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These Ground Beef Enchiladas are filled with seasoned ground beef and loads of cheese all in a red sauce. The best part? They are done in about 30 minutes! Yum!
We’ve shared chicken enchiladas, vegetarian enchiladas, and even our own red enchilada sauce on the blog, so it was high time we share one of our family favorites…the ground beef enchilada!
Ground beef is easy on the budget and kid friendly, so you are going to love this recipe! You can file it in your busy weeknight meal folder!
What Ingredients are Needed for Ground Beef Enchiladas?
Get ready for a super easy enchilada recipe with straightforward ingredients and minimal prep and cook time. Here is your grocery list:
Enchiladas
- Oil
- Ground Beef (90/10)
- Cumin
- Coriander
- Smoked Paprika
- Cayenne
- Salt
- Monterey Jack Cheese
- Cilantro
- Corn Tortillas (or Flour)
Sauce
- Red Enchilada Sauce
- Cocoa Powder
- Brown Sugar (optional)
All the measurements can be found in the recipe card at the end of the post.
How to Make Ground Beef Enchiladas
We are going to start this recipe by getting the enchilada sauce ready. You can make our homemade red enchilada sauce or you can buy some at the store. Combine it with cocoa powder (trust me, SO good) in a saucepan over medium heat and stir it. Bring it to a simmer and then set it aside to use later.
The next step is making the enchilada filling:
- Brown the ground beef, spices, and some cilantro in a nonstick skillet.
- Once browned, add cheese, cilantro, and some sauce to the meat and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Spread some sauce all over the bottom of a 9×13 baking dish.
Now everything is ready to assemble the enchiladas.
- Grab your tortillas, add some sauce to a pie plate, and heat some oil in a clean nonstick skillet over medium high heat.
- Take 1 tortilla and coat both sides with the sauce in the pie plate, then place it into the pan and cook it until it’s soft, flipping once.
- Remove the tortilla from the skillet and fill it with some filling. Roll it and place it seam side down in the baking dish.
- Repeat these steps with all the remaining tortillas.
- Pour any extra sauce on top of the enchiladas and cover with cheese.
- Bake in preheated over.
- Serve and eat!
For more detailed instructions, scroll down to the recipe card.
What to Eat with Ground Beef Enchiladas
Then of course you should finish off the night with a piece of tres leches cake or dulce de leche donuts!
How Do You Keep Enchiladas From Getting Soggy?
The most important thing to do to avoid soggy enchiladas, is to briefly fry the tortilla before filling and rolling it. Definitely don’t skip this step! It fortifies the tortillas to hold up during baking.
Corn Tortillas vs. Flour Tortillas
We prefer the flavor of corn tortillas with the red enchilada sauce and ground beef filling. There are strong feelings about corn tortillas out there, so you can definitely use flour tortillas if you want. You may offend enchilada purists who insist enchiladas can only be made with corn tortillas.
Using corn tortillas also keep these tortillas gluten free.
Can I Make Enchiladas In Advance?
Yes! You can make enchiladas in advance and store them unbaked in the refrigerator for 1-2 days, or freeze for up to 2 months.
How Long Will Cooked Enchiladas Last in The Fridge?
Enchiladas will keep for 3-5 days in the refrigerator.
Can You Freeze Enchiladas?
These ground beef enchiladas make a great freezer meal! I usually double the recipe and freeze half for a meal down the road. Make the sauce and filling as directed. Fry the tortillas, fill them and roll them. Place them seam side down on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Let them freeze until hard and then store them in a ziplock bag or air tight container.
When you are ready to make them, spread sauce in a baking dish, top and bake as directed adding 5-10 minutes if your baking from frozen.
How to Reheat Enchiladas
To reheat leftovers, cover enchiladas with foil, and place in a cold oven. Turn the oven to 350 degrees and heat the enchiladas until they are hot in the middle which will take about 20-25 minutes.
