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Easy Ground Beef Enchiladas

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Easy Ground Beef Enchiladas are kicked up with a rich warm homemade enchilada sauce! These will have your family begging for more!

I grew up on two types of meat, Chicken and Ground Beef!

Ground Beef Enchilada's on a plate

I had heard about Steaks as a kid… I don’t recall seeing them in our house though. I get it! Mom and Dad had 4 kids to raise, and the food budget was tight!

So, when it came to “beef”….there was a lot meatloaf, spaghetti, and Goulash that appeared at our family dinner table! (Yes, we went through the “Hamburger Helper” phase in the 70s like any good All American household… I just refuse to give it a nod!)

If those standards didn’t show up at the family dinner table…it was bound to show up in the school lunch line! (Gag! There’s a reason elementary schools were avocado barf green back then! Covered up any “left over” evidence! Lol)

Easy Ground Beef Enchilada's

One night…. I went to my friend’s house for dinner! They served these amazing flavorful enchilada’s! I asked my friend how her Mom made them? I wanted what they were having at my house!

That was 30+ years ago, and I’m still making them! (A good recipe never goes out of style my friends!) 

The only thing to change over the years is that I now make my own enchilada sauce. It kicks them up to a whole new height! Don’t worry…you can still use canned enchilada sauce if you want to.(We don’t judge here at Norine’s Nest! It’s all about what works for you and your schedule!)

How To Make Super Easy Homemade Enchilada Sauce

I can’t take credit for this amazing rich warm flavorful sauce. It comes from my friend Gail over Ranch House Recipes. (Y’all can follow her on Facebook. She posts all her recipes on social media.)

In a sauce pan mix together 4 Tablespoons of vegetable oil, 4 Tablespoons of flour, and 3 Tablespoons of your favorite chili powder.

Skillet with oil, flour, chili powder

Mix over medium heat till slightly thick. Aren’t those colors dreamy! So warm and rich!

Thickened Enchilada Ingredients

Add 4 cups of Beef Broth. Gail uses Chicken broth. I love the rich flavor of the beef broth. I don’t think my ranching friend would mind at all!

Add Spices. Stir until well mixed. Don’t worry if the oregano is floating along the top trying to swim to freedom! It will slowly incorporate.

spices to enchilada sauce

Add in 6 oz. of tomato paste. Stir, stir, stir! (Get yer wings a flappin’!) 

Tomato paste added to sauce

Continue stirring over medium low heat until sauce thickens. Allow to simmer for a few minutes over low heat, stirring occasionally.

You’ll have a deep rich smokey enchilada sauce that has none of the heat…just loads of flavor! You can “kick it” up a notch by adding cayenne pepper if you want.

I’m a wimpy, and proud, gringo… and I’m happy with this delicious mild sauce.

Enchilada Sauce

Turn the heat off. Let it set. It will thicken even more as it sits. (Kind of like me? Wow, this just dawned on me! My life is like thickening enchilada sauce!) 

How To Make Ground Beef Enchiladas

In a medium skillet, over high heat, brown 1 pound of ground beef with dried onion flakes, salt and pepper to taste.

Browning Ground beef in skillet

Continue browning till the meat is fully cooked. (I feel cooked in this summer heat!)

TIP: DO NOT DRAIN THE BEEF! Can I tell you how crazy it makes me when I see people drain and rinse their ground beef. I get it! I know why you’re doing it…but all the flavors are in those juices!!! So stop it! For the love of flavor!!!

Browned Ground Beef

Add one heaping scoop (yes…this is an exact measurement!) of that fresh enchilada sauce into your browned ground beef! (Oh! You want an exact measurement…okay about a 1/2 cup)

Add enchilada sauce to ground beef

Stir until combined with the hamburger juices and meat. (I’m not letting go of that juice! Lol)

Ground Beef Mixture for Enchiladas

It’s time to assemble the Enchiladas!

Pre-heat oven to 350°. Spray a 9 x 13 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray. Spread a thin layer of enchilada sauce in bottom of pan.

Place 10, soft taco size, flour tortillas in the microwave for 50 seconds. Add a scoop of meat mixture down the center of warm tortilla.

Easy Ground Beef Enchiladas

Top with a healthy sprinkle of cheese! Okay…top with a nice little fist full of cheese! I love cheese. The more, the better!

Making the Enchiladas

Start from one edge, fold over top of meat and cheese, pull towards you and begin to roll.

Rolling Enchiladas

Place rolled stuffed tortilla, in baking dish on top of enchilada sauce.

Placing Enchiladas in baking dish

Continue stuffing tortillas and rolling them until pan is full.

Squeeze ’em in! They’re gonna get close! Like family at the Thanksgiving dinner table. Squish, squish, squeeze! They’ll fit!

pan full of rolled enchilada's

Top with more enchilada sauce. I don’t want to tell you the exact amount to use. This is where personal preference comes into to play! (It’s like telling your bestie how much foundation to use on her face! NO!!! We don’t go there!)

Easy Ground Beef Enchiladas covered in sauce

Top with more…CHEESE!!!! Lots of and lots of cheese. Cheese is our friend!

Ground Beef Enchilada's topped with cheese

Garnish with sliced black olives and chopped green onions. (Health food!) 

Enchilada's garnished with olives and green onion

Bake, uncovered, in pre-heated oven for 35–40 minutes until sauce is bubbly and cheese is melted. If you want your cheese a tad brown…place under broiler for 3-5 minutes.

Easy Ground Beef Enchilada's

Serve with sour cream, fresh slices of creamy ripe avocado, and lime wedges!

