Creamy Seafood Enchiladas

Cinco de Mayo is coming up, and I couldn’t be more excited!! Growing up in California, Cinco de Mayo is almost a state holiday. Everyone gets together for parties with some of the best Mexican food around, and lots of ice cold drinks to cool down the spiciness of the salsa and Creamy Seafood Enchiladas…..

Not that we only celebrated once a year! 😉

I may have grown up eating Mexican food, but I have never gotten used to the heat of spicy peppers! This gringa blanca likes her comida mild, muchos gracias!! So I learned how to tone down the heat, but not the flavor. These Creamy Seafood Enchiladas are the perfect example of delicious Mexican food that does not burn your mouth off…..

Unless you want it to. Don’t worry, I will give you some suggestions to kick up the heat if you so desire. 😉

How to make Creamy Seafood Enchiladas:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a 9 x 13 baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.

Melt the butter in a large skillet. Add the onions and cook until translucent, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for one minute…..

Add the crab meat, shrimp, cumin, chili powder, and pepper, stir to combine. Cook just until the shrimp starts to turn pink…..

Stir in one cup of grated cheese and 1/4 cup of cilantro, remove from heat…..

Divide seafood mixture between the tortillas, placing it in the center of each one…..

About 2 ice cream scoops full.

Roll up each enchilada and place it seam side down in prepared baking dish, set aside…..

To make the creamy sauce: Melt the butter in a saucepan. Whisk in the flour and simmer for one to two minutes. Stir in the milk, sour cream, jalapeno, and pepper…..

When the sauce starts to thicken, add one cup of shredded cheese and stir until melted and smooth…..

Pour the creamy sauce over the enchiladas…..

Sprinkle with remaining cheese…..

and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until sauce is bubbly and the cheese is melted. Remove from oven and garnish with crumbled queso fresco and remaining cilantro and serve…..

The seafood is the star of this dish. It has a relatively mild flavor, and I wanted a subtle sauce that would not dominate or overpower the seafood flavor. You can taste the jalapeno, but it won’t burn your mouth. The cumin and chili powder add a little something to the filling, but not enough to stand out and scream “I’m in here”!! LOL

Notes:

• If you like it spicy, use habanero or serrano pepper instead of the jalapeno. Substitute Pepper Jack for the Monterrey Jack cheese, and add cayenne pepper instead of chili powder. And of course pour on some chile sauce so your face will turn red and steam will come shooting out your ears.
• I did not add any salt to this dish because seafood and cheese are naturally salty and I don’t need any extra saltiness. Feel free to add salt if you so desire.

I made these Creamy Seafood Enchiladas for a school potluck 10 years ago, and they were gone in seconds! I baked them in a foil pan and cut them down the center to create more servings. Afterwards, everyone was asking me for the recipe…if I only had a food blog back them, LOL

For the ultimate Cinco de Mayo celebration, check out these other awesome Mexican recipes:

Simple Chicken Enchiladas Verde

Instant Pot Adobo Chicken

Instant Pot Pork Carnitas

Mexican Style Shredded Beef

Shredded Beef Chimichangas

Queso Blanco Dip

Refried Black Beans

Mexican Rice & Instant Pot Spanish Rice

Shredded Beef Enchiladas.

Chicken Enchiladas with red chile sauce

What is your favorite Mexican recipe? I am always looking for new ideas.

Enjoy!!

Creamy Seafood Enchiladas

These Creamy Seafood Enchiladas are packed full of shrimp and crab in a creamy and delicious sauce that isn't too spicy or too bland!

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Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Mexican

Keyword: mexican, enchiladas, seafood, shrimp, crab, recipe, sauce, creamy

Prep Time: 39 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 54 minutes

Servings: 6 Servings

Calories: 413kcal

Author: Lisa Johnson

Ingredients

Seafood Filling

• 1 Tablespoon unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup finely diced onion
• 2 large cloves garlic (minced)
• 1 pound shrimp (peeled, deveined, and coarsely chopped)
• 6 ounce lump meat crab (drained)
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon chili powder (use cayenne if you want spicy)
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 1/2 cups shredded Monterrey Jack cheese (divided)
• 1/2 cup chopped cilantro (divided)
• 6 large flour tortillas (9-inch)

Creamy Sauce

• 4 Tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 cup whole milk (I used unsweetened CashewMilk)
• 1/2 cup Greek yogurt or sour cream
• 1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
• 1 teaspoon minced jalapeno pepper (with seeds removed unless you want more spice)
• queso fresco or cojito cheese (to garnish)

Instructions

To Make the Seafood Enchiladas

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a 9 x 13 baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.
• Melt the butter in a large skillet. Add the onions and cook until translucent, 3 to 5 minutes.
• Add the garlic and cook for one minute.
• Add the crab meat, shrimp, cumin, chili powder, and pepper, stir to combine. Cook just until the shrimp starts to turn pink.
• Stir in one cup of grated cheese and 1/4 cup of cilantro, remove from heat.
• Divide seafood mixture between the tortillas, placing it in the center of each one.
• Roll up each enchilada and place it seam side down in prepared baking dish, set aside.

To Make the Creamy Sauce

• Melt the butter in a saucepan. Whisk in the flour and simmer for one to two minutes.
• Stir in the milk, sour cream, jalapeno, and pepper.
• When the sauce starts to thicken, add one cup of shredded cheese and stir until melted and smooth.
• Pour the creamy sauce over the enchiladas. Sprinkle with remaining cheese and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until sauce is bubbly and the cheese is melted.
• Remove from oven and garnish with crumbled queso fresco and remaining cilantro and serve.
  

Notes

• If you like it spicy, use habanero or serrano pepper instead of the jalapeno. Substitute Pepper Jack for the