Recipe updated: April 3rd, 2024
If you love Mexican food, you are going to love this easy beef enchiladas recipe. It is made with lots of lean ground beef and sharp cheddar cheese, all smothered in a mild La Victoria red enchilada sauce.
The precise instructions below make this recipe easy to follow and quick to fix. Beef enchiladas are tasty and delicious just like our homemade chicken enchiladas with premium chunk chicken breast, and our sister ground beef enchiladas recipe made with red peppers and onions.
😋 What’s in This Beef Enchiladas Recipe?
This beef enchilada recipe contains lean ground beef with fire-roasted diced green chiles along with a Mexican-style four-cheese blend, all stuffed inside golden blend tortillas. La Victoria red enchilada sauce is poured over the enchiladas, then the Mexican cheese and sharp cheddar cheese are sprinkled over the top of the enchiladas before baking.
We love the golden blend tortillas because they incorporate the corn tortillas and flour tortillas flavors all in one.
🔑 Key Ingredients
- 1 pound of lean ground beef
- 2 pounds of Mexican style cheese blend (or your favorite cheese)
- 1 cup of sharp shredded cheddar cheese
- 1 package Don Pancho Authentic Mexican Don Pancho Tortillas – 10 tortillas (or your favorite brand)
- 28 ounces of La Victoria red enchilada sauce mild (or your favorite enchilada red sauce)
- 4 ounces of diced green chiles (fire-roasted, mild, or hot)
👩🍳 How to Make Ground Beef Enchiladas
These step-by-step instructions are accompanied by detailed photos for enhanced clarity and guidance.
Step 1. Brown the Ground Beef
In a large skillet, brown one pound of lean ground beef on medium-high heat until no more pink is showing. You may need to turn the burner down to medium heat during the browning.
Then, after browning the ground beef mixture, drain and dispose of any unwanted liquid grease from the frying pan then set aside for now.
Tip: An easy way to discard liquid grease from the frying pan is to move all of the ground beef to one side of the frying pan as you slightly tilt the pan at a forty-five-degree angle. The excess grease will run down the opposite side of the pan away from the ground beef. Take a paper towel and sop up the grease that drains out of the ground beef. Then throw the paper towels in the trash instead of pouring the grease in the sink, which in time, can possibly clog the drain pipes.
Another way is to use a spoon to scoop the grease out of the frying pan and onto a couple of paper towels. Then wipe the spoon clean on the paper towels and throw the paper towels in the trash can.
Step 2. Assemble a Tortilla
Take one tortilla straight out of the bag and place it on a flat work surface. A plate works great. Then, with a spoon, spread a little bit of the browned ground beef across the middle of the tortilla. After that, do the same with the diced green chiles – spread some across the middle of the tortilla on top of the browned ground beef.
Step 3. Add Mexican Cheese
Then sprinkle some of the Mexican cheese across the middle of the tortilla on top of the browned ground beef and diced green chiles.
Note: Make sure to save some of the Mexican cheese for later in this recipe.
Step 4. Fold the Tortilla
With the tortilla still on the plate, fold the right side of the tortilla halfway over to cover the browned ground beef, diced green chiles, and cheese. Then fold the left side over the top of the right side. The photo below shows the tortilla with the folded side down.
Step 5. Place Folded Tortillas in Baking Dish
Prepare the baking dishes by spraying a 9×13-inch and an 8×8-inch baking dish with cooking spray. Place the rolled enchiladas in the prepared baking dish with the folded side down.
Repeat the steps to fill the rest of the tortillas – put some browned ground beef in the center of each tortilla, then put some green chiles and Mexican cheese on top of the browned ground beef. Fold them and place them in the baking dish alongside the others, with the folded side down.
Note: This recipe makes ten enchiladas, so six of them go into a 9×13-inch baking dish, and the other four enchiladas go into an 8×8-inch baking dish. Both baking dishes can go into the oven at the same time.
Step 6. Pour Enchilada Sauce Over the Tortillas
Pour some of the La Victoria red enchilada sauce, or your favorite brand, into the 9×13-inch baking dish over the top of the enchiladas. Then pour the remaining enchilada sauce over the top of the enchiladas in the 8×8-inch baking dish.
Note: Only the 9×13-inch baking dish is shown in the photo below.
Step 7. Sprinkle on the Cheese
With the remaining Mexican cheese, sprinkle it on both of the baking dishes over the top of the enchiladas and enchilada red sauce.
Step 8. Sprinkle on the Cheddar Cheese
Then, sprinkle 1 cup of cheddar cheese over the top of the Mexican cheese and enchiladas. Do this on both baking dishes.
Step 9. Bake the Enchiladas in the Oven
Heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Put both baking dishes in the oven and bake for about 45 minutes until the cheese has melted and the enchiladas are bubbling hot.
Recipe Variations
- Sprinkle a diced medium onion, fresh green onions, diced bell peppers, or fresh cilantro inside the enchiladas before you fold them. Or if you like the onions and peppers raw, sprinkle some over the top of the enchiladas after you take them out of the oven.
- Put a scoop of sour cream over the top of your enchilada or inside of it before baking.
- Put some black beans inside of the enchiladas before baking, or toss some on the top after baking.
