I’ll talk about the unique flavors of New Mexico at length in another post, but right now, let me tell you about Charlie’s Front Door and Charlie’s Back Door. The two were owned by Charlie Elias, a longtime Albuquerque restaurateur. The Front Door was a small restaurant, with a 4-sided bar in the middle of the room. And the Back Door was a small bar that served food from the Front Door kitchen that was situated between the two.
Those establishments were very popular with Albuquerque business men and women. The Back Door was just your typical neighborhood bar, with people wandering in and out all day long, but getting into the Front Door for lunch didn’t happen unless you could get there early or arrive late. And one of the most popular dishes was Charlie’s Green Chile Chicken Sour Cream Enchiladas! That dish is one of several that my Dad and Stepmom always wanted to experience when they visited us.
I’ve searched high and low for a copy of that recipe or a really good copycat, all to no avail. But in that process, I stumbled upon several recipes that were a good substitute, and I offer one here. We can buy Hatch green chile all over the country now, but if you’re in the southwest and can buy pods to roast at home for this recipe, so much the better! Here in Albuquerque, we have a “season” where green chile farmers are on every corner with a big tumbler roaster.
When Charlie approached retirement age, his son, Jamie, took over for several years, but both establishments are gone now, and I’m still sad! So, I went searching for anything that could give me something approaching the wonderful sight and smell of my favorite Charlie’s dish — Charlie’s Green Chile Chicken and Sour Cream Enchiladas. The following can do in a pinch. I don’t remember where I found it, but it’s been tweaked since.
Charlie’s Green Chile Chicken Sour Cream Enchiladas
(Charlie’s were flat but it’s too hard to make and serve at home to several people. Rolled works just fine! This is a substitute. No one could make these like Charlie.)
Prep: 20 mins
Cook: 30 mins (10 for the sauce, 20 in the oven)
Serves: 4 to 6
Ingredients
- 1 lb cooked turkey or chicken breast, diced or shredded
- 1 medium onion, minced
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 8 – 12 corn tortillas, softened in hot oil
- 1 ½ cups grated white or yellow cheddar cheese, divided (Charlie used white.)
- ¼ cup butter
- ¼ cup flour
- 1 (15 ounce) can chicken broth
- ¾ cup sour cream
- 2 – 3 fresh green chile peppers, roasted and diced (If you have to, just buy the best diced canned chiles you can find and use ¼ – ½ cup, to taste.)
- Salt, pepper and garlic powder, to taste
Directions
- In a frying pan, cook chicken and onion together in oil over medium-high heat until chicken is just done.
- Dice or shred the chicken and divide evenly between 8 tortillas; add about 1 ½ tablespoons cheese to each tortilla. Or do it the easy way – mix the shredded chicken and cheese together.
- Roll enchiladas and place seam-side down in a 9×13″ baking dish that has been lightly oiled.
- Melt butter in a medium saucepan; stir in flour to make a roux, stir and cook until bubbly, and gradually whisk in chicken broth then bring to boiling, stirring frequently.
- Remove from heat; stir in salt, pepper, garlic powder, sour cream and green chiles.
- Pour sauce evenly over enchiladas.
- Top with remaining ¾ cup cheese (a baking dish may be double-wrapped and frozen at this point) and bake at 400° F for 20 minutes until cheese is melted and sauce near edges of baking dish is bubbly. Serve with some shredded lettuce.
Note: If you love green chile, use more green chile. And if you love cheese, use more cheese. All that really matters is to make it what you like.
