White Chicken Cheese Enchiladas
These White Chicken Cheese Enchiladas are creamy, cheesy, comforting, and packed with flavor! Tender seasoned chicken is mixed with cheddar cheese and a creamy green chile sauce, rolled inside soft flour tortillas, and baked under even more sauce and cheese.
This is the kind of dinner that feels indulgent without being complicated. The homemade sauce comes together quickly with cream cheese, cream of chicken soup, green chiles, and a few simple seasonings. I like to mix most of that sauce directly into the shredded chicken so the filling stays really moist and creamy. You want that chicken mixture wet!
I also use my favorite trick for cooking chicken breasts: pound them to an even thickness before roasting. It helps the chicken cook more evenly and stay juicy, which makes a big difference in the finished enchiladas.
Ingredients
2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Salt, to taste
Black pepper, to taste
Garlic powder, to taste
Onion powder, to taste
1 (8-ounce) block cream cheese
1 (10.5-ounce) can cream of chicken soup
3 cans diced green chiles
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/3 to 2/3 cup chicken broth
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, plus more for topping
Flour tortillas
Fresh cilantro, for serving
Directions
Preheat the oven to 375°F.
Place the chicken breasts inside a Ziploc bag and pound them to an even thickness.
Generously season both sides of the chicken with salt, black pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder.
Place the chicken on a baking sheet or in a baking dish and roast at 375°F until the thickest part of the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165°F on a meat thermometer.
Allow the chicken to cool enough to handle, then shred it and set it aside.
To make the sauce, add the cream cheese, cream of chicken soup, green chiles, cumin, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, 1/2 teaspoon onion powder, and 1/3 cup chicken broth to a saucepan.
Cook over medium-low heat, whisking as the cream cheese melts, until the sauce is smooth and creamy. Add additional chicken broth as needed until the sauce reaches your desired consistency. You can use up to 2/3 cup.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the shredded chicken, 1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, and the majority of the sauce. Reserve some of the sauce for topping and serving. Stir everything together until well combined. The chicken mixture should be nice and wet.
Spoon the chicken mixture down the center of each flour tortilla. Roll the tortillas tightly and place them seam-side down in a 9x13-inch baking dish.
Spoon some of the reserved sauce over the top of each enchilada.
Sprinkle additional shredded cheddar cheese generously over the top.
Bake at 375°F for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the enchiladas are heated through and the cheese is completely melted.
Top with additional warm sauce and fresh cilantro before serving.
The Secret Is a Wet Filling
Nobody wants a dry chicken enchilada! That’s why I mix the majority of the creamy sauce right into the shredded chicken.
When you first stir everything together, you may think you’re adding too much sauce, but you want the filling to be wet. The chicken will soak up some of that sauce as the enchiladas bake, leaving you with a creamy filling instead of dry shredded chicken.
Just make sure you save a little sauce because you’ll want it for the top!
My Trick for Juicy Chicken
Before roasting the chicken, I put the breasts inside a Ziploc bag and pound them to an even thickness.
Chicken breasts are naturally thicker on one end than the other. If you cook them as-is, the thinner portion can become dry before the thickest part is fully cooked. Pounding them out helps the chicken cook much more evenly.
Once the chicken reaches 165°F, let it cool for a few minutes before shredding it.
That Creamy Green Chile Sauce
The sauce is what makes these White Chicken Cheese Enchiladas so good!
Cream cheese and cream of chicken soup create a rich and creamy base, while three cans of green chiles add tons of flavor. Cumin, garlic powder, and onion powder give it a little extra seasoning without overpowering everything else.
Start with 1/3 cup of chicken broth and add more as needed. Depending on the consistency you want, you can use anywhere from 1/3 to 2/3 cup.
Once the enchiladas come out of the oven hot and bubbly, spoon a little more of that sauce over the top and finish them with fresh cilantro.
Creamy chicken, plenty of melted cheddar, green chiles, and soft flour tortillas all smothered in that rich sauce—this is comfort food DONE RIGHT.
