Enchiladas Rojas
Chicken tortillas in a red guajillo chili sauce.
Ingredients
- 400 g Chicken thighs
- 30 g Guajillo chilies
- 15 g Ancho chilies
- 3 cloves Garlic
- 12 Corn tortillas
- ½ Onion
- 4 tbsp Neutral oil
- 1 tsp Salt
- 120 g Queso fresco (optional)
- 80 ml Mexican crema (optional)
Method
- Poach the chicken thighs in salted water until cooked, then shred.
- While the chicken poaches, toast the guajillo and ancho chilies in a dry pan, then soak them in hot water until soft.
- Blend the soaked chilies with the garlic into a smooth red sauce, then fry it in the oil until it deepens, about 6 minutes.
- Dip the tortillas in the warm sauce, fill each with shredded chicken, and roll them into a baking dish.
- Spoon the rest of the sauce over the rolls and warm through, about 4 minutes.
- Finish with crema, queso fresco, and onion.
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About Enchiladas Rojas
Enchiladas rojas are the classic red version of Mexico's most beloved home dish: corn tortillas filled with meat, bathed in chili sauce, and finished with cool dairy. What sets the red apart is the sauce itself, built from dried guajillo and ancho chilies rather than fresh green tomatillos. Toasting the chilies in a dry pan before soaking coaxes out their raisiny, faintly smoky sweetness, and blending them with garlic produces a deep brick-red puree that is more fragrant and earthy than fiery. Poached, shredded chicken thigh keeps the filling moist and mild, letting the chili sauce carry the flavor.
The trick that separates a good plate of enchiladas rojas from a flat one is frying the blended sauce in hot oil until it darkens and thickens, a step that concentrates the chilies and rounds off their raw edge. Dipping each tortilla in the warm sauce before rolling means every bite is saturated rather than dry, and the final shower of tangy queso fresco, cooling crema, and sharp raw onion cuts the richness. Served for lunch or a relaxed dinner, they pair naturally with rice, refried beans, or a simple salad. At around 45 minutes start to finish, this is a weeknight-friendly take on a dish that tastes like it simmered all afternoon.
Enchiladas Rojas: frequently asked questions
How many calories are in Enchiladas Rojas?
A serving has about 713 calories — 29.6g protein, 50.1g carbs, 45.1g fat, 8.8g fiber. Figures are estimated from the ingredient amounts and will shift with your portions and brands.
Is it high in protein?
Each serving has about 29.6g of protein, roughly 17% of its calories.
Is Enchiladas Rojas gluten-free?
Based on its ingredients, Enchiladas Rojas has no gluten-containing components, so it's naturally gluten-free — as always, check that any packaged ingredients you use are certified gluten-free to be safe.
Is Enchiladas Rojas dairy-free?
Not as written — it uses Queso fresco, Mexican crema. Swapping those for a plant-based alternative makes it dairy-free.
Do I need every ingredient to make Enchiladas Rojas?
The core ingredients are essential, but you can leave out queso fresco, mexican crema — they're optional and mainly there for extra flavor or finish.
How many servings does Enchiladas Rojas make?
This recipe makes 4 servings. In the app you can scale it up or down and the ingredient amounts adjust automatically.