El Chico Cheese Enchiladas Recipe
El Chico Cheese Enchiladas have long been a favorite of mine, these Tex-Mex enchiladas have a vegetarian sauce that is so easy to make. Armed with this recipe, you may not have to go out for Cheese Enchiladas again.
I live in Houston, Texas. I went to high school and college near by. El Chico is where we went for Mexican food when we had a special occasion. I actually went here with my Prom date years ago. El Chico is also known fro their Fried Ice Cream, that will need to be a future blog post. This really isn’t Mexican food, but it is really Tex Mex, and this is something my wonderful state is known for.
I love this style of enchilada the sauce is mild and it could be used for ground beef as well. I personally prefer the cheese enchilada over all others. For this recipe I am using American cheese, you can purchase it from the deli section of your grocery store. It melts very well, and it is the style of cheese that is used in this dish. You could use a Cheddar, and you may want to. I have had this dish most often with the American style of cheese.
Some people also like to top these enchiladas with some chopped onions, so you can do the same. This is completely optional, and I did not add the chopped onions in the video, but if you want you could do that too. I have even seen a fried egg placed on top of enchiladas. I personally love them with a fried egg, but I thought that might be bringing too much of the local flavor to you
I know many of you may be alarmed at the amount of chili powder and paprika in this recipe, but you are making 1 quart of sauce. That is a lot of sauce. Here are some other similar types of sauces that are made in a similar vein.
Emeril Lagasse’s Enchilada Sauce
10 Minute Enchilada Sauce
Homemade Enchilada Sauce
El Chico Cheese Enchiladas
Enjoy these classic Tex Mex Enchiladas at home.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup chili powder
- 1/2 cup paprika
- 1 Quart of water
- 12 corn tortillas
- oil for heating corn tortillas
- 3/4 pound shredded American cheese
- chopped white onions optional
Instructions
In a medium sized pot combine vegetable oil and flour. Stir and cook for about 1 minute, or until this begins to become fragrant like pie crust. Add in salt, chili powder, and paprika. Stir to combine, begin to add in water, begin with 1/4 of the water. When the sauce becomes thick add in the next quarter of water, and repeat until the sauce is complete.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Heat corn tortillas in either the microwave by sprinkling a little water on the tortillas and wrapping them in a clean dish towel, or heat them in a small skillet with a little vegetable oil.
To assemble the enchiladas, spread a little sauce in the bottom of the dish. Place 1 1/2 tablespoons of cheese in the center of the corn tortilla and roll. Place the rolled tortilla in the baking dish. Fill the pan with your enchiladas and then top with the sauce. Heat for about 15 minutes or until the cheese melts. Some people like to add some chopped white onion on top.