Give those turkey leftovers flavorful new life with these Leftover Turkey Enchiladas! If you're tired of turkey sandwiches, this simple recipe is a quick and delicious way to take Christmas dinner or thanksgiving leftovers from boring to crave worthy.

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Thanksgiving dinner is always amazing, and leftover Thanksgiving turkey is always delicious the next day, too. But after that, it's easy to get tired of it. That's when you need a few good leftover turkey recipes.
You can always make turkey and lentil soup, but if you have a lot of leftover turkey, these cheesy turkey enchiladas are another great way to use it up in a way that won't taste like leftovers.
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Why you'll love this recipe
- A fresh take on leftovers. This leftover turkey enchiladas recipe turns turkey into a fresh new meal that the whole family will love.
- Turkey loves Mexican flavors. Like chicken, turkey's mild flavor is perfect for the warm spices of Mexican cooking. This turkey enchilada casserole is just as delicious as my leftover turkey nachos, and these turkey tacos with mango salsa.
- Customizable. Use your favorite fillings and/or toppings. Make it as spicy or mild as you like. It's easy to make these turkey enchiladas your own.
- Quick and easy. Since the turkey is already cooked, this easy dinner recipe takes hardly any time to assemble and only 20 minutes to bake.
Ingredients for Leftover Turkey Enchiladas
- Shredded turkey meat: You can use white meat, dark meat, or a combination, whatever is your preference.
- Cheese: I love pepper jack cheese, or Monterey jack cheese for Mexican recipes. Although you can buy the cheese pre-shredded, it won't melt as nicely because of the cellulose that is added to the pre-shredded cheese to keep it from clumping together. I always grate the cheese myself and it really just takes a minute.
- Green chiles: I'm using mild green chiles to keep it spice adverse and kid friendly. If you like more spice, you can use hotter chiles. I'm using canned green chiles because I always have them in the pantry. However, if you prefer, you can certainly use fresh chiles.
- Enchilada sauce: For this recipe, I'm keeping it easy and simple, which is the point here, because I just cooked a huge thanksgiving feast! So I'm using a mild red enchilada sauce. If you prefer to make your own homemade enchilada sauce, by all means do! If you use a prepared sauce, check the labels if you're gluten-free.
- Corn Tortillas: Ten inch tortillas work best, and corn tortillas are traditionally used for enchiladas. Using corn tortillas will keep the recipe gluten-free, too. You can use flour tortillas though, if you prefer.
- Seasonings: The chili powder for this recipe is the mild blend found in grocery stores. I'm also using onion powder and garlic powder to avoid cooking fresh onion and fresh garlic separately. You can also replace the seasonings with taco seasoning, like my homemade chicken taco seasoning mix.
How to make it, step by step
- In a medium bowl, combine the turkey with the green chiles, and the seasonings.
- Put a layer of enchilada sauce on the bottom of your casserole dish.
- Divide half of the cheese over each tortilla, then top with the turkey mixture before rolling each tortilla. Place seam side down in the prepared baking dish.
- Cover with remaining enchilada sauce.
- Top with the remaining cheese.
- Bake until cheese is golden and bubbly.
- Serve topped with sliced black olives, chopped fresh cilantro, a dollop of sour cream or your favorite toppings.
Tips and Variations
- Warm the tortillas. To make the tortillas more pliable and easier to roll, warm them first. There are a couple of ways to heat the tortillas. My favorite is to heat a dry skillet over medium high. Heat each tortilla for about 30 seconds per side. Remove, add the filling and roll while the next tortilla heats. You can also put the tortillas on a plate, cover with a damp paper towel, and heat on high for 30 seconds.
- Add vegetables. Add chopped bell pepper, corn, kale, or zucchini to the turkey filling for extra nutrition.
- Add beans. Black beans are a perfect addition to the turkey filling. You can also spread each tortilla with refried beans before adding the filling. Red beans or pinto beans will also work.
