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Do you have 20 minutes? You can make skillet enchiladas the whole family will love! This easy recipe is super flavorful, protein-packed, and a one-pan meal, making cleanup a breeze. These skillet beef enchiladas are hearty, delicious, and one you’ll keep coming back to when you need a super easy dinner in a snap.
Table of Contents
- Easy 20 Minute Beef Enchiladas Skillet Recipe
- Why you’ll love this beef enchilada skillet recipe
- Simple ingredients you need for cheesy beef enchilada skillet
- How to make skillet enchilada casserole
- Watch me make easy enchiladas
- Serving suggestion
- How to store
- Substitutions, optional variations & dietary adjustments
- More healthy beef recipes you’ll love
- Easy 20 Minute Beef Enchiladas Skillet Recipe
Easy 20 Minute Beef Enchiladas Skillet Recipe
You know dinner is a winner when everyone in the family loves it and devours it. I love that it’s made in one skillet in under 20 minutes!
Fast, simple, and delish.
If you love enchiladas and tacos, this flavor will be for you. We’re taking everything you’d put into ground beef enchiladas and making it deconstructed in a skillet.
It’s a super versatile recipe too. While I used ground beef, you could totally swap it for any ground meat or meat substitute that you have on hand.
Want to add beans? Go ahead, add them in!
Need it dairy-free? Skip the cheese or use your favorite dairy-free cheese.
Why you’ll love this beef enchilada skillet recipe
Fast & Easy – With minimal chopping (just the onions, peppers, and tortillas), this skillet meal is fast and easy to make. While the meat is cooking, use that time to chop your vegetables. Plus, cooking in one pan means fewer dishes to wash, which is such a time saver on its own!
Balanced meal – High in protein and balanced with carbohydrates and lots of vegetables, this meal is balanced and nourishing. I love to top mine with fresh avocado slices or guacamole for healthy fats and extra fiber.
Can be prepped in advance – What’s great about this meal is that you can prep it almost 100% in advance! You can cook the meat, and veggies and make the sauce in advance, just don’t add the tortillas or cheese topping until you’re ready to serve. If you prep components ahead of time this meal is ready in just 5 minutes. A real-time saver when you need dinner super fast!
Simple ingredients you need for cheesy beef enchilada skillet
Scroll down to view the recipe card below for the full ingredients list, nutrition facts, and step-by-step instructions.
- lean ground beef
- bell pepper
- yellow onion
- chili powder
- cumin
- garlic granules
- sea salt
- medium salsa
- tomato sauce
- corn tortillas
- cheddar cheese
How to make skillet enchilada casserole
Step 1: Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add the ground beef, sauteing and breaking it up for 3-4 minutes. Add the diced bell pepper, diced onion, and seasonings, and continue cooking until the beef is no longer pink.
Step 2: Reduce the heat to medium heat and add the salsa, tomato sauce, and tortilla strips. Stir to coat the tortilla strips with the saucy ground beef mixture, then top with shredded cheese. Cover with a lid for 2-4 minutes to melt the cheese and then serve with sour cream, guacamole, green onions, fresh cilantro, and your favorite taco toppings!
Watch me make easy enchiladas
The full how to video can be watched below, or on my YouTube channel!
Serving suggestion
Serve this dinner with all of your favorite taco toppings! My sweet onion salsa is a great addition, plus you can pair it with tortilla chips for a great side.
To build it out as a bigger meal, add a side of refried beans, Mexican rice (or my simple cilantro lime brown rice), and Mexican street corn salad.
How to store
To store leftovers, allow them to cool fully to room temperature, then add them to an airtight container.
Reheat this easy meal in a skillet to rewarm, or in the oven until hot.
Substitutions, optional variations & dietary adjustments
Below you’ll find a list of substitutions that will work well in this skillet ground beef enchiladas recipe.
If you try something different out, please leave a comment below letting us all know how it turned out!
Ground beef – Ground chicken, ground turkey, ground bison, and ground pork are great alternatives for lean ground beef. To make this vegetarian, use a meat substitute or opt for lentils, pinto beans, or black beans.
Bell pepper – Green, yellow, orange, or red bell pepper will all work for this recipe. If you don’t have fresh peppers on hand, you can use a can of diced green chilies instead.
Yellow onion – Red onion will work in place of yellow onion. Green onions are a milder alternative to use if you have picky eaters that aren’t onion fans.
Individual spices – You can use 1 tbsp of homemade taco seasoning in place of the 3 spices.
Corn tortillas – Tortilla chips will work as a substitute. They’ll soften slightly in the sauce, but will maintain a bit of crunch still. You can also use flour tortillas instead of corn tortillas.
Cheddar cheese – Different cheeses like pepper jack cheese, mozzarella cheese, or a Mexican cheese blend are all great alterntives for cheddar cheese. To make this recipe dairy free, ues vegan cheese.
More healthy beef recipes you’ll love
Easy 20 Minute Beef Enchiladas Skillet Recipe
Ingredients
- 1.25 lb lean ground beef
- 1 bell pepper, any color, diced small
- 1/2 cup yellow onion, diced small
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp garlic granules
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1 cup medium salsa
- 1 cup tomato sauce
- 6 corn tortillas, cut into small strips
- 1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
Instructions
- Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add the ground beef, sauteing and breaking it up for 3-4 minutes. Add the diced bell pepper, diced onion, and seasonings, and continue cooking until the beef is no longer pink.
- Reduce the heat to medium heat and add the salsa, tomato sauce, and tortilla strips. Stir to coat the tortilla strips with the saucy ground beef mixture, then top with shredded cheese. Cover with a lid for 2-4 minutes to melt the cheese and then serve with sour cream, guacamole, green onions, fresh cilantro, and your favorite taco toppings!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
If you try this easy beef enchiladas skillet recipe, I’d love it if you left a star rating and comment below letting me know how it turned out!
XO
Heather
Really good! I had ground turkey on hand so I used that and it worked well. Will make again.
Thanks for sharing that you made it with ground turkey and enjoyed it!
Awesome dinner loved by the whole family! Quick, easy and healthy which is perfect for our active and busy life style. This recipe will definitely go on repeat!
So glad you tried it and it was a hit for the whole family!!