Enchilada casserole is probably right up there with shepherd's pie and corned beef and cabbage with dumplings as the ultimate comfort food. Most enchilada casseroles I've seen suffer a grievous dearth of vegetable ingredients, which is absurd to me because peppers, onions, and garlic are staples of Latin cuisine and really add flavor to any dish. Thus saith the Lord.
Today's Specimen
Ingredients
- 8 6" corn tortillas, halved
- 3 cups chicken breast
- 2 cups poblano pepper, small diced
- 1 cup yellow onion, small diced
- 1 tbsp. habanero pepper, fine diced
- 1 tbsp. garlic, fine diced
- ½ cup cilantro, chopped
- 1 can (14 oz.) diced tomato
- 1 can (14 oz.) black beans
- 1 cup tomato puree
- 1 40z can diced green chilis
- 3 cups enchilada sauce
- 2 cups sour cream
- ½ lb. Monterey Jack cheese, shredded
- ½ lb. Tillamook Vintage White extra sharp cheddar, shredded
- ½ tsp. cumin
- ½ tsp. coriander
- ½ tsp. marjoram
- ¼ tsp. salt
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
- Steam the chicken breasts for about twenty-five minutes to half an hour and cut into bite-sized pieces and set aside.
- In a large saucepan on medium simmer the chicken with the beans (with juice), diced tomato (with juice), poblano, onion, habanero, garlic, cilantro, tomato puree and spices for about half an hour or until the mixture is reduced to a very thick stew-like consistency and the veggies are somewhat soft. Be sure to stire this regularly, about every ten minutes.
- Pour a cup of the enchilada sauce on the bottom of a casserole pan and spread evenly on the bottom, pour a quarter of the meat-veggie mixture and spread evenly and top with 8 tortilla halves — covering the mixture completely.
- Pour half of the remaining meat-veggie mixture on top of the tortilla halves in an even layer, top with one cup of enchilada sauce spread evenly then one cup of sour cream spread evenly, then half of the cheese — blended together. Again cover with eight tortilla halves.
- Repeat the previous layer in the same order with the remaining meat-veggie mix, enchilada sauce, sour cream, and cheese blend. Tops evenly with green chilis.
- Cover the casserole with foil and bake on the middle rack in the preheated oven for forty-five minutes. Remove the foil and bake open for another fifteen minutes.
- Let cool for ten minutes before serving.
When I lay down the tortilla halves I place one edgewise along the sides of each of the shorter lengths of the pan and two edgewise next to each other on each of the long sides of the pan, so that the arcs face inward. Then I just lay the two remaining halves diagonally in the middle with the flat edges facing each other.
Next Time in the Lab
I'm not too sure what to do with this. I mean, it's delicious, but it's such a damn gloopy mess that I can't help but think some of the liquid ingredients need to be reduced in order to thicken the mass up some. Yeah, these are just ideas, ones that I suspect may somehow possibly diminish the flavor of the casserole.
- Eliminate the addition of the tomato puree to the meat-veggie blend.
- Reduce the meat-veggie mixture until there's very little liquid remaining, just enough to moisten the mixture; this could take nearer forty minutes.
- Reduce the total use of sour cream to 12 oz., 6 oz. for each layer.
