Easy Instant Pot Chicken Enchiladas

Last Updated on September 2, 2022 by Kayla Berman

Instant Pot Chicken Enchiladas are an easy and delicious dinner recipe for the whole family! Made with juicy shredded chicken, enchilada sauce, flour tortillas, and Mexican cheese … this Tex-Mex recipe is cheesy, saucy, flavorful, and baked in the oven to perfection. Great for a busy weeknight dinner!

overhead shot of chicken enchiladas in a baking dish topped with fresh cilantro

Flavorful Family Favorite Dinner

If you are in need of an easy, delicious, and flavorful dinner that the whole family will love … look no further. Instant Pot Chicken Enchiladas are exactly that!

These enchiladas don’t require too much hands on cooking or chopping and can be prepped ahead of time. It makes them perfect for a busy weeknight dinner.

Plus despite being super easy – this Tex-Mex meal is incredibly delicious! These enchiladas are cheesy, saucy, and baked in the oven to golden brown perfection.

Trust me everyone in your family will love them, I know everyone in mine did!

For more tasty Mexican inspired food check out my dutch oven carnitas, sheet pan chicken fajitas, or taco stuffed peppers, or ground beef fajitas.

instant pot enchiladas topped with sour cream, cilantro, and lime juic on a plate

Ingredients

This instant pot enchilada casserole is made with less than 10 simple ingredients!

Ingredient Notes

  • Chicken: You will need 1.5 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts for these chicken enchiladas!
  • Avocado Oil: Avocado oil is used to sear the chicken here. It is a neutral tasting, high smoke point oil which makes it perfect for searing. 1 tbsp is all you need!
  • Onion: 1 finely diced yellow onion adds delicious flavor to this recipe.
  • Green Chiles: For a little kick, a 4 oz can of green chiles is mixed with the chicken filling here. So tasty!
  • Chicken Broth: Chicken broth is used as the main cooking liquid for the shredded chicken in these enchiladas. Chicken stock should work too! Use 1/2 cup.
  • Enchilada Sauce: Can’t have enchiladas without enchilada sauce! You will need a 19 oz can of red sauce for this recipe.
  • Mexican Cheese: Mexican cheese is perfect here! Use 1 1/2 cups or however much your heart desires.
  • Tortillas: These enchiladas call for 8-10 flour tortillas. It just depends on how full you want them!
  • Fresh Cilantro: Fresh cilantro adds great taste and makes for a beautiful garnish.

Substitutions & Additions

There are a few substitutions and additions you could make to this instant pot chicken enchiladas recipe in order for it to meet your personal tastes, preferences, or needs!

Tortillas: The flour tortillas in this recipe could easily be swapped with corn tortillas. I believe this is more authentic as well!

Cheese: You could really use any cheese you’d like in these enchiladas – cheddar, pepper jack, mozzarella even. Cotija cheese would be delicious too!

Enchilada Sauce: This recipe calls for a canned red enchilada sauce. But you could use a green sauce or a homemade enchilada sauce!

Mix-Ins: You could add some extra mix-ins to the chicken filling here. I think black beans, bell peppers, or rice could all be great additions.

Spice: These enchiladas are quite mild, as a mild enchilada sauce is used. But to up the spice add some hot sauce or use a medium or spicy enchilada sauce instead!

instant pot chicken enchilada ingredients

How To Make This Recipe

This chicken enchilada recipe is quite easy to make! You’ll sear, season, cook, and shred the chicken in the instant pot.

Then roll the cooked chicken in tortillas, cover with sauce and cheese, and bake. That’s it!

Step By Step Instructions

Step 1: Start by cooking the chicken. First set the instant pot to the sauté feature.  Add the avocado oil and allow it to heat up.  Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper.  Sear on both sides.  Then remove from the pot.

Step 2: Next add the diced onion and green chiles to the instant pot.  Add salt and pepper.  Sauté for a few minutes.

Step 3: Add the chicken back into the pot.  Add the chicken broth and 1/2 cup enchilada sauce.  Combine the ingredients and coat the chicken as best as possible.

Step 4: Place the lid on and move the valve to sealing.  Pressure cook on high for 8 minutes.  When the cook time is done, turn the instant pot off. Use quick release or natural release to release the pressure.  Then carefully remove the lid.

Step 5: Shred the chicken with two forks and combine with the cooking liquid.  Then remove the shredded chicken and add to a large bowl.

Step 6: Add another 1/4 cup enchilada sauce and 1/2 cup of Mexican cheese to the chicken.  Combine thoroughly.

Step 7: Next heat up the flour tortillas in the microwave to make for easy rolling.  Simply place on a plate, top with a paper towel, and heat for 30-45 seconds. You can use 8-10 tortillas depending on how much chicken filling you want in each enchilada.

Step 8: Add about 2 scoops of the chicken mixture to each tortilla.  Place at one end and then roll up tightly.

Step 9: Then add a thin layer of enchilada sauce to the bottom of a large baking dish.  Place the rolled enchiladas into the dish.

Step 10: Pour the remaining enchilada sauce on top of the enchiladas.  Add the remaining cheese, 1 cup, on top.

Step 11: Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes.  Uncovered for a golden brown, crispy finish and covered with aluminum foil for a more melty finish.

Step 12: Top with sour cream, fresh cilantro, lime juice, and all your favorite toppings.

Step 13: Serve and enjoy!

baked instant pot chicken enchiladas in a baking dish

How To Make Without Instant Pot

If you do not have an instant pot do not worry. You can still make this recipe!

Slow Cooker Chicken

Making the shredded chicken in a slow cooker will provide the most similar results to the instant pot.

Step 1: Sear the chicken on the stove top or simply skip the searing.

