn the garlic.   Add the browned ground beef back to the pan and cook a few minutes more until everything is combined and heated through.  To this add about a 1/2 cup of the Fast and Easy Enchilada Sauce or enough sauce that the mixture is wet but not soupy.  Remove from the heat and set aside. 

Take your 9"x 13"pan and spray with nonstick spray and then spread about two large tablespoons of sauce in the bottom of the pan evenly.  

Now, to build the enchiladas!  I usually make a little assembly line and that helps to make the work go a little faster.  I heat my flour tortillas in the microwave for just a few seconds to make them easier to work with, and into each spoon some filling, sprinkle some cheese, and then simply roll up and place seam side down in your pan.  

In true traditional enchilada fashion you would dip your tortilla in the sauce, fill with your filling, and then roll up but I'm lazy and don't feel like making an even bigger mess than what I've made.

  Continue filling tortillas with filling and cheese until you run out of room or tortillas.  I usually end up with about 10 enchiladas if I'm using the taco sized smaller tortillas.  This helps me with portion control and normally fills up my pan.  Depending on how much or how little you put in each one will determine how many you end up with.  There's no good way to make it work out exactly the same amount of enchiladas every time. 

Take the remainder of your enchilada sauce and pour evenly over the pan of enchiladas making sure each gets covered in sauce.  Sprinkle a little additional cheese over the top and bake in a 350 degree oven for 20 minutes or until the pan is hot and bubbly and the cheese is melted delicious.  

And that's it!  Lots of cheesy saucy goodness!  Inexpensive, filling, and goooood.  

Like it?  Hate it?  Liking this series or not?  Just let me know in the comments below.  Hope you're having a great start to your week.  My Mom's birthday was today and she came down and we had a little girl time together.  Dinner out and then riding around a little eating ice cream cones.  Love my Momma!  See ya tomorrow my lovelies!