These chicken enchiladas owe their creaminess to the addition of one of my favorite ingredients – cream cheese! They are a crowd favorite.
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Guess what? I have money in my bank account again (for now)! First thing I bought? The ingredients for this meal and my shopping list consisted of: cream cheese, enchilada sauce, green chiles, scallions, and tortillas.
Yes, that was all I had to buy. I never realized until the past two weeks how stocked my kitchen is before going to the grocery store. And how many different and delicious things I could make without leaving home.
But regardless of what your pantry looks like, buy whatever ingredients you do not already have and make this. Very easy to prepare and it cooked while I got ready to meet up with friends for drinks.
I definitely took a moment to slow down and enjoy this delicious thing that I put on my plate before going off into the night with a full and happy belly!
Update (8/23/18): I love that you guys love this recipe so much! It was posted over 7 years ago and to this day is still one of the top 2 recipes on my blog. And for good reason because it’s dang tasty. New photos were long overdue so I hope you enjoy!
Can you make it healthier?
If you want a slightly healthier version check out my enchilada stuffed acorn squash recipe. You could also try this with corn tortillas which will be slightly better and more authentic, but for some reason I prefer flour tortillas. Go figure.
Favorite Chicken Recipe
- Blackened Chicken from Art of Natural Living
- Chicken and Avocado Salad from That Recipe
- Chicken Macaroni Salad from Leftovers Then Breakfast
- Chicken Ramen Stir Fry from Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks
- Chicken Tortillas from The Freshman Cook
- Creamy Chicken Noodle Casserole from Cheese Curd In Paradise
- Creamy Chicken with sun Dried Tomatoes from Lemon Blossoms
- Easy Slow Cooker Italian Chicken from Blogghetti
- Garlic and Ginger Caramel Chicken Thighs from Karen’s Kitchen Stories
- Hot Chicken and Pancake Tacos from A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures
- One Skillet Chicken and Broccoli Alfredo Pasta from Family Around the Table
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Source: Adapted from Buns In My Oven.
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Post updated 8/23/18, picture above is the original.
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142 comments
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These are amazing!!! Our son and Erinโs cousin, Sean made these for all of us and we all were like give me more!!! So yummy.
Yay! Hope you make them again soon!
Chicken enchiladas are the Teens favorite and I think she will love this cheesy version.
Just made these today and loved them! I was skeptical about the flour tortillas but they were perfect! Thanks!
I am so glad to hear that! And yes I prefer these with flour tortillas. I’m glad I concerted you haha.
[…] Cream Cheese Chicken Enchiladas (2011) – This recipe has routinely been in the top all time best recipe posts year after […]
You outdid yourself with these, Erin. Made them for dinner tonight and Harry is definitely a fan (he’s not usually that impressed with new things I make). Mine were a little different: I used corn tortillas because that’s how enchiladas are made around here; my cheddar was a combo of goat cheddar and Dubliner; and I used homemade salsa verde in place of the enchilada sauce. I also never saw where to add the scallions, so they got left out. Oops. I have mostly transitioned to really simple recipes, but this one is totally worth the effort to make them. Definitely a keeper recipe. We thank you for that.
I have made them with corn before but tend to prefer the texture of flour for this recipe. Maybe I need to find better corn tortillas! And that cheese combo with salsa verde sounds excellent – I will have to try that next time. As for the scallions, half are added in step three, the rest are topping!
Yes I plan on making this dish for dinner tonight and I am just Wondering about putting in chopped black olives in it. In doing so would that kill the taste?
Thank you,
Amber
I guess it just depends on how much you like olives! I personally am not a fan of olives except in small doses in Greek food, but I assume by asking that you like them so I think a small amount (1/4 cup maybe) would do just fine in the enchiladas. Report back, I hope you enjoy it!
I absolutely LOVE LOVE these! I’ve made them multiple times now and even do beef instead of chicken sometimes (like tonight!). This is my go to enchilada recipe now and I pass it on whenever I can! Thank you!
Love to hear this Beth! Thanks so much for your feedback and for spreading the love ;-). I’ll have to try them with beef.
