These cozy potato enchiladas are the most delicious way to use leftover mashed potatoes! Super comforting, a little spicy, and easy to make.
I'm a big fan of Thanksgiving leftovers recipes. I love combining all my side dishes into one big dish, like I did with these Thanksgiving sandwiches, but I'm also a big fan of the single dish recipe. And mashed potatoes are my favorite thing to do that with!
A couple years ago I shared my mashed potato pancakes, and now I'm here with potato enchiladas.
What I love about these enchiladas is that you'd never guess they were constructed from Thanksgiving leftovers. The spicy Mexican flavors are totally different from the simple savory flavors we all associate with Thanksgiving.
What You'll Need
- Oil. I use olive, but any high-heat oil will do.
- Onion.
- Garlic.
- Leftover mashed potatoes. Just about any type of mashed potatoes will work, as long as they don't include seasonings that clash with Mexican flavors.
- Spices. We're using round cumin and oregano.
- Enchilada sauce. You can use store-bought red enchilada sauce, or homemade enchilada sauce.
- Canned green chiles.
- Hot sauce. Optional, but great for some extra kick.
- Salt & pepper.
- Corn tortillas.
How to Make Mashed Potato Enchiladas
The following is a detailed photo tutorial on how to make this dish. Scroll down if you prefer to skip right to the recipe.
Start by doing your prep work: Gather your ingredients and equipment, and preheat the oven.
- Now heat up some oil in a large skillet. Once the oil is hot, add diced onion.
- Cook the onion for about 5 minutes, stirring it occasionally, until it becomes soft and somewhat translucent. Add minced garlic and cook it for about a minute.
- Now add your leftover mashed potatoes, along with a bit of enchilada sauce, your spices, green chilies, and hot sauce (if you're using it).
- Bring the potatoes to a simmer and lower the heat. Cook them for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Be sure to scrape the bottom of the skillet with a spoon to prevent burning!
- Ladle some enchilada sauce into the bottom of a baking dish. Spoon a bit of the potato mixture into a corn tortilla, then roll it up! Arrange your rolled enchiladas in the dish, and pour the rest of the sauce on top.
- Bake your enchiladas until they darken a bit and the sauce becomes bubbly.
Mashed Potato Enchilada Tips & FAQ
- Are these enchiladas gluten-free? They are if you use gluten-free enchilada sauce!
- Leftovers & storage: The shelf-life of these enchiladas really depends on how old your mashed potatoes are. I wouldn't recommend keeping your potatoes in the fridge for a total of more than 3 days total (including the time after they've been incorporated into these enchiladas). You could also freeze them for up to 3 months. Seal them up tightly in a food storage container either way!
- Feel free to add some vegan cheese to these enchiladas. Go for a shredded variety and either add a pinch to each individual enchilada, or sprinkle it on top of them all.
- Are these enchiladas spicy? They have a little kick! For milder enchiladas, skip the hot sauce and substitute a mild salsa verde for the green chilies.
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📖 Recipe
Mashed Potato Enchiladas
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 cups leftover mashed potatoes
- 2 ½ cups enchilada sauce*, divided
- 1 (4 ounce or 113 gram) can green chilies
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon hot sauce (I used Cholula)
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 12 to 14 corn tortillas
Instructions
- Coat the bottom of a large skillet with the oil and place it over medium heat.
- Give the oil a minute to heat up, then add the onion.
- Cook the onion for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until it becomes soft and translucent.
- Add the garlic and cook it with the onion for about 1 minute, until very fragrant.
- Stir in the potatoes, ¼ cup of enchilada sauce, the green chilies, cumin, oregano, and hot sauce.
- Bring the mixture to a simmer and cook it for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally and scraping the bottom of the skillet with a spoon to prevent burning.
- Remove the skillet from heat and season the mixture with salt and pepper to taste.
- Preheat the oven to 400°F.
- Ladle about ½ cup of enchilada sauce into the bottom of a 9 x 13 inch baking dish.
- Spoon about 3 tablespoons of the potato mixture into a corn tortilla, roll it up tightly, and place it in the dish. Repeat the process until all of the filling and tortillas are used.
- Pour the remaining sauce evenly over the enchiladas.
- Place the dish into the oven and bake the enchiladas until they darken a bit and the sauce around the edges becomes bubbly.
- Remove the dish from the oven and let it sit for about 5 minutes before serving.
- Divide onto plates and top with toppings of choice. Serve.
Notes
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Had some leftover truffle mashed potatoes from Thanksgiving that I used to whip these up (along with the enchilada sauce recipe) - absolutely delicious! Used fresh jalapenos instead of canned chilis, and added a bit of salsa doña on top to really kick up the heat.
Might make mashed potatoes again specifically for these enchiladas :)