Freezer Chicken Enchiladas
Simply assemble your enchiladas ahead of time and freeze. IT GOES STRAIGHT FROM FREEZER TO OVEN! No dishes required!
​I love a good enchilada.
No wait.
It doesn’t really have to be all that good if we’re being honest.
You could just have cheese and beans and I’ll be golden.
But I couldn’t do you guys like that.
So I made you sour cream chicken enchiladas instead.
You know, just to jazz it up a bit.
(But for those of you more health-conscious, plain Greek yogurt can be subbed!)
But what I really like about this recipe is how you can make individual portions and throw it in the freezer.
So it literally goes straight from freezer to oven at 375 degrees F for 25-30 minutes.
And you can serve it in these tin foils to save on dishes.
I know.
Genius.
Freezer Chicken Enchiladas
Ingredients
- 2 cups leftover diced rotisserie chicken
- 2 ½ cups enchilada sauce, divided
- 1 ½ cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
- ½ cup sour cream
- ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
- 1 4-ounce can diced green chiles
- 12 6-inch flour tortillas, warmed
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
- In a large bowl, combine chicken, 1/2 cup enchilada sauce, 1/2 cup cheese, sour cream, cilantro and diced green chiles.
- To assemble the enchiladas, lay tortilla on a flat surface and spoon 1/4 cup of the chicken mixture in the center. Roll the tortilla and set aside, seam side down. Repeat with remaining tortillas and chicken mixture.
- Pour 1/4 cup enchilada sauce onto the bottom of 4 5" foil disposable aluminum pans. Add 3 enchiladas per pan; top with remaining enchilada sauce and cheese.*
- Place into oven and bake for 15-20 minutes, or until bubbly.
- Serve immediately.
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
Tag @damn_delicious on Instagram and hashtag it #damndelicious!
Are you supposed to cook them first then freeze them…or freeze them uncooked and cook them when you’re ready? Thanks in advance! Can’t wait to try
My question is i made way too many we had leftovers 2 nights, still have a full pan left i need to freeze them and maybe serve next week, how do i freeze them correctly so there not ruint.
This recipe is great nothing else to add.
Here is the link for the foil pans on Amazon They come in a 60 pack with lids.
https://www.amazon.com/Fig-Leaf-Pack-Premium-Takeout/dp/B073QLHZ4X/
A simple solution to the soggy tortillas, use Manicotti Shells or Canneloni Shells, stuff them. Â Just make sure you add a bit more sauce than the recipe calls for. Â You can buy oven ready shells. Â
I loved this! I used low carb tortilla shells to meet my keto diet. I will make this again!
Do i cook them then freeze? Or assemble then freeze?
HI, Â I’ve been making enchiladas for decades and I always seem to have much better luck baking first. Â Not the full time, but at least 20 minutes, then freezing. Â Hope your enchiladas are amazing!
I am making some freezer meals for my maternity leave. Do i fully cook these before putting in freezer or just roll them up and get them all prepared, wrap up and then freeze?
I made the enchiladas chicken cheese sauce roll them can I freeze them now
Just wanted to say that we go to an authentic Mexican restaurant at least once a month and my husband always gets enchiladas and they are always flour tortillas. This recipe is great, we tried chicken and ground beef. Thanks for sharing.
I’ve used this technique for dozens of recipes and it’s the best. I found your site through my question of wondering about freezing enchiladas. They get super soggy and very easy. Unlike pasta, the tortillas absorbs the liquid, as you know more than I.
I’ve pondered freezing the rolled enchiladas and adding sauce when it’s time to cook them up. Basically a tequita lol. Do I bake until thawed and then add all the other goodness? What’s your take.
*very excited to explore your site. Mmm mmm
Yes, that should work just fine, Shaun! Let me know how it turns out for you! 🙂
I agree with the writer who said flour tortillas are only for burritos and quesadillas. I took the frozen enchiladas out of the freezer and put them in a 300 degree oven for 1 hour. Removed the foil and baked them for another 15 minutes. They were perfect.Â
Looking for new ideas will have to try this one for sure but think that I will make ahead and put them all in a gallon size bag , then when i get ready to cook will place in a ton pan with the sauce on it before putting in the oven and see if that helps with the soggy that I see so many have had problems with….. it’s a texture thing for me
Tonia, did you try that (freezing in a ziploc bag)? I had the same idea and wanted to know if it worked
Can I use canned chicken instead of rotisserie chicken? I have so much canned chicken to use up. Ugh!
Yes, of course!
From frozen, these took 60 minutes, covered in a 425° oven and then an addition 30 minutes uncovered. The tortillas were still soggy.
Corn tortillas are the usual way to make enchiladasÂ
This looks great! I’m definitely going to use leftover chicken! Thanks!
I know this is an old recipe, but I’m going to leave my feedback anyways!Â
These were okay. I made them in advance, with corn tortillas, then froze them. Unfortunately they ended up being extremely soggy, the tortillas were mush.Â
The actual taste of them was good, if you put aside the texture. My guess is that these would be good, just not as a freezer meal made in advance.
Did you cook them before freezing them? I’m just wondering if that makes a difference in the texture.
Do you think I can freeze this if I made the sauce was made with sour cream & green chilis? No enchilada sauce in there.
Thank you in advance!
As I am not an expert on food safety, I cannot really say with certainty. Methods for optimal food storage and shelf life should be based on good judgment and what you are personally comfortable with. Hope that helps, Tammy!
Yum!!!! I’m making these for a friend after surgery- is there a way I can put more enchiladas in a bigger sized pan? It’s for a large family! Will the cooking time change? Thanks!!
Yes, you can add more to a bigger pan, but since we haven’t tried that ourselves, we can’t answer the cooking time question with certainty. Please use your best judgement when you make modifications. Hope that helps!