Easy Ground Beef Enchilada's

The sour cream mixes with that rich delicious enchilada sauce and creates the most amazing sauce that blends beautifully with that simple hamburger filling.

You’re not going to find this at a 5 star Mexican Restaurant…but you will find your kids licking their plates, and asking for another one!

Serve with a fresh green salad and you’ve got a complete meal! You really don’t need anything else. They are so filling!

Truly an easy dish that is budget friendly, scoots spaghetti and meatloaf over for another day, and one the whole family will enjoy!

If you like this dish you might also enjoy these Family Friendly Casseroles

Thanks so much for stopping by my Nest! Remember to sign up for our bi-weekly Newsletter to see all the delicious recipes I have coming with quick handy links!

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Yield: 5 servings

Easy Ground Beef Enchiladas

Easy Ground Beef Enchiladas on a plate ready to eat.

Easy Ground Beef Enchilada's are kicked up with a rich warm homemade enchilada sauce! These will have your family begging for more!

Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Total Time 1 hour

Ingredients

Enchilada Sauce

  • 4 Tablespoons Vegetable Oil
  • 4 Tablespoons All Purpose Flour
  • 3 Tablespoons Chili Powder
  • 4 Cup Beef Broth
  • 6 oz. tomato paste
  • 2 teaspoon cumin
  • 2 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, OPTIONAL
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt

Enchiladas

  • 10 soft taco size, flour tortillas
  • 1 pound lean ground beef
  • 1 Tablespoon dried onion flakes
  • Salt and Pepper to taste
  • 1/2 cup Enchilada Sauce
  • Homemade Enchilada Sauce OR one large can red enchilada sauce
  • 3 cups grated fiesta blend grated cheese
  • 1/4 cup sliced black olives
  • 3 Tablespoons chopped green onions

Instructions

Enchilada Sauce

  1. In a medium sauce pan, over medium heat, add vegetable oil, flour, and chili powder. Whisk together until well combined. Let simmer for 2-3 minutes. While whisking add, 4 cups of beef broth and 6 oz. of tomato paste. Mix until well blended. Add cumin, oregano, onion powder, garlic powder, and salt. Also add in in cayenne pepper if desired.
  2. Stir until sauce thickens. Allow to simmer over low heat 3-4 minutes. Turn off heat. Set aside while you assemble Enchiladas.

Enchiladas

  1. In a medium skillet, over medium high heat, brown ground beef with dried onion flakes. Season with Salt and Pepper to taste. DO NOT DRAIN beef.
  2. Add 1/2 cup enchilada sauce. Stir until well incorporated.
  3. Preheat oven to 350°. Spray a 9 x 13 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray. Spread a thin layer of enchilada sauce in bottom of baking dish.
  4. Heat 10 flour tortillas in microwave 40 - 50 seconds.
  5. Remove from microwave. Place a large scoop of meat mixture down center of warm flour tortillas. Top with a big pinch of grated cheese.
  6. Roll tortilla. Place flap side down in baking dish. Continue stuffing and rolling tortillas. Squeeze to fit in 9 x 13 baking dish.
  7. Top with Enchilada sauce. As much as desired.
  8. Top with remaining cheese. Garnish with sliced olives and chopped green onions.
  9. Place, uncovered, in preheated oven and bake for 35 minutes until sauce is bubbling and cheese is melted. Brown cheese by placing under broiler for 3-5 minutes.
  10. Remove from oven. Serve with sour cream, avocado slices, and fresh sliced lime wedges.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

5 servings

Serving Size:

2 enchiladas

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 956Total Fat: 52gSaturated Fat: 20gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 27gCholesterol: 148mgSodium: 2622mgCarbohydrates: 67gFiber: 8gSugar: 9gProtein: 55g

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Karen

Monday 23rd of October 2023

Are you sure the sodium content is correct here? We watch our salt but it doesn’t seem like the ingredients add up to that much sodium per serving. Hoping we can eat this! Thank you!

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Wednesday 25th of October 2023

Hi Karen! They should be correct, BUT it is a program that auto generates the nutritional information, and it could have calculated it incorrectly. If it has I apologize.

Jacquie

Monday 27th of July 2020

Here in AZ we use corn tortillas for enchiladas. We soften the tortilla in warm enchilada sauce or hot oil...not hot enough to fry. I find flour tortillas to be kind of gluey when soaked in sauces...moa of course. The rest of the recipe looks divine... think I will try it with corn tortillas. Thank you for the yummy recipe.

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Tuesday 28th of July 2020

Jacquie,

I generally use corn tortillas for enchiladas too. I love corn tortilla's for enchiladas. I also get the "gluey" comment...but this works really well with flour tortillas since you don't put the sauce on till right before baking. We all have our own tastes. So I'm excited to see how this works with corn tortillas! Let me know how it turns out. Thanks for stopping by and sharing. Hope you have a great day! Norine

Tangy Chicken Fajita's | Norine's Nest

Tuesday 14th of May 2019

[…] Easy Ground Beef Enchiladas with Homemade Enchilada Sauce […]

Gail Marie

Tuesday 9th of April 2019

Chef Norine! Girlfriend! These just keep getting better and better. I tried your suggestion of beef broth and yes...the sauce is amazing :) Thank you again for your sweet comments and mention. I appreciate and admire your amazing culinary skills

Easy Tamale Casserole | Norine's Nest

Friday 15th of March 2019

[…] Thanks so much for stopping by today. If you love this dish…you may also enjoy my recipe for Easy Ground Beef Enchiladas.  […]

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