After a long day of exploring, the last thing we want to do is spend an hour making dinner and another half hour cleaning up. Whether we’ve been hiking to alpine lakes, driving rough backroads, or simply soaking in a beautiful campsite, we’re usually looking for meals that are filling (and healthy!), easy to make, and don’t leave our tiny van kitchen looking like a disaster.
That’s exactly why this Campfire Green Chile Chicken Enchilada Skillet has become one of our go-to camp dinners.
It has everything we love about classic chicken enchiladas. Tender chicken, gooey Monterey Jack cheese, flavorful green enchilada sauce, and all the warm, comforting flavors of your favorite Mexican-inspired meal, but without all the extra work. There’s no messy rolling tortillas or cooking with multiple dishes.
Instead, everything cooks together in a single cast iron skillet over the campfire or camp stove. The tortillas soak up the sauce, the cheese gets perfectly melted, and in just a short time you have a hearty meal that’s hard to believe came together with so little effort.
One of our favorite things about this recipe is how flexible it is. If you’ve got leftover grilled chicken from the night before, toss it in. Pick up a rotisserie chicken on your way to camp? Even better. Using pre-cooked chicken makes this so incredibly easy.
You can also put your own flair on it. We like to use low-carb flour tortillas, but you could easily substitute those for corn. Add black beans for extra protein or to make it vegetarian. Top it with avocado, cilantro, green onions, black olives, sour cream, jalapeños, or crushed tortilla chips for a little extra crunch.
Even if you’re not camping, this recipe is just as good at home, especially on a busy weeknight. It’s cozy, cheesy, satisfying, and makes enough to feed the whole family without spending your evening in the kitchen.
If you’re looking for an easy one-pan camping recipe that’s packed with flavor, comes together quickly, and tastes like pure comfort food after a day outdoors, this Campfire Green Chile Chicken Enchilada Skillet deserves a spot on your meal rotation. We have a feeling it’ll become one of your camp favorites too.
What You’ll Need to Cook This at Camp
There are a few different ways you could cook this outside: in a Dutch oven over a campfire, in a cast iron skillet over a campstove or propane fire pit (pictured below), or on top of an induction stovetop. This is some of our favorite kitchen gear.
Cast Iron Skillet: We used our Lodge 10.25 Cast Iron Skillet, but you could use a Dutch oven similar in size or a regular pan if you don’t have cast iron. If you’re cooking these at home, I’d recommend using something broiler-safe so you can toss it in the oven at the end to get the top golden and bubbly.
Propane Fire Pit: The Ignik FireCan Deluxe is a great way to cook over an open fire when burn bans are in effect (although make sure to check that propane fires are still allowed!). We also love grilling vegetables, chicken, and burgers on our Ignik FireCan.
Propane Growler: We love our Ignik Propane Growlers because they’re easy to fill, economical, and travel well in the growler case. They also last for many nights of cooking and sitting around a propane fire pit.
Campfire Green Chile Chicken Enchilada Skillet
Serves: 4
Time from start to table: 30 minutes
Ingredients:
- 4 tortillas, cut into small triangles (you can use flour or corn depending on your preference)
- 1 lb shredded chicken
- 1/2 yellow onion, diced
- 1 Tbsp olive oil/li>
- 1 tsp cumin
- salt & pepper to taste
- 1 10 oz can green enchilada sauce (or red if you prefer)
- 1/2 lb shredded Monterey Jack cheese
- Optional toppings: cilantro (or green onions) and sour cream/li>
Directions:
- Place your cast iron skillet over a medium flame/stove and add the olive oil and onion. Saute until soft, about 5 minutes.
- Add the shredded chicken, cumin, green enchilada sauce, and tortillas. Stir to combine.
- Cook until bubbly, stirring regularly so it doesn’t stick to the bottom, and the sauce has slightly thickened, about 10 minutes.
- Sprinkle the cheese on top in an even layer.
- Turn the heat down to low or remove from the open campfire. Top with a piece of foil or a lid. Cook on low for about 5 more minutes until the cheese is melted. If you are doing this over an open fire, I would recommend putting it off to the side at this point, so you only have radiant and not direct heat. (Note: If you are doing this at home, I would recommend putting it under the broiler at this point to get the top nice and golden.)
- Top with chopped cilantro, a little sour cream, or anything else you’d like. Enjoy!
Let me know if you make these skillet enchiladas and get creative with the variations. I’d love to hear what you dream up!
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