Ground Beef Enchiladas

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My Ground Beef Enchiladas recipe is loaded with freshly seasoned lime rice, ground beef, and savory homemade enchilada sauce! Ready in under 1 hour using simple ingredients, you will want to make these enchiladas all the time. Hamburger meat enchiladas are perfect for making ahead and freezing for quick meals!

Hamburger Meat Enchiladas

Mexican ground beef recipes are practically my bread and butter! It all starts with my classic crockpot taco meat that can be turned into just about anything (but my favorite is Mexican Lasagna). Combine it with your favorite toppings, from nachos to taco bowls, and you have dinner for days to come.

When I first made these ground beef enchiladas, they were an immediate hit with the whole family! From the fresh, zesty lime rice to the homemade enchilada sauce, this beef enchiladas recipe is packed with flavor and totally irresistible. It makes a great weeknight dinner or party food!

Why You'll Love My Enchiladas with Beef

They're easy to make

No matter if you're using lime rice or regular rice right out of the rice cooker (or even packaged Mexican rice!), or if you're making your own sauce or using canned enchilada sauce, these enchiladas are so, so easy. Just assemble them, put them in a dish, and bake!

You can use leftovers to make beef enchiladas

If you have leftovers from taco night, these enchiladas are the perfect way to make use of them. Using up leftovers makes this dish come together so much faster for an easy and comforting meal on busy weeknights.

It's easy to add variety

Want to add some veggies? Add in sauteed bell peppers and onions, grilled zucchini, or a topping of avocado and black olives after baking. Looking to get some fiber? Try making these enchiladas with refried beans or black beans mixed into the taco meat.

Thanks for such an easy enchilada recipe. I used regular rice instead of the lime rice and it was still delicious. It was a huge hit with my family.

Leigh

Beef Enchiladas Ingredients

• Ground beef: you can also use ground turkey, or use leftover taco meat! Try out shredded chicken for chicken enchiladas!
• Flour tortillas: I recommend flour tortillas if you can eat them, burrito sized. Flour is much stretchier than corn, making it ideal for rolling the enchiladas without breaking them!
• Shredded cheddar cheese: I like cheddar, but you can also use Mexican-Blend cheese, pepper jack cheese, or Monterey jack cheese.
• Cilantro (optional): If you like a pop of green but don't like cilantro, feel free to add some fresh parsley.
• Taco seasoning (optional): If you're cooking the beef from scratch and want to add taco seasoning, try my taco seasoning recipe. It's fantastic.

Lime Rice Ingredients

• Water: You'll need extra water to rinse the rice. Alternatively, you can cook the rice in chicken broth for extra flavor.
• Basmati brown rice: You can use any rice, including white rice or boxed Mexican rice. I like the texture of brown rice when I have time to make it, but be warned it takes much longer to cook.
• Salt: Salt keeps the rice nice and flavorful; make sure to add a healthy pinch.
• Lime (juice and zest): Lime rice adds a delightful zing of flavor to enchiladas. I highly recommend it, even if you're just adding lime to leftover rice!
• Cilantro (optional): If you want Chipotle lime rice then you'll need cilantro, but you can leave it out if you don't like it.

Enchiladas Sauce Ingredients

• Olive oil
• Flour
• Chili powder
• Onion powder
• Garlic powder
• Cumin
• Dried oregano
• Vegetable broth
• Tomato paste
• Optional: Paprika

The taste of this enchilada sauce is rich and flavorful. Of course, you can also use canned sauce. I like making my own so I can adjust the sauce to be just how I like it, but canned sauce is super easy and useful in a pinch!

How to Make Lime Rice for Enchiladas

1. Bring water to a boil in a small pot on the stove.
2. Reduce heat and add rice and salt. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes or until the rice is tender and the water has been absorbed.
3. Zest half a lime over the rice. Stir lime zest, lime juice, and cilantro into the rice.

How to Make Enchilada Sauce

1. In a small pan, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add flour and whisk until well blended. Add chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, cumin, and oregano and whisk until well blended and smooth.
   
