Green Chili “White” Enchiladas

There’s a little Mexican restaurant in Oklahoma that makes incredible enchiladas. Unfortunately they are chicken enchiladas covered in cheese sauce. Even after we moved to Arizona we would travel to Oklahoma once a year and eat at that restaurant everyday of our visit.

After we changed to a plant-based diet we still ate at that restaurant, in lieu of my usual, I would order veggie fajitas but those creamy enchiladas called to me.

I’m not one to let dietary restrictions get in my way so I created these creamy Green Chili White Enchiladas. The Green Chili is optional but I enjoy the flavor and so do my kids. I used one 4 oz can of dice green chilies. You could easily double the green chilies for more flavor.

White Enchiladas

Ingredients (for enchiladas)

• 3 or 4 cups cooked white beans
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 2 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp salt (optional)
• 2 oz. of diced green chilies (optional)
• soft corn tortillas

Do

1. Puree white beans in a food processor with spices and optional green chilies. Add a few tablespoons of water if needed to get a “chicken salad” like consistency.
2. Spread tortillas out in a layer then spread the puréed white beans over them.
3. Next spread a layer of sauce (recipe below) and repeat all of the layers until you run out of ingredients ending with a layer of sauce on top.
4. Bake in an oven preheated to 350° for 20 to 30 minutes.

 

White Sauce

Ingredients

•  3 Tbsp nutritional yeast
• 4 Tbsp brown rice flour
• 1 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 1 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 2 cups rice milk
• 2 oz diced green chilies

Do

1. Pour the dry ingredients into a skillet and allow them to cook until they begin to toast. You can stir, I prefer to shake the pan, so nothing sticks or starts to burn.
2. Pour the milk and whisk well.
3. Alternate whisking and scrapping with a silicon spatula regularly as it thickens.
4. Carefully taste the sauce, consider adding extra nutritional yeast for a cheesier flavor or more garlic or salt as desired.

A few notes about this dish…

I made this in a 9×9 casserole dish, if using a 9×15 you will want to double the recipe. I used 4 cups of beans in the 9×9 dish and had about a cup leftover but it really depends on how thick each later is.

You can omit the green chilies all together if you are not a fan, or you can double them or substitute your favorite salsa.

These enchiladas can be rolled like the enchiladas you typically order in a restaurant however corn tortillas are pretty fragile and since I no longer dip them in oil (yuck, I used to do that when making enchiladas) they tear easily. I find it quicker to just layer my ingredients instead of rolling them.

You can add additional veggies. I recommend diced onions, chopped cilantro, tomatoes and peppers.

I use brown rice flour because it is gluten-free. You could use wheat flour or a different flour of your choice. The flour acts as a thickener and makes this sauce nice a creamy.

If you live in an omni household and have to cook meat for your family, this recipe can easily be adapted. I recommend you make them as written but divide them into two separate pans, add small amounts of chicken to the pan for the omni members. These enchiladas are so full of protein and fiber on their own they wont really miss it but you will be able to call them “chicken enchiladas” and make your family happy.

This sauce is pretty amazing on its own and would be delicious on rice or noodles, you may want to omit the green chilies though.

Are you an enchilada fan? Do you prefer red, green or white?