Every time I ask my kids for dinner ideas when I’m writing the monthly menu ‘enchiladas!!’ is the first thing Harry shouts at me 🙂 I honestly can’t keep up with how many he wants to eat!

Everyone else agrees with him, so they are a regular feature on our menu.

As with most of our Mexican inspired food, these are not very authentic…But they are very yummy  so I hope your family enjoys them as much as ours.

Please see below the recipe for our vegan alternative

• About 1kg chicken thighs (or you can use a whole chicken)
• 2 tbsp Mexican seasoning
• 2 heaped cups Salsa
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• Tortillas of choice (check out our masa ones here)
• Cheese, that fits your diet (we do dairy and bio cheese), grated.
• OPTIONAL: 1 large carrot, 1 large zucchini and 1 tin kidney beans.

Place chicken into the  slow cooker, sprinkle over seasoning and half of the salsa.

Finely grate the veg if you are using them and then blend together with the drained and rinsed kidney beans. Add to the slow cooker and stir though well.

Place lid on slow cooker and cook on high for 4.5 hours, or 8 hours on low.

Remove and discard the skin of the chicken (if using a whole chicken) then shred the meat.

To the juices, veggies and salsa in the cooker, add in the paste and whisk to combine. Remove about 1/3 of this sauce and keep aside (for topping the tortillas later).

Then return the shredded chicken to the slow cooker and fold through the remaining sauce.

Place spoons of the chicken  in the tortillas, then roll.

Fill your baking tray with the filled and rolled tortillas, then cover with the rest of the salsa and veggie mix and sprinkle with cheese.

 

Bake in a preheated moderate oven for about 25 minutes, until cheese is melted and the tortillas are golden.

If you’re a fan of the shredded chicken and the flavour of the meal, but would prefer a lighter option without the cheese and tortillas, then it is delicious and refreshing served with my Mexican Bean Salad.

And, if like my husband, you are a fan, go ahead and add a dollop of either dairy or soy based sour cream (it’s not my thing so I always forget it – much to his disappointment!)

To make our vegan version of these enchiladas we leave out the chicken and instead add in a large can of mixed beans and another can of kidney beans. The dish then needs to be cooked for only 3 hours on high or about 5 on low. Top with your favourite vegan cheese. I’m looking forward to experimenting with jackfruit here as another alternative too and will update the recipe when I do!

Enjoy 🙂