A corn tortilla rolled around a filling and bathed in chili sauce, baked until tender — a staple of Mexican cuisine since pre-Columbian times.
An ancient dish
The Aztecs ate corn tortillas dipped in chili sauce — the practice predates the Spanish arrival. The modern enchilada — rolled, filled, sauced, and often baked — took shape in 19th-century Mexican kitchens. The earliest published recipe appears in El Cocinero Mexicano (1831).
Sauces and styles
- Enchiladas rojas — red chili sauce made from dried guajillo or ancho peppers.
- Enchiladas verdes — green sauce from tomatillos and serranos.
- Enchiladas suizas — covered in white cream sauce (“Swiss” because of the cream and cheese).
- Enchiladas mole — bathed in mole sauce with chocolate, chilies, and spices.
- Enchiladas de mole poblano — the version most associated with Puebla.
How tortillas hold up
The trick to enchiladas is briefly frying or warming the corn tortillas in oil before rolling, so they don’t disintegrate when sauced. Many home cooks dip them straight into warm sauce and skip the oil for a lighter version.
Find more foods by letter
Enchilada starts with E and ends with A. Browse other foods along the same letter.
Foods that contain a letter from "Enchilada":