By txbbwlover48 on Sunday, November 5, 2006 - 7:39 pm:
Turkey Enchiladas With Thanksgiving and Christmas fast approaching, we're reaching that time of year where turkey dinners will become the norm around the country. While Turkey is a rather dry meat, it is very affordable and reheats well, making it a great leftover meat. The traditional turkey dinner involves turkey, gravy, mashed potatoes, cranberries, stuffing, and the like, and while I enjoy the traditional turkey dinner as much as the next guy, one or two "traditional" turkey dinners per year is more than enough for me. The problem, though, is that typically after one of these traditional turkey dinners there's enough turkey for several more days.
Rather than simply reheating that turkey and reserving with potatoes, gravy, and stuffing, why not turn that leftover turkey into something new? There are a variety of leftover turkey dishes I enjoy, but none as much as turkey enchiladas. They are quite tasty and easy to make, requiring about an hour in total for prep, cooking, and cooling. (If you are not a turkey fan or don't have turkey available but want to try out this recipe nevertheless, you can substitute chicken in for the turkey.)
To start, gather up the following ingredients:
1/4 cup oil 1 medium onion, chopped fine 1 or 2 cloves of garlic, mashed and chopped 1 can tomato paste 1 16oz can of diced tomatoes (I prefer picking up the "Mexican Style" canned diced tomatoes, which come with little bits of chopped up green chili) 1.5 cups of water 1 teaspoon vinegar 1/2 teaspoon oregano (any kind of Italian seasoning works well here) Chili powder to taste (I usually use 2-3 teaspoons)
Black olives Cooked turkey (or chicken) Corn tortillas Cheddar cheese The first step is to make the enchilada sauce. To accomplish this start by heating the oil in a pan. Next, add the garlic, oregano, tomato paste, and most of the onion. Mix well and simmer for about five minutes. After five minutes add the vinegar, water, diced tomatoes, and chili powder. Bring to a boil and let simmer for 15 minutes. Then set to thicken.
Once the sauce has thickened, grab a casserole dish and pour and 1/4 of the sauce into the bottom. Next, cut several of the corn tortillas into halves and quarters. The put quarters into the corners of the dish and the halves along the edges. Finally, cover the open area at the bottom with whole tortillas.
Pour more sauce into the dish, enough to cover the tortillas. Then heap generous portions of turkey, black olives, and cheese into the dish. The last step is to cover the dish with another layer of tortillas. For this step, dip the tortillas in the sauce to moisten the underside, and then cover the dish. Finally, pour the remaining sauce on the dish, add some more cheese, and a dash of oregano (or other Italian seasoning, like parsley).
Bake the enchiladas for 20 to 25 minutes uncovered at 350 degrees. Let cool and serve with sour cream and/or guacamole. Makes about 8 servings...
These turkey enchiladas are but one of many ways to better enjoy your leftover Thanksgiving and Christmas meals. Enjoy!
By daisydukessbbw on Thursday, January 15, 2009 - 9:49 pm:
1/2 tsp oregano, any Italian works here???first of all let me congratulate you , the last enchilada recipe used caned stuff , cream of type.. lol what a joke.. now Italian is not Mexico nor is parsley.. ever hear of cilantro?or cumin?.. and enchiladas is Mexican food. all should be made from scratch.. the oil and flour. should be mixed into a rue.. that is added to thicken. but it is made with water and the oil and flour mixed in.but is mixed separate to make rue,then blended in to thicken, vinegar is not needed at all . to get Mexico flavor.. mix.. salt, garlic powder, cumin, oregano, onion powder,chili powder, in water, heat. then add rue made from oil and flour mixed together .(this can be done cold) add that stirring in and that makes the sauce. this is a casserole not enchiladas. for enchiladas you heat up the torts. then cook in or on oil for a few seconds to make pliable. then put in meat , salsa( home made) cheese , black olives, and a tablespoon of sauce so does not come out dry.. cover with cheese and olives and rest of sauce and heat up to melt cheese.. a few min . you don't have to cook for half hour or anything.. try this blend it is like a Mexican restaurant makes them. garnish with chili powder , cilantro and olives. do not add Italian seasoning. this is not how to make Mexican food. it is how to make Italian taste..hate to bag on but i think those that post recipes should know how to cook and from what i can see most here do not know a thing about cooking.. also. turkey really has no flavor in cooking and the flavor needs to be added in . use the same seasonings , just a tad of , to the turkey when heating it up. and add a little water so it will not stick to pan and will not be dry , sour cream and guacamole is a nice garnish to for Mexican foods, .. stop eating out of cans or boxes, make all from scratch so no poison in it. no gmo foods ... look that one up . gmo.. you can not get Mexico taste if no cumin in it, it will taste like something missing from it.. hubs
