Striving for good food in the great outdoors- the pioneer way.

Monday, October 4, 2010

Green Chile Enchiladas for a Crowd

We know, you are probably thinking- another Tex Mex recipe????  Well, the answer is, yes.

So, we had 7 hungry adults and 3 kids with us this weekend so we needed something that would fill those empty stomachs.  We also needed something that could be made in our 14" D.O.  Originally, I had planned to use those pre-made burritos (which are very easy for a camping mom of a 20-month old and with the sauce are pretty good), but when Matt saw them in the freezer he wasn't having any part of that, even though I had emailed him the recipe.  I guess that tells me how much he pays attention when I suggest camping food.

So, I was sort of back to the drawing board.  I already had the enchilada sauce, jalapenos, green chilies, etc so I had to start there.  In my opinion, enchiladas have to be made with corn tortillas, but of course, there is at least 1 picky person in our group who prefers flour tortillas.  So, I got 1 package of corn tortillas and 1 package of flour (the small taco size).  This gave me enough tortillas to feed an army, and I didn't use them all.  But, I will find another use for them, I promise.

Then, what about the filling?  Well, I decided to go with a combination of ground pork and ground venison.  Its October already, Matt will be hunting again, and we've got venison to eat.  For some people though, just straight venison is too much of a different flavor so I used 1 lb ground pork and 1 lb ground venison.  I suppose any ground or shredded meat in this recipe would be fine. 

The pre-made burritos that I purchased also had rice in them, which made me think- we can do that!  I got a package of black beans and rice (Vigo brand) but any Spanish or Meixcan or yellow rice mix would work.  I made the rice earlier in the afternoon when we were just hanging around the campground. 

So, then it was time to assemble, and we did it in assembly line fashion.

Green Chile Enchiladas for a Crowd
14" Dutch oven
21 coals on top, 11 on bottom for 350°

1 package corn tortillas
Vegetable oil for cooking tortillas
2 lb ground pork, beef, venison, turkey, chicken, or any combination
Seasonings for meat- onion powder, cumin, chili powder
1 package Spanish or Mexican rice mix, prepared
40 ounces (4 small cans- that was all my grocery store had) green enchilada sauce or salsa verde
1 small can chopped jalapenos (excess liquid drained)
1 small can chopped green chilies (excess liquid drained)
¼ cup chopped bell pepper
2-3 cups cheddar cheese

Brown the meat and season as desired. It isn’t necessary to go overboard with the seasoning for the enchiladas as the green sauce has a lot of flavor.

In a bowl, combine enchilada sauce, jalapenos, green chilies, and chopped bell pepper. Place just enough in the bottom of the Dutch oven to cover it.
Now, heat up a few drops of oil in a cast iron skillet (won’t take long). Cook the corn tortillas- 30 seconds on each side. Remove from pan (and maybe place on a paper towel) and repeat with remaining tortillas. Add more oil as needed in the process. If you have multiple chefs at the campsite, you can set up an assembly line for this dish:

1.) cooking tortillas
2.) filling with rice and meat
3.) filling with cheese rolling up, and placing in D.O.

If you have any leftover meat, like I did, sprinkle it on top of the enchiladas.  Then, pour remaining sauce on top and sprinkle with cheese. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes.  This is the finished product:

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