Step 2: Then place the chicken (seared or not seared) in your slow cooker with the diced onion, green chiles, enchilada sauce, chicken broth, salt, and pepper.

Step 3: Cook on low for about 3 hours.

Sauté Shredded Chicken

This method will be a little different from both the slow cooker and instant pot. The chicken will not be as moist and juicy – but it should still be fairly delicious!

Step 1: Start by sautéing the onion and green chiles with salt and pepper. Then add in the chicken broth and enchilada sauce. Combine and simmer.

Step 2: Then mix in already cooked shredded chicken. You can use rotisserie shredded chicken or just chicken you boiled and shredded.

Step 3: Combine all the ingredients, season with salt & pepper, and allow the liquid to reduce a bit if needed.

For both of these methods, follow the same instructions as the instant pot for the remaining steps.

Expert Tips

Make and shred the chicken ahead of time! This will make assembling the rest of the dish super easy on a busy night.

If you’d like a more saucy recipe, buy and use another enchilada sauce can. This is great for when heating up leftovers too, as they tend to dry out a bit.

For a more melty, cheesy, and sauce dish bake the enchiladas covered.

Use rotisserie chicken in this recipe for an even easier meal! You could simple sauté it with the onion, green chiles, enchilada sauce, chicken broth, and salt & pepper.

chicken enchiladas in a baking dish

Frequently Asked Questions

How to serve this recipe?

This recipe is best served hot and fresh out the oven! The cheese is melty, the tortillas are both soft and crispy, and the entire dish is just delicious.

I recommend topping with sour cream, pico de gallo, fresh cilantro, and a squeeze of lime juice.

You could pair with refried beans, rice, a veggie, or my personal favorite – a side salad!

How to store this recipe?

Store this recipe in an airtight container in the refrigerator. It will keep for about 5 days!

How to re-heat this recipe?

The re-heating instructions for this recipe depend on how much you are re-heating.

For a single serving, just put on a plate and pop in the microwave for 30-60 seconds.

But this is also a great recipe to prepare ahead of time and then re-heat the full dish. Simple follow the complete recipe instructions, allow to cool, cover with aluminum foil, and place in the fridge.

When time to heat, just place in the oven at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes. Or until warmed through! It is absolutely perfect for the whole family on a busy night of the week.

I recommend only preparing the day before or morning of serving for the best results.

instant pot chicken enchiladas topped with fresh cilantro

Love this recipe? Check out more easy dinners…

Connect With Me!

If you make this chicken enchilada recipe or any of my other recipes, I would absolutely love to know! Tag me @wellnessbykay on Instagram so I can see and share your recreations.

a chicken enchilada cut open and topped with sour cream

Love this recipe? Leave a comment and a rating! I love to see and it helps me continue to develop delicious recipes for this blog.

Print

Easy Instant Pot Chicken Enchiladas

Instant Pot Chicken Enchiladas are an easy and delicious dinner recipe for the whole family! Made with juicy shredded chicken, enchilada sauce, flour tortillas, and Mexican cheese … this Tex-Mex recipe is cheesy, saucy, flavorful, and baked in the oven to perfection. Great for a busy weeknight dinner!

  • Author: Kayla Berman
  • Prep Time: 30 Minutes
  • Cook Time: 20 Minutes
  • Total Time: 50 minutes
  • Yield: 45 Servings 1x
  • Category: Dinner
  • Cuisine: Tex-Mex

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 tbsp avocado oil, (or other neutral / high smoke point oil)
  • 1.5 lb chicken breasts
  • 1 yellow onion, finely diced
  • 4 oz can green chiles
  • 1/2 cup chicken broth
  • 19 oz can mild enchilada sauce, red
  • 1 1/2 cup Mexican cheese
  • 810 flour tortillas, medium size
  • Fresh cilantro

Instructions

  1. Start by cooking the chicken. First set the instant pot to the sauté feature.  Add the avocado oil and allow it to heat up.  Season the chicken with salt and pepper.  Sear on both sides.  Then remove from the pot.
  2. Next add the diced onion and green chiles to the instant pot.  Add salt and pepper.  Sauté for a few minutes.
  3. Add the chicken back into the pot.  Add the chicken broth and 1/2 cup enchilada sauce.  Combine the ingredients and coat the chicken as best as possible.
  4. Place the lid on and move the valve to sealing.  Pressure cook on high for 8 minutes.  When the cook time is done, turn the instant pot off. Use quick release or naturally release the pressure.  Then carefully remove the lid.
  5. Shred the chicken with two forks and combine with cooking liquid.  Then remove the shredded chicken and add to a large bowl.
  6. Add another 1/4 cup enchilada sauce and 1/2 cup of Mexican cheese to the chicken.  Combine thoroughly.
  7. Next heat up the tortillas in the microwave to make for easy rolling.  Simply place on a plate, top with a paper towel, and heat for 30-45 seconds. You can use 8-10 tortillas depending on how much chicken filling you want in each enchilada.
  8. Add about 2 scoops of the chicken mixture to each tortilla.  Place at one end and then roll up tightly.
  9. Then add a thin layer of enchilada sauce to the bottom of a large baking dish.  Place the rolled enchiladas into the dish.
  10. Cover the enchiladas with the remaining enchilada sauce.  Add the remaining 1 cup of Mexican cheese on top.
  11. Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes.  Uncovered for a golden brown, crispy finish and covered for a more melty finish.
  12. Top with sour cream, fresh cilantro, lime juice, and any other toppings you’d like.
  13. Serve and enjoy!

Keywords: instant pot chicken enchiladas, chicken enchiladas instant pot, instant pot chicken enchilada, chicken enchilada instant pot, instant pot enchilada chicken, instant pot shredded chicken for enchiladas

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