2. Pour in the vegetable broth very slowly while whisking.  Make sure no big lumps form. Add more vegetable broth if needed to make the desired smooth consistency. Add the tomato paste and whisk until the sauce is completely smooth.
   
3. Bring to a simmer until slightly thickened. Remove from heat and serve.

Note: Nothing beats homemade enchilada sauce. But, you can use canned, if you're short on time.

How to Make Beef Enchiladas

1: Brown beef

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 7 by 11-inch baking dish. Cook ground beef, seasoned to taste with salt and pepper, in a pan until browned, or use our Crockpot Taco Meat recipe to prepare beef ahead of time.

2: Add cheese

Add cheese and cilantro and mix through.

3: Fill Enchiladas

Construct enchiladas by adding a few spoonfuls of lime rice to a tortilla. Top with ground beef and some enchilada sauce. Don't over-stuff the tortillas!

4: Add sauce

Brush the baking dish with enchilada sauce.

5: Fill pan

Roll the tortilla and place seam-side down in the baking dish. Repeat with remaining 5 tortillas. They will fit snugly in the pan.

6: Bake & Serve

Cover the pan with foil and bake 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake another 10 minutes.

Garnish with fresh cilantro and serve warm.

Beef Enchiladas Recipe Tips

• You can use canned enchilada sauce if you don't have the time to make your own. I like red enchilada sauce, but green is delicious too.
• Regular white or brown rice can be used in place of the lime rice if you prefer. Feel free to use leftover rice. Beef enchiladas are a great way to use up leftovers!
• The meat filling can be made ahead of time, or you can use leftovers. I love using taco meat for this recipe.
• Don't drown your enchiladas in the sauce before you bake them. Remember, there is sauce already inside the enchilada, so when baking them you want just enough sauce to cover them. This will keep them from getting soggy.
• When rolling the enchiladas, don't over-stuff the tortillas. You want to be sure to completely wrap the tortilla around itself with the seam-side down. This is the best way to get the enchiladas snug in the baking dish, keeping them from splitting or making a mess!
• Reserve some of your cheddar cheese to sprinkle over the enchiladas during the last 10 minutes they bake in the oven.

Make Ahead Enchiladas

1. Follow the recipe according to the instructions by assembling the enchiladas and placing each rolled enchilada in the baking dish.
2. Instead of covering the enchiladas with the enchilada sauce, keep the sauce on the side until you are ready to bake the enchiladas.
3. Leave the assembled enchiladas in the refrigerator for up to 1 day.
4. When ready to make the enchiladas, simply spoon the sauce over the enchiladas and bake according to the recipe instructions.

Freezer Enchiladas

1. Simply stuff and roll each enchilada according to the recipe instructions.
2. Individually wrap each enchilada in plastic wrap (rather than wrapping them together- it will protect the enchiladas from freezer burn).
3. Frozen enchiladas can stay in the freezer for up to 2 months.
4. Don't forget to also freeze your enchiladas sauce- this way you can assemble everything once you are ready to reheat.
5. When ready to make the enchiladas, let both the enchiladas and the enchilada sauce thaw in the fridge overnight.
6. Assemble and bake the enchiladas according to recipe instructions.

When I freeze enchiladas, I typically freeze them before the sauce covers them. This will help keep the tortillas crispy and not soggy during the reheating process!

Ground Beef Enchilada Recipes FAQ

Ground Beef Enchilada Recipe

My favorite thing about this recipe for ground beef enchiladas is that you can make it ahead of time and freeze it. That makes for quick, easy meals through the week that your family will love. Even better if you make a big batch of ground beef to use for a variety of recipes including these beef enchiladas!

Ground Beef Enchiladas

Recipe Author: Isabel Laessig

Stuffed with cheesy ground beef and cilantro lime rice, then slathered in homemade Enchilada sauce, my ground beef enchiladas are a keeper!

