Creamy sour cream chicken enchiladas baked with tender chicken, melted cheese, and a quick homemade sour cream enchilada sauce. Comfort food that’s easy enough for a weeknight.
This from-scratch recipe makes a cheesy baked casserole with options for a full pan or half size. No shortcuts needed—just real ingredients, quick prep, and a bubbling, golden finish.
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Featured Comment by Judy:
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
"It's awesome. Fairly quick and easy and tastes great! Where's the margaritas??"
🤔 TL;DR (Quick Answer Box)
What it is: Cheesy sour cream chicken enchiladas baked with tender chicken and a quick homemade sour cream enchilada sauce.
Why you’ll love it: Creamy, from-scratch comfort food that’s weeknight easy and freezer-friendly.
How to make it: Cook chicken and onion, roll in tortillas with cheese, cover in sour cream sauce, and bake about 20 minutes.
Jump to the Recipe Card or keep reading for details and options.
🐓 Ingredients
- Chicken — breast meat, diced or shredded; rotisserie works too.
- Sour Cream — the creamy base for the sauce.
- Onion — diced and cooked with the chicken.
- Tortillas — flour, 8-inch size rolls best.
- Cheese — Monterey Jack for smooth melt; Pepper Jack for spice.
- Green Chiles — canned, mild or hot, stirred into the sauce.
- Pantry Staples — butter, flour, chicken broth, oil, salt, pepper.
👨🍳 Quick Overview: How to Make Sour Cream Chicken Enchiladas
1. Cook chicken and onion — dice chicken and onion, then sauté over medium-high heat until the chicken is cooked through.
2. Fill and roll tortillas — add chicken and cheese, roll tightly, and place seam-side down in a greased baking dish.
3. Start the sauce — make a roux with butter and flour, whisk in broth, and cook until thickened.
4. Finish the sauce — remove from heat, stir in sour cream and green chiles.
5. Assemble — pour sauce over rolled tortillas and top with more cheese.
6. Bake — cook for 20 minutes at 375°F (or 400°F conventional) until golden, bubbly, and 165°F inside.
👇 Scroll down for the printable recipe card and complete step-by-step photo instructions—or keep reading for tips and serving ideas.
💡 Tips & Variations
- Cheese swap — Pepper Jack adds a little spice.
- Spice boost — add some cumin, chili powder, or extra green chiles to the sour cream sauce for a deeper, Tex-Mex flavor.
- Tortillas — flour holds up best, but corn works if briefly fried to prevent soggy rolls.
- Make ahead — assemble and refrigerate up to 24 hours before baking, or freeze for later.
Add a pinch of cumin to the sour cream sauce for a deeper, Tex-Mex flavor.
🍗 Rotisserie or Precooked Chicken
Rotisserie chicken is a great shortcut. Shred the meat and use it in place of the freshly cooked chicken. Sauté the onion until it starts to clear, then add the chicken just long enough to warm through before rolling.
As a guide: about 1 pound of raw chicken equals roughly 3 cups of shredded cooked chicken. Leftover roasted or grilled chicken works the same way.
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↕️ Full or Half Size Options
This recipe makes a full 9×13 pan for 8 servings. You can also make a half batch in an 8×8 pan for 4 servings.
- Half size — use half the ingredients. Bake at the same temperature, but it may finish a few minutes faster. Check for bubbling edges and a 165°F center.
- Full size — as written, bakes in about 20 minutes at 375°F convection (or 400°F conventional).
👉 Both versions freeze well — bake the half pan for weeknight meals or the full pan for leftovers.
❓ FAQs
You can, but it changes the taste and texture. Full-fat gives the creamiest results.
Yes. Swap some Monterey Jack for Pepper Jack, add more green chiles, or season the chicken with cumin and chili powder.
With a simple roux of butter and flour, whisked with broth until smooth. Then stir in sour cream and green chiles.
Tortillas can soak up sauce. Warm them before rolling, or give them a quick fry in a lightly oiled skillet to create a barrier.
Some recipes use canned soup, but this version is made from scratch with a quick homemade sour cream enchilada sauce. It’s just as easy and tastes fresher.
🍽️ Serving
Serve sour cream chicken enchiladas with guacamole. Add fresh toppings like chopped lettuce and diced tomatoes for color and crunch.
Round out the meal with sides of Mexican rice, refried beans, and a basket of chips with salsa.
