Enchilada Casserole Recipe
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Beef Enchilada Casserole makes a perfect weeknight or weekend meal to serve family and friends. Enchilada Casserole is comfort food that feeds those spicy cravings.
Enchiladas make one of my family’s favorite meals. And this Enchilada Casserole just takes it over the top, let me tell you.
Thankfully, it only takes a little bit of time to put together. Here are a few things I’ve discovered over the years of making this enchilada casserole that make it easy as can be.
Beef Enchilada Casserole Recipe
For this beef enchilada casserole, you’ll need:
- olive oil – used for crisping the tortillas
- medium tortillas – use your favorite tortilla, flour or corn. We prefer to use corn tortillas in this casserole
- ground beef – we prefer to use a lean ground beef. You can also substitute with ground turkey if you prefer.
- onion
- garlic
- enchilada sauce – I use my homemade enchilada sauce (stovetop or blender method). You can also substitute with store-bought in a pinch.
- sour cream
- cheddar cheese
- Monterey Jack cheese
You’ll begin by lightly browning your tortillas with olive oil in a medium skillet set over medium heat. This prevents the tortillas from being soggy in the casserole. Once they are browned, set them aside as you prepare the enchilada casserole filling.
Then, brown your ground beef (or turkey) and drain away any drippings. Add your onion and garlic and cook until tender.
Assemble the casserole by pouring 1/2 cup of the enchilada sauce into the bottom of a 9×13 casserole dish that has been lightly sprayed with olive oil or cooking spray. Then, layer 3 tortillas on top of the sauce. Top the tortillas with 1/2 cup more sauce. Spread the beef mixture on top of the tortillas, followed by sour cream and the cheeses. Repeat with tortillas, enchilada sauce, beef mixture, sour cream, and cheeses, ending with cheeses.
Bake until the cheeses have melted, about 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and serve.
Make Ahead Instructions
Assemble beef enchilada casserole as directed without baking. When ready to serve, bake until the cheeses have melted and the casserole is heated throughout, about 20-30 minutes.
Here’s my enchilada casserole recipe. I hope your family loves it as much as we do.
Enchilada Casserole Recipe
Ingredients
- olive oil
- 6 tortillas
- 2-3 pounds ground beef
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 cups enchilada sauce
- 1-2 cups sour cream
- 1 cup grated Cheddar cheese
- 1 cup grated monterey jack cheese
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350º F.
- Drizzle olive oil into bottom of 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Once warm, add a tortilla, one at a time, to the skillet. Cook until crisp on each side, remove from the skillet with tongs and set aside.
- Add beef and onions to the skillet and cook until completely browned. Remove from heat and drain away any drippings. Add garlic to the skillet and cook until fragrant.
- Spoon about 1/2 cup of enchilada sauce into the bottom of a 9×13 casserole dish that has been sprayed with olive oil or cooking spray. Spread enchilada sauce to coat the bottom of the casserole dish.
- Place 3 tortillas on top of the enchilada sauce, overlapping them slightly at the edges to make all 3 tortillas fit lengthwise. Ladle on additional enchilada sauce, about 1/2 cup. Layer on beef, onion and garlic mixture, making sure to spread mixture evenly over tortillas and enchilada sauce.
- Top with large dollops of sour cream and spread slightly. Sprinkle on a little of both cheeses.
- Repeat layering with 3 more tortillas, enchilada sauce, beef mixture, sour cream, and end with cheeses.
- Bake in oven until cheeses have melted, about 20 minutes.
- Serve warm.
Notes
To freeze: Prepare recipe through baking, wrap tightly with aluminum foil and place into the freezer. To heat once frozen, simply remove from the freezer and place in the refrigerator overnight to thaw. Bake as instructed in the recipe; however, note that baking time may take a bit longer to make sure all ingredients are heated throughout.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Enjoy!
Robyn xo
Just tried your recipe tonight, it was excellent! I used 1lb of beef (because that’s what I had already thawed), and 12 “medium” tortillas (my medium tortillas didn’t come anywhere near the pan edges, think they were more of a “small”) and it worked out wonderfully. Thanks for the recipe!
I made this with leftover pot roast and made the enchilada sauce with the beef gravy (just added spices and garlic to it) I used 10” tortillas in an 8” square pan. I set the pan on them and squared them up so the entire pan got some. I never thought of cooking the tortillas before making the dish. It makes all of the difference in the world. Thank you for this.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Yvonne.
I had no beef so I made pulled chicken in a pot with salsa, broth, lime juice, onion, and spices, but then I didnt have enough chicken though so I threw some black beans and corn in with the pulled chicken. Oh my. So so good. Thanks for this recipe! So good, and so easy to improvise on!
Wow! That chicken sounds stupendous, and an excellent match for this recipe. I just ate the beef version (which was a plateful of yum), yet my mouth is watering again for that chicken of yours! Good job ~ and thanks to you too! I’ll be trying your chicken with this recipe next time. Dang!
My son doesn’t like sour cream, Can you leave out the sour and addition when you eat it?
You can!
I am excited to make this tonight!!! I have leftover pulled pork! Anyway to cook it in a slow cooker??
Thanks,
Marie
Unbelievable I know…but…I’ve never had Enchilada! I read your recipe for the sauce and decided it is something I would like to try. You know I’m pinning it!
I saw this recipe and instantly just had to make it (weekend=delicious+easy+quick), but then thought, “Aww. I don’t have any enchilada sauce.” Then, eureka! I saw you had an easy recipe for that, too. Thanks!
Thanks for showing me the ropes on a dish I didn’t even know existed! Was frantically praying for something new and mexican to make my family.
“Enchilad Casserole” popped in my head, so I googled it. Two photos later, I knew I had to make it!
Really enjoy your site, thanks for sharing with us.
Thanks for recipe! Used corn tortillas, shredded pork, black beans, corn, green Chilis & cheese. My inlaws are coming in, so can’t wait to pop it in the oven. I added everything, but the kitchen sink (:
Made this last night using my leftovers from my pork roast I made off your site. Was delicious. The only thing I would do differently next time is to add a can of fire roasted chilis. Will even be better with the onion as, for some reason, my hubby bought pearl onions so we just added onion powder. Even my picky 8 year old ate this!