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
True Mexican enchildas use Red Corn Tortillas!
Enchiladas aren’t even Mexican. They are Tex Mex if you want to get technical.
Excuse me? Mayans invented enchiladas. Tex Mex are bigger and baked, but most definitely not the original.
Yum! These were delicious & the leftovers were excellent too… the only tweak I made was adding a can of corn, black beans, and green chilies… thank you for a winner!!!!
Oh that sounds like delicious additions, Heather! So glad you enjoyed it!
I’m sure it eould be o.k.to use tortilla chips,instead of the tortillas,wouldn’t it? Because,I forgot to buy those! They’re made with corn,too! Anyway,maybe I might start a new recipe that way,right? Lol
Robyn: I ran into your site because hubs and I picked up some crema and other Mexican cheeses at a Mexican cheese shop near us, and I wanted to find a recipe for specifically using the crema. Hello Add A Pinch and this recipe! It’s the first I’ve made from your site, but I have a couple more recipes awaiting for when these left-overs are gone. Thanks a million for a seriously tasty dinner (Hubs said it’s simply bada$$ — I agree), and I’m looking forward to more meals with you!
Welcome to the Add a Pinch community! I’m so glad you both enjoyed it! xo
Just put mine together for dinner tonight. I added green chilis and even cold amazing flavor! Thanks for this recipe
this looks really good and easy! When I make regular enchiladas I mix together cooked white rice into my hamburger mixture. I bet it would be good in the casserole too!
Found this to be too dry and just mediocre. No point spending all that time crisping up the tortillas when they just end up soaking up all the moisture in the dish and end up soggy. 🙁 Enchilada sauce was good and I think it would be much better if you added a can of crushed tomatoes to the cooked/drained ground beef. Will give this a second chance and bump up the chili powder too.
Can’t wait to make this for my family. We love Mexican food so I know they will love this recipe. .
I’m trying to take most gluten out of my diet. Do you think I could use corn tortillas instead of flour?
I made this last night and my family loved it! Great meal to feed a family of seven. My children wanted seconds and there’s enough left over for tonight’s dinner. I paired it with sauteed onions,zucchini, and fresh corn mix. Great recipe. Thanks!