My daughter used this recipe and it turned out delicious! Watch the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qwcBjDJtGAk&index=1&list=PLfiklpBmJhxR95V7AkrOREDZ2D-MTNTuy
Cool! Thanks for sharing this and for linking to my site for the recipe!
These enchiladas were amazing! Thanks so much ( ;
Awesome, you’re very welcome Piper!
This enchilada dish looks amazing. Would you be able to make this and freeze it?
Yes, just make sure to thaw in the fridge the day before baking it.
They were great! Will definitely make again everyone loved it! ????
So glad to hear that Tara!
I think we should marinate the chicken dry chop and put ancho chilli’s in broth put in food processor let chik set a few hours then start making enchiladas heat and tighten marinade and use that as your pour over sauce
Awesome recipie! Loved it!
Glad to hear it Dave!
All these reviews are awesome. I’m going to make this tonight with ground sirloin as I do not have any chicken on hand. I was just curious about how the ground sirloin would be instead of chicken but it sounds like a few people used it and it still turned out good/great. I can’t wait to try them.
I bet they would turn out just fine! I have never tried it but imagine the only thing that it changes is the fact that it tastes like beef instead of chicken ;-). Enjoy!
Just finished dinner. These were so good. I used the ground sirloin. Only variations were I had regular flour tortillas, so I used those. I added sliced black olives in the filling because we love olives. The recipe uses one can of enchilada sauce and I was hesitant to use an additional can (as some have suggested to do, which I did not) because I don’t like soggy tortillas, but I can see for my taste, adding maybe half of another can of sauce would be good to do. My husband loved the filling, so this recipe is a keeper, and it has been printed, and Pinned to my Pinterest. Thank you for a fantastic recipe. Oh, and I made Crispy Crowns style tater tots as a side and seasoned them with chili powder. Filling and satisfying meal!
Sounds like you made some great variations to make it your own! I love hearing how other prepare these and am glad you liked it!
Never made any Mexican food before, except tacos of course. Trying tonight for dinner with some Spanish Rice on the side. Thank you for the great recipe. Will let you know how it turns out!!!
Yay I cannot wait to hear your feedback.
This was so good!!!
Awesome, so glad to hear than Jen!
My husband loves these as well as the entire family! Thank you :)
You are most welcome! Love hearing that your entire family enjoys them. You should try my acorn squash version, same filling but in a squash instead of tortillas! https://www.thespiffycookie.com/2015/02/16/cream-cheese-chicken-enchilada-stuffed-squash/
Have them in the oven now. Used canned chicken breast and rotel tomatoes and chilies as that is what I had around. Can’t
We LOVE this enchilada recipe in our house! It’s so good with ground sirloin too. Yum! Thanks for an easy and delicious recipe!
Alissa, I would love to try it with sirloin!
I have 8adults and 3 children to serve. How much of this should I make?
Hi Eva, the recipe serves 4 (2 enchiladas a person) so I would think to be safe you would have to triple the recipe. Hope you enjoy it!
Absolutely great. I added Ortega Fire Roasted chilies. Very simple and vey good. Thanks Spiff…
Gonna make this tonight. I think I’m going to grill the chicken over coal prior to shredding. Fan of corn over flour (wheat) tortillas. I’ll follow-up with the reaction from my wife.
I look forward to hearing about the results!
Made these on Sunday. They were so delicious!
I’m making this recipe as we speak but the hubby forgot the scallions and he wanted “green sauce” but I’m hoping they’ll turn out just as swell…. I loved the fact that it was sooooo easy and fun to make. Very well budgeted …. Can’t wait to eat!!!!
Thanks Serena! I hope he loved it :-)
These were delicious! The only thing I did differently was that I used 2 scallions in stead of 4. Next time, I might use corn tortillas. Hubby loved them!
This was the best recipe I ever made. Shared the link. Thank you, thank you!!
Just found the recipe yesterday and tonight it is in the oven! I made it with leftover beef roast. Yummy stuff!
Oh wow I’d love to try this with roast beef!
These have made it into our weekly rotation. I even throw some together for my dad every week he eats on them for days. We love them!
