These easy ground turkey enchiladas are stuffed with ground turkey, cheese, peppers, onions and diced tomatoes then covered in enchilada sauce with more cheese for extra cheesy goodness.
Turkey is a great substitution for beef in traditional enchiladas. Ground turkey just has a slightly sweeter flavor that goes really well with the cheese, peppers and savory spices.
Table of Contents:
These enchiladas with ground turkey will fast become a family-friendly weeknight meal that everyone will love. They’re just a game-changer for a simple but delicious weeknight dinner and a healthier alternative than your average beef enchiladas, but just as flavorful.
The fun part is that you can customize these with your favorite toppings.
These are actually much easier to make than you would think and only take about 15-20 minutes to bake. You can even make these ahead of time.
This enchilada casserole is amazing as leftovers as well. It’ll feed a large family, but if you don’t have that many people, you can always freeze leftovers for later, or split the recipe in half.
Ingredient Notes:
Now let’s talk a little about just some of the ingredients that are in these turkey enchiladas. (The printable list of all ingredients are in the recipe card below.)
Ground turkey: Of course, you need ground turkey for these enchiladas and you’ll need one pound.
Frozen peppers and onions: Using a frozen pepper and onion blend makes this recipe really easy. You can use fresh, of course, but using frozen means you don’t have to cut them all up.
Garlic, cumin, chili powder, smoked paprika and oregano: These are the spices to give the meat that enchilada flavor.
Chopped, diced tomatoes or Rotel: What you use will depend on how spicy you want the enchiladas. I used Rotel and that added a good amount of heat and spice, but you can also use plain diced tomatoes without adding any extra spice or heat.
Red enchilada sauce: You’ll use two cans of this. Pick the type you like. The kind I used was pretty spicy, so be aware that the more you use, the spicer it may become.
Corn tortillas: You’ll want to use 6-7 inch tortillas to make these enchiladas. It helps to warm them up or dip them into the enchilada sauce before you try to roll them up. If not, they easily crack, which isn’t the end of the world, but they won’t look as pretty.
Mexican or Fiesta blend cheese: I like the finely shredded kind, but what type you use is up to you and your preferences.
Toppings: You can add whatever toppings you like to the enchiladas. Some ideas are sour cream, extra cheese, black olives, jalapenos, green onions, cilantro, avocado, onions, etc.
(Make sure to check out the FAQ section below in this post for ingredient and substitution questions.)
How to Make these Enchiladas:
Let’s talk a little about how to make ground turkey enchiladas (The printable instructions are in the recipe card below.)
Step 1:
First, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
You’ll want to cook the ground turkey with the frozen chopped peppers and onions plus the minced garlic on medium-high heat until the turkey is no longer pink, then drain off any fat.
Turn the heat down and add all of the spices and cook for another two minutes or so then add the chopped or diced canned tomatoes, stir well and heat through. Take the pan off of the heat source.
Step 2:
Spread about 1/4 – 1/2 a cup of the enchilada sauce onto the bottom of a large casserole or baking dish.
Step 3:
Now either warm the corn tortillas in the microwave or dip them into the enchilada sauce before filling them so they don’t crack. (Hint: It works better to dip them into enchilada sauce.)
Next, fill the tortillas with the turkey mixture, sprinkle with cheese, then roll them up and place them into the baking dish. Fill the dish tightly.
Step 4:
Once the dish is filled, cover everything with the remaining enchilada sauce.
Step 5:
Next, sprinkle everything with cheese and bake for about 15-20 minutes until all the cheese is melted.
Step 6:
Top the enchiladas with desired toppings and enjoy.
Easy Ground Turkey Enchiladas
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground turkey
- 1 cup frozen chopped peppers and onion blend
- 1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon oregano
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 (10 ounce) can chopped or diced tomatoes, drained (I used Rotel green chilis which will make it spicier, if you don't want it hot, use regular diced tomatoes)
- 2 (10 ounce) cans red enchilada sauce (use the type you like according to how spicy you want it)
- 20 6-7 inch corn tortillas (can use flour if you prefer that)
- 2-3 cups fiesta or Mexican blend shredded cheese
- Toppings: Sour cream, extra cheese, black olives, jalapenos, green onions, cilantro, avocado, onions, etc.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
- In a large skillet, cook the ground turkey with the frozen chopped peppers and onions plus the minced garlic on medium-high heat until the turkey is no longer pink. Drain.
- Turn the heat on low and add the spices and cook for about two minutes.
- Add the chopped or diced canned tomatoes, stir well and heat through. Remove the pan from the heat source. Taste test and add salt and pepper or more spices if needed.
- Spread about 1/4 – 1/2 a cup of the enchilada sauce on the bottom of at least a 13×9 inch baking dish. If you have a larger casserole baking dish, use it as this recipe will make a lot of enchiladas.
- To keep the corn tortillas from cracking while rolling them up, either heat them in the microwave for about 15 seconds to soften them or dip them in the enchilada sauce before filling them. Dipping them works better.
- Fill tortillas with the turkey mixture, sprinkle with cheese, then roll up and place into the baking dish. Make sure to fill the dish tightly. If using a 13×9 inch dish, you will probably have extra filling left over, so you can keep filling enchiladas and put them in another dish or save the filling for later.
- Once the dish is filled with the rolled tortillas, cover everything with the remaining enchilada sauce. Note that the more enchilada sauce you use, the spicier it may become.
- Sprinkle everything with cheese and bake for approximately 15-20 minutes until all the cheese is melted. Top enchiladas with desired toppings.
Notes
Nutrition
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Tips & FAQs:
Yes, you can use fresh.
The choice is yours and it will depend on how hot and spicy you want your enchiladas. Rotel will definitely make them spicier. Keep in mind that the enchilada sauce will also add spiciness.
Yes, if you prefer homemade over canned, that’s perfectly fine.
To keep the corn tortillas from cracking so badly while rolling them up, either heat them in the microwave for about 15 seconds to soften them or dip them in the enchilada sauce before filling them. Dipping them works better.
I tried just microwaving them and while it helped at first, they eventually cracked anyway. The best thing to do would have been to dip the tortillas into the enchilada sauce first, then add the filling and roll them up. It’s messier, but they won’t crack as badly.
Yes, that should work fine although this recipe was tested using corn tortillas.
Make sure to pack the enchiladas tightly into the baking dish.
You can make more enchiladas and add them to another, smaller dish or you can save the leftover turkey mixture and use it for tacos or taco salads. You can even freeze it for later.
You could also add corn or black beans to the meat mixture.
Sour cream, extra cheese, black olives, jalapenos, green onions, cilantro, avocado, onions etc.
Serve this dish with chips and salsa, pico de gallo, queso, a side salad, Spanish rice, or refried beans. Of course, you can always add margaritas!
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