Irresistibly Easy Ground Turkey Enchiladas With Green Sauce

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If you’re looking to elevate your next Taco Tuesday with an easy, make-ahead meal, these Ground Turkey Enchiladas with Green Sauce are the perfect choice. Extra cheesy and packed with rich flavor, this hearty dish quickly becomes a family favorite. Even better, these turkey enchiladas freeze beautifully, perfect for busy nights when you still want a homemade dinner. Here on the homestead, I love that we grow and preserve many of the ingredients: corn, tomatoes, salsa, and even the meat and cheese. I’m even working on growing the black beans! Whether your pantry is homegrown or store-bought, this recipe comes together easily with wholesome ingredients and comforting flavor.

Choose Your Ground Meat

While both ground chicken and ground turkey are lean choices, ground turkey comes in slightly leaner and lower in calories, though with a meal like this, it’s not about counting calories! Turkey is slightly drier of a meat, which works well in this casserole and its juicy additions. I’ve made this meal with ground turkey, ground chicken, ground beef, and even ground venison! Honestly, I like using turkey to mix it up a bit! This meal is a great option to use up leftovers. Dice up that leftover turkey as an easy way to spice up your Thanksgiving leftovers. 

Whip It Up!

Step 1: In a large cast-iron skillet, over medium heat, cook onions in a couple of tablespoons of olive oil until slightly tender. Add the ground turkey and cook until cooked through. 

Step 2: Add the taco seasoning, pepper, and cumin, being sure to toss thoroughly to flavor the meat.

Step 3: Add the cream cheese and half of the shredded cheese. Stir until melted.

Step 4: Add the salsa, corn, black beans, diced tomatoes, and green chiles. Stir until well combined.

Step 5: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Begin filling the tortillas. I like between 1/2 and 3/4 cups of filling.

Step 6: Spread enchilada filling down the center of the tortilla and wrap. Place seam side down in a large baking dish. If making extra to freeze, place seam side down on a parchment paper-lined tray. 

Step 7: Top with enchilada sauce and additional cheese.

​Step 8: Bake casserole until hot and bubbly. If cooking while hot, this will take 20 minutes.

Perfect Pairings for Your Green Chile Enchiladas

Top with your favorite toppings: sour cream, extra cheese (can you have too much?), and hot sauce if you dare! Other great ideas for even more flavor: add green onions, fresh cilantro, chopped red onions, extra green chilies, or green peppers.

We find that 1 1/2 to 2 enchiladas is a filling serving for adults. We commonly eat this without any added sides. However, these easy ground turkey enchiladas are perfect paired with cilantro lime rice, Mexican rice, or refried black beans. 

Make the Most of Your Leftover Enchiladas

Leftover cooked enchiladas should be stored in the refrigerator and eaten within 3-4 days. If you have leftover filling, it can be eaten without the tortilla, call it a deconstructed enchilada bowl, add a few crunchy tortilla strips or eat it with regular tortilla chips.

Personally, I prefer to freeze all the leftover enchiladas.  Rather than cook an entire casserole dish of enchiladas, I cook only what we will eat for one meal or added lunches. The rest are frozen on a tray, seam side down.  Make sure any filling that tries to slide out is pushed inside the tortilla. Once frozen solid, transfer to a ziplock bag or other airtight container. For busy weeknight dinners, pull out enough frozen enchiladas and defrost them in a prepared casserole pan in the refrigerator. Before baking, add your preferred sauce to the top of the enchiladas, either green or red enchilada sauce, and add cheese. Bake as directed for 20 to 30 minutes until hot and bubbly and heated through. 

From Our Homestead Kitchen to Yours

These flavorful ground turkey enchiladas with green chile sauce are one of my favorite meals. Whether you’re making them for Taco Tuesday, using up leftovers, or stocking the freezer for batch cooking, this recipe brings everyone to the table. My favorite part is that it’s made with simple, wholesome ingredients, many of which we grow and preserve right here on the homestead. No matter where you call home, these enchiladas are sure to bring a little olé to your meal rotation!