I am making the cream cheese enchiladas now, but I use the smaller “Mission” lo carb flour tortillas. They are a little;e more substantial that corn and I like them better personally. I had 7 tortillas so I used those but had extra mix. I made a casserole too!!! ( I did have large tortillas, but they were just too big. I chopped the large tortillas into little squares, mixed then with the cream cheese mix and topped with some sauceโฆ ( btw the lo carb tortillas are 13 gm’s of fiber and thats pretty good for the belly and filling:))))
Just made these. Eating them as I type. Amazing!! thank you! I think next time I’ll add some black beans
OMG I juts made this and used ground turkey instead of chkn…. mmmm delicious! Def will make again!!
I made these last night.. OMG!! My family loved them! My kids don’t like to eat much and my daughter had thirds! Definitely a new family fav here! thanks for this great recipe!
You’re very welcome!
I have some family coming for dinner this weekend and was wondering if I could make these ahead of time, put them in the fridge then pull them out to bake when it’s time to eat. That way I can visit with my family instead of being in the kitchen the whole time. I’ve made these once before and they were delicious! Thanks!
I think It would be fine made ahead. The spinach might cause the tortilla to get a little soggy, but cooking it should dry out any excess moisture on the outside. Have fun with your family!
Im going to make a cruelty-free vegan version of these! Thanks for the idea! <3
Everyone who tasted these delicious enchiladas asked me for the recipe….I make a lot of wonderful dishes…but this one is at the top of the list!…thank you for sharing!!
Very welcome, glad it was such a hit!
Tried this recipe and it was very good. I will make it again. I used 2 cans of enchilada sauce instead of 1.
I made these for my parents for dinner and they were wonderful. I used a rotisserie chicken to save some time. Also, when I went to pour the enchilada sauce into the cheese mix, I totally forgot to only use half and dumped it all in. I set aside some of the enchilada/cheese sauce and then mixed in some regular salsa to give it more tomato flavor and then poured that on top of the enchiladas. They still turned out really well!
I made these for dinner tonight using leftover rotisserie chicken. It was GREAT and would have been even better if I remembered to add the green onions (duh!). I ended up sprinkling them on top. Served it with a salad made with romaine, tomato, cucumber and onion. Yum! Thank you so much for this recipe. I gave it a shout-out on my fb page and have pinned it on pinterest. :)
So glad you enjoyed it, thanks!
For anyone that has made these! Did you serve anything with them?!?! I am making them tonight for my bf and I and another couple and I want to make sure I serve a good meal! Thanks for sharing!
These can definitely stand alone, but would also be good served with Mexican rice, black beans, or a salad topped with avocado. Hope it’s a hit!
These sound great. In answer to a couple of questions: if these are made with corn tortillas, they are enchiladas, made with flour tortillas, they’re burros. Enchilada sauce is usually just made with red chiles and garlic, seasoning.
We added onions, red and green peppers to the chicken while it was cooking for more flavor. Then strained the chicken mixture in a colander to mix with the cream cheese and cheese mixture. Much more flavor to the enchiladas. They were ok, but not sure that I would make this exact recipe again. Like my enchiladas tighter with Spanish rice inside also. It was ok, but not fire works. :(
We just tried these … Used corn tortillas and some pepper jack but otherwise didn’t change anything … Delicious and will definitely make again!! Thank you!
What an awesome recipe! It looks and sounds fabulous. I love anything! with cream cheese. Can’t wait to try these. Sure would love for you to link up this wonderful recipe at our Weekend Potluck party tomorrow. Please stop by.
http://www.thebetterbaker.blogspot.com
Made these last night and they were AMAZING! I posted a pic onto Instagram n got so many likes haha. A pretty and delicious dish–no changes needed.
These are amazing! The only change I make is I do half a cup of corn and half a cup of black beans. SO delicious and really good as leftovers.
Made these last night for my family they were delicious !!! my husband loved them and the kids even ate them :) I used a homemade enchilada sauce that I found online and they went together great http://www.gimmesomeoven.com/red-enchilada-sauce/
Thanks great recipe :D
In my oven now ! I used half the corn and twice the enchilada sauce on the outside, but judging by the “sample bites” I had of the filling…this is gonna be our new FAVORITE Chicken Enchilada recipe !!!!!
My boyfriend made these for dinner last night. They are absolutely delicious!!! We ate the left over filling with chips and put it in quesadillas. Thank you so much for this delicious meal that we will definitely make again and again!
