Looking for a healthier spin on enchiladas that your kids will dig? Try our delicious and healthy chicken enchiladas for kids using whole wheat tortillas! Your family won't be disappointed!
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Enchiladas in under 30 minutes!
Believe it or not, chicken enchiladas can be made in under 30 minutes. The key is to work strategically to prepare your enchilada casserole and finish with the broiler.
Typically, enchiladas are assembled and then baked for 25-30 minutes. So, prep + cook time combined can easily add up to 45-60 minutes. Yet, it occurred to us that maybe if we used the broiler, the enchiladas might achieve the same crispy and bubbly effect in a shorter amount of time. And they really did!
What Makes these Enchiladas Kid-Friendly?
To keep this dish simple, we incorporate some of our kid staples- chicken, cheese and tortillas- and slip in some veggies-onions, peppers, tomatoes and olives. While not spicy, these enchiladas are super tasty and can easily be jazzed up with additional toppings. This dish truly meets kids and grown-ups in the middle!
To make this dish EVEN MORE kid-friendly, you can give kids choices when it comes to...
- The filling. We decided to have chicken, cheese and black olives in our enchiladas. But you could also choose: pork, carne asada, shrimp, corn, black/pinto/refried beans or rice.
- Toppings. The sour cream and cilantro are optional. You could also do salsa, guacamole, hot sauce (if your kiddos are adventurous), melted cheese sauce, chopped avocado, or a squeeze of fresh lime.
- Sides. Lastly, let kids choose if they want tortilla chips, rice, beans or corn as a side dish. My kids and I have always liked this Three Bean Salad. Warning: choosing tortilla chips may turn dinner into something more like snack time, and not sure if that's what you want. Lol.
Can Enchiladas Really Be Healthy?
The answer is no...and yes. It all depends on what goes into your enchiladas. Here is how we make our enchiladas for kids a tad bit healthier.
- Choose whole wheat tortillas instead of flour tortillas because - when you have the choice - whole wheat is much healthier. The Spruce Eats has a great, simple breakdown of this. In creating white flour, the process includes stripping the flour of a lot of nutrients and also fiber. Because whole wheat flour has not undergone that processing, it is way higher in nutrients and fiber.
- Use healthy "fillers." Other than the cheese, our list of ingredients is pretty healthy, which includes onions, green peppers, tomatoes and un-breaded chicken. You can also use other veggies like bell peppers, mushrooms and corn. Lots of options. If you really wanted to go for a fully unprocessed meal, you could even make your own enchilada sauce. However, we can't guarantee our 28 minute cooking time with that choice.
- Limit the cheese. While we opted to include cheese in this dish, cheese isn't necessary. OR you can use a lower fat cheese. Same goes for sour cream. You can buy a low fat sour cream, or skip it altogether. Your decide!
The Best Kid-Friendly Sides
Sometimes sides can make or break a dish for little ones, so we recommend pairing our healthy enchiladas for kids with one of the following:
Beans: Pour a can of black beans into a small pot, add salt and taco seasoning and cook for maybe four minutes.
Rice: We love Uncle Ben's Ready Rice packets that cook in your microwave in 90 seconds. We already had the 'Roasted Chicken' flavor in the pantry. But, if I had gone to the store, I would have looked for their 'Spanish Style,' 'Whole Grain Brown' or 'Whole Grain Medley' flavors. Boom!
Chips and Guac: Check our our 4 Ingredient Guacamole. Super simple to make and amazingly delicious!
Salad: Our Three Bean Salad would be sooooo good on the side! Any other simple salad would do the trick as well.
Similar Dishes to Check out
How to Make Enchiladas for Kids
Ingredients
Notes on Ingredients:
- Tortillas- we recommend whole wheat tortillas to make this dish a tad healthier.
- Enchilada sauce- we love Old El Paso's medium or mild enchilada sauce.
- Olives- If your kids aren't fans of olives, simply omit them or offer them as an optional topping.
Instructions
Here's how to make our enchiladas for kids in 28 minutes (or less):
Step 1: Make the Filling
First and most important is the filling. Not only is the filling the heart of the enchiladas, but it also requires the most time. Total time: 10-12 minutes
🥄 Kids Step: Help chop veggies! We're big fans of these kid-friendly knives.
Step 2: Assemble Enchiladas
The assembly of the enchiladas can go pretty quickly, especially if you have a good setup and maybe a little helper. Total time: 5-8 minutes
🥄 Kids Step: Assemble! On their own, your child can scoop the chicken/sauce mix onto the tortilla, sprinkle cheese and olives atop, roll up the tortilla and place it seem-side down in the baking dish.
Step 3: Broil Enchiladas
Because they can burn easily, be sure to keep an eye on the enchiladas while they are in the oven. Total time: 3-5 minutes.
🥄 Kids Step: Prep the baking dish! Your kiddo can spray the pan and then coat the baking dish with enchilada sauce using a basting brush. We love the mini basting brush that comes with this Core Mini Utensil Set, which, while not made for kids, has a small handle that's great for little hands.
Cooking Tips and Tricks
- Save time by using canned, chopped green chilis and jarred enchilada sauce!
