If there is one thing that I could eat on repeat, it’s enchiladas! These Ground Beef Enchiladas turned out SO good I knew I had to share them ASAP. Seasoned ground beef is loaded into soft yellow corn tortillas with a little cheese, topped with a homemade red chili sauce and finished with a lot of melty cheese. You are going to be a dinner-winner with this recipe!
Sometimes we even top them with a little extra diced white onion, cilantro, and fresh avocados. Add the garnishes your family loves.
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Ingredient Details
Corn Tortillas – for the most authentic tasting enchiladas I highly recommend using yellow corn tortillas. They require a little prep, but I believe in you! You can read all about that here.
Ground Beef – as with most recipes, except burgers, I recommend using an 85/15 ground beef. It has enough fat to be flavorful but not so much that your enchiladas turn out greasy.
White Onion and Garlic – white onion is the classic flavor you want in enchiladas, and to be honest most Mexican cuisine. Two tips about the garlic – 1 use as much garlic as you like, and 2 add the garlic after the onions and let them sauté for about 1 minute. It makes for a more pronounced garlic flavor.
Seasonings – a mix of onion powder, garlic powder, cumin, chili powder, and kosher salt. The enchilada sauce does a lot of the heavy lifting here.
Red Enchilada Sauce – If you have a store bought red enchilada sauce that you love, go for that one, we like things EASY around here. If not you can make your own, promise it’s not hard! This is our favorite red enchilada sauce recipe.
Cheese – as always when you are melting cheese, we recommend fresh shredded cheese. It melts creamier! I usually use a Colby Jack cheese but you can use cheddar, pepper jack, or Monterey Jack.
Using Corn Tortillas
We highly, highly recommend using corn tortillas over flour tortillas for your Beef Enchiladas. First off, the flour tortillas are not as traditional for enchiladas. And second, the flour tortillas can tend to get soggy in all the red chile sauce.
Now the question is – are we using yellow corn or white corn tortillas? I’m going to give you my OPINION… this is not science based. USE YELLOW CORN TORTILLAS!!! I have found that yellow corn tortillas are a bit sturdier and have WAY better/more flavor than the white ones. When you are in the grocery store give the two a sniff and then buy the yellow ones because they actually have flavor!
Prepping the corn tortillas is a whole other topic. They can tend to be fragile divas. One wrong move and they will crack and tear. You need to give them a little TLC before they will roll right. There are a couple methods to prep the corn tortillas, choose the one that is right for you:
- MY PREFFERED METHOD – wrap about 6 tortillas in a wet paper towel and microwave for 30 seconds, flip them and microwave another 30 seconds. Then repeat with the remaining tortillas.
- Add a little oil to a skillet and pan fry each tortilla about 15 seconds per side.
- Place the tortillas in a steamer basket over a little simmering water and cover the pot. Steam for a couple minutes.
And if in the end you feel like you can’t take on the corn tortillas, pop over to this recipe for Ground Beef Enchilada Casserole, no tortilla prep in that recipe, but you get the same flavor profile!
Homemade Red Enchilada Sauce
Like I said, if you have a store bought red enchilada sauce you like, use that one! You will want to grab a 20 oz. can/bottle. If you don’t have one you like, and you have a well stocked spice cabinet, you can definitely make the one linked below and it’s super easy to make.
Red Enchilada Sauce
A little vegetable oil, a mixture of flour and spices, chicken broth, and finished with a splash vinegar and lime juice to enhance flavors.
How To Make Beef Enchiladas
This is just a quick picture over-view of how to make Ground Beef Enchiladas. For more detailed instructions and ingredient amounts, pop down to the recipe card below.
Step 1
Cook the ground beef, drain excess grease. Add the onion and sauté, add the garlic and warm 1 min. Sprinkle in the seasonings and some enchilada sauce.
Step 2
Make the enchilada sauce (or grab your fave store bought sauce). Pour about ¾ cup in the bottom of a 9×13 baking dish.
Step 3
Prep the corn tortillas. Set up an assembly line with beef filling, tortillas, sauce, cheese, prepped pan.
Spoon a little sauce onto the warm tortilla.
Step 4
Top with a tablespoon or two of beef filling, and a sprinkle of cheese.
Step 4
Roll the enchilada up. (like a cigar)
Place it into the prepped pan, seam side down so it stays rolled.
Step 4
Repeat with all the remaining tortillas. If you have extra beef mixture leftover, spoon it into the pan.
Pour remaining enchilada sauce over top.
Step 4
Top with the rest of the cheese. Cover with foil and bake 20 mins.
Step 4
Remove foil and bake another 5-10 minutes. Let cool and serve!
