Green Chile Chicken Enchilada Stack

This easy-to-prepare Green Chile Chicken Enchilada Stack recipe has, literally, layer after layer of flavors. Perfect for a weeknight meal. Freeze some for lunch later in the week.

Making Green Chile Chicken Enchilada Stack

I don't always cook fancy. Most days, I just cook regular. Regular good food. Maximum taste, minimum fuss.

And as it's now just BB and me, I need easy things that feed two and freeze well for future dinner or lunch.

And that Friday nights are generally Mexican nights, and also the end of the workweek when we all want to relax and get ready to enjoy the weekend, there is a need for something easy, tasty, and perhaps a bit different from the standard fare.

So as I was contemplating Mexican night, and an easy dish to make, I thought of my Mexican Lasagna Enchiladas Casserole recipe. That sounded good. Then I thought of my Hatch Chile Chicken Enchiladas recipe and that sounded good too, so I thought why not combine them - well, sort of. Just the idea of a stacked chicken enchilada casserole, as opposed to regular enchiladas.

So that's what I did, and that's how this recipe for Green Chile Chicken Enchilada Stack came to be.

While not "beautiful" to the eye, this enchilada stack is yummy, easy to make, and freezes well for future use.

So let's get started

It all starts by heating a small amount of oil in a large saute pan and cook the onion, jalapeno, and garlic together until just translucent. To this, you are going to add a good amount of shredded chicken and mix it in well, along with spices, a little flour to keep things from being too liquidy, fire-roasted diced tomato, which lends a lovely deep flavor, and some chicken broth.

The Chickeny Part

The chicken part can be played a few different ways. One way, the easiest way, is to buy a pre-made rotisserie chicken from your supermarket. It seems every grocery store has them these days, they are convenient and pretty darn tasty. But do be aware, they have a tendency to be high in sodium, so if using store-bought, adjust your salt accordingly.

Another option is to make your own rotisserie chicken - easy enough to do, but you do need to have a rotisserie, or you could use my recipe for Simple Perfect Roasted Chicken.

And of course, last, but not least, you could poach some chicken breasts. If you choose this option, you will probably need 2 large half-breasts (aren't they all large these days?) and remember, to poach is not to boil.

Set some seasoned water - salt, peppercorns, a bay leaf, perhaps some thyme - to a simmer in a large skillet. Just a simmer. Add the breasts and allow to simmer in the water for about 10 minutes, turning once, then cover, turn off the heat, and let them sit for another 10 minutes. They should be cooked through now and you can use two forks, or your asbestos fingers, to shred the meat.

Viva La Tortillas

The tortillas must be corn, and they must be crisped up. This stack is going to bake, with sauce, and you want the tortillas to have a bit of texture left unless, of course, you like mush.

Me? I'm not a big fan.

There are two ways you can crisp up your tortillas, one is in the oven the other is on the stovetop. Either way will work, and regardless of the method you choose, they need to be coated in oil before layering them into the casserole dish. This thin layer of oil will help maintain the integrity of the tortilla.

Because you are going to bake or fry them to almost crisp, be sure to cut 3 of the tortillas into halves. You won't be able to cut them after they are crispy, and you need the halves to fill in the sides.

When making your layers, there will be three in all, place 2 whole tortillas in the center of the baking dish, and the half tortillas on each side. With each layer, alternate the sides that get the half tortillas.

Chiles? No Poblano

For the chiles part, I used Poblano peppers that I roasted, peeled, seeded, and cut into halves for easy layering. Roasting fresh chiles is not really all that hard, although it can be a little time-consuming as you need to let them rest, and cool, so you can remove the skin and seeds.

I find the broiler method to work the best, you can simply place the chiles on a sheet of foil directly on the oven rack, turn on the broiler to high, and turn the chiles as the skins char.

You could also char them over an open flame on your stovetop, although that can get a bit messy, or even on a grill or BBQ.

And you don't have to use poblano peppers, although I love the flavor. California chiles will also work.

Don't want to roast and peel your own chiles? Then buy a quality canned whole chiles and your job is practically done. Cut them into halves, again for easy layering, and pat them dry with a paper towel.

Now it's time to Stack, Stack, Stack. 

I used an 8 x 8-inch square casserole dish to make my stack. Start with a layer of enchilada sauce, you can use a good commercially prepared enchilada sauce or make your own Fresh Green Enchilada Sauce, across the bottom, layer your first set of tortillas on top, then put a nice layer of the seasoned chicken, some cheese, and your roasted chiles. Top that with another layer of tortillas, chicken, cheese, and some sauce. The final layer is tortillas, chicken, sauce, cheese. Pop, uncovered, into a 375º oven for about 35 minutes or until bubbly and the cheese has melted.

Let it rest

Do allow the stack to rest for a while to let everything settle before cutting it into squares and serving. While the casserole is resting, put those plates in the still-warm oven to take the chill off. Serving on warmed plates is the best for keeping food from getting cold.

Serve with optional sour cream and diced avocado

or not

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To freeze the leftovers, cut them into portion sizes and place in a container with a lid. Mark clearly with date and name of the dish and freeze. To reheat, place the food in the microwave and cook at high heat for 5 minutes.