If you ever ask me what I miss about the States, authentic Mexican food is at the top of my list! For whatever reason, Mexican food hasn’t travelled across the pond well and I have struggled to find it.
Luckily, I survived my first two years of living in the UK thanks to my best friend (who is from New Mexico). She even brought cans of green chiles over in her suitcase so she could make her ridiculously delicious enchiladas when the cravings hit!
Since she has moved back to the states, my Mexican cuisine consumption has declined considerably and that needs to change! While I struggled to source all ingredients at my local Sainsbury’s , with a bit of planning, research and my Amazon Prime membership I have managed to create some seriously delicious enchiladas!
the casserole dish
The catalyst to make this recipe was an actual dish that I impulse bought during quarantine. It was this beautiful casserole dish from Le Creuset. When I saw it, I immediately thought of my favourite Mexican “casserole” – enchiladas. What better way to break in a new purchase than with an old favourite?!
the components
To make the most delectable enchiladas, there are a few different components:
- corn tortillas (discussed below)
- vegan mince (which I use as a base for various different meat subs including bolognese),
- vegan cheese sauce
- homemade mole enchilada sauce
I have only had genuine southwestern mole sauce once, but it was enough to leave an impression. It has just the right amount of spice and hints of rich chocolate. Since I already had to make an amazon order for my harina masa, I decided to also add ancho chiles to the cart.
tortillas
Authentic tortillas were the first thing on my grocery list to make the ultimate enchiladas. In Britain, I have only found hard corn tortillas (for crispy tacos) and part corn and part flour ones that have an unusual sweetness. Therefore, I took to the internet and researched how to create my own. Although flour tortillas often require lard or animal fat, corn tortillas only require three ingredients: corn flour (masa harina) water and salt.
Mexico in My Kitchen is an excellent food blog that is super informative about all things Mexican food, particularly tortillas. Personally, I struggled to obtain the correct thickness and size; but perhaps that comes with experience and a proper tortilla press! Overall, even though they were far from perfect, they were significantly more tasty than the “corn” tortillas I could buy locally.
vegan ancho chile mole enchiladas
Equipment
- food processor
- high-speed blender or food processor
Ingredients
Vegan mince
- 50 grams walnuts
- 50 grams green lentils dried
- 15 ml extra virgin olive oil (30 ml water if avoiding oil)
- 75 grams onion
- 4 grams garlic
- 240 grams mushrooms
- 10 grams jalepenos (depending on spice preference)
- 1 veggie stock cube
- 15 ml soy sauce
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1/8 tsp chilli powder
- salt and black pepper to taste
Vegan Mole Enchilada Sauce
- 15 ml extra virgin olive oil or 30 ml water if avoiding oil
- 30 grams onion chopped
- 4 grams garlic minced
- 24 grams flour
- ½ tsp cumin
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground coriander
- ¼ tsp oregano
- 470 ml vegetable broth
- 3 dried ancho chiles chopped (45 grams)
- 16 grams tomato paste
- 1 tbsn almond butter
- 10 grams cocoa powder
- salt and pepper to taste
Vegan Cheese Sauce (adapted from recipe here)
- 125 grams cashews
- 15 ml lemon juice
- 236 ml water
- 12 grams nutritional yeast
- ¼ tsp paprika
- 1 tsp salt
- 10 corn tortillas homemade or store bought
- 400 grams black beans canned
- 10 grams cilantro
Instructions
Vegan Mince:
- Pour boiling water over walnuts and let sit for 30 minutes.
- Add lentils and 190 ml (¾ cups) water to a sauce pan and cook for 15 -20 minutes until al dente but not completely done.
- Finely dice the onion, garlic and mushrooms in the food processor
- Heat olive oil or few tablespoons water in a pan over medium heat and add onion, garlic and mushrooms and sauté for about ten minutes.
- When lentils are al dente, add them to the food processor with the walnuts and repeat the process so that the lentils and walnuts are minced and broken up to resemble mince.
- Add into the pan with seasoning and soy sauce and continue to sauté for ten to fifteen minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste and remove from heat.
Enchilada Sauce:
- Chop the ancho chiles in a food processor and then cover with about 274 ml (1 cup) boiling water (just to cover) and set aside for twenty minutes to soften.
- Heat oil or water in pan over medium heat and add in onions and garlic and sauté for four minutes until soft and translucent.
- Add all dry spices (except cocoa powder) and flour and stir until evenly mixed and continue cooking for an addition two minutes.
- Reduce heat on low and slowly add in vegetable stock until combined.
- Add in ancho chiles with liquid, almond butter, tomato paste, cocoa powder, salt and pepper and whisk continuously until combined and continue to simmer over medium low heat until sauce thickens slightly.
- Next add to a high speed blender or emersion blend until smooth.
Assembly:
- Preheat oven to 190 C ( 375 F).
- Spread 120 ml (½ cup) of mole enchilada sauce in the bottom of a casserole dish.
- If tortillas aren’t still warm, wrap a few tortillas at a time in a damp paper towel and microwave for 30 minutes to soften.
- Fill each tortilla with a scoop of the vegan mince and place into the prepared pan. Repeat until all tortillas are used.
- Pour the rest of the enchilada mole sauce all over the filled tortillas and drizzle on cheese sauce.
- Back uncovered for 25-30 minutes, until bubbly and warmed throughout.
