Crockpot Chicken Enchilada Verde

I've been making Chicken Enchilada Verde the old fashioned way for several years and recently converted it to a crock pot version. The original recipe (or more like "method") I learned from a few different people. The first time I had them melt in my mouth was the time a Mexican family friend made them. I was determined to duplicate what she had done. I also figured that since I married someone of Mexican descent, I should know how to make at least one decent Mexican dish. So, between our friend's recipe, some Mexican cooking shows, and some tips from my mom, this is what I've come up with. It's one of my most asked for recipes.

We throw around the term "authentic" a lot as Americans so I won't go so far to say they are authentic, but I can say that they are more Mexican than many of the recipes that have been bestowed on me by well meaning Americans. I bravely served them once to my sister's new husband (he is from Mexico and they live there now) and he was kind enough to tell me they were good. I figure he's too nice to tell me otherwise. =0)

Oh, and no, I don't consider these healthy. =0)

Ingredients

1 whole chicken (or 3-4 boneless skinless chicken breasts)

1 package white tortillas (6-8 inch size)

6-8 cups grated Monterey Jack Cheese (Jack works the best but in the pictures I had some colby and monterey jack on hand)

1 can green chili enchilada sauce (found in the Hispanic cooking section of most stores)

Seasoning (garlic, dried onion, salt, pepper, chili powder)

Cook your chicken over night in the crock pot on low. Sprinkle it with seasoning when you put it in. In the morning, let the chicken cool. By noon, shred it or chop it and begin layering the remaining ingredients. I cut my tortillas into long strips and then into squares. I begin with pouring a little sauce in the bottom of the crock to begin. Then tortilla, then chicken, then cheese, then more sauce (go easy on the sauce, just a drizzle each time. If you do too much sauce, they'll be soupy and you won't like it. You want it to mainly be tortilla, chicken, and cheese).

(in the pictures, I'm using left over chicken that was not seasoned when it was cooked. So, I seasoned each layer of chicken as I went. Sorry, I don't measure, just sprinkle it.)

Once you get to the rim, finish it off by topping it with more cheese.

Cook on low till dinner time. The reason I use the dried onion flakes is because sometimes it's not long enough to cook chopped onion through.

If you want to make a pan of these instead of in the crock pot. Pour some of the sauce into a skillet big enough to hold your tortillas. Put a tortilla into the sauce to warm it. This will make it pliable so that you can roll it without it tearing. Flip it once so that it's coated in the sauce then transfer it to a non-stick sprayed glass 9x13 pan. Laying the tortilla in the pan, fill it with the meat, cheese, seasons and roll it. Push it to the end of the pan and lay your next tortilla in the pan and repeat. By the time you get to the end and the pan is getting full, you lay the last tortilla over top all the rolled ones, fill it, roll it and tuck it into the last spot on the end. Top with cheese and a drizzle of sauce. Bake for about 20-30 min. @ 350.