- Speed up assembling enchiladas by setting up up an assembly line on the counter as follows (from left to right): pan of chicken/sauce ---> tortillas ---> cheese & olives --> baking dish.
- When assembling each enchilada, scoop the filling a little left of center in the tortilla. After that, you'll find it's much easier to roll up the tortilla.
- Because they can burn easily, be sure to keep an eye on the enchiladas while they are in the oven. Once your enchiladas are as crisp and bubbly as you desire, take 'em out and serve!
FAQ
Bon Appetit suggests quickly frying tortillas until they just start to crisp before assembling enchiladas. While this can add time, it's definitely a great strategy for preventing enchiladas from getting soggy.
There are many kinds, including corn, flour, whole wheat and sprouted grain. Most would argue that white flour tortillas are the least healthy (see Healthline's breakdown of flour vs corn tortillas). I like corn tortillas for smaller, open tacos ('street' tacos) and whole wheat for enchiladas and wraps.
There are very different opinions about this. Typically, people say to leave the broiler door slightly ajar for electric ovens and closed for gas ovens. On the other hand, some say to just do whatever you were taught. Food52 has an interesting answer to this question, and ultimately suggests following your oven's manual.
Mission is a great option for gluten free tortillas. La Tortilla Factory makes gluten free tortillas from a few different ingredients. For example, they use ivory teff (a whole grain), cassava (a root vegetable), and cauliflower. Whole Foods makes almond flour tortillas. In addition, Food for Life is pretty popular for their sprouted corn tortillas.
It really comes down to personal preference, but we recommend sour cream, cilantro, avocado, enchilada sauce, salsa, hot sauce, pico de gallo, black olives, chopped onion, jalapeños, thinly sliced radish, or fresh-squeezed lime.
Yes, enchiladas can be assembled ahead of time, covered, and stored in the refrigerator before baking for up to 24 hours.
Simply use a vegetarian filling. Replace the chicken with pea protein crumbles. I'm a huge fan of Beyond Meat Beefy Crumbles. I've used them for years to make vegetarian chili and they are soooo delicious. I'm definitely a meat eater and I can't tell the difference. Worth noting is that these crumbles are high in protein and also gluten-free. Another option is to replace the chicken with rice, roasted peppers and corn (or hominy).
Craft for this recipe
Edible Paint: Painting Tortillas with Food Coloring: Blow your kids minds! I bet they never thought about painting tortillas that they can eat. After painting the tortillas, you can use them to make soft tacos, quesadillas, or enchiladas! Behold colorful, edible art!
Healthy Chicken Enchiladas for Kids
Equipment
- medium/large skillet
- 13 x 9 baking dish
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 small onion, chopped (or half a large onion)
- 4 oz can chopped green chilis
- 1 1/2 lbs boneless & skinless chicken thighs, chopped into small pieces or thin strips
- 1 cup canned diced tomatoes
- 1 1/2 cups enchilada sauce (divided)
- cooking spray
- 6-8 medium sized (~8") whole wheat tortillas
- 2+ cups shredded Mexican blend cheese
- 2.25 oz can black olives
- 1+ cup sour cream (optional)
- 1 bunch cilantro leaves, de-stemmed, for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and cook for 2 mins. Stir in green chilis and chicken, and cook for 4-5 mins, turning chicken frequently. Pour the tomatoes and 1 cup of the enchilada sauce over the chicken in the skillet and stir. Turn the heat to low-medium. Cook chicken in sauce 2-4 mins, until sauce thickens and chicken is cooked through [165 degrees].
- Meanwhile, set oven to broil. Spray a 13 x 9 baking dish with cooking spray. Spoon the remaining enchilada sauce into the pan and spread evenly. Set aside.
- Time to assemble enchiladas! Spoon 1/3 cup of chicken mixture onto a tortilla, and sprinkle some black olives and cheese on top. Roll tortilla and place it seam side down in casserole dish. Repeat 6-8 times until casserole dish is full. Sprinkle the casserole with more shredded cheese. Place casserole dish in the oven on top rack for 3-5 mins, or until cheese is golden brown and bubbly.
- Serve enchiladas with a dollop of sour cream and a sprig of cilantro on top.
Notes
- When assembling each enchilada, scoop the filling a little left of center in the tortilla. After that, you'll find it's much easier to roll up the tortilla.
- Because they can burn easily, be sure to keep an eye on the enchiladas while they are in the oven. Once your enchiladas are as crisp and bubbly as you desire, take 'em out and serve!
Nutrition
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet. While we are not certified nutritionists, we work with a Wordpress-integrated nutrition API to calculate our recipes' ingredient values.
This looks awesome! Pinning for later!!!
Thanks so much, Kelly! Please let us know if you try them! -Marcie
Yummmm these enchiladas look so delicious!!
Thanks so much! I hope you enjoy them! -Marcie
Enchiladas are my go-to meal when I'm craving Mexican food! I love how hearty and flavorful these look. Plus they are so customizable, which is great for picky eaters!
Thanks, Kait! Yes...customizable meals are like the key to making kids happy. Lol.
-Julie