My family has been making green enchiladas for as long as I can remember, and since leaving home I have made various versions of the recipe, influenced by my time in San Antonio and Hunter’s suggestions. This is the current version of the great enchiladas. I have no idea if this is at all “real” Mexican food, but it tastes great. (Actually, the green sauce I made here was inspired from a Mexican cookbook, so it has to be sort of authentic!)

Green Enchiladas

Step 1: Cook the meat that will fill the enchiladas. I braised a pork roast in veggie stock for this recipe. Chicken is also great, and you could substitute beans instead of meat too.

Step 2: Roast the chiles for the sauce. Put an assortment of jalepenos, tomatillos, green chiles, and a small head of garlic on a cookie sheet and put in a 450 degree oven until the skin of the chiles is blistered. Then remove from the oven and put the chiles in a large plastic bag for 8-12 minutes. Then peel them under running water. Chop and put in a blender. If you want the enchiladas less spicy, make sure to remove the seeds from the jalepenos.   Also peel the garlic and put that in the blender, and sautee a half onion in some olive oil and add that too the blender as well. Puree into a nice saucey consistancy, adding water if necessary. Add some of the sauce to the cooked meat and mix.

If you don’t want to roast the peppers, you can also used canned green chiles and puree them with sauteed garlic and onions.

Step 3: Assemble the enchiladas. You will need to pre-cook the corn tortillas in a pan. Run each tortilla under some water and cook in a non-stick pan on each side until a little browned. Then put a little of the cooked meat/sauce mix into the tortilla, add some crumbled queso fresca (Mexican cheese) and roll. Put the enchilada into a baking pan, and add a little more sauce and some more cheese to the top. Repeat until the pan is full of enchiladas, but don’t pack them too close together. Then put them in the oven at 400 degrees until the cheese browns and serve with some refried or black beans.