- Sprinkle a little bit of chili powder, garlic powder, or any of your favorite seasonings on the ground beef while it is browning in the frying pan.
- Spread some refried beans in each enchilada before folding them, or have a side of refried beans next to your enchiladas on your plate.
- If you want vegetarian enchiladas, make cheese enchiladas instead by eliminating the browned ground beef.
❓ FAQs
Yes, this beef enchilada recipe can certainly be prepared ahead of time. You can make these beef enchiladas in the morning and bake them later that evening right before it’s time for dinner.
Or, you can even make them the night before if you need to. I wouldn’t leave them in the refrigerator for more than a day though without baking and serving them. Put some aluminum foil or plastic wrap across the top of the baking dish while the enchiladas are in the refrigerator.
Yes, you can use soft corn tortillas or flour tortillas to make beef enchiladas, whichever you prefer. This recipe uses a blend of flour and corn tortillas, as mentioned earlier, which incorporates the corn and flour flavors all in one.
You can freeze these homemade beef enchiladas if you have leftovers. Also, beef enchiladas can last a couple of months in the freezer if wrapped and sealed properly in a freezer-safe airtight container.
When you are ready to bake the enchiladas for dinner, take the frozen enchiladas out of the freezer the night before and put them in the refrigerator to thaw. After thawing, heat them in the oven until they are nice and hot. Covering the baking dish with aluminum foil is recommended while baking.
📝 Final Thoughts
When you are looking for a great recipe to make that’s tasty and delicious, you must try this easy ground beef enchiladas for dinner. The whole family will love it. A quick recap of what to do is:
- Brown the ground beef.
- Put some browned ground beef on a tortilla.
- Toss some green chiles and cheese over the browned ground beef.
- Roll them up.
- Place them in a sprayed baking dish.
- Pour enchilada sauce over them.
- Sprinkle the top with Mexican cheese and then cheddar cheese.
- Bake in the oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 45 minutes.
That’s it. So easy and yummy! These ground beef enchiladas go great with refried beans and Mexican rice as a side dish. Enjoy!
📄 Recipe Card
Easy Beef Enchiladas
🫕 Equipment
- Baking dish (9×13 inch and 8×8 inch)
🧂 Ingredients
- 1 lb lean ground beef
- 2 lb Mexican style four cheese blend (shredded – any brand)
- 1 cup sharp cheddar cheese (shredded – any brand)
- 1 pkg golden blend tortillas (10 tortillas)
- 28 oz La Victoria red enchilada sauce mild (or any brand)
- 4 oz diced green chiles (fire-roasted and peeled)
👩🍳 Instructions
- Brown the lean ground beef on medium-high heat until no more pink is showing. Discard any unwanted liquid grease from the frying pan.
- Then, scatter some of the browned ground beef across the middle of a tortilla.
- Put some of the diced green chiles across the middle on top of the browned ground beef.
- Sprinkle some of the Mexican cheese across the middle of the tortilla on top of the browned ground beef and diced green chiles. Save some of the Mexican cheese for later.
- Spray a 9×13-inch baking dish and an 8×8-inch baking dish with cooking spray.
- Fold the right side of the tortilla halfway over to cover the browned ground beef, diced green chiles, and cheese. Then fold the left side over the top of the right side. Place the folded tortilla in the baking dish folded side down.
- Repeat the steps to fill the rest of the tortillas – a layer of browned ground beef, green chiles, and Mexican cheese. Then fold, then place in the baking dish. We made a total of ten tortillas. We placed six in the 9×13-inch baking dish, and four in the 8×8-inch baking dish.
- Pour the red enchilada sauce over the top of the folded tortillas in both baking dishes.
- Sprinkle the remaining Mexican cheese over the top of the enchiladas sauce in both dishes.
- Sprinkle the cheddar cheese over the top of the Mexican cheese in both of the baking dishes.
- Put both of the baking dishes in the oven. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes until the cheese has melted and the enchiladas are hot.
*️⃣ Recipe Notes
- Always keep an eye on the oven when baking anything.
- You can make these beef enchiladas a couple of hours ahead of time or the night before.
- Beef enchiladas can be served with Mexican rice and refried beans.
❤️ More Simple Recipes You Will Love
- Korean Style Ground Beef – A super easy ground beef recipe to make with lean ground beef, minced garlic mixed with a sauce made of brown sugar, soy sauce, minced ginger, and sesame oil. Sliced green onions and sesame seeds are added and served over rice. So delicious!
- Easy Ground Beef Taco Recipe with Salsa – Made with lean ground beef, La Victoria salsa, cayenne pepper, and ketchup, served over a flour tortilla with lots of vegetables.
- Easy Chicken and Broccoli Lasagna Recipe – Made with butter, minced garlic, heavy cream, black pepper, grated parmesan cheese, rotisserie chicken, lasagna oven-ready noodles, frozen broccoli (thaw – chopped), and shredded mozzarella cheese.
A wife, a mother to a son and a daughter, and a grandmother to three granddaughters. Flo loves sharing recipes passed down from her own mother, her mother-in-law, and her grandmother as well as new recipes created with her daughter, Tamara Ray.
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