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Skillet Creamy Chipotle Chicken Enchiladas. Chicken seasoned with smoky chipotle peppers, enchilada sauce, and cream are mixed together to create a creamy, saucy chicken enchilada. Top with tortillas and cheese before oven-baking. The most delicious smells await you as you pull this out of the oven. Serve topped with slices of avocado, lime juice, and fresh cilantro. That touch of cream makes all the difference – a delicious twist on classic enchiladas!
Thursday night Mexican food – yum! Even though I’ve been sharing a lot of Asian-inspired/influenced recipes lately, I’ve still been cooking plenty of Mexican dishes too! Tacos are always on rotation, and we all love my tortilla soup.
But I don’t share all of the recipes I create; only the ones that taste so delicious—and this saucy skillet dish tastes so delicious!
It was a dish I didn’t think I would share, but when it turned out to be not only simple but yummy, too, I knew it was something I needed to recreate for the site.
Sometimes, my very best dishes are the ones I create without much thought, and usually on busy nights.
A little of this and a little of that is the secret to some of the best recipes!
I wanted to make enchiladas, but I didn’t want to go through all the effort of rolling the chicken up in tortillas and then snuggling them in enchilada sauce. Instead, I skipped the rolling all together and layered everything in a skillet, then baked!
The sauce was creamy, the chicken was perfect, and the tortillas and cheese on top really made this so delish. As you can guess, my family loves this recipe.
These are the details
Step 1: cook the chicken
This really is so straightforward. In an oven-safe skillet mix chopped onions with chicken breasts. Then season the chicken with smoked paprika, garlic powder, and salt. Next, add some chipotle chiles in adobo; I use at least three chiles, but make sure to use them to your taste. You don’t want the sauce to be too spicy or not spicy enough!
Pour over a can of diced green chiles and red enchilada sauce. Simmer the chicken in the sauce until it is fully cooked and shreds easily.
Step 2: shred the chicken
Using two forks, shred the chicken directly in the sauce. This takes a bit of time, so I either keep the skillet on LOW heat or turn the heat off altogether.
Step 3: mix in the cream
Place the skillet back over medium heat and add a cup of cream. You can also use whole milk, but for a perfectly creamy sauce, I recommend using cream. Canned coconut milk also works well.
Simmer a few minutes to thicken the sauce, then mix in some fresh cilantro.
Step 4: top, bake, and serve
Snuggle a few tortillas on top of the saucy chicken, then add some cheese and bake until the sauce bubbles and the cheese melts.
You can serve this topped with fresh slices of avocado, a dollop of plain Greek yogurt, and fresh cilantro. Green onions and limes are great too!
Nothing fancy to it, but of course, delicious!
Looking for other Mexican-inspired recipes? Here are a few…
Cilantro Lime Salmon with Mango Salsa
Bang Bang Shrimp Tacos with Fried Avocado
Lastly, if you make this Skillet Creamy Chipotle Chicken Enchiladas, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And, of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Skillet Creamy Chipotle Chicken Enchiladas
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 432 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2-3 tablespoons chopped chipotle in adobo
- 1 can (12 ounce) red enchilada sauce
- 1 can (4 ounce) diced green chilies
- 1 cup cream
- 1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
- 6 corn or flour tortillas
- 1 1/2 cups shredded Mexican cheese
- limes, avocado, and yogurt, for serving
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 400° F.2. In a large oven-safe skillet, combine the chicken, onion, paprika, and garlic powder, then season with salt. Add the chipotle and diced green chiles. Pour over the enchilada sauce, plus 1/2 cup water. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to medium-low. Cover, and cook for 10-15 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and shreds easily. 3. Shred the chicken in the sauce using two forks. Add the cream and yogurt (if using). Continue cooking over medium heat until the sauce thickens, about 5 minutes. Stir in the cilantro. 4. Arrange the tortillas on top of the chicken. Top with cheese. Bake for 10-15 minutes until the cheese is melted.5. Serve the enchiladas warm, topped with fresh lime juice, avocado, Greek yogurt, and cilantro.
This post was originally published on March 14, 2024
Tried this recipe tonight and it was really easy to pull together on a weeknight. We love enchiladas but it’s always a tedious task to pull together so this alternative is so great. The family loved it and the sauce was super tasty. Next time I would make the following modifications: skip the water since my sauce ended up more soupy, skip the adobo peppers to make it less spicy for the kiddos & use shredded rotisserie chicken instead of cooking and shredding chicken breasts. Overall, great dish! Thanks for sharing!
Hey Genevra,
Happy Tuesday! Thanks a bunch for making this recipe and sharing your notes, I’m so glad to hear it was enjoyed! xT
This has such a great depth of flavor! Already thinking about making it again and turning into chicken nachos!