❄️ Make Ahead and Storage
- Uncooked — Roll the enchiladas, cover tightly in the baking dish, and refrigerate. Make the sauce ahead and store it separately, then warm before adding to the casserole. Or make the sauce fresh right before assembling.
- Cooked — Cool completely before covering. Refrigerate for 2–3 days.
- Freezing — Freeze either uncooked or cooked enchiladas. Wrap well with plastic wrap and foil, and store for 3–4 months.
📖The Recipe Card
Sour Cream Chicken Enchiladas (Easy & From Scratch)
Ingredients
- 1½ lb chicken breast - diced or shredded
- 1 onion - medium
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 8 flour tortillas - 8 inch each
- 2 cups Monterey Jack cheese - shredded
- ¼ cup butter
- ¼ cup flour
- 15 ounce chicken broth
- 1 cup sour cream
- 4 ounce chopped green chilis
- salt and pepper to taste
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375° convection or 400° conventional.
- Trim and dice about 1½ pounds of skinless, boneless chicken breast into pieces about ½ inch or smaller. Dice one medium onion.
- Add one tablespoon oil to a large frypan over medium-high heat, and when hot, add chicken and onion together. Cook until the chicken appears done—about 5 minutes.
- Spray a 9 by 13 baking dish with PAM. Heat 8 tortillas (8 inches) in a microwave for 15-20 seconds to soften. Assemble the enchiladas. Add about ¼ cup of chicken/onion (or more if you've increased the chicken) and about two tablespoons of shredded Monterey Jack cheese on a tortilla. Place filling slightly off-center, about at the ⅓ mark.
- Roll the short end over the filling tightly. Place them seam-side down in the baking pan. Repeat until done.
- In a medium saucepan, melt four tablespoons ( ½ stick) of butter over medium heat. When melted, add ¼ cup flour. Whisk together and cook for a few minutes.
- Add one can of chicken broth, whisk continuously until thickened, and then continue whisking for a few more minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Remove from heat and add 1 cup sour cream and 1 (4-ounce) can of chopped green chilis.
- Pour the sauce over the assembled enchiladas. Top with 1 cup Monterey Jack cheese.
- Bake until golden brown and bubbling—about 20 minutes. Check internal temperature. If it’s not above 165°F, cover with foil and bake longer until it reaches 165°F.
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips
- I suggest 1½ pounds of chicken. It could be as little as 1 pound or as much as 2 pounds. Diced or shredded. Get your chicken where you can. Cook as directed or use precooked, such as a rotisserie chicken.
- The tortillas will be much more flexible if warmed slightly in the microwave.
- The base recipe is mild, so feel free to spice it up — see post for options.
- I like the Monterey Jack cheese here, but use what you want.
- Cook to a nice brown top, but also check the internal temperature to be sure the chicken has reached the safe 165° temperature. Cook longer, covered with foil if needed.
- After cooking, store refrigerated for 2–3 days or frozen for 3–4 months. Can be frozen uncooked for 3–4 months. To refrigerate uncooked, assemble the enchiladas but add the sauce and cheese just before cooking.
- See the full post for detailed tips, photos, and scaling options.
Your Own Private Notes
To adjust the recipe size:
You can adjust the number of servings above; however, only the amount in the ingredient list is adjusted, not the instructions.
Nutrition Estimate (may vary)
Based on a Food.com Simple Sour Cream Enchiladas recipe, which is the same recipe that appears in many places.
Originally published April 6, 2014. Updated with expanded options, refreshed photos, and a table of contents to help navigation. Instructions are also reworded to clarify points.
Jon steiger says
What is the chicken broth used in? It is not in the recipe directions
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
In the white sauce after making the roux. Instruction #7,
Dan
Patti says
This looks like a familiar soup recipe I make often. I’d rather make the sauce from scratch, but it was already a last minute choice for dinner.
One thing I’ve done for the past several years, after my husband had quadruple bypass surgery, is to substitute nonfat Greek Yogurt, preferably Fage. Their yogurt is very thick and tasty. No one has been able to tell the difference, lol!
Have you heard of anyone trying this? I’ve done this for over 10 years, even with my enchiladas.
