You only need three ingredients to make these restaurant style cheese enchiladas with an optional homemade enchilada sauce to take them to the next level!
Looking for more Mexican recipes? Try this Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup, my Mexican Casserole, these Sour Cream Chicken Enchiladas and these Vegetable Enchiladas.
Want to save this recipe?
We'll email this recipe to you, so you can come back to it later!
My Favorite Cheese Enchiladas
For all the cheese lovers in the world, this is the enchilada recipe for you! Growing up in Texas, cheese enchiladas are a way to test a Mexican (or Tex-Mex) restaurant on if they are really up to snuff.
A good cheese enchilada should consist of an extra flavorful sauce, wrapped around a tortilla, holding in all that delicious melted cheese.
Like a classic American grilled cheese, Cheese Enchiladas are so simple to make with just 3 ingredients. Focusing on preparation method and using good quality and flavored ingredients makes all the difference.
These enchiladas are absolutely delicious and very easy to make. You can use store bought enchilada sauce or my Homemade Enchilada Sauce (ready in just 7 minutes!) to ensure they have excellent flavor!
Cheese Enchilada Recipe Ingredients
This enchilada recipe only needs three ingredients in total. They are seriously that easy and simple to make!
- corn tortillas (white or yellow)
- shredded Mexican blend cheese
- red enchilada sauce
Below are some topping ideas:
- Sour Cream
- Guacamole/Avocado
- Tomatoes
- Cilantro
- Jalapenos (fresh or pickled)
Homemade Enchilada Sauce vs Store Bought
I recommend my homemade Enchilada Sauce for these cheese enchiladas because it will add tons of flavor. Plus, it only takes 7 minutes to make.
You can absolutely use store bought, but I have never found a store bought enchilada sauce that is as flavorful as my homemade version.
Another bonus to making your own enchilada sauce is that you can season it up to your taste. You can also make it spicy if you like spicy dishes!
My husband loves when I add a chipotle pepper in adobo sauce to our homemade enchilada sauce and make spicy chipotle cheese enchiladas!
How to Make Cheese Enchiladas
The method of making these cheese enchiladas is almost as important as the ingredients.
To start, you will need to wrap the corn tortillas in a damp paper towel and microwave them for 15 seconds. If you don’t, they will break while you try to roll them.
Second, you will need to dip each tortilla in the enchilada sauce before rolling them. This gets all the flavor inside the enchilada!
Lastly, fill the dipped tortilla with lots and lots of cheese and roll them up! You can watch the video in this post to see my easy method!
Tons of flavor and lots and lots of delicious melted cheese make this Cheese Enchilada Recipe a sure fire winner and a crowd favorite!
Make a double batch and freeze the second batch for another easy dinner later, you won’t regret it!
If you enjoy this recipe, check out my other Enchilada Sauce and please leave a comment or review below letting me know how this recipe turns out for you!
Cheese Enchiladas
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups enchilada sauce
- 16 corn tortillas, white or yellow
- 6 cups shredded Mexican blend cheese
Want to save this recipe?
We'll email this recipe to you, so you can come back to it later!
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Spread a little enchilada sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 casserole dish. Set aside.
- Wrap tortillas in a damp paper towel and microwave for 15 seconds. This will help soften the tortillas so they roll without cracking as much.
- Working with one tortilla at a time, dip a tortilla in the enchilada sauce and immediately lay it into the casserole dish.
- Fill the tortilla with cheese, roll it up and push it to the end of the pan, seem side down.
- Continue this process until your pan is full. Pour the remaining enchilada sauce over your tortillas.
- Sprinkle the tops with more cheese. Cover casserole dish with foil and bake for 15 minutes.
- Remove foil and cook for 10 more minutes, until the sauce is bubbling and the cheese is perfectly melted.
- You can also prepare these enchiladas in advance and refrigerate for up to 12 hours, or until ready to cook.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Categories:
Post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.
e use flour tortillas and they are soft enough to roll without doing anything else and we love them.
I made the enchilada sauce but my only failure was wrapping – I think I just microwaved to many at a time – but I am also going to try what Cindy and Nikki suggested next – despite my terrible wrapping, my family finished the whole pan!!!! It was delicious!! Thank you for these recipes and the helpful responses!!
So glad y’all still enjoyed them!
Delicious sauce! Easy peasy too.
Heat oil in pan and drop tortillas for less than a minute. Blot with paper towels and then fill. Makes a big difference.
Love cheese enchiladas and these look great, thank you.
I want to make them the day before I plan on serving them.
Is it best to bake them only when I serve them the next day or bake when I make them and then reheat the day I serve them?
My tortillas were like rubber after following your recipe ????
I dip my tortillas in oil, (3-5 seconds each side), drain, then fill. I’ve been making them for over 70 years! I hope this helps!!!
Assemble them ahead, but don’t bake them until you are ready to serve them! 🙂
These really are the BEST cheese enchiladas. I think it’s the homemade sauce that makes them so good. We topped them with the onion because that’s how they serve them here in south Texas. Thanks for the recipe, won’t make them any other way.
I’m hungry to see it
LOVE THIS RECIPE. I am so glad I trusted you and made a triple batch of the homemade enchilada sauce. I will be making these weekly for an easy dinner. Now that I have the sauce made in the freezer, dinner is going to be SO EASY AND TASTY. My husband and son ate THIRDS. THANKS AAGAIN!
Oh my all that cheese! I made these and the only change I made was to add a little raw onion inside each enchilada as I rolled them up. I did make the homemade sauce too and it really upped the flavor a ton. Thanks for my favorite easy dinner yet.
Always a family favorite! Love all of the flavors!
This looks really good!! Would love to give it a try!
These cheese enchiladas are are in love with these right now!
Oh my all that cheese! These Enchiladas look so good!
I cannot get over how easy these are! YUM!
Need the red sauce recipe, please.
https://thenovicechefblog.com/enchilada-sauce/
So simple, and so good! I love the idea of making my own sauce!
I absolutely love making this through the week. It’s always a big hit!
Where is the video, can’t see it?
Me either