I crave Mexican food all the time! It’s comfort food for me, and these ground beef enchiladas fill every need of my heart and my belly! It’s a quick and easy meal your entire family is going to love!
More MEXICAN MAIN DISHES You Have to Try:
- Pork Carnitas
- Refried Beans
- Quesadilla
- 3 Ingredient Spanish Rice
- Verde Enchiladas
- Steak Fajitas (or Chicken Fajitas)
- Smothered Bean and Cheese Enchiladas
- Honey Lime Chicken Enchiladas
- Mexican Street Corn – Elote
- Chorizo Potatoes
- All our MEXICAN RECIPES here!
Cheesy Ground Beef Enchiladas
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoons Oil
- 1.5 Pounds Ground Beef, 90% lean
- 1 teaspoon Cumin, ground
- 1 teaspoon Coriander, ground
- 1/4 teaspoon Smoked Paprika
- 1/8 teaspoon Cayenne
- 1/2 teaspoon Salt
- 2 1/4 Cups Cheese, Monterey Jack
- 2 Tablespoons Cilantro, chopped
- 12 Tortillas, Corn, or 8 flour tortillas
Sauce
- 2 15 oz enchilada sauces, red
- 2 1/2 teaspoons Cocoa Powder
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar, optional
Instructions
- In a saucepan over medium heat, add the enchilada sauce and cocoa powder and stir to combine. Cook until it comes to a simmer, then set aside.2 15 oz enchilada sauces, 2 1/2 teaspoons Cocoa Powder, 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- Adjust an oven to 400 degrees.
- Heat a nonstick skillet over medium high heat and add 1 tablespoon oil. Once shimmering, add the beef and spices, and 1 tablespoon of cilantro, cooking and breaking up into pieces until no longer pink, about 3 minutes.2 Tablespoons Oil, 1.5 Pounds Ground Beef, 1 teaspoon Cumin, 1 teaspoon Coriander, 1/4 teaspoon Smoked Paprika, 1/8 teaspoon Cayenne, 1/2 teaspoon Salt
- Remove the pan from the heat and stir in 1 1/2 cups of cheese, cilantro and 1/4 cup of the sauce. Season to taste and set aside.2 1/4 Cups Cheese, 2 Tablespoons Cilantro
- Spread 1/2 cup of sauce over the bottom of a 9x13" baking pan.
- In a clean nonstick skillet, add the remaining oil and heat to medium high heat. In a pie plate, add 1/2 cup of the sauce. Add 1 tortilla at a time to the pie plate, coating both sides, and placing into the pan to cook until soft, flipping once about 30 seconds. Remove from the pan to a cutting board or plate and fill with about 1/4-1/3 cup filling, then roll and place seam side down in the pan. Repeat with all tortillas.2 Tablespoons Oil, 12 Tortillas
- Pour any remaining sauces from the pan and sauce pan over the enchiladas and top with remaining cheese.2 1/4 Cups Cheese
- Cook for 20 minutes at 400 and then serve!
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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This turned out well in the end, but I had to deviate from the directions because coating the tortillas with sauce and heating them in oil simply didn’t work for me (flour tortillas were too light, made a mess in my pan and would have been hard to fill). I ended up just filling them with the meat mixture, topping with a lot of sauce and cheese and baking for 20 minutes, and they were perfect, although next time I’ll be sure to put some nonstick spray in the baking dish.
Thank you so much for the feedback Helen! I always appreciate hearing your perspective!
Is this very spicy? Wondering if kids would eat it…
Hi Joy! Not spicy at all! We don’t do spicy over here (especially me!). Just make sure the enchilada sauce that you use is mild. Enjoy!
Will be making this soon can i use mushrooms and vegan cheese am a vegan also be making your other enchiladas i never had enchiladas before perfect for my after office meals will dm you guys if i make this and let you guys know how it goes Thanks Ramya
Yes you can definitely use mushrooms and vegan cheese. Please let us know how it goes!