I know, I know. One day late for Cinco de Mayo. How rude of me to withhold a delicious dish perfect for those margarita-induced celebrations! In all seriousness, you don’t need an excuse to make these turkey enchiladas.
Now, I know I didn’t kill a turkey this season, but that doesn’t mean a can’t eat one, right? I actually made these on the last day of the season, the same day my dad had his hunting pay off, so I had to use store-bought turkey for this meal. That, of course, won’t stop me from making these again with Dad’s turkey. You can easily substitute wild turkey without changing the recipe or the quality of the enchiladas. Have some ground venison on hand? Toss that in instead! Make it your own savory, game-filled fiesta on a plate. Olé!
INGREDIENTS:
Enchilada Sauce:
1 can enchilada sauce
1 can diced tomatoes
1/2 yellow onion, diced
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tbsp garlic powder
1 tsp chili powder (as potent as you like)
1 tbsp lime juice
Enchiladas:
1 package of tortillas (10 inch)
1 lb ground turkey
salt & pepper to taste
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 yellow onion, diced
1/2 cup black olives, roughly chopped
3 tbsp fresh cilantro, roughly chopped
1 cup shredded cheese
For topping: lime wedges, sour cream, chopped green onion, jalapeño pepper, chopped fresh cilantro
STEPS:
1. Making the enchilada sauce first is key. The stuff in the jar was a little disappointing once I opened it, so I just had to make do with what I had on hand. It turned out great, but you could certainly use only store-bought sauce, or make your own from scratch. In a large saucepan, combine all of the ingredients and let simmer for 1 hour.
2. Separate about 2/3 of the sauce and pulse in a good processor until it looks more like salsa. If it looks too runny for your liking, whisk in a 1-2 tsp of corn starch to thicken and pulse again to remove any lumps. Add back to the saucepan and continue to simmer until you are ready to prepare the enchiladas. If it looks too runny for your liking, whisk in a 1-2 tsp of corn starch to thicken.
Oh, and don’t forget to have a few cold Mexican beers during the process. Duh.
3. In a large skillet, brown the turkey until done, seasoning with salt and pepper along the way. I didn’t worry about seasoning it too much at this point because so much will be going on with it once the enchiladas are assembled. Transfer to a paper towel to drain.
Assembly time. This is a bit of a process, but each step is simple, and completely worth it. I wish I had more photos of each step but it required 2 [very messy] hands. Also, go ahead and preheat the oven to 350*. Easy start, right?
4. Grease a 9×13 baking dish, and ladle in enough enchilada sauce to cover the bottom.
5. In the same skillet that you cooked the turkey, heat the olive oil until it simmers. Place 1 tortilla in the hot oil for about 30 seconds per side to cook it a tad/make it more pliable/help protect it from being broken down by the enchilada sauce.
6. Using tongs (not your fingers, trust me), dunk the tortilla directly into the enchilada sauce (still hot in the saucepan) to coat both sides. Again, that tortilla is hot. Don’t use your fingers.
7. Now fill your tortilla. Layer a few tbsp of ground turkey, then top with onion, olive, and cilantro. Roll the tortilla and place is seam-side down in the baking dish. Repeat until you have filled the baking dish. Mine fit 6, but I probably could have squeezed in another.
11. While the enchiladas bake, prepare your toppings. I like to whisk lime juice in with the sour cream to give it a runnier texture that’s easy to drizzle across the top of the enchiladas once they are done.
I mean, come on. How good does that look?
12. Dive on in! The first on can be kind of difficult to get out of the baking dish, as these guys are a bit messy. But never fear – it will still taste delicious! Top with whatever your little heart desires, and enjoy!
