Enchiladas and Cilantro Lime Rice

Mexican food is second only to Southern food in my opinion. I love it! Lucky for me, my husband is a born and raised Texan so he has a real appreciation for it too. His family lives in Texas and when we visit we always go to the same Mexican place to eat...El Torro's in Clute, TX. Have you ever eaten there? If not, you should make it a point if you are ever in Texas. If you aren't planning to pass through there anytime soon..it's worth the road trip!! So much so that we stop on the way in and eat and again on the way home. We love it. It was in Texas that I decided I needed to learn how to cook more authentic Mexican cuisine. Texas knows two things: Good BBQ and good Mexican food! Sure there are Mexican restaraunts in every city just about and they are good. I have even been to Cozumel and ate Mexican food there. None compare to the Mexican food I have had in Texas. I stumbled upon a recipe a while back for Enchiladas that are made from leftover beef roast that has been shredded and marinated. I knew I had to try it but there were a few things that I wanted to change about it. My husband, Ronnie, told me it sounded great but that he would cook the tortillas and they had to be corn tortillas, not flour. He was very adamant about it so I agreed. After all, he's the Texan. He's had his share of this wonderful food. As usual, he was right. (Don't tell him I said so!) The corn tortillas were the way to go, much more of an authentic taste. He fries them in Crisco for a few seconds on each side. While on our last visit to Texas I told Ronnie I wanted to stock up on some cooking ingredients we couldn't get in Mississippi. So, on the the way home we stopped and I STOCKED UP!! The thing I bought the most of was the Fiesta brand mexican seasonings. I love these. (However, last Christmas I discovered that Academy sells a few of them now. Good to know, especially if you want to try these recipes!) We incorporated these seasonings into the enchiladas! I hope you will try these...I don't think you will ever go back to any other enchilada! I know we won't. They are very simple and a very good way to use up any meat you have from a pot roast! Here is the recipe:

Enchiladas
1/2 beef pot roast (about 3 c. meat when shredded)
1 packet Taco Seasoning
16 oz. jar salsa
10 oz. can enchilada sauce
1 c. sour cream
1 bag corn tortillas
1 bag shredded Mexican style cheese
1 can sliced black olives
1 can diced green chilies
1 onion, diced
2 T. cumin, divided
1 T. garlic powder
1 T. Fiesta Enchilada seasoning
1/2 tsp. black pepper
Crisco for frying corn tortillas
To prepare the roast: Rub a tablespoon of garlic powder, one tablespoon cumin and Fiesta Enchilada seasoning into the roast. In a Dutch oven, sear the roast on all sides in about 3 tablespoons hot cooking oil. Place seared roast in a one inch deep pan and cover with heavy-duty aluminum foil. Cook roast slow in an oven preheated to 250 degrees. When the roast is done allow it to cool. Shred the roast.



Place shredded meat in a medium sized mixing bowl. To the meat, add the packet of taco seasoning, jar of salsa, tablespoon of cumin and black pepper and stir to combine.Cover and put in the refrigerator to marinate overnight or for up to 3 days. The longer it marinates, the better it is!



To prepare enchiladas: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray two medium casserole dishes with nonstick cooking spray. Heat marinated meat in a pan for about 3 minutes, just until heated through. In a medium mixing bowl, stir together sour cream and enchilada sauce. Heat Crisco until hot and begin cooking tortillas, about 10 seconds on each side. Set up an assembly line of warmed meat, enchilada and sour cream mixture, tortillass, diced onions, sliced black olives, green chilies and shredded Mexican cheese. Using a thin towel, place a tortilla on a plate and spoon meat into a line down the center of the tortilla. Roll up tortilla and place in prepared casserole dish. Repeat for all of the enchiladas. Pour the enchilada and sour cream mixture over enchiladas and spread evenly to cover all. Layer diced onion, chilies, cheese and olives. Cook enchiladas in the oven and bake for 15 minutes. Enjoy!!



I am addicted to Cilantro!!! Seriously. My husband introduced me to it when we met. He cooked with it a lot and I never had. I now use it in many dihes, my favorite being Cilantro Lime Rice which I make as a side dish to the enchiladas every time. My husband and I like it much better than the traditional Spanish Rice. I could eat this dish by itself. Like the enchiladas, it heats up very nicely. I was surprised by this, as I thought the rice would be gummy and nasty heated up. Not the case. This is a very easy dish to cook.

Cilantro Lime Rice
1/4 c. vegetable oil
1 whole onion
6 cloves garlic, minced
3 c. white rice, uncooked
32 oz. chicken broth
2 c. hot water
1 whole bunch cilantro, chopped
1 1/2 T. cumin
zest and juice of one lime
2 T. Fiesta Spanish Rice Seasoning
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. pepper
In a large skillet, one with a lid, pour cooking oil and heat over medium high heat. Add chopped onion and saute for a few minutes until almost transparent. Reduce heat and add rice and garlic. Continue cooking until rice is golden brown but be careful not to burn it. Add the remaining ingredients to the rice mixture and stir well. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat. Cover and simmer over low until rice is tender. Keep an eye on the rice while it cooks and make sure the broth and water hasn't cooked out of it. If it has, add more water or broth, and cook until it's done. Stir occasionally.