Recipe Variations
If you take one tip from me… make this recipe your own! Add the ingredients that your family will love, so you can feel like a success at the dinner table.
You can definitely add extra ingredients in the enchiladas with the meat mixture. Just use ½ lb. of ground beef then mix in any or all that you like:
- Rice (Cilantro Lime Rice or Mexican Rice)
- Black beans
- Refried beans
- Corn
- Diced chilies (Poblanos) or jalapenos
- Diced tomatoes
- Sauteed peppers and onions
Garnishes are also a great way to customize this recipe:
- Diced avocados or guacamole
- Sour Cream
- Tomatoes
- Cilantro
- White or green onion
- Jalapenos or Black Olives
- Queso fresco
Freezer Instructions
Freezing Uncooked Enchiladas:
Prep the enchiladas completely, but don’t bake. Pop them into a freezer-safe pan (foil pans work like a charm). Cover tightly with foil and freeze for up to 3 months.
Freezing Cooked Enchiladas:
Bake and cool the beef enchiladas, then wrap the whole pan tightly in foil. They’ll keep up to 3 months.
Reheating Frozen Enchiladas:
- Uncooked & frozen: Bake covered at 350°F for 30-40 minutes, then uncover and bake 10–20 minutes more.
- Uncooked & thawed in fridge overnight: Just bake like normal!
- Cooked & frozen: Bake uncovered at 350°F for 30–35 minutes until hot in the center.
Recipe Tips To Remember
- Make sure you prep your corn tortillas, by warming, so they don’t tear or rip.
- Use fresh shredded cheese for the best melting.
- Garnish with cilantro, tomatoes, and diced avocados.
Side Dishes For Serving
Ground Beef and Cheese Enchiladas Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1 small white onion - finely chopped
- 2-3 cloves garlic - chopped
- 2 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon onion powder and garlic powder - each
- 10-12 yellow corn tortillas
- 8 oz fresh shredded cheese - pepper jack, colby jack, or cheddar cheese
- 20 oz canned or bottled red enchilada sauce - OR make your own red enchilada sauce
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350℉.
- Pour about ¾ cup enchilada sauce in the bottom of the 9×13 pan. Set aside.
Ground Beef Mixture
- Brown and crumble the ground beef, drain excess grease. Add the onion and saute for about 5 mins.1 lb ground beef, 1 small white onion
- Add the garlic and saute another minute. Sprinkle in the seasonings and add 3 tablespoon red enchilada sauce. Give it a good stir. Set aside.2-3 cloves garlic, 2 teaspoon chili powder, 1 teaspoon cumin, ½ teaspoon kosher salt, ½ teaspoon onion powder and garlic powder
Tortilla Prep
- Warm the tortillas using your preferred method: – wrap 6 tortillas in a wet paper towel, microwave 30 seconds, flip and microwave another 30 seconds (my preferred method). Repeat with remaining tortillas. – pan fry each tortilla in a little oil for about 15 seconds per side. – place the tortillas in a steamer basket over a little simmering water. Let steam for a minute or two to warm.10-12 yellow corn tortillas
Assembly
- Set up an assembly line with the prepped pan, warmed tortillas, beef mixture, cheese, and sauce.
- Spread a small spoonful of sauce over a tortilla, then a couple spoonfuls of beef mixture, then a pinch of cheese. Roll it up and lay it seam side down in the prepared pan.
- Continue until all the tortillas are used. If you have extra beef filling leftover just sprinkle it into the pan.
- Pour the remaining enchilada sauce over the enchiladas. Top with the rest of the shredded cheese.
Baking
- Cover the pan tightly w/ foil and bake at 350℉ for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake another 5-10 minutes until the cheese is melty and bubbly.
Freezing Instructions
- Uncooked Enchiladas: Prep the enchiladas completely in a freezer safe pan (foil pans are great for this, but don't bake. Cover tightly with foil and freeze for up to 3 months.
- Cooked Enchiladas: Bake and cool the beef enchiladas, then wrap the whole pan tightly in foil. They’ll keep up to 3 months.
- Reheating Frozen Enchiladas:Uncooked & frozen: Bake covered at 350°F for 30-40 minutes, then uncover and bake 10–20 minutes more.Uncooked & thawed in fridge overnight: Just bake like normal!Cooked & frozen: Bake uncovered at 350°F for 30–35 minutes until hot in the center.
Recipe Tips and Notes:
- Make sure you prep your corn tortillas, by warming, so they don’t tear or rip
- Use fresh shredded cheese for the best melting
- Garnish with cilantro, tomatoes, and diced avocados.
Susie says
I made this recipe a couple days ago. Next time I will make the suggested red enchilada sauce instead of canned. Otherwise, good!