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Vegan Enchiladas Recipe: Tips for Making Vegan Enchiladas

Written by MasterClass

Last updated: Jan 10, 2022 • 4 min read

Vegan enchiladas are a hearty weeknight meal packed with veggies and flavorful salsa. Instead of melted cheese, this delicious recipe uses a smoky cashew sauce seasoned with nutritional yeast to add a creamy texture and cheesy flavor to the enchiladas.

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What Are Vegan Enchiladas?

Enchiladas are a Mexican dish made by wrapping various ingredients in corn tortillas and baking them with salsa and cheese. To make vegan enchiladas, replace the cheese with your favorite vegan cheese or homemade dairy-free smoky cashew cream. Instead of meat, fill the tortillas with vegetables and legumes, like potatoes, black beans, and sautéed kale and onions.

“Enchilada” is derived from the word “enchilar,” which translates to “seasoned with chile.” Chefs and home cooks can apply the preparation technique of rolling various ingredients in tortillas to many kinds of sauces and fillings.

3 Variations on Vegan Enchiladas

Here’s how to customize vegan enchiladas according to your preferences.

  1. 1. Flour tortillas: Though enchiladas are traditionally made with gluten-free corn tortillas, you can also make them with flour tortillas, which are softer and may produce less structured results. Alternatively, use almond flour or cassava flour tortillas.
  2. 2. Red enchiladas: Enchiladas typically come smothered in either green or red enchilada sauce. Red enchilada sauce features dried chiles and is thickened with a roux. To make a vegan roux, swap the usual butter for vegan butter or vegetable oil.
  3. 3. Vegan protein: For a meaty texture, add a shredded vegan chicken substitute, firm tofu, or vegan chorizo to your enchilada filling.

3 Tips for Making Vegan Enchiladas

Consider the following tips before making creamy vegan vegetable-and-bean enchiladas at home:

  1. 1. Soak the cashews. When making homemade cashew cream for your enchiladas, soak the cashews first, which helps them break down into a creamier texture. If you can’t soak the cashews overnight, a quick soak in hot water for one hour works, too.
  2. 2. Make the sauces first. Once you’ve prepped all of the ingredients, enchiladas are easy to assemble. The sauces taste better if they’ve been allowed to sit, so make those first before prepping the filling.
  3. 3. Warm the tortillas. Cold or room temperature tortillas can be stiff, but they become pliable when warmed. It’s important to warm the tortillas in a skillet or over an open flame before filling and rolling the enchiladas: If you skip this step, the tortillas may tear.

Easy Vegan Enchiladas Recipe

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2 Ratings | Rate Now

makes

prep time

10 min

total time

55 min

cook time

45 min

Ingredients

For the enchilada sauce:

For the cashew cream sauce:

For the filling:

  1. 1

    Place the tomatillos, serrano pepper, cilantro, chopped onion, lime juice, garlic, and a few pinches of salt in a blender or food processor and purée until smooth. Taste the enchilada sauce for seasoning and set it aside.

  2. 2

    To make the cashew cream, drain the cashews and place them in a blender with the jalapeño, chipotle, nutritional yeast, and lemon juice.

  3. 3

    Add a ⅓ cup of water and purée until smooth. If the mixture seems dry or resists blending, drizzle in a tablespoon of water at a time until smooth.

  4. 4

    Season the cashew cream to taste with salt and pepper and set it aside.

  5. 5

    In a large pot, cover combine the cubed potatoes with the bay leaves and a generous pinch of salt and add water to cover.

  6. 6

    Bring the potatoes to a boil and cook until they are fork-tender, about 15 minutes.

  7. 7

    Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

  8. 8

    Drain the potatoes and remove the bay leaf. Set the potatoes aside in a large mixing bowl.

  9. 9

    In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat and add the sliced onion and bell peppers.

  10. 10

    Sauté the vegetables until the onions are translucent and the peppers have softened, 5–6 minutes.

  11. 11

    Add the cumin, oregano, and chili powder and cook for one more minute.

  12. 12

    Add the kale to the skillet with the onion-and-pepper mixture and sauté until wilted.

  13. 13

    Season the sautéed vegetables with a generous pinch of salt and transfer them to the bowl with the potatoes.

  14. 14

    Add the black beans to the potato and kale mixture and toss lightly to combine.

  15. 15

    Warm the corn tortillas in a skillet or over a flame until they are flexible and the edges are a bit charred. Stack the tortillas on a plate or basket and cover them with a clean kitchen towel.

  16. 16

    Add a ½ cup of the enchilada sauce to the bottom of an oven-safe 9x13-inch baking dish and use a spoon or spatula to spread it evenly.

  17. 17

    Fill each tortilla with about two tablespoons of potato filling.

  18. 18

    Roll the tortilla up like a taco so the edges overlap, and place the filled tortilla into the baking dish seam-side down.

  19. 19

    Repeat the filling process, placing the filled tortillas in an even layer, until you’ve used all of the tortillas and filling.

  20. 20

    Pour most of the remaining enchilada sauce over top, reserving a ½ cup of the enchilada sauce.

  21. 21

    Pour half of the cashew cream over the enchiladas and cover the dish with foil.

  22. 22

    Bake the enchiladas until the sauce is bubbling and the filling is warmed through, about 20 minutes.

  23. 23

    Remove the foil and bake the enchiladas for another 5 minutes.

  24. 24

    Remove the enchiladas from the oven and drizzle with the remaining green sauce and cashew cream.

  25. 25

    Garnish the enchiladas with avocado and sliced green onions and serve hot.

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