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Easy Ground Turkey Enchiladas

Easy turkey enchiladas made with seasoned ground turkey and two cheeses, wrapped up in flour tortillas and baked in red enchilada sauce.

Ground turkey enchilada on plate with refried beans.

I don't make Mexican dishes much at home, so when I get the craving, we go out.  But these enchiladas are so easy and good, we're staying in.  Made with simple ingredients, nothing too complicated, and dinner is on the table in no time.

Enchilada on white plate with refried beans.

I always have ground turkey on hand and in the freezer.  It's so versatile and I swap beef out with it all the time.  The key to good ground turkey is browning it really well so it develops a crust.  And to do that, put it in a hot pan and don't touch it, let it brown.  Flip it, brown the other side THEN start breaking it up with a wooden spoon.  Trust me, tastes and looks so much better properly browned.

Three photo collage of browning turkey and making filling.

Season up the turkey with this and that, all pantry staples, and then roll up some filling and cheese in tortillas.  I like flour tortillas for these enchiladas but use corn if you desire, that's perfectly fine.  I also use a Mexican melting cheese I get at the little super mercado.  And the woman doing all the cooking in the back kitchen told me to use some queso fresco, so she sold me hunk out of her case.  Colby or Monterey Jack works, too.  Queso fresco is easily found in supermarkets.

Three photo collage, two cheeses used, rolled in pan, with toppings ready for oven.

I use prepared enchilada sauce, keeping things easy here.  But by all means, use homemade if you have it, it's so much better.  Homemade authentic red enchilada sauce is super easy to make and worth the effort.  Bake up your pan of enchiladas until hot and bubbly, takes only about 20 minutes.  Yum!

Finished enchiladas in pan , two photo collage.

Easy ground turkey enchiladas come together quickly and are a perfect weeknight dinner.  And you know the leftovers are awesome.  I like to serve these enchiladas with easy stovetop refried beans, (always save your bacon drippings!).  Okay, that's all I got here, go forth and make some enchiladas!  Kelly🍴🐦

Turkey enchilada on plate with refried beans.

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Ground turkey enchilada on plate with refried beans.

Easy Ground Turkey Enchiladas

Easy enchiladas made with ground turkey, two cheeses and red enchilada sauce.  Serve with some easy refried beans, recipe below in notes.
4.88 from 25 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Mexican
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour
Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 312kcal

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 pound ground turkey
  • ½ onion, finely chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
  • ½ teaspoon cumin
  • ½ teaspoon chili powder
  • ½ teaspoon oregano
  • cups enchilada sauce or about 1 cup of homemade enchilada sauce
  • Kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper
  • 8 (8-inch) flour tortillas
  • 3 cups shredded Mexican blend cheese, or colby or Monterey Jack
  • 1 cup crumbled queso fresco (fresh Mexican cheese)
  • Optional: sliced green onions, chopped fresh cilantro and sour cream for serving.

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 375º.  
  • In large skillet, heat olive oil until shimmering.  Pat turkey dry and add to pan, do not move, brown for about 6 minutes.  Flip, brown other side for about 5 or 6 minutes.  Add onion, garlic and spices and start breaking up turkey meat with a wooden spoon.  Continue until no longer pink and onion has softened.
  • Add ¼ cup enchilada sauce to pan, stir to combine and season with salt and pepper.  Cook 1 to 2 more minutes then remove from heat and set aside.
  • Spread ½ cup enchilada sauce in bottom of 9" by 13" baking dish.  Place ⅛ of the turkey mixture on each flour tortilla, top with ¼ cup shredded cheese and tightly roll up.  Place rolled enchiladas, seam side down, in baking dish.
  • Top with remaining 1 cup enchilada sauce, evenly top with remaining shredded cheese and then the crumbled queso fresco.
  • Bake for 20 minutes until hot and bubbly.  If desired, garnish with green onions and cilantro and serve with more enchilada sauce and sour cream.  Enjoy!

Recipe Notes

  • Use a mix of light and dark ground turkey, white only will be too dry and flavorless.
  • You can use corn tortillas if you prefer, and a different size.  Just fill as many as will use all the turkey filling.
  • I eyeball and score the turkey mixture into 8 portions in the pan to help evenly divide the filling.
  • The fresh cheese on top won't really melt, that's okay and the way it should be.
  • If you make the homemade enchilada sauce, use ¼ cup in the turkey mixture and spread the remaining ¾ cup over the top of the enchiladas. One cup of homemade sauce is enough.
 

Nutrition

Calories: 312kcal Carbohydrates: 7g Protein: 28g Fat: 19g Saturated Fat: 11g Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g Monounsaturated Fat: 6g Trans Fat: 1g Cholesterol: 79mg Sodium: 863mg Potassium: 242mg Fiber: 1g Sugar: 4g Vitamin A: 854IU Vitamin C: 2mg Calcium: 412mg Iron: 1mg
Did you make this recipe? Please comment, rate it and share! And mention me on Instagram @thehungrybluebird or tag #thehungrybluebird so I can see!
Recipe Rating




Claudia Mink

Tuesday 28th of February 2023

These were delicious and left overs the next were even better. These were very easy to make. Thank you for sharing.

Shery Sullivan

Monday 20th of February 2023

Could you also spread refried beans on the tortilla before the meat?

Jennfier

Thursday 24th of March 2022

Can you make ahead then bake or will it get soggy?

Kelly

Wednesday 30th of March 2022

Hi Jennifer, I've never made them ahead of time but I think it should be just fine to do that.

Carrie

Thursday 1st of July 2021

Delicious, easy! Kids loved them.

Kelly

Monday 12th of July 2021

Thanks for letting me know, Carrie. So glad you and the kids liked these enchiladas. They are so easy!

Sarah

Tuesday 22nd of June 2021

This recipe was great! I used GF mission tortillas and premade enchilada sauce. I added a can of beans to the filling to bulk it up for hubby.

Kelly

Monday 12th of July 2021

So glad you liked it, Sarah. Your tweaks sound delicious!