Make these Creamy Turkey Enchiladas when you’re craving healthy Mexican food! Filled with good-for-you-veggies and low fat cream cheese.
***This post was originally published on Dec 2015. It has been updated to be more helpful.
Turkey Enchiladas is such a fantastic dish to make with Thanksgiving leftovers. It’s also perfect for any time of year when you want to transform a plain boring turkey or chicken into a delicious and healthy Mexican dish.
Why you’ll love this recipe
Ingredients
If you’re hoping to pack in the veggies and make good use of leftovers, you’re in luck because these enchiladas are packed full of them! This recipe makes 6 enchiladas but it’s very easy to double the amount if you have extra shredded turkey.
- The Turkey: cooked & shredded turkey breast (1.5 cups). Prefer chicken instead? Make it with my homemade shredded chicken or just use a rotisserie chicken. I promise the flavor is not compromised!
- The Veggies: red bell pepper, onion, minced garlic, swiss chard or spinach & Salsa Verde for the enchilada sauce.
- Grain: frozen or canned corn kernels
- To make it creamy: flour, skim milk or 1% milk, 1/3 less fat cream cheese (sour cream can also be used if you prefer)
- Seasoning: kosher salt & ground black pepper
- Corn tortillas (optional flour tortillas. Make sure they’re small size)
- Garnish: crumbled queso fresco or cotija, avocado and sliced scallions or fresh cilantro
***Make sure to scroll all the way down to the recipe card to get the full ingredient list and written recipe.
How to make Turkey Enchiladas
If you already have the turkey (or chicken) cooked ahead of time, this makes the perfect weeknight dinner. Make sure to gather and prep the ingredients ahead of time as it moves very quickly!
- On a medium skillet, add 1 tablespoon olive oil and sauté bell pepper in oil over medium high heat for a minute.
- Add the onion and garlic and continue to sauté for 2 more minutes, or until vegetables are softened.
- Add spinach, turkey, and corn. Cook until the spinach wilts, about 2 more minutes.
- Sprinkle the mixture with the flour. Add the milk and simmer until the mixture thickens, about 2 minutes.
- Add the cream cheese, salt & pepper, stirring until the cream cheese melts.
- Remove turkey mixture from heat and set aside.
- Pour the salsa in a small pot and keep warm over low heat.
- Brush the other 1 tablespoon of olive oil on both sides of the corn tortilla.
- Heat the tortillas on a hot skillet until they soften up making sure they don’t get too crispy.
- Spoon 1/6 of the filling into the center of the tortilla. Roll tortilla over the filling and position it seam-side down on a plate. Repeat with the other 5 tortillas placing them on two different plates.
- Spoon the salsa down the length of each enchilada and sprinkle cheese on top.
- Garnish with scallions and cilantro.
Chef’s Tips and Notes
- For the salsa I prefer to use my homemade Tomatillo Salsa but you can use your favorite store bought salsa. It can be red or green.
- I strongly recommend Queso Fresco instead of any yellow cheese. Luckily most grocery stores now offers Queso Fresco so you can find it easily. If you can’t find it, you can use crumbled feta cheese.
- Lastly, don’t wait too long before eating the enchiladas as the tortillas will become very soggy!
What to serve with
Looking for a side dish? Here are some recipe pairing ideas:
Enjoy…..
More Mexican Recipes
I hope you like this recipe! Share it, or leave a rating and comment below. For questions that need an answer right away, please contact me and I’ll get back to you asap. Gracias!!!! xx, Ana
Print Recipe:
Creamy Turkey Enchiladas
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons olive oil divided
- ¾ cup diced red bell pepper
- ⅓ cup diced onion
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 4 ounces Swiss chard or spinach – chopped;
- 5 ounces cooked turkey breast 1.5 cups – shredded
- ⅓ cup frozen corn kernels — thawed
- 1 ½ Tablespoon flour
- ⅔ cup skim milk
- 1 Tablespoon ⅓ less fat cream cheese Greek yogurt or sour cream can also be used.
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ⅛ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 cup green salsa
- 6 corn tortillas
- 1 oz queso fresco – crumbled
- 2 tablespoons sliced scallions or cilantro for garnish optional
Instructions
- On a medium skillet, add 1 tablespoon olive oil and sauté bell pepper in oil over medium high heat for a minute.
- Add the onion and garlic and continue to sauté for 2 more minutes, or until vegetables are softened.
- Add spinach, turkey, and corn. Cook until the spinach wilts, about 2 more minutes.
- Sprinkle the mixture with the flour. Add the milk and simmer until the mixture thickens, about 2 minutes.
- Add the cream cheese, salt & pepper, stirring until the cream cheese melts.
- Remove turkey mixture from heat and set aside.
- Pour the salsa in a small pot and keep warm over low heat.
- Brush the other 1 tablespoon of olive oil on both sides of the corn tortilla.
- Heat the tortillas on a hot skillet until they soften up making sure they don’t get too crispy.
- Spoon 1/6 of the filling into the center of the tortilla. Roll tortilla over the filling and position it seam-side down on a plate. Repeat with the other 5 tortillas placing them on two different plates.
- Spoon the salsa down the length of each enchilada and sprinkle cheese on top.
- Garnish with scallions and cilantro.
Add Your Own Private Notes
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Nutrition
The nutritional information and US conversions are calculated automatically. I cannot guarantee the accuracy of this data. If this is important to you, please verify with your favourite nutrition calculator and/or unit conversion tool.
Great idea to use turkey! Tasted amazing and everyone loved it!
Thank you, Holley!!!
This was everything a gourmet meal should be, and then some! Easy, hearty and so full of flavor; definitely, a new favorite recipe!
Thank you, Sara!!!
This is the best recipe to use my leftover turkey! My family really loved these. Thanks!
Thank you, Tiffany!!!
These enchiladas are such a satisfying meal and our whole family loves them! They’re creamy, flavorful, and they taste healthy too!
Thank you, Shelby!!!
Excelente y deliciosa receta ? Muchas Gracias Ana !! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
MUY BUENAS!!!!!
Muchas Gracias Maria! Que bueno que te gustaron!!
I just tried your HEALTHY CREAMY TURKEY ENCHILADAS. Used chicken instead. Yum! Looking forward to trying more of your recipes. Love your photos as well – that’s what prompted me to give it a try.
Thank you so much Eloise! It makes me so happy to hear you liked them!