Edgar Allan Poe‘s gallant knight may not have ever found his elusive land of Eldorado, but I’ve got something better for the poor old chap– Eldorado on a plate! That’s right, these El Dorado Enchiladas are the edible city of gold. A plateful will have you, and that very determined knight, singing gaily once again.
If you actually clicked on the links above, then you may very well be a classic literature nerd like me. Or, you could be a wanna-be literature nerd who has no time to read and will settle for a quick-lit-tune-up. It is quite possible that you fall into neither of these categories but instead are just curious as to what in the hell this crazy redhead is rambling about this week; so you clicked. For those of you who didn’t click to explore further, you probably just want me to get on to the recipe tutorial already. I totally see your point but first must qualify my theme above by stating that I used to be an English teacher and that I love Edgar Allan Poe. In other words, I cannot help it.
To transition quickly, I also love Mexican food. These amazing El Dorado Enchiladas are layered with lots of goodies, including ground beef, onions, olives, green chiles, cottage cheese, and many more rich, comforting ingredients.
El Dorado Enchiladas are pretty awesome.
This recipe was actually inspired by my father-in-law’s amazing El Dorado Casserole, which is similar to this recipe. So good! He made his casserole for us once, and we’ve never forgotten it. In fact, I immediately saved the recipe for safekeeping.
The other day I was craving enchiladas, but my hubby wanted his dad’s El Dorado Casserole. Like any sweet, sweet wife (wink), I compromised. I married my delicious enchiladas with his favorite El Dorado Casserole. The love child? A blessed creation so delightful you just wanna eat it. Welcome to the world, Baby El Dorado Enchiladas.
Here’s how we make life happen:
First, brown a couple pounds of ground beef, and then drain off most of the grease.
Next, add enchilada sauce, onion, black olives, salt, garlic salt, garlic powder, cumin, and black pepper.
Over medium heat, allow the beef enchilada sauce mixture to simmer for about 15 minutes. When the onions are tender and the sauce has reduced and thickened, it is ready. Remove from heat.
In a separate bowl, add your green chiles, sour cream, and cottage cheese.
Simply stir these ingredients together. This layer will provide a nice creamy zing from the green chiles!
Coat your casserole dish with nonstick spray and layer like so:
- 6 overlapping corn tortillas
- Beef enchilada sauce mixture (half)
- 1/2 of the creamy white zingy mixture
- Shredded cheese (half)
- Repeat steps 1 – 4
The layering process is the most fun part. The photo above shows only four layers. (How can she possibly fit another four layers into that dish?)
There you have it; all eight layers. (Is she Wonder Woman?)
Bake this beauty for 40 minutes at 350. Top with avocado, tomatoes, and your reserved enchilada sauce, if you’re feeling saucy!
El Dorado Enchiladas. This recipe is golden.
Here’s the complete, printable recipe:
Ingredients
- 2 lbs ground beef
- 2 large (19 oz) cans red enchilada sauce
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 1 (3.8 oz) can sliced black olives, drained
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp garlic salt
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp cumin
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 2 cups (1 pint) sour cream
- 2 cups (1 pint) cottage cheese
- 2 (4 oz) cans diced green chiles
- 12 (6 in) corn tortillas
- 16 oz cheddar jack cheese, shredded
- Avocado, tomatoes, reserved 1/2 can enchilada sauce (if desired)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Brown ground beef in large skillet over medium heat, stirring to break into smaller crumbles. Drain.
- Add 1 ½ cans enchilada sauce (reserve ½ can for topping), onion, olives, salt, garlic salt, garlic powder, cumin, and pepper.
- Simmer over medium heat, stirring frequently, until onions are translucent, 10-20 minutes. Remove from heat.
- In medium bowl, stir together the sour cream, cottage cheese and green chiles.
- Coat 13 x 9 in. casserole dish with nonstick cooking spray. Layer 6 tortillas (overlapping), then ½ of the ground beef mixture, ½ of the sour cream mixture, and ½ of the cheddar jack cheese. Repeat the layering process with the remaining half of ingredients.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. Allow to cool for 10 minutes before serving.
- Garnish with fresh avocado, tomatoes, and reserved ½ can of enchilada sauce, if desired. Enjoy!
This recipe is linked up with other zesty bloggers at Weekend Potluck!
Check out some of my other recipes with a Mexican flair:
Traditional Mexican Tostadas with Refried Beans
Authentic Mexican Chorizo and Egg Tacos
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I made this recipe about 2 weeks ago and it was a HIT! I also tried your father in law’s way and we loved that also! Thanks for this recipe!
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I am so happy that you tried it! Thank you for taking the time to let me and my readers know you loved it!
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Although I’m more of an Emily Dickinson fan (no offense Cherry), you’ve inspired me to ‘ride, boldly ride’ down to Eldorado for this one!!
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Ha ha! I love Emily Dickinson, too!
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All of your recipes look amazing,I will definitely be making them.
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Hi Annie! Thank you so much! Let me know how they turn out! I appreciate you taking the time to comment.