Carbohydrates per serve: 17g. Trust me when I say my Vegan Chicken Enchiladas are so good that even if you’re a meat-eater you’ll be a convert.  They’re also high in protein thanks to the vegan Sunfed Chicken, and a lot lower in carbohydrates than your traditional enchiladas. Plus they’re super fun to make!

If you are a fan of Mexican food and like these, you should also give my Jackfruit Quesadillas or TVP Tacos a go!

My vegan chicken enchiladas are complete with a nice healthy and delicious filling and a homemade enchilada sauce. When I came up with these vegan chicken enchiladas I didn’t actually know if they were going to work or be good enough to release as a part of Diabetic Vegan. This was my first attempt at making enchiladas from scratch, let alone vegan enchiladas, but I’m so happy with how they came out! I have always enjoyed eating enchiladas, but would order them off a menu or god forbid buy those frozen ones that you just put in the oven. These are infinitely better.

But first, what is an Enchilada?

Enchiladas are a Mexican dish that consists of a filling wrapped inside a corn tortilla, which is then baked and topped with sauce. The main part of the filling is traditionally some kind of meat, however vegetarian versions made beans (or in my case vegan chicken) are not uncommon at all nowadays. 

Vegan Chicken Enchilada Ingredients

Vegan Chicken – To make vegan chicken enchiladas, of course we need vegan chicken! I know there’s a lot of people who aren’t fans of “fake meat” and that’s fine, but I think you should really give these enchiladas a chance! I used Sunfed Chicken. It tastes good, is high in protein and low in carbs and really quick to cook. You can try using a different brand, you just want one which sort of breaks into pieces and ideally one which is low in carbohydrates. 

Low Carb Wraps – In place of the traditional tortilla I used Gerry’s Low Carb Wraps, because well, as the name suggests, they’re low carb. One wrap is 11.4g. I was a bit worried they wouldn’t crisp up when baked but they do and they’re actually so good as an enchilada wrap!

Veggies – To add flavour, colour and more nutrients I have used capsicum, courgette, onion and red chilli in my vegan chicken enchilada filling. 

Spices – Any good Mexican dish needs lots of Mexican spices. In the enchilada filling I used ground cumin, coriander and paprika, I added some tomato paste and of course salt!

Vegan Cheese – Vegan cheese isn’t actually essential in this dish but I do recommend it. It goes on top of the enchiladas after building them and melts and goes all delicious in the oven. I used Zenzo, but you could use any vegan cheddar type cheese as long as it melts well!

Enchilada Sauce – You need an enchilada sauce to go on top of your enchiladas before they go in the oven. I also put some of the sauce into the enchilada filling itself. My recipe uses a homemade tomato based sauce which is made using tinned tomatoes, vegetable stock and spices. It adds some really tasty additional flavour with some heat!

How to Make Vegan Chicken Enchiladas – 

Step One – Start by making the sauce. Add the oil or dairy-free margarine to a small-medium sized pot or saucepan. If using margarine, wait until it has melted and then add the flour. If using oil, add the flour once the oil has heated up. Whisk the flour into melted margarine or oil to create a roux.

Step Two – Add the remaining ingredients – tomatoes, stock, tomato paste and spices and whisk. Turn the heat up to medium-high and continue to cook until the sauce is thickened, whisking regularly to prevent sticking or the sauce going lumpy. Once the sauce is done, turn off the heat and set aside while you move onto the enchilada filling.

Step Three – Peel and dice onion, and dice the capsicum and courgette. Thinly slice the red chilli. Put a non-stick frying pan on a medium heat with a good lug of cooking oil. I use olive oil, but you can use any oil you like. 

Step Four – Add the diced onion, capsicum and chilli to the pan and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Then add the diced courgette and cook for a further 3-4 minutes.

Step Five – Add the cumin, paprika, coriander and salt, stir through and cook for a further minute or two until you start to smell the spices.

Step Six – Add the Sunfed chicken and tomato paste, stir through and cook until the chicken is defrosted, heated through and broken up into smaller pieces. 

Step Seven – Add a few big spoonfuls of the enchilada sauce to the enchilada filling and stir in. Turn off the heat.

Step Eight – Now that the filling and sauce is done, it’s time to build the enchiladas. To do this, lay one wrap on a flat surface and put about one sixth of the filling down the middle of the wrap. Pull one side of the wrap over the filing and then the other. Place in a 30x20cm baking dish, fold side down.

Step Nine – Repeat this with the remaining filling and wraps, you should get 6 in total. Squish them closely together in the baking dish.

Step Ten – Pour a good amount of the remaining sauce over the enchiladas, but you don’t want them completely covered as we want the edges of the wraps to crisp up a bit. 

Step Eleven – Sprinkle the grated cheese over top then bake the enchiladas for 20-25 minutes until edges are browning.

Recipe Variations

• Instead of Gerry’s Low Carb wraps, feel free to stick to traditional corn or flour tortillas. Corn tortillas are usually gluten-free which is great if you need a coeliac friendly option. But just remember normal tortillas, whether corn or flour will be higher in carbs than the low carb wraps I used
• You could swap out the veggies I used for pretty much any you like. Mushroom, corn, or even eggplant would all work quite well!
• I personally love these with vegan Sunfed chicken, and I think it makes the dish.  BUT as I said earlier, I understand that fake meats aren’t everyone’s cup of tea. You could swap out the vegan chicken for beans, crumbled tofu or more veggies. 

What if I have leftovers?

This recipe makes 6 serves, and at home it’s just my husband and I so we always have leftovers which is great because that means more enchiladas! You can reheat these either in the oven or in the microwave. They keep their texture and stay firmer and crispier when reheated in the oven, and tend to go a bit soggier when reheated in the microwave but are still good! You can keep these in the fridge for 2-3 days.