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Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Total Time 50 minutes mins

Servings 6 servings

Calories 315 kcal

Equipment

• 1 Small pan
• 1 small pot
• 1 Zester
• 1 Baking dish
• Aluminum foil
• 1 Wooden spoon
• 1 ladle
• 1 Whisk

Ingredients  

1x2x3x

Enchiladas

• ▢ 1 Ib. ground beef
• ▢ 6 flour tortillas
• ▢ ½ cup shredded cheddar cheese
• ▢ 2 Tablespoons cilantro coarsely chopped

Enchilada Sauce

• ▢ 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• ▢ 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
• ▢ 2 Tablespoons chili powder more if you like it spicier
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon onion powder
• ▢ ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon ground cumin
• ▢ ½ teaspoon dried oregano
• ▢ 2 cups vegetable broth
• ▢ 2 Tablespoons tomato paste

Lime Rice

• ▢ 2¼ cups water
• ▢ 1 cup basmati brown rice uncooked
• ▢ 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• ▢ ½ lime zested
• ▢ 1 teaspoon lime juice
• ▢ ½ cup cilantro chopped

Instructions 

Enchilada Sauce

• In a small pan, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add flour and whisk until well blended, then add chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, cumin, and oregano and whisk until well blended and smooth.
  2 Tablespoons olive oil,2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour,2 Tablespoons chili powder more if you like it spicier,¼ teaspoon onion powder,½ teaspoon garlic powder,¼ teaspoon ground cumin,½ teaspoon dried oregano
• Pour in the vegetable broth very slowly while whisking. Make sure no big lumps form. Add more vegetable broth if needed to make the desired smooth consistency. Then, add the tomato paste and whisk until the sauce is completely smooth.
  2 cups vegetable broth,2 Tablespoons tomato paste
• Bring to a simmer until slightly thickened. Remove from heat and set aside.

Lime Rice

• Bring water to a boil in a small pot on the stove top. Reduce heat and add the rice and salt.
  2¼ cups water,1 cup basmati brown rice uncooked,1 teaspoon kosher salt
• Cover and simmer on low for about 20 minutes or until the rice is tender and the water has been absorbed.
• Zest half of a lime into the rice, then add lime juice and cilantro to the rice and stir.
  1 teaspoon lime juice,½ cup cilantro chopped,½ lime zested

Enchiladas

• Preheat oven to 350℉. Grease a 7 by 11-inch baking dish. Cook ground beef, seasoned to taste with salt and pepper, in a pan until browned or use my Crockpot Taco Meat recipe to prepare beef ahead of time.
  1 Ib. ground beef
• Add cheese and cilantro and mix through.
  ½ cup shredded cheddar cheese,2 Tablespoons cilantro coarsely chopped
• Construct enchiladas by adding a few spoonfuls of lime rice to a tortilla. Top with ground beef and some enchilada sauce. Don't overstuff the tortillas!
  6 flour tortillas
• Brush the baking dish with enchilada sauce.
• Roll the tortilla and place seam-side down in the baking dish. Repeat with remaining 5 tortillas. They will fit snugly in the pan.
• Cover the pan with foil and bake 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake another 10 minutes.
• Garnish with fresh cilantro and serve warm!

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Notes

• You can use canned enchilada sauce if you don't have the time to make your own.

 

• Regular white or brown rice can be used in place of the lime rice if you prefer. Feel free to use leftover rice. Beef enchiladas are a great way to use up leftovers!

 

• The meat filling can be made ahead of time, or you can use leftovers. I love using taco meat for this recipe. See How Long to Cook Ground Beef for tips!

 

• When rolling the enchiladas, don't over-stuff the tortillas. You want to be sure to completely wrap the tortilla around itself with the seam-side down. This is the best way to get the enchiladas snug in the baking dish.

 

• Don't drown your enchiladas in the sauce before you bake them. Remember, there is sauce already inside the enchilada, so when baking them you want just enough sauce to cover them. This will keep them from getting soggy.

 

• Reserve some of your cheddar cheese to sprinkle over the enchiladas during the last 10 minutes they bake in the oven.

Nutrition

Serving: 1servingCalories: 315kcalCarbohydrates: 45gProtein: 8gFat: 12gSaturated Fat: 4gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0.002gCholesterol: 10mgSodium: 1077mgPotassium: 245mgFiber: 4gSugar: 3gVitamin A: 1239IUVitamin C: 3mgCalcium: 138mgIron: 3mg