Enchilada Meatball Bake

Last updated on June 6th, 2018 at 11:16 am

This Enchilada Meatball Bake encompasses everything you know and love about enchiladas, the taste, the flavors, the cheese, but made with meatballs. These enchilada meatballs are made with pork and beef, baked to perfection, crisp on the outside, baked in an enchilada sauce and smothered with cheese. 

Time flies when you’re having fun! Welcome to Monday Meatball Mania! I’m back with this incredible Enchilada Meatball Bake. In case you’re new to Jo Cooks, I started this Meatball-a-thon in January with my friend Nagi from RecipeTin Eats. The rules are simple, one meatball recipe every last Monday of every month, and that’s it as far as rules go. Whatever crazy and tasty meatball concoctions we come up with, we’ll share with you. Anything goes.

Why meatballs? Because meatballs are great, they’re versatile, and they’re great in and on everything. You can bake them, you can fry them, you can slow cook them, you can stuff them with cheese and make them all gooey and delicious, they’re great in sandwiches, spaghetti and meatballs, meatball casseroles, meatballs in soups, meatballs on pizza, I’d even put them on a salad,  the sky is the limit.

If you know me even a little bit, you will know that I love my meatballs and that I’ve made many in my day. You’ll find quite a few meatball recipes on my blog like Moroccan Meatballs and Stout Meatballs with BBQ Sauce! Which is why I love this Monday Meatball Mania game so much.

Today’s meatball recipe is perfect for our triple M game. Why? Because these meatballs are not your everyday run of the mill meatballs. As you bite into one of these juicy meatballs, it’s like you took a bite out of an enchilada. They’re incredible, they’re cheesy and they’re drenched in enchilada sauce.

But what I love about these meatballs is the multiple ways you can serve them. You can literally make enchiladas with them, instead of using chicken or beef. You can stuff them in tortillas and have them as tacos. Use them as a dip with some crispy nachos, serve them over rice, or if you’re like me and my friend, we simply ate them just like that out of the pan and used some bread to soak up that cheesy enchilada sauce. All I can say, is that we were 2 happy girls when we were done.

If you try this recipe, please let us know! Leave a comment, rate it and tag a photo #jocooks on Instagram so we can see it. I always love to see what you guys come up with!

5 from 5 votes

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Enchilada Meatball Bake

Prep Time

15 mins

Cook Time

50 mins

Total Time

1 hr 5 mins

 

This Enchilada Meatball Bake encompasses everything you know and love about enchiladas, the taste, the flavors, the cheese, but made with meatballs. These enchilada meatballs are made with pork and beef, baked to perfection, crisp on the outside, baked in an enchilada sauce and smothered with cheese. 

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American, Mexican

Servings: 6

Calories: 471 kcal

Author: Joanna Cismaru

Ingredients

For Meatballs

• 3/4 lb ground pork
• 3/4 lb ground beef
• 10 oz enchilada sauce (10 oz can)
• 1 jalapeno chopped
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 1/2 cup cilantro fresh, chopped
• 1 tbsp oregano fresh, chopped (dried oregano can be used as well)
• 5 green onions chopped
• 1 cup breadcrumbs (I used Panko)
• salt and pepper to taste

For the Bake

• 10 oz enchilada sauce (10 oz can)
• 1 1/2 cups Monterey Jack cheese shredded

Optional Toppings

• cilantro
• green onions
• jalapenos
• tomatoes
• avocados
• salsa
• sour cream

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 400 F degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside.

2. In a large bowl add all the meatball ingredients and mix well using your clean hands. Shape the meat mixture into balls around the size of a golf ball. You should get around 30 meatballs.

3. Place the meatballs onto the prepared baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes until golden brown.

4. In a large skillet or a casserole dish, pour the enchilada sauce over the entire bottom. Sprinkle with about half of the cheese. Place the meatballs over the sauce then top with the remaining cheese.

5. Bake the casserole for another 20 minutes until the cheese melts and starts to brown on top.

6. Sprinkle with the optional toppings, if preferred.

Recipe Video

Recipe Notes

Before making your meatballs, you can place the meatball mixture in the fridge for 1 hour to up to a day. This will help the meatballs hold their shape while cooking. Since I baked these, I wasn't afraid of them losing shape, but if you choose to fry them instead, you might want to refrigerate the meat first for about an hour.

 

Alternatively you can fry these meatballs in a large skillet until brown all over. Do not remove them from the skillet, simply pour the sauce over them then top with cheese, then place in the oven and bake for 20 minutes as specified. This will turn this recipe into a one pot dish.

 

There are multiple ways of serving these meatballs. You can serve them as they are as an appetizer. You can make tacos with them and top them with your favorite taco toppings. Serve them over rice, or make enchiladas with them. 

 

Nutritional information assumes about 5 meatballs and sauce per serving, no mashed potatoes.

 

Please keep in mind that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on products used.

 

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