Stacked Beef Enchiladas (AKA Mexican Lasagna)
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With layers of corn tortillas, spicy ground beef, salsa and cheese, this stacked beef enchilada casserole is a huge family-pleaser.
You know when you make a dish for the first time and your whole family loves it, and you’re thrilled because you’ve found a new recipe to add to your repertoire forever? That’s how I felt the first time I cooked these hearty stacked beef enchiladas. With layers of corn tortillas, spicy ground beef, roasted tomato salsa, and cheese, it’s a cross between traditional beef enchiladas and lasagna — yet easier to make than both. It’s a great make-ahead dish for a potluck or big family dinner. And if you prepare the sauce in advance, it’s doable on a weeknight, too.
Table of Contents
What You’ll Need To Make Stacked Beef Enchiladas
- Ground Beef: The main protein that fills the layers of the enchiladas. 90% lean beef is ideal for its lower fat content while still providing rich flavor (with extra lean beef, there is no need to drain the fat).
- Baking Soda: Used for tenderizing the beef.
- Tomatoes, Onions, Garlic: These ingredients are used to create a vibrant and rich sauce, essentially a roasted tomato salsa.
- Cumin, Cayenne Pepper, Chipotle Chili Pepper: This spice trio infuses the dish with earthy, spicy, and smoky notes, giving the enchiladas bold Mexican flavor.
- Cilantro: Adds a pop of herbal freshness and color.
- Yellow Corn Tortillas: The foundation for the stacked enchiladas, these tortillas are cut into quarters for easy layering.
- Mexican Blend Cheese: A mix of cheeses that includes cheddar and Monterey Jack, this blend melts beautifully, creating gooey, stretchy layers that bind the enchiladas together.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1: Tenderize the Beef
To begin, mash the ground beef and the baking soda in a large bowl and let sit on the counter for about 20 minutes. The baking soda raises the pH of the meat, helping to lock in moisture and make the beef melt-in-your-mouth tender.
Step 2: Make the Sauce
Toss the tomatoes, onions, and garlic with the vegetable oil directly on a foil-lined baking sheet.
Broil until softened and charred, 12 to15 minutes (if the vegetables are browning too quickly, give them a quick stir with a rubber spatula).
Transfer the vegetables and juices to a food processor fitted with the metal blade. Add the salt, cumin, and cayenne pepper and pulse until just slightly chunky — then toss in the cilantro leaves.
Pulse until the cilantro is chopped. Set the sauce aside.
Step 3: Make the Beef Filling
Heat the oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add the beef and cook, stirring frequently and breaking into pieces, until just slightly pink, about 2 minutes.
Add the chili powder, cumin, and salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 4 to 5 minutes more, or until cooked through.
Step 4: Assemble the Casserole
Preheat oven to 350°F and move the oven rack to the center position. Lightly oil a 9×13-inch glass or ceramic baking dish. Set aside 1 cup of the sauce for the top of the casserole. (You want to ensure that you have enough to cover the top layer of tortillas, otherwise they won’t cook through.) Line the bottom of the prepared baking dish with a layer of tortillas, overlapping them slightly.
Spoon half of the beef (and any juices) over the tortillas, followed by half of the sauce.
Sprinkle 1/3 of the cheese over the sauce.
Repeat with another layer of tortillas, the remaining beef, remaining sauce, and 1/3 of the cheese. Top with the remaining tortillas. Spread the reserved cup of sauce over the tortillas and cover completely. Sprinkle the remaining cheese evenly over top.
Bake, uncovered, for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the casserole is heated through and the cheese is completely melted.
Slice the stacked enchiladas into squares and serve.
Video Tutorial
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Stacked Beef Enchiladas (AKA Mexican Lasagna)
With layers of corn tortillas, spicy ground beef, salsa and cheese, this stacked beef enchilada casserole is a huge family-pleaser.
Ingredients
For the Beef
- 1½ pounds 90% lean ground beef
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1½ teaspoons ground chipotle chile pepper (see note)
- 2½ teaspoons ground cumin
- ¾ teaspoon salt
For the Sauce
- 4 large vine-ripened tomatoes (about 1.3 lb), quartered
- 2 medium yellow onions, cut into ½-inch wedges
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- 6 cloves garlic, peeled
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ¼ cup cilantro leaves
For Assembling
- 10 (8-in) yellow corn tortillas, cut into quarters (I use Mission brand)
- 4 cups (12 oz) shredded Mexican blend cheese
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the ground beef and the baking soda. Mix with your hands until evenly combined. Let sit on the counter for 20 to 30 minutes.
- While the beef sits, prepare the sauce. Set an oven rack about 5 inches beneath the heating element and preheat the broiler. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil.
- Toss the tomatoes, onions, and garlic with the vegetable oil directly on the prepared baking sheet. Broil until softened and charred, 12 to15 minutes (if the vegetables are browning too quickly, give them a quick stir with a rubber spatula). Transfer the vegetables and juices to a food processor fitted with the metal blade. Add the salt, cumin, and cayenne pepper and pulse until just slightly chunky. Add the cilantro and pulse until the cilantro is chopped. Set the sauce aside.
- Heat the oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add the beef and cook, stirring frequently and breaking into pieces, until just slightly pink, about 2 minutes. Add the chili powder, cumin, and salt and cook, stirring occasionally, for 4 to 5 minutes more, or until cooked through.
- To assemble: Preheat oven to 350°F and move the oven rack to the center position. Lightly oil a 9x13-in glass or ceramic baking dish.
- Set aside 1 cup of the sauce for the top of the casserole. (You want to ensure that you have enough to cover the top layer of tortillas, otherwise they won't cook through.)
- Line the bottom of the prepared baking dish with a layer of tortillas, overlapping them slightly. Spoon half of the beef (and any juices) over the tortillas. Top with half of the sauce and ⅓ of the cheese. Repeat with another layer of tortillas, the remaining beef, remaining sauce, and ⅓ of the cheese. Top with the remaining tortillas. Spread the reserved sauce over the tortillas and cover completely. Sprinkle the remaining cheese evenly over top. Bake, uncovered, for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the casserole is heated through and the cheese is completely melted.
- Note: Ground chipotle chile pepper is smoky and hot and makes this dish a little spicy. For a milder dish, replace the ground chipotle chile pepper with ground ancho chili pepper, which isn't as hot.
- MAKE-AHEAD/FREEZER-FRIENDLY INSTRUCTIONS: The casserole can be prepared ahead of time, tightly covered with foil, and refrigerated for up to two days or frozen for up to 3 months before baking (if frozen, defrost in the refrigerator before cooking). It can also be fully baked, tightly covered with foil, and refrigerated for up to two days or frozen for up to 3 months. To reheat: defrost if necessary and heat the covered casserole in a 350°F oven for about 30 minutes, or until hot. If you'd rather reheat individual servings, small portions can be zapped in the microwave for 1 to 2 minutes.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (8 servings)
- Calories: 491
- Fat: 32 g
- Saturated fat: 11 g
- Carbohydrates: 21 g
- Sugar: 4 g
- Fiber: 3 g
- Protein: 30 g
- Sodium: 608 mg
- Cholesterol: 96 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Gluten-Free Adaptable Note
To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.
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Comments
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I made this last night for dinner for my children along with the black bean & corn salad with chipotle honey vinaigrette. Both were delicious! I especially loved the charred tomato and onion sauce. A nice change from regular taco night.
Jennifer, I discovered your website in the fall looking for pumpkin muffin recipes and it has become my go-to for dinner ideas. I have yet to try something I did not like. Thanks for not only delicious, but easy and reliable recipes. Keep them coming!!
So glad you like the recipes, Shay! 🙂
Hi Jenn,
I am making this yummy looking dish today and have a general question. When I cook, I usually use Kosher salt for cooking and reserve table salt for baking and “table”. When your recipes say “salt” do you mean table or kosher?
Thanks for all of the delicious food I have cooked for my family based on your recipes!!
Glad you like the recipes! 🙂 When a recipe of mine says salt in the ingredient list, I am referring to regular/table salt. If it calls for something else like kosher salt, I will specify that in the recipe. And while it doesn’t make a huge difference, different salts have different-sized grains and so you may end up using a bit more or a bit less if you use a different type of salt than the recipe calls for. Hope that clarifies!
I have a gas oven, and the broiler feature is basically useless because it is only one thin unit and gets the middle of a sheet pan. If I roasted the tomatoes and onions instead – what heat would you recommend and for how long? It wouldn’t get the char I don’t think, but I am hoping that would work. Thanks!
Hi Beth, you could get away with roasting the tomatoes and onions — I’d set the oven to 450°F [230ºC] and roast them for 30 to 35 minutes, until the onions are browned on top and the tomatoes are golden and caramelized on the bottom. Hope that helps!
Thanks!
I made this tonight because I read the recipe a while ago and I thought it looked delicious. I used flour tortillas instead of corn ones, they were a bit mushy but it still tasted good. Loved the seasonings. Used chillies in adobe sauce and that worked out fine. Also added more vegetables to the sauce. My family went for second helpings even though they are usually not great big fans of Mexican spices! It was a great meal!
This recipe is easy to make. Like all of your recipes Jenn, the seasoning amounts are spot on. That’s not a strength of mine and I can always rely on you to pull it together. I find recipes that only say “season to taste” not particularly helpful! I loved the flavors in this dish and give it five stars for that reason. My own personal preference though is I didn’t care for the texture of the corn tortillas. That’s just me though, not the recipe. I could only find white corn tortillas, but I wouldn’t think yellow corn tortillas would change much. Any suggestion for what I could use instead? I think adding black beans and maybe some chunky tomatoes but would be yummy additions. Thanks for another flavorful hit Jenn!
Hi Angelique, Glad you enjoyed this! I do think corn tortillas hold up better here, but some readers have commented that they have used flour tortillas with success. Hope that helps! 🙂
Hello Jenn,
Not a fan of onions, even cooked. I break that rule once in a while. I put a very small one in your beef stew recipe. Have made it many times. What a great recipe!
Would you suggest another vegetable such as green or even red peppers in place of the onion for the roasting process or would you leave well enough alone and just use the tomatoes and garlic?
Can’t wait to make this.
Love so many of your recipes : ).
Thanks,
Rebecca
Hi Rebecca, I think diced bell pepper would be a nice addition here. Hope you enjoy!
This was a snow day so we used whatever was in the pantry! Here are the changes:
– made it with ground turkey.
– didn’t have corn tortillas so we used four sun dried tomato basil wraps.
– added a can of black beans.
– only had a few small tomatoes so added a can of stewed tomatoes
– put a layer of tortillas on the bottom, most everything in the middle and a layer of wraps on top. Covered with sauce and cheese.
It was yummy! The sauce was great – the roasting gave the sauce a great flavor.
I’d like to use either ground turkey or ground chicken. Which would be better and does quantity change? Do I still use baking powder?
Hi Julia, both the turkey and chicken would be equally good, so you can go with whichever you’d prefer (the quantity will remain the same and you don’t need to use the baking powder). Hope you enjoy!
Excellent recipe. We only enjoyed 6 servings, maybe because I used .25lb less ground beef. I forgot to buy the cilantro, so used parsley from my garden. I substituted aleppo pepper for cayenne, because we don’t do well with heat. Next time I make it I will try the cayenne because the overall flavor is mild. Our store had the little mission street taco Corn tortillas on sale. I think they worked awesome in this recipe. They seem to be a little thinner than standard corn tortillas, and less stiff. They held up well.
Spot on – just like every one of your recipes I’ve tried! I made two batches this week to freeze some to help get us through a kitchen remodel in Jan. We ate each batch fresh out of the oven and saved the rest. Amazing family friendly recipe (I did ancho and skipped any extra heat).
The second time I made it I reduced the salt in the sauce by about 25%, that was my only adjustment. This recipe is perfect as written!! Thank you!
Hi Jen
I’m hoping to make this for a potluck but I don’t have a food processor. Could I use a hand blender? Secondly, I’m not sure I can find chipotle chili powder here in Canada but I think I can find canned or dried ones. How might a substitute?
Thanks Jen! I always love your recipes!
Hi Jen, yes, an immersion blender should work here and if you can find canned chipotles in adobo sauce, I’d use one pepper plus a little bit of the sauce. Hope you enjoy!
This response is a little late, but for future reference, Bulk Barn carries “Chipotle Powder Pure” in their bulk spice section. At least mine does, near Ottawa.