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Enchiladas rojas
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Enchiladas rojas

Cheese enchiladas in red chilli sauce

Enchiladas rojas de queso: corn tortillas dipped in guajillo chilli sauce, rolled round fresh cheese and onion

Enchiladas rojas are what a Mexican home cook in San Luis Potosí or Mexico City makes for a weekday lunch or a Sunday supper: corn tortillas dipped in a brick-red sauce of dried guajillo and ancho chillies, quickly fried, rolled round crumbled cheese and chopped onion, then topped with crema, lettuce and radish. The sauce tastes earthy and fruity rather than fiery. The classic mistake is burning the dried chillies when you toast them: they need only seconds per side, and blackened chillies make the whole sauce bitter. Queso fresco and similar cheeses are often made with animal rennet, so choose a vegetarian-labelled fresh cheese or feta if you keep vegetarian. Chef's tip: warm the tortillas in hot oil for a few seconds before dipping them in the sauce; they turn supple, roll without tearing and stay intact rather than going soggy.

Prep
25 min
Cook
30 min
Difficulty
Medium
Serves
4
Per serving
520 kcal
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Ingredients

Serves4

For the sauce

For the enchiladas

To serve

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What you'll need

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Fresh ingredients (6)

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Method

0/8 done
  1. Step 1: Heat a dry frying pan over a medium heat. Toast 6 dried guajillo chillies and 1 dried ancho chilli for 10–15 seconds per side, pressing with a spatula, until they smell fragrant and turn a shade darker. Do not let them blacken.

    2 min
  2. Step 2: Put the chillies in a bowl with 1 ¾ cups hot water and soak for 15 minutes, until soft.

    15 min
  3. Step 3: Meanwhile char 2 tomatoes, 2 garlic cloves and ¼ white onion in the same pan for 8 minutes, turning, until blistered in spots.

    8 min
  4. Step 4: Blend the chillies with their soaking water, the charred vegetables, ½ tsp dried Mexican oregano, ¼ tsp ground cumin and 1 tsp salt until completely smooth, about 1 minute. Push through a sieve for a silky sauce.

  5. Step 5: Heat 1 tbsp of 1 tbsp sunflower oil in a saucepan over a medium heat, pour in the sauce (it will splutter) and simmer for 8 minutes, until it coats a spoon thickly. Keep warm over a low heat.

    8 min
  6. Step 6: Heat the remaining 3 tbsp sunflower oil in a frying pan over a medium heat. Slide in 12 corn tortillas one at a time for 5 seconds per side, just until soft and pliable, and drain on paper.

    6 min
  7. Step 7: Dip each tortilla in the warm sauce, lay it on a plate, add a line of 6 ½ oz queso fresco or vegetarian feta and ⅜ white onion and roll it up. Arrange 3 per plate, seam down.

  8. Step 8: Spoon over more sauce, then top with ½ cup Mexican crema or soured cream, the remaining 2 ¼ oz queso fresco or vegetarian feta and ⅜ white onion, 2 handfuls shredded lettuce and 4 radishes. Serve at once.

Nutrition per serving

Calories
520 kcal
Protein
20 g
Carbs
45 g
Fat
29 g
Fibre
7 g

Nutrition values are estimates.

K
Recipe by

KrazyBadal

All recipes by this chef →

Good to know

How long does enchiladas rojas take?
About 55 minutes in total: 25 minutes to prepare and 30 minutes to cook.
How many people does it serve?
4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
Is it vegetarian?
Yes. It has no meat or fish.
Is it gluten free?
Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
What can I use instead of tomatoes?
Tinned chopped tomatoes: a 400g tin for about 6 tomatoes (in cooked dishes, not salads).
What can I use instead of garlic cloves?
½ tsp garlic paste or ⅛ tsp garlic powder per clove.

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