The Best Beef Enchiladas with Homemade Enchilada Sauce

The best beef enchiladas with homemade enchilada sauce is loaded with ground beef, green chilis, and an easy homemade sauce. Topped with a blend of Mexican cheese, these enchiladas are perfect for Taco Tuesday or your Cinco de Mayo celebrations.

It’s been a minute since I have made beef enchiladas and once I did with this recipe, I wanted to make them again! They are so good! Something about making homemade enchilada sauce and using spices and ground beef to create these enchiladas makes me happy.

The best beef enchiladas are made with items you most likely already have in your pantry and refrigerator. I like this homemade version better than what I used to make. I would make the filling, fill the tortilla shells, cover it in store-bought sauce, and smother it all in cheese, then bake the enchiladas. It really didn’t click that you can add more flavor by making the sauce yourself and the additional step of dipping the shells into the red sauce makes a world of difference.

Is this really the best beef enchilada recipe?

This really is the best beef enchilada recipe I have ever made and my family agrees. I really think making the enchilada sauce yourself is the key. Make it as spicy as you want to, or not. Serve the enchiladas by themselves or with a heaping spoonful of Instant Pot Mexican Rice. Don’t forget the chips and salsa, of course, the Guacamole.

Other Easy Taco Tuesday or Cinco de Mayo Recipes You May Enjoy

Make a batch of these Chiles Rellenos to serve with the beef enchiladas and sip on these Frozen Strawberry Margarita mocktails. Taco Chicken made in the slow cooker is great to use in tacos and enchiladas and these Sheet Pan Steak Fajitas are an easy weeknight dinner.

Ingredients

• Enchilada seasoning
• Tomato Sauce
• Chicken Broth
• Onion
• Garlic
• Ground Beef
• Green Chilis
• Tortilla Shells
• Cheese

Instructions

To prepare the sauce, melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the flour, chili powder, ground cumin, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, and salt. Stir to combine.

Add the tomato sauce and one cup chicken broth and stir until completely smooth, approximately 3-4 minutes.
Reduce heat to low and gradually add the remaining chicken broth, one-quarter cup at a time, while you work on the filling and assembling the enchiladas.

Note: The sauce will continue to thicken as it rests. Adding additional chicken broth, a little at a time, while you work on Steps #4-13 will help maintain the proper consistency.

To prepare the filling, heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onions, garlic, and salt, and stir to combine and cook, stirring frequently, until the onions soften, approximately 3-4 minutes.

Then add the beef to the skillet and break apart with a spatula while it browns. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 6-7 minutes, or until completely browned. Once beef is browned, carefully drain excess fat from skillet before adding green chilis and three tablespoons of the sauce to season. Stir to combine and reduce heat to low to keep warm.

Place top oven rack in the center position and pre-heat oven to 350°F. Add three or four spoonfuls of the sauce to a 7”x11”x2” baking dish and use the back of the spoon to lightly cover the bottom of the dish. Set aside. 

To assemble the enchiladas, add a small amount of vegetable oil to a small skillet set over medium-high heat. When the skillet is hot, add one tortilla and toast until nicely browned, approximately 2 minutes. Flip the tortilla and repeat on the other side.

Dip the toasted tortilla into the warm enchilada sauce to coat on both sides. Remove as much excess sauce as possible before transferring to a large, rimmed plate. Set aside. Add a little more vegetable oil to the skillet and repeat with a second tortilla. Place the toasted tortilla on top of the sauce-covered tortilla on the plate, then add one spoonful of sauce on top of it. Use the back of the spoon to spread the sauce until it covers the top surface of the second tortilla. (The excess sauce from the first tortilla will adhere to the bottom of the second tortilla). Repeat this process with the remaining tortillas.

Time-Saving Tip:

Add additional oil and the next tortilla to the hot skillet right before you add the sauce to the top of last tortilla on the stack. This will speed up the process of prepping your tortillas significantly vs. waiting to toast the next one until after you have covered the last one in sauce.

Once all eight tortillas have been prepped, add a large spoonful of the filling to the top tortilla halfway between the midway point and the bottom edge. Add a little shredded cheese on top and roll the tortilla from the bottom end up. Place the rolled enchilada into the prepared baking dish, seam down.

Repeat this process with the remaining tortillas until all eight enchiladas are in the baking dish, as shown. Spoon any remaining beef filling into the baking dish in the space on either end of the enchiladas as shown above.

Top with the remaining sauce and shredded cheese and place in the pre-heated oven for 15 minutes, or until the cheese is completely melted and bubbly.

Once baked, remove from oven and top with some fresh cilantro right before serving, if desired and add any additional toppings you like. Diced avocado, tomatoes, red onion, and/or shredded Iceberg lettuce are all excellent toppings.

How to Make Enchilada Seasoning (enough for 3 uses)

To make a larger batch of the enchilada seasoning used in this recipe, I tripled the amounts of the spices and stored in a mason jar. It will make enough homemade enchiladas seasoning to make this recipe three times.

To triple the seasoning mix you will need:

• 1/3 cup + 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1 tablespoon cumin
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon onion powder
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 1-1/2 teaspoons sea salt

In this recipe: you will need 3 1/2 tablespoons of the seasoning mix.

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