Making these for dinner tonight. The aroma is wonderful. Can’t wait to try them!
Sounds yummy, wonder if I could leave the corn out?
You can, but will have a little less filling
So making these!!’
I made these and they are wonderful. However, the ingredients say use one can of enchilada sauce but you need two to complete it by the directions given.
If you want more sauce, then yes you will need another can. But in the directions you first use half the can, then the remaining half gets divided again into to be added at two other steps.
Can you tell me if you can freeze this? If so how long do you cook it for?
You can freeze them, but keep in mind that the cream cheese will have a slightly different texture afterwards. I would let it thaw completely before cooking and then cook for the same time as indicated in the recipe.
How many does this serve?
It makes 8 enchiladas so I would say 4 people (assuming they eat 2 each)
I made these tonight, BEST I’ve ever had! Absolutely amazing, wouldn’t change a thing! The green chiles were a great touch, I didn’t think I would like them but man! So good!
So glad you enjoyed them, and thanks so much for the comment! I love hearing what people changed or did not change :-).
Making these for my family and am so excited! There going to be so delicious! :)
These are fantastic. I have made them numerous time for casual parties and they are a hit. They are right on the money! The only thing I did differently was use a little more enchilada sauce than 10 ounces and I used corn tortillas. AMAZING!
These are in the oven right now! They look so delicious while i was making them. Anything with cream cheese added has to be good. Only thing i had to do different was use different tortilla shells. I had an assortment of random tortilla shells leftover from other recipes, including a couple homemade ones. I wanted to use them rather than wasting them. So i have about 5 different types of tortilla shells with these. I guess it will give us a chance to see which type of tortilla shell we like best. :) but it was a great way to use them all up.
So excited to eat it tonight. Thanks for the recipe!!!
I made this tonight for my family…WOW what a hit! DELICIOUS!!! The only suggestion I got was to double it. They can’t wait until I make it again. Thanks for sharing!
Just made these for dinner tonight and they are sooooo good! I don’t like green chiles so I just left them out and it still came out amazing and they were so easy too!
Looks delicious!
Made these tonight. A little spicy but was so delicious I will definitely add it to my repertoire. Thanks for sharing.
Making these tonight with some homemade corn tortilla chips and stuffed bacon wrapped jalepino’s . Yummy !
I made these tonight . I did not have corn or green chilies so left those out ; but my , oh , my — they were delicious ! I think these are the best enchiladas I have ever made ! thanks for the recipe ; I found it on Pinterest ! :D
I’ve been making this recipe (close to it) for years, they are our family’s very favorite meal! I simplify it a bit though, just put a generous amount of cream cheese down the center of the tortilla, top with shredded cooked chicken, sliced scallions & sliced black OLIVES. The olives really shine in the recipe. For the sauce, I mix 1 can of red enchilada sauce with 1 can of tomato sauce to make it a bit more mild for the kids. I bake the rolled up enchiladas in the pan with the sauce, covered in foil for 20-30 minutes, then sprinkle shredded cheddar on top and let crisp up for 10 more minutes in the oven. Delish!!!
These are the best enchiladas I have ever made. Thank you so much for this delicious recipe and the excellent photos. I originally came across these on Pinterest, but wanted to make sure to let you know how great this recipe is. My entire family begs for these so now I always make a double batch and freeze half to have on hand later.
Awesome! Thanks for coming back and sharing your experience. I wish I had space in my freezer so I could do the same.
I have the chicken in the crockpot now for the shredded chicken variation (also simmering in the sauce for a little extra flavor). Also, per hubby’s request I’m going to put a little bit of refried beans in the mix. It smells so good in here already and can’t wait to try them tonight!
Awesome! Be sure to report back!
What brand of enchilada sauce do you use? What’s a good brand?
Honestly, I use Kroger’s store brand. I have not noticed that a brand name was any better.
