Alton Brown does Mexican – Italian fusion?? Well, the enchilada lasagna is mexican through and through. It is only assembled in the spirit of Italian lasagna. This dish made it to the top ten on Food Network’s Alton Brown recipe page. I had not noticed it on the website previously so I was excited to give this one a try. I was also excited to get a recipe for the “red sauce” that you see so frequently when you visit a mexican restaurant.
The Program
For sauce:
2 dried chipotle chiles, stems and seeds removed, diced
3 large garlic cloves, minced
2 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
1 1/2 teaspoons toasted cumin seeds, freshly ground
2 cups chicken broth
3 cups tomato sauce
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
For filling:
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs, cubed
1 1/2 cups diced onion
Pinch kosher salt
1 large clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried oregano
12 (6-inch) corn tortillas
3 cups shredded queso fresco or Monterey Jack
Nonstick cooking spray
The Prep
This one requires little prep. One thing I did a little different was to make a garlic paste instead of mincing it. I love garlic flavor, but in a sauce I would rather not bite into a hunk of garlic. That’s just me, though. I also did not make the effort to find cumin seeds. I just used powdered cumin – it’s still pretty potent. When prepping this one, be sure to keep your ingredients for the sauce and filling separate since they share ingredients, but in different quantities.
The Process
I recommend starting with the sauce. Alton recommends simmering it for 15 minutes, but if you want it a little thicker and more concentrated, you can certainly let it simmer a little longer. Its production is simple. Throw all the sauce ingredients in a sauce pan and bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer. I did a little whisking at the beginning to help separate the garlic paste and the chipotle chunks. Other than that, turn on a timer and pull it off the heat when it goes off.
For the filling start by sauteing the chicken in your favorite stainless pan. When the chicken has cooked, remove it and then put the onion into the pan to get them cooking. When they start to soften add the spices and cook them down for another minute or two. In my preparation, I cooked the chicken a little too long on one side so I had some fond on the pan, so I when I added the spices, I put in just a little white wine to deglaze.
When everything is ready it’s time to assemble the lasagna. start with a little bit of sauce in the bottom of the dish. Add a layer of tortillas (which have been dipped in the sauce) then a layer of filling, then a layer of cheese. Repeat with another layer of tortillas and filling. Pour the rest of the sauce over everything and finish with another layer of cheese. Bake and enjoy!
The Payoff
Like many of Alton’s dishes, this one is easy to prepare and turns out to be fantastic. Lori and I both really enjoyed this one. It is a little spicy, but it isn’t overly spicy. I think I’m most excited about having the red sauce recipe as it will work for many Mexican dishes.
Enjoy!!
