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Rolled Red Chile Beef and Cheese Enchiladas

Enjoy hearty rolled red chile beef and cheese enchiladas topped with rich homemade red chile sauce, crumbled queso fresco, and fresh garnishes. A flavorful Southwestern main dish.
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Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Chilling Time 5 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Servings: 12
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Mexican
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

For the Red Chile Sauce:
  • 2 cups boiling water
  • 1  oz dried New Mexico chiles about 5, stemmed & seeded
  • 2 plum tomatoes halved
  • 1 small yellow onion quartered
  • 3 garlic cloves unpeeled
  • 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • 2 tsp kosher salt
  • ½ tsp ground cumin
  • ¼ tsp garlic powder
For the Enchiladas:
  • 1 tbsp canola oil plus more for greasing
  • 1  lb lean ground beef 90% lean
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 12 5½‑inch corn tortillas, warmed
  • 12  oz queso fresco crumbled (about 3 cups)
For Garnish & Serving:
  • Fresh cilantro sliced scallions, red onion rings
  • Lime wedges and sour cream

Method
 

Make the Red Chile Sauce:
  1. Soften the chiles by pouring boiling water over them in a heatproof bowl. Let soak ~20 minutes until soft; reserve 1 cup of the soaking liquid.
  2. Preheat broiler (rack ~6 inches from heat). On a foil‑lined baking sheet, place tomatoes (cut‑side down), onion, and unpeeled garlic. Broil ~8–10 minutes until charred. Peel garlic.
  3. In a blender, combine roasted vegetables, softened chiles, reserved chile liquid, vinegar, salt, cumin, and garlic powder. Blend until smooth. Set aside.
Cook the Beef:
  1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
  2. In a skillet over medium‑high heat, warm the oil. Add ground beef, season with salt and cumin, and cook ~6‑7 minutes until browned. Remove from heat.
Assemble the Enchiladas:
  1. Grease a 9×13‑inch baking dish.
  2. One tortilla at a time: Dip into the red chile sauce, allowing excess to drip. Place on a clean surface, fill with ~¼ cup beef and ~2 tbsp queso fresco, roll tightly, seam‑side down into the baking dish. Repeat with remaining tortillas.
Top & Bake:
  1. Spoon ~½ cup of the sauce over the rolled enchiladas. Sprinkle with ~½ cup queso fresco.
  2. Bake uncovered ~18‑20 minutes until sauce bubbles and cheese is melted.
Serve:
  1. Garnish with cilantro, sliced scallions, red onion rings. Serve with lime wedges and sour cream.

Notes

Toasting or roasting the dried chiles and vegetables adds depth and smokiness to the sauce.
Warm tortillas before dipping to prevent cracking and ensure pliability.
Just Mexican Food
Customize heat: For spicier sauce add chile de árbol or chipotle; for milder, remove seeds or reduce chile quantity.