These were the best enchiladas we had ever had, my children raved about them and said they would eat them again the next night if I would make them! lol I made a couple of changes. I put the cumin, chili powder and some garlic salt on both sides of the chicken and then pan fried it until it was done, cooled and shredded it. I also used a whole block of cream cheese since my 3 large chicken breasts was more than the recipe called for. I did not use corn and used 6-inch corn tortillas instead of flour ones. I fried these for about 3 seconds on each side in a skilled in a small amount of oil, just to soften them and make them pliable and then drained them on paper towels on a cookie sheet. I used 12 of them. I used about a cup and a half of pepper jack cheese in addition to the other two cheeses, I put some in the filling and then sprinkled the rest on top. I used alot more enchilada sauce than a 10 oz. can, probably a 16 jar of it, and I used Food Lion brand enchilada sauce which is awesome. Thank you so much for this recipe! I’m making this again next weekend when we’re having some friends come visit! Can’t wait! I’m also thinking of making a pan with red sauce and a pan with the green enchilada sauce! YUM! :)
I am so thrilled that you enjoyed it! And thank you so much for commenting about what you did differently.
It’s so delicious! Yummy
They are in the oven and I just KNOW I’ve got a delicious dinner on the way. Thanks for the recipe. Have tried to “wing” enchiladas many times and been disappointed. I followed your directions to the tee!
Made for dinner tonight for the first time. Delicious!! Served with fritos and fruit. Beautiful dish & very easy.
Do you think you could freeze these? I’m looking for meals I can make and freeze, then bake later. I’m only worried about whether the cream cheese would have a weird texture, as I’ve never frozen it before. Thanks!
I think you can freeze it but I’ve never done it myself. I would let it thaw in the fridge for a day (just like lasagna) to make sure it’s not still frozen in the middle. The texture of the cream cheese might change a little, but since it is mixed in it shouldn’t be too noticeable.
Just wanted to let you know…I’ve made this recipe multiple times now and it seems to be becoming part of the regular rotation! My husband and I eat some variation of Mexican food basically every other day :D Thanks for this!
Thanks for sharing, I am thrilled to hear how much you’ve enjoyed it!
Brilliant – thanks for the info :)
I’m curious — what is Enchilada Sauce? is it like a salsa? Not sure I’ve ever seen it here in Canada and would love to re-jig this recipe because it sounds scrumptious :)
It is a Mexican spiced tomato sauce. Recipes to make this sauce from scratch can be found online such as this one: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/red-enchilada-sauce/ – hope that helps!
Is there any way that you could include the nutritional info for those of us who are attempting to eat within a certain range of fat,fiber,carbs and protein daily? Thanks, and love everything about your website!
I will see what I can do. It’s been a long time since I’ve made these so I will have to look up everything.
Thanks for checking out my blog!
Here is a great tool that can be used on any recipe you are interested in for nutritional information – http://caloriecount.about.com/cc/recipe_analysis.php
Hello, sounds like a wonderful recipe! But do you use corn tortillas or flour tortillas? Thanks
I used whole wheat flour tortillas, but you can also use corn if you prefer.
Making these again tonight for company. These are a hit at my casa! Thanks for sharing!
making these tonight for the first time, can’t wait!!!! YUM
Cream cheese? Loving this idea in enchiladas. They look delish!
Cream cheese is a great ingredient.
These look so good and I can just imagine how cheesy and creamy they’d be on the inside! Yum!
Hmm, that makes me realize I should’ve taken a picture of the insides. I ate it too quickly to think of that apparently.
Gotta love pay day! Did you splurge on anything from Anthropologie? I love enchiladas, especially the homemade variety. We haven’t had them in ages, too long for sure.
No, I am still trying to resist Anthro. It won’t last long though, I am sure the sale this Tuesday will overthrow my willpower!
My favorite Mexican restaurant has a Cream Cheese Chicken Enchilada and this sounds like it would be a perfect alternative to that one. It’s so good but I’m sure it’s filled with bad-for-me stuff. I love making homemade versions of my restaurant favorites, thanks for this one!
Very welcome! I too love recreating things at home.
My husband (and I!) love dishes like this. I think I could serve this one to him every night and he wouldn’t comment about repeats for about 2 weeks! Cream Cheese + Enchiladas = Heaven!!
I love cream cheese in just about anything
ANYTHING! :)
Yummy! Mexican food has to be one of absolute favorites! These enchiladas sound great! :)
Love Mexican food! Enchiladas are a favorite of ours! Yours looks beautiful!
Mmm. My husband will love these–and I will probably love them more!!