Slow Cooker Chicken Enchiladas Smothered in Sour Cream Sauce

Using a slow cooker makes the juiciest, most tender chicken for this recipe. If you don’t feel like making enchiladas, you can also use the chicken filling for tacos or quesadillas.

Chicken Enchilada Filling

• 4 skinless boneless chicken breasts
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 2 tablespoons cumin
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1/2 tablespoon oregano
• 24-ounce jar of salsa verde
• Zest and juice of one lime

Season the chicken breasts on both sides with the salt, pepper, cumin, garlic powder, chili powder, and oregano. Place the chicken in the bottom of a slow cooker. Pour the entire 24-ounce jar of salsa verde over the chicken, then add the lime zest and juice. It will look like too much salsa, but the chicken will soak it up after it’s cooked.

Cook on low for 6-8 hours, or on high for 3-4 hours.

Check the chicken breasts at around six hours (if cooking on low) to see if they will shred easily with a fork. Once they are ready, shred them up with a couple of forks. You don’t even have to take them out of the slow cooker. Once all the meat is shredded, stir it up with the liquid and let it simmer on low for 30 minutes to an hour.

While the meat is simmering, make the sour cream enchilada sauce.

Sour Cream Enchilada Sauce

• 3 tablespoons butter
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups chicken stock
• 1 cup sour cream
• Black pepper (to taste)
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika (regular paprika is fine if you don’t have smoked paprika)
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 3/4 cup shredded cheese, plus a bit more to go on top of the enchiladas if you want (cheddar, pepper jack, colby jack, whatever you prefer)

Melt the butter in a saucepan. Once it’s melted, add the flour and whisk it all together. Let it cook over medium heat, while whisking, for 2-3 minutes. You want to cook the raw flour taste out, but don’t let it brown.

Increase the heat to medium-high, and whisk in the chicken stock. Let it come to a bubble, whisking occasionally. It should thicken up at this point. If it looks too thick, you can add a splash of chicken stock or water. Add the black pepper, smoked paprika, onion powder, and garlic powder, stir, then turn off the heat. Let it sit for about three minutes with no heat, then whisk in the sour cream.

If you try to add the sour cream with the burner too hot, it will curdle! Once the sour cream is incorporated, fold in the shredded cheese until the sauce is smooth. You can turn the burner on low heat at this point if needed to melt the cheese.

Assembling the Enchiladas

Preheat the oven to 350°F. In a 9″ x 13″ baking dish, add about a third of the enchilada sauce and spread it around. This will help keep the enchiladas from sticking.

You can use either flour or corn tortillas. If using corn tortillas, you should heat them in the oven first, so they will be easy to roll up without breaking.

In each tortilla, spread 3-4 tablespoons of the chicken mixture in the center, then roll the tortilla up around it. Place each enchilada seam side down in the baking dish.

Once the pan is full, pour the rest of the sauce over top and spread so it covers all of the enchiladas. If you want, sprinkle some more shredded cheese on top of them.

Bake for 25 minutes, until it looks hot and bubbly. Wait a few minutes before serving. Garnish with any of the suggested garnishes, and enjoy!

Garnishes

• Fresh cilantro
• Cotija cheese
• Pickled jalapeño slices
• Pickled red onion
• Squeeze of lime juice

Kimberly Grauzer

Slow Cooker Chicken Verde Enchiladas

Tender slow-cooked chicken in salsa verde wrapped in tortillas and baked with a homemade sour cream enchilada sauce.

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Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 4 skinless boneless chicken breasts
• to taste salt and pepper
• 2 tablespoons cumin
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1/2 tablespoon oregano
• 24 ounce salsa verde jar
• 1 lime zest and juice
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 3 tablespoons all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups chicken stock plus a splash if needed
• as needed water optional, splash if sauce is too thick
• 1 cup sour cream
• to taste black pepper
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika regular paprika is fine if you don’t have smoked
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 3/4 cup shredded cheese plus a bit more for topping (cheddar, pepper Jack, or colby Jack)
• as needed flour or corn tortillas
• as desired fresh cilantro for garnish
• as desired Cotija cheese for garnish
• as desired pickled jalapeño slices for garnish
• as desired pickled red onion for garnish
• as desired lime juice squeeze, for garnish

Method

 

1. Season both sides of the chicken with salt, pepper, cumin, garlic powder, chili powder, and oregano. Place in the slow cooker; add the entire 24 ounce jar of salsa verde, lime zest, and juice.
2. Cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 3-4 hours. On low, check around six hours for easy shredding. Shred with two forks, in the cooker if desired. Stir into the liquid and simmer on low for 30 minutes to an hour.
3. Melt butter in a saucepan; whisk in flour. Cook over medium heat, whisking, for 2-3 minutes to remove the raw flour taste without browning.
4. Increase heat to medium-high and whisk in stock. Bring to a bubble, whisking occasionally, until thickened. Thin with a splash of stock or water if needed. Stir in black pepper, smoked paprika, onion powder, and garlic powder; turn off heat.
5. Let stand off heat about three minutes before whisking in sour cream to prevent curdling. Fold in shredded cheese until smooth, using low heat if needed to melt it.
6. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Spread about a third of the sauce in a 9” X 13” baking dish to prevent sticking.
7. If using corn tortillas, warm in the oven first to prevent cracking. Fill each tortilla with 3-4 tablespoons chicken mixture, roll, and place seam side down in the dish.
8. Cover the filled pan of enchiladas with the remaining sauce. Sprinkle with more shredded cheese if desired.
9. Bake for 25 minutes until hot and bubbly. Rest a few minutes; serve with any suggested garnishes.

Notes

If you don’t use all the filling at once, you can freeze any leftover. Store in an airtight freezer bag, then thaw and reheat when you want to make enchiladas or tacos!