- Cheese. For creamy turkey enchiladas, replace the cheese in the filling with softened cream cheese. You can also replace have of the pepper jack cheese with cheddar cheese.
- Other protein. This recipe works with cooked shredded chicken, like a rotisserie chicken, or use this chipotle chicken enchilada recipe. Or use ground turkey or ground beef instead of leftover turkey. You can also use just beans and cheese for a vegetarian version.
- Make it spicier. If you like spicy food, use hot chiles or sliced jalapeno. You can add hot sauce or cayenne pepper to the turkey mixture, or use a hot enchilada sauce.
- Storage. Store leftover turkey enchiladas in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days.
- To Freeze. Assemble the turkey enchilada casserole, wrap tightly with aluminum foil and then plastic wrap. Freeze for up to three months. Thaw overnight in the fridge, then bake according to recipe directions.
Serving suggestions
Serve this turkey enchilada casserole with side dishes like a green salad, Mexican rice, or roasted chili corn salsa. A variety of toppings can include avocado slices, pico de Gallo, salsa verde, guacamole, chopped onion, tomatoes, or shredded lettuce. And hot sauce, like cayenne pepper sauce, or mango habanero sauce, is nice on the side, along with slices of lime.
Make it a complete Mexican meal with Mexican mule cocktails to sip on, and Mexican chocolate brownies for dessert!
Did you make this recipe? Please leave a rating in the comments below and let us know how it turned out. Did you make any changes? We would love for you to share and your feedback is important! Thank you for visiting The Food Blog!
Recipe
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Leftover Turkey Enchilada Casserole
Ingredients
- 2 cups shredded cooked turkey or chicken
- 4 ounce mild green chiles
- 2 teaspoon chili powder
- ยฝ teaspoon salt
- ยฝ teaspoon garlic powder
- ยฝ teaspoon onion powder
- 2 cups Monterey jack cheese shredded, divided
- 8 corn tortillas 10 inch
- 15 ounce enchilada sauce divided
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400ยฐ
- Spread half of the enchilada sauce in a 9 x 13 baking dish.
- In a medium bowl, combine the shredded turkey, green chiles, chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, and salt.
- In a small dry skillet over medium heat, heat each tortilla for 30 seconds per side.
- Divide half the shredded cheese over the tortillas, then divide the turkey mixture over each tortilla.
- Roll the tortillas and place them seam side down in the baking dish.
- Cover with the remaining sauce, then the remaining cheese.
- Bake for twenty to twenty five minutes, until the cheese is golden and bubbly.
- Serve topped with sliced black olives, chopped fresh cilantro (or parsley), and a dollop of sour cream.
Notes
- Warm the tortillas. To make the tortillas more pliable and easier to roll, warm them first. There are a couple of ways to heat the tortillas. My favorite is to heat a dry skillet over medium high. Heat each tortilla for about 30 seconds per side. Remove, add the filling and roll while the next tortilla heats. You can also put the tortillas on a plate, cover with a damp paper towel, and heat on high for 30 seconds.
- Add vegetables. Add chopped bell pepper, corn, kale, or zucchini to the turkey filling for extra nutrition.
- Add beans. Black beans are a perfect addition to the turkey filling. You can also spread each tortilla with refried beans before adding the filling. Red beans or pinto beans will also work.
- Other protein. This recipe works with cooked shredded chicken, like a rotisserie chicken, or with ground turkey or ground beef instead of leftover turkey. You can also use just beans and cheese for a vegetarian version.
- Make it spicier. If you like spicy food, use hot chiles or sliced jalapeno. You can add hot sauce or cayenne pepper to the turkey mixture, or use a hot enchilada sauce.
- Storage. Store leftover turkey enchiladas in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days.
- To Freeze. Assemble the turkey enchilada casserole, wrap tightly with aluminum foil and then plastic wrap. Freeze for up to three months. Thaw overnight in the fridge, then bake according to recipe directions.
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