Thank you!!
Have you ever had and issues using foil pans with acidic sauces? I’ve always been scared to do tomato based sauces in them because of the issue with the aluminium reaction. They are just super convenient!! Lol
I actually haven’t! 🙂
Thank you for this recipe! I just made some and put them in the freezer, but I put them all in one aluminum foil pan. How long do you think I should cook them for? Should I increase temperature, too? Thanks for any advice!
Hi Jen! Here are the freezing/reheating instructions:
*TO FREEZE: Cover enchiladas tightly with plastic wrap, then aluminum foil. Freeze up to 3 months. To bake, remove plastic wrap, cover and bake for 30 minutes. Uncover; bake for an additional 5-10 minutes, or until completely cooked through.
Can you use chicken that was shredded in the crock pot for this recipe?
Absolutely! What a great idea to repurpose leftovers!
Mine were still frozen after 30 minutes at 375. Â Had to do 40 more at 425…
I had the same issue!! 15-20 minutes? No way! I’m in Denver at high altitude, but still I baked them for an hour and they were still frozen in the middle. Kicked the temp up to 450 and did another 30 minutes and they finally were edible. Damn Delicious…no offense, hun, but did you actually test the recipe before posting?
Yikes! Jennie Lynn, there should only be 3 enchiladas in each pan. That should not take 1 hour and 30 min to reheat from a frozen state. Sometimes an oven’s set temperature isn’t always equal to its actual temperature. I recommend utilizing an Leave-In Oven Thermometer for accuracy.
Oven temperature should also be increased by 25 degrees F at 5000 ft.
And yes, this recipe was tested and re-tested by my team and myself.
I had the same issue as Jennie Lynn. Took over an hour to cook through from a frozen state. Disappointing.
Love your recipes! If making for a family, can they be put in a larger foil pan to freeze? I’m assuming cook time should be increased?
Yes, that’s correct!
My tortillas were mushy! Maybe because I thawed before I baked? Should I bake frozen to prevent this?
Yes! No need to thaw. That’s the beauty of this recipe!
I put them right in the oven from frozen and mine were soggy too.Â
I’ve made a few dishes from your website, and everything has come out great. These enchiladas were fantastic, too! My husband loved them, as well. I intended to freeze half, but they were so good I ate them for lunch for a few days instead. I made the enchilada sauce from the recipe on your site, and I feel like that really did make the dish taste even fresher. Thanks for all of these wonderful recipes! They’ve gotten me out of my recipe rut.
How many 3enchalda pans does this recipe make?
About 4 pans.
Do you freeze before or after you bake it?
Before.
Just wondering if you bake completely and then freeze or freeze before you bake and how does the cilantro thaw?
You can freeze before baking. The cilantro will cook when it is baked.
Y-U-M! I seriously can’t handle how I love freezer recipes, and now an enchilada one… LOVE IT!!
What are full dimensions of foil pans used. Height length width?
The size can vary but I used ones that are 5.6″ x 4.6″ x 1.9″.
Is there a link somewhere to the tin foils I missed? I would love to make and freeze these and I hate cleanup!
You can refer to step 4:
Pour 1/4 cup enchilada sauce onto the bottom of 4 5″ foil disposable aluminum pans. Add 3 enchiladas per pan; top with remaining enchilada sauce and cheese.*
Hope that helps!
Have you every tried freezing your amazing zucchini enchiladas? It is a family favorite and I would love to prepare it in bulk and save for later!! Thank you for all your lovely recipes.
I actually don’t think I have a recipe for zucchini enchiladas!
This is a brilliant idea! Love the idea of freezer to table in 30 minutes but with it still being a home cooked meal that you can personalize to your tastes.Â
Just a note….real enchiladas do not use flour tortillas. I’m all for catering a recipe to your own tastes, but call it what it is. Enchiladas are made with corn tortillas – burritos, fajitas and some soft tacos are made with flour tortillas. Sorry to play word games with you – it really makes no difference to anybody but me.
Susan, you can use flour or corn – it’s all based on personal preference as you said! 🙂
Agreed glad to see it can be done with corn as normal. I tried flour once and it was a sticky mush… not what I’m used.
If you are arguing authenticity, then there is no such thing as a flour tortilla in true Mexican cooking – there was no wheat to use until fairly recently, flour tortillas are an American addition to Mexican cuisine.  Burritos are an American invention.  I think the joy of living in the US is that we are constantly playing with “authentic” to suit our own creativity and preference.  Thanks Chungah for a great Mexican-style make-ahead meal. 🙂
I have to agree. Enchiladas use corn tortillas, quesadillas and burritos use flour. But a lot of people are unaware of that. Alas.
I always make enchiladas with CORN tortillas…no comparison to flour! SO…you aren’t the only one to whom it makes a “big” difference!!
Thanks for having a freeze ahead recipe. I know a lot of you readers have been requesting/inquiring if some of your dishes can be frozen. Please keep them coming (or test if they can be frozen) Much appreciated. (Will be making this soom1)
What is in the enchilada sauce.?  I really like enchiladas and recipes sound good but just  don’t know what the sauce consists of.  Can anyone tell me?
We have a recipe for homemade enchilada sauce here. I hope that answers your question. 🙂
The Budget Bytes recipe for enchilada sauce is very good too. It calls for chicken broth, which adds amazing flavor. Also, it uses tomato paste. I think it’s handy to have a few recipes to refer to based on what you have in the pantry.
it comes in a can in the isle with all the taco stuff, it really is best to use the canned kind,, it turns out great
Yum, these look so tasty. Â Will make some Saturday. Â How they turn out as great as yours . Â Thank you for sharing.