Healthy Paleo Chicken Enchiladas. It’s been a while since I posted a paleo dinner recipe. Nothing I have cooked recently has inspired me to put pen to paper until now.
Over the last several months, my friend has been sending me links and talking about the Whole30 Challenge and Paleo Chicken Enchiladas recipes. This is a Paleo-style meal plan where you eliminate dairy, alcohol, grains, legumes and all processed foods from your diet for one month.
You eat lean meats, seafood, eggs, vegetables, fruits and nuts. I’m not going to get into the benefits of this plan, but after a week, I am already seeing a lot of positive effects and feel great.
I bought the book, It Starts with Food, by Melissa and Dallas Hartwig and read it over vacation. It’s an enlightening read that I totally recommend, and it inspired me to want to try this 30-day experiment.
What I found most compelling about this book was it never referred to the plan as a diet. It educates you on how and why you should make healthy food decisions. Since I love to cook, I was eager to create delicious recipes while only using Whole30-compliant ingredients.
As I have written about several times before, Mexican cuisine is my go-to weekend dinner choice. But with Whole30, I can’t use cheese, sour cream/crema or flour/corn tortillas in a dish. No rice and refried beans, either. How am I going to make a great-tasting Paleo Chicken Enchiladas dish without all the usual staples? It was easier than I thought… I decided to update my plant-based enchilada recipe to fit the new, healthy meal plan we are now eating.
There are three separate main steps in putting together this Paleo Chicken Enchiladas as a whole… the sauce, the filling and the “tortillas”. I will start with the sauce as you can make it the day before if time allows.
Healthy Paleo Chicken Enchiladas
Ingredients
Enchilada Sauce:
4 cups boiling water- 6 ounces dried California chile pods
- 3 ounces guajillo chile pods
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 cloves garlic - minced
1 medium sweet onion - diced
1 can fire-roasted tomatoes - (28-ounce)
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1½ teaspoons oregano - dried
1 pinch kosher salt
1 pinch ground black pepper
Enchilada Filling:
24 ounces ground chicken (minced chicken)
2 pieces bay leaf (bay leaves)- 1 tablespoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon cumin
Tortillas:
8 medium egg - yes, eight
4 teaspoons coconut oil
4 tablespoons water- 1 cup arrowroot powder - will need to go to an organic market for this ingredient
3 tablespoons coconut flour
2 teaspoons salt
Instructions
Enchilada Sauce:
- Cut open chile pods and remove the seeds and ribs. Place chile skins in a large bowl and add the boiling water until the peppers soften for approximately 1 hour.
- Add the rehydrated chile skins and a cup and a half of steeped water to a blender and puree for three minutes. Pour the pepper mixture into a strainer and push the pulp into a bowl and set aside. Discard any remaining pulp.
- In a heavy saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onions and garlic and cook for 3-4 minutes. Add the tomatoes with juice, chile mixture, cumin, oregano, salt and pepper to the pan. With a stick blender, puree to a smooth sauce. Note: If you don’t have a stick blender, cook onions and garlic first and then transfer all ingredients into the blender before simmering. Cook blended sauce for 30-45 minutes and set aside.
Enchilada Filling:
- In a large pot, add the chicken breasts, bay leaves, peppercorns and cumin and cover with cold water. On medium heat, bring the chicken to a boil, let simmer for 10 minutes and then remove from heat. Let stand in the water for another 5-10 minutes until cooked through. Remove the chicken breasts to cool and discard the cooking liquid. Once the chicken is cool, mince and add ¾ cup of the enchilada sauce. Mix and set aside.
Tortillas:
- Whisk together eggs, coconut oil and water. In a separate bowl, combine the arrowroot powder, coconut flour and salt. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and blend with a hand mixer for 1-2 minutes. The batter should be light and pourable. If too thick, add an additional tablespoon of water. Add batter to a large measuring cup, so it is easier to pour into the skillet.
- Heat a 9-inch non-stick skillet over medium-high heat and pour enough batter to almost cover the bottom of the pan. Swirl around until you have covered the entire pan. Cook until the edges of the tortilla start to curl, and you can shake it loose for about a minute. Flip and cook on the other side until slightly brown. Continue until the batter is done, making approximately 8 tortillas.
Putting It All Together:
- With a ladle, add a thin layer of enchilada sauce to the bottom of a 9”x13” casserole dish. Lay one tortilla on your work surface and put a generous handful of the minced chicken in the middle. Roll the tortilla and place in the casserole dish seam side down. Continue until the casserole is full using 8 tortillas. Cover the enchiladas with the sauce and sprinkle any remaining chicken leftover. Top with sliced black olives (optional) and cook uncovered in a 350°F oven for 30-40 minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving. Garnish with chopped scallions and serve with Pico de Gallo and freshly made guacamole. You won’t miss the cheese and sour cream!
