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Cheese Enchilada

A baked dish of corn tortillas filled with cheese and onion, smothered in a chili‑flour gravy.

From the Wikibooks Cookbook · 7 ingredients
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Why it works: Cheddar cheese and onion are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 13% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,669 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓

Cheese Enchilada

5–6
Oven350°F
Timeabout 5 minutes

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the gravy

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C).

  2. Fry chili powder and flour in oil in a 10–12‑inch skillet until emulsified.

  3. Add water, bring to a simmer, and stir for about 5 minutes until slightly thickened.

  4. Turn heat down to low.

Assemble the enchiladas

  1. Soak one tortilla in the chili gravy until softened (20–30 seconds).

  2. Remove tortilla from gravy, place flat on a plate, and add about 1 tablespoon cheese and about 1 tablespoon onion to the center.

  3. Roll the tortilla up and place it in a 9×12‑inch baking pan with edges facing down.

  4. Repeat steps 5–7 until all tortillas are used. If the gravy runs low, stir in ⅛–¼ cup water.

  5. Cover the enchiladas with the remaining cheese, onions, and chili gravy.

Bake and serve

  1. Bake in the oven for about 5 minutes; longer will toughen the cheese.

  2. Serve hot.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

879Calories
25 gProtein
28 gFat
131 gCarbs

Counts 6 of 7 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 6 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Flour1 cup (125g) all-purpose455
Corn Tortilla1 medium flour (45g)140
Olive Oil1 tbsp (14g)119
Cheddar Cheese1 oz (28g)113
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Chili1 tsp (2.7g)8
Waternot in our table0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Wikibooks Cookbook.

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Cheddar cheese + oniontop 13% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together3,669 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

  2. Onion + corntop 13% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together4,205 recipes

    Shared aroma: hexanal (green, grassy).

  3. Flour + corntop 13% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together6,165 recipes

    Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).

  4. Cheddar cheese + corntop 15% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together669 recipes

    Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).

  5. Flour + cheddar cheesetop 17% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together2,592 recipes

    Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Flour
Thickens the chili gravy as it cooks and simmers.
Cheddar cheese
Melts into the filling and topping, adding richness and a creamy texture.
Corn tortillas
Wrap the filling and soften in the gravy so they can be rolled.
Chili powder
Gives the gravy its main chili flavor and color.
Vegetable oil
Carries the chili powder's flavor and helps bind the gravy with the flour.

The step that matters

Bake for only about 5 minutes. Cheese becomes tough and rubbery when overheated for long, so the enchiladas should be heated just until the cheese melts.

Swap the onion

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (flour, cheddar cheese, corn):

  1. Capsicumfits better
  2. Potatofits better
  3. Chivefits better
  4. Onionthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against flour, cheddar cheese, corn. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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