Someone's in the kitchen with Dinahhhh!!!

I'll give you the super-simple method first, which is tasty. At the end will be some tips to make it even better (and easier too).

Easy Beef Enchiladas

Ingredients
1 lb ground beef
1 half cup onion, coarsely chopped
1 can enchilada sauce, divided
1 4oz can chopped green chilies
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cumin
8 oz sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
corn tortillas
sliced black olives (optional)

Brown the ground beef, drain and chop fine.
Add the onion, green chilies, 1/4 cup of the enchilada sauce and the spices. Simmer until the onions are translucent.

Spray a 9"x13" baking pan with no-stick. Spread about 1/4 cup of enchilada sauce in the bottom.

Set up an assembly line to make the enchiladas. Pour the rest of the sauce into a wide shallow bowl.
Dip a tortilla into the sauce, do both sides.
Spread a heaping spoonful of the meat mixture down the middle of the tortilla.
Add shredded cheese.
Fold the two ends of the tortilla over the middle (like an omelet), then use both hands to transfer the enchilada into the baking pan, folded side down.
Once all the enchiladas are made, pour the rest of the sauce over them in the pan, sprinkle the rest of the cheese over the top, then add the black olives if you want.
Bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes or until the cheese is melted and bubbly.

If you have a crockpot, you can brown the meat that way, even frozen. A couple of hours on medium low will thaw it out and cook it. After you drain it, add the onion and spices and let it cook another hour.

A pastry cutter works great to chop the meat super fine.

This makes a pretty mild enchilada, add more chili powder and/or a chopped jalepeno or two to zing it up.

Canned enchilada sauce is ok, but if you make your own (recipe here), it really does make a difference.

Posted by Ted at July 18, 2004 12:29 AM | TrackBack