Hi Jaimie,
Amazing!! Love to hear that this dish turned out nicely for you, thanks for trying it! xx
Fantastic dinner – family loved it and the spice level was right on point. I had to make a few modifications as I was traveling with the meal – I use the crock-pot and then transferred into a casserole dish ready to bake on location. Family commented positively for hours afterward. Thanks!
Hi Lyn,
Perfect!! Thanks so much for trying this recipe and your feedback, so glad it turned out well for you! xT
I forgot to mention that I used coconut milk instead of cream. Do you think that could have caused the sauce to be really thin and not get thicker?? Always love your recipes they are the best thanks again!!
Coconut milk is definitely thinner than cream so that could have been why your sauce was so thin. Thanks again Mike!!
Hi Tieghan,
These Enchilads were perfect loved the flavor just amazing!! I did notice my sauce never thickend as I would have expected. I am not sure if its becasue I added some greeek yogurt in addtion to the cream. Maybe I didn’t let it cook long enough to thicken as maybe on my stove I need more time. I have a lot of sacue left over that I could easily make several more Enchiladas as well. There are ways to thicken up sauces but, I didn’t want to mess the simply amazing flavor!!! Thanks for sharing the recipe I do love it!
Hey Mike,
I appreciate you making this dish and sharing your feedback, so glad to hear it turned out nicely for you! I would simmer the enchilada sauce a bit longer next time to thicken it up. I hope this helps for next time! xT
Question: not a fan of red enchilada sauce, would green work as a swap in this recipe?
Hey there,
Sure, I don’t see why not! Let me know if you give this recipe a try, I hope you love it! xT
How do you make a vegetarian version of this? Do you recommend using soyrizo or beans instead of chicken?
Hi there,
I would try using beans, I think that should work nicely for you! Please let me know if you give this recipe a try, I hope you love it! xT
Followed the recipe instructions but added 1 tbsp of chili powder. The chili powder really helped with flavor of the enchilada sauce. I don’t recommend adding the 1/2 c of water per the recipe instructions. Turned out very tasty but like soup. Reading the blog there is no mention of water being added with the enchilada sauce. Looking at the pictures Tieghan’s sauce is thick, unlike mine which was soupy. Definitely will make again but will not add the 1/2 c of water.
Hey Christine,
Thanks so much for giving this recipe a try and sharing your feedback! So glad to hear that it turned out well for you! xx
I made this last night and loved it! I used some milk and Greek yogurt mixed together in place of the heavy cream.
Hey Jessica,
Happy Saturday!! I am so glad to hear that this dish turned out well for you, thanks for making it! xT
Made it and got a ton of compliments. I would just suggest letting it sit out for a little so that the sauces congeal a bit. I doubled the recipe for 9 people and it was all gone 🙂
Thanks a lot Sarah! So glad to hear that everyone enjoyed this recipe, I appreciate you making it! xT
Made this evening! Super yummy! Will make again! Fed my husband and me and took the leftovers over to our daughter’s family of 5. They all enjoyed as well! Kinda crazy that 2 chicken breasts fed 7 peeps! And even though the youngest two are boys, 8 and almost 12, they still eat like grown adults! Served with guac (homemade, I had ripe avocados) salsa, chips and rice. Of course since we’re in the PNW, and we had glorious sunshine today, it called for margaritas (adults only) Thanks for always sharing!
Hey Deb,
Love to hear this! Thanks so much for making this recipe and sharing your feedback:) Have a great Saturday! xT
Is this dish very spicy? I’m wondering if my kids would eat it.
Hi Carina,
I would skip the chipotle in adobo. Let me know if you give this recipe a try, I hope you love it! xT
I made this tonight and it was absolutely delicious! Everyone loved it and went back for more! I did however use chicken broth instead of water and added black beans, small deviation . The recipe it self is great, flavors are amazing. I will definitely make this again!
Hey Vanessa,
Wonderful!! I’m so glad to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks so much for making it! Have a great weekend:) xT
How much and when did you add the black beans. It sounds like a great addition.
What kind of cream do you mean, heavy cream?
Hi Amanda,
Yes, you will use heavy cream for this recipe. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xT
Is there anyway to make this dairy free?
Wouldnt you use your normal dairy free swaps along with how she mentioned coconut milk vs cream?
Yes, I think that would work nicely, Valerie!
Hey Brieanna,
Sure, I would just use your favorite dairy free cheese, yogurt, and milk:) I hope you love this recipe, let me know if you give it a try! xT
This looks good, hoping to make it tonight. In step 3 you mention adding cream and yogurt. There’s no yogurt listed in ingredients until the end for toppings. Can you clarify? Thanks
Thanks so much Jamie!! So sorry about that, you are going to use 1/4 cup of yogurt in step 3:) I hope you love this recipe! xT