Linda Hansen says
I made this tonight. While it had a really good flavor overall, it didn't have quite the "heat" I was anticipating although I added Pepper Jack cheese (which I shredded) and a Hot Cheese from Kroger along with the Monterey Jack cheese called for in the recipe. The next time I make this, I will be adding in some "mild" jalapeno peppers and ground red pepper to add heat. I also think the roue was a bit thicker than it should have been, so I will be adding some milk to make the sauce creamier.
Terrese Norman says
I cut the recipe in half. It was very good. Next time I will make a few changes like adding green verde salsa so that the sauce is not so thick. I also used pepper jack cheese.
Robin says
This just looks so delicious. Putting the ingredients on the grocery list! I so appreciate your pictures of all the steps. Most sites don't do that, lots of pics of the finished product though. It helps ensure that readers can turn out the recipe as you made it, so I really appreciate that and the smaller recipes. Everything I've made from you has turned out wonderfully, thank you.
Leslie Koury says
I visit your site frequently as I cook for a household of ONE...not easy to do. Your tips and suggestions are very helpful and your recipes very good. I have a recipe very similar to this one but I have a secret weapon to make it fabulous...fresh, roasted chili or frozen green chili! I am fortunate enough to be able to purchase roasted Hatch chili, in season, at roadside stands. I know it's unavailable in many parts of the country but ask your grocer if it can be ordered for you. If you have chili-lovin' friends, order a case and share it out. Your grocer might be more willing to get it in for you if he doesn't have to sit on inventory that won't sell. Or, buy fresh if available and roast in oven or grill. Once you taste fresh green chili, you'll never be able to go back to canned.
Leah says
Dr Dan
I started out looking for something to do with my Freezer burned chicken. Found your recipe!! Wow! The wonderful smells coming out of the chicken. And that was only doing the first part. This morning got up, shredded the chicken added all the seasonings. My husband couldn’t wait so we sampled it on tortilla chips with cheese and a jalapeño- chicken nachos. Then tonight I used the chicken in your sour cream chicken enchiladas- I just skipped down to the sauce. It made a great combo. There’s enough chicken left over so we are thinking chicken tacos later this week. So glad I found your blog!! Can’t wait to try some more of your recipes. Thank you.
Suzanne says
Has anyone frozen this particular recipe? I need to know! This is in my make list in a couple days if I can freeze and would I freeze before I bake or after I bake? Thx!!!
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi Suzanne,
Welcome to the blog.
This is not something I have done but it should be fine frozen. I would freeze before cooking.
I have done lasagna, where I will cook at 350 covered with foil for about one hour, uncover and cook until browned nicely. I suspect it would be about the same here but this is thinner. So less time covered.
One rule of thumb I have heard in the past is to add about 20 minutes to the cooking time. Not covered. I would normally cook the lasagna about 40 minutes covered and then uncover until browned. So that seems about right.
Dan
Judy Uhl says
Forgot to come back and rate this recipe! It's awesome. Fairly quick and easy and tastes great! Where's the margaritas??
Jill M says
Hi Dan: Made this last night and it turned out really good. This is the first time that I made enchiladas that did not fall apart. Very Tasty. The only problem that I had was that the bottoms got a little overdone, and I apparently rolled them a little too tight and some of the tortillas were a little doughy and not completely done. We have 4 left and I want to have them again tomorrow night with the yellow rice that I prepared and wondered it I should put them back in the oven and cook them a little longer. If so, how? Thanks. Love the dogs.
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi Jill,
I would reheat them in the oven. I would put them higher the oven so the bottom doesn't cook much. The doughy tortillas won't do well in a microwave.
Dan
mark b says
As always Doc, you have a lot of amazingly simple recipes that are easier and better tasting than the so called "pros". Thanks again.
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi Mark,
Glad you enjoyed it. It is very tasty.
Thanks for the note.
Dan
Kim says
I’ve recently started cooking several chicken breasts each week (with salt, pepper, onion powder, minced garlic, and olive oil) to use with multiple meals, and this is my FAVORITE recipe to use it in! I love that I can assemble it in the morning to save time in the crazy evening hours too. My 15 month old and five year old both love it, and my husband eats multiple helpings with salsa to add a little heat. Thanks for a great recipe!
DrDan says
Hi Kim,
Welcome to the blog.
I do love simple recipes like this that can be made ahead. And since it is not a "spicy" Mexican, even the kids will love it. Glad you enjoy it.
Thanks for the note.
Dan