This Chipotle Beef and Bean Enchilada Casserole is absolute comfort food at its best! It is a heartier take on our favorite Black Bean Enchilada Casserole with ground beef, pinto beans, sour cream, and jack cheese tucked between layers of tortillas and topped with chipotle enchilada sauce.
I’ve felt an extra bit of weariness lately, anyone else agree? It has forced me to have a very narrow perspective on what brings me joy and an intense focus on that thing… once I determine what it is.
Some days it is the sun shining on my face, some days it’s cuddling with the dogs, but there is nothing that guarantees a sense of everything-right-with-the-worldness like a bubbling, cheesy casserole coming out of the oven.
Maybe its my Midwestern upbringing, but man I love the cozy vibes of a crispy on the edge, tender in the middle baked dinner. It reminds me of those cold winter days when you just wanted to eat something warm and comforting. I’m convinced this enchilada casserole will bring endless happiness to your home.
Why I love this enchilada casserole
It is packed with great flavors and textures. The foundation is a homemade enchilada sauce that has smoky chipotle peppers. It also has mounds of gooey cheese (that get crisp at the edges and on top), as well as hearty seasoned beef, tender beans, and chewy corn tortillas.
Talk about a real crowd pleaser. It’s meat! It’s cheese! It’s what the people want! Think of this dish as the easier version of those beef enchiladas you get at your favorite Tex-Mex place all in one bountiful baking dish.
The tortillas are key. Most enchilada casserole recipes have you add the tortillas without cooking them first. This recipe has you take the extra step of lightly frying the tortillas before adding them to the dish. Yes, it is an extra step, but the tortillas have so much more flavor, and addictive toothiness, and stand up to all the ingredients instead of becoming mush.
Ingredients List
We’re keeping things really basic here. You should be able to find all these ingredients at your local grocery store.
- Homemade Chipotle Enchilada Sauce. You can make this a few days in advance if you’d like. It is super easy to make and is so worth the effort.
- Avocado oil. You don’t have to use avocado oil, but it is a excellent, neutral-flavored oil that does well at high temperatures and is full of healthy fats. Other options would be sunflower oil or a light olive oil.
- White onion. White onion is key to that bright, vibrant Mexican flavor. In a pinch, red onion would work, but it will be sweeter.
- Garlic
- Ground beef. Watching your saturated fat intake? Use ground chicken or ground turkey or plant-based meat instead.
- Ground arbol chile powder. I like the spiciness of the arbol chile powder but you could substitute whichever ground chile powder you have on hand.
- Dried marjoram. Also dried oregano or Mexican oregano would work.
- Ground coriander. Don’t have ground coriander? Use ground cumin or even paprika instead.
- Kosher salt
- Canned pinto beans. Or black beans if you prefer.
- Corn tortillas. Don’t use flour tortillas here, they will just fall apart.
- Jack cheese. Other cheeses to try would be cheddar, queso Oaxaca, pepper jack, or a combination of these. Whichever you use, buy the whole block of cheese and shred it yourself. Many of the preshredded cheeses have anti-caking agents added which gives them a funky texture and flavor.
- Sour cream
- Green onions and cilantro. For garnish.
How To Make It
Start to finish this casserole takes about an hour to get into the baking dish and into the oven. You can make the enchilada sauce, meat filling and shred the cheese up to three days in advance if you want to do it in stages.
- Make the sauce. The first step is to make the homemade enchilada sauce.
- Cook the meat filling. Start by cooking the onion in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and ground beef and cook until the meat is cooked through. Add the spices and beans. Stir to combine and set aside.
- Fry the tortillas. Crisp the tortillas in a bit of oil until they are golden on both sides.
- Start to layer. Spray a 8-x-8-inch baking dish with cooking spray. Cover the bottom of the baking dish with enchilada sauce then put three tortillas on top. Cover that with a third of the meat mixture, a third of the sour cream, and a third of the shredded cheese. Repeat this two more times, finishing with the cheese. You will want to really press down the layers as you go so everything fits in the pan.
- Bake. Place the baking dish on a foil-lined baking sheet pan to catch any drips and bake at 350°F for 50-60 minutes or until the cheese is melted and bubbly. Feel free to place under the broiler for a few minutes to get really nice and browned.
- Serve. Let it cool anywhere from 15 to 30 minutes before serving otherwise all the layers will ooze out everywhere. Garnish with a showering of green onion and chopped cilantro.
Love this recipe? Here’s One (or Two) More You’ve Got To Try
Vegetarian Black Bean Enchilada Casserole
This recipe for Black Bean Enchilada Casserole has eight layers of tortillas, black beans, roasted vegetables, and cheese making it the most delicious ever! Bake in the oven, on a deep casserole dish until the cheese is melted and bubbly. in under 30 minutes! A healthy, plant-based dinner, perfect for Sunday family dinner.
Weeknight Cheesy Enchiladas
Or try this more Tex-Mex style cheesy enchiladas from my new cookbook, Plant Powered Mexican out now!
More Comfort Food Recipes You’ll Love!
- Shredded Beef Tacos {Carne Deshebrada}
- Cheddar Bacon Jalapeño Poppers
- Authentic Chiles Rellenos
- Spicy Vegan Enchilada Recipe
- Caldo de Pollo Crock Pot Recipe
- Grilled Chicken Chilaquiles Verdes Recipe
- Pork Pozole Rojo
If you love beef enchiladas
Why not give this enchilada casserole a try? Let me know when you make it by snapping a pic and tagging me on Instagram @holajalapeno and #holajalapeno so I can see or leave me a comment below (don’t forget to leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating) ! Also, sign up for my weekly newsletter, lots of good stuff there too!
Chipotle Beef and Bean Enchilada Casserole
This Chipotle Beef and Bean Enchilada Casserole is absolute comfort food at its best! It is a heartier take on our favorite Black Bean Enchilada Casserole with ground beef, pinto beans, sour cream, and jack cheese tucked between layers of tortillas and topped with chipotle enchilada sauce.
Ingredients
- 6 tablespoons avocado oil or other neutral oil
- 1 medium white onion, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
- 1 1/2 teaspoons dried marjoram
- 1/2 teaspoon ground árbol chile powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus more for seasoning
- 1 (19.75 ounce) can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
- 9 (6-inch) corn tortillas
- 1 recipe Super Easy Enchilada Sauce
- 8 ounces sour cream
- 16 ounces Monterey jack cheese, shredded (you should have about 4 1/2 cups shredded)
- Thinly sliced green onion, for garnish
- Chopped cilantro, for garnish
Instructions
- Heat oven. Heat oven to 350°F and spray an 8 x 8-inch baking dish with cooking spray.
- Saute the veggies. Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Add onion and season with salt. Let cook, stirring occasionally, until it becomes tender, about 4 minutes. Add garlic and cook a minute more.
- Brown the beef. Add beef and brown, breaking it up with the back of a wood spoon until the meat and onions are well combined.
- Toast the spices. Once beef is almost completley browned, add coriander, marjoram, and arbol chile powder and let the spices bloom in the hot fat. Add the beans and stir to combine. Set aside.
- Fry the tortillas. Heat remaining 1/4 cup of oil in a medium frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the tortillas one or two at a time (depending on how big your pan is) and cook until golden and crisp on both sides, about 2-3 minutes each. Drain on paper towels.
- Layer. Spread 1/2 cup of enchilada sauce over the bottom of the baking dish. Cover with 3 tortillas. Top with 1/3 of the meat mixture, 1/3 of the sour cream, and 1/3 of the cheese. Spread each layer out to the very edge of the dish covering as much area as possible.
- Repeat. Starting with the sauce again, repeat the layers two more times: Sauce, tortillas, meat, sour cream, cheese. You will have to press down firmly on each layer to get it all to fit.
- Bake. Cover a baking sheet with a piece of foil and set baking dish on top to catch any drips. Bake uncovered for 50-60 minutes or until cheese is melted and filling is bubbling.
- Broil. If you want the top really browned you can toast it under the broiler for 3-4 minutes.
- Cool. Let sit at least 15 minutes before slicing otherwise all the layers will just ooze all over.
- Serve. Slice into 8-10 pieces, depending on how big you want the servings. Garnish with lots of chopped green onion and cilantro and serve.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 649Total Fat: 49gSaturated Fat: 19gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 23gCholesterol: 127mgSodium: 891mgCarbohydrates: 19gFiber: 1gSugar: 2gProtein: 34g
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