Chicken and Refried Bean Enchiladas

There are a few steps involved in this recipe, but the benefit of cooking the chicken sous vide before building the enchiladas is that you end up with super tender and moist chicken. Make a double batch of chicken (use a separate bag) and freeze the chicken for later. That would make building your next batch of enchiladas a breeze!

SERVES: 4 to 6

TEMPERATURE: 158ºF

COOKING TIME: 4 to 8 hours

Ingredients:

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon oregano

½ teaspoon cumin

1 tablespoon chili powder

1 teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken thighs (about 6-8 thighs)

1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil

½ half onion, diced

½ red pepper, diced

½ green pepper, diced

1 (19-ounce) jar enchilada sauce, divided

½ cup chicken stock

1 (14-ounce) can refried beans

3 cups grated Cheddar cheese, divided

6 burrito-size flour tortillas

Toppings:

shredded lettuce

Pico de Gallo

black olives

sour cream

guacamole

Directions:

1.Pre-heat the sous vide water bath to 158ºF.

2.Combine the garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, cumin, and chili powder, salt and black pepper. Reserve one tablespoon of the spice mixture and rub the rest of it on both sides of the chicken thighs.

3.Pre-heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil and sear the chicken thighs on both sides. Transfer the chicken thighs to one or two zipper lock bags and set aside.

4.Add the diced onion, pepper and reserved spice mixture to the pan. Sauté for 2 minutes. Deglaze the pan with chicken stock. Add ⅔ cup of the enchilada sauce. Stir and simmer for another minute. Pour the sauce into the bags with the chicken and massage the sauce in between and on both sides of the chicken. Remove as much of the air as possible from the bag submerging the bag in the water up to the zipper seal (don’t let any water into the bag), and allowing the water to displace the air in the bag. Seal the bag and drop it into the water bath.

5.Cook in the sous vide bath for at least 4 hours, or as long as 8 hours.

6.Remove the chicken from the bag and shred with two forks. Mix the shredded chicken back together with the sauce.

7.Preheat the oven to 375°F and coat the bottom of a 9-inch x 13-inch oven-safe casserole dish with some enchilada sauce.

8.Spread two tablespoons of refried beans in the center of each tortilla. Divide the chicken and sauce between the tortillas on top of the beans. Add the grated Cheddar cheese. Roll the tortillas around the filling and place them seam side down in the casserole dish. Pour the remaining enchilada sauce over the tortillas and top with remaining cheese.

9.Bake, uncovered, for 25 to 30 minutes until bubbly and cheese has melted. Serve with all your favorite toppings.

Chicken and Refried Bean Enchiladas