Enchiladas usually depend on corn or flour tortillas to hold the filling together, but this version removes them from the pan altogether. Thin strips of zucchini are overlapped to create a flexible wrapper around chicken, cream cheese, and green chiles.
The recipe from Green and Keto uses three large zucchini for eight servings. Instead of turning the zucchini into noodles or chopping it into the filling, each vegetable is cut lengthwise with a mandolin or vegetable peeler. Five or six slices are then overlapped to create enough surface area to replace a tortilla.
Inside each roll is cooked shredded chicken mixed with softened cream cheese, diced green chiles, cumin, and chili powder. A sour cream and green chile sauce covers the zucchini rolls before two cups of shredded Monterey Jack and cheddar go across the top.
The result keeps the rolled structure of enchiladas while removing the ingredient that would normally account for much of the carbohydrates.
Five or Six Zucchini Slices Replace Each Tortilla
Getting the zucchini thin enough to roll is the main preparation step.
A mandolin produces long slices with a consistent thickness, though a sharp vegetable peeler can do the same job. Instead of trying to wrap the chicken with one narrow strip, five or six pieces are placed next to each other with their edges overlapping.
About ½ cup of chicken filling goes across the center. The zucchini is then rolled around it as one larger sheet and transferred into a greased 9-by-13-inch baking dish.
The overlapping technique gives the filling more coverage while allowing the zucchini to bend without needing a conventional tortilla.
Leftover Chicken Becomes the Enchilada Filling
Three cups of cooked, shredded chicken form the center of the recipe, making this one way to use chicken already sitting in the refrigerator.
The original version was made with leftover roasted chicken thighs, but cooked chicken breast or meat pulled from a rotisserie chicken can fill the zucchini rolls as well.
Four ounces of softened cream cheese bind the shredded chicken with a 4-ounce can of diced green chiles. A teaspoon each of cumin and chili powder provides the seasoning before salt and pepper are added.
Because the chicken is already cooked, the oven isn’t being used to cook the filling from scratch. It reheats the chicken while softening the zucchini and melting the cheese around it.
Green Chile Sauce Goes Under and Over the Rolls
The sauce uses just two main ingredients: 1 cup sour cream and 1¼ cups green chile sauce.
A spoonful goes into the bottom of the baking dish before the zucchini rolls are added. The remaining sauce is poured across the assembled enchiladas, giving the zucchini and chicken another layer of green chile flavor.
Two cups of shredded cheese cover the top. The recipe uses a combination of Monterey Jack and cheddar, which melts across the sauce as the zucchini cooks underneath.
The pan bakes at 375°F for about 30 minutes, until the cheese is bubbling and beginning to brown.
Skip the Rolling and Build It Like Lasagna Instead
The same ingredients can be assembled without making individual zucchini rolls.
For the casserole version, about ½ cup of green chile sour cream sauce goes into the bottom of the baking dish, followed by zucchini slices, a thin layer of chicken filling, and more sauce. Those layers are repeated until the ingredients are used.
Shredded cheese still covers the top before baking.
The change doesn’t require another filling or sauce recipe. It removes the process of overlapping and rolling individual zucchini wrappers while keeping the chicken, green chiles, sour cream sauce, and cheese in each serving.
Tomatoes and Cilantro Go On After Baking
Fresh toppings aren’t added until the enchiladas come out of the oven. The recipe calls for ½ cup chopped tomatoes and ½ cup chopped cilantro, which go over the melted cheese before serving.
The enchiladas can also be frozen, though the fresh tomatoes and cilantro should be left off. Once the cooked enchiladas have cooled, they can be transferred to a freezer-safe container and stored for up to one month.
Individual portions can be reheated in the microwave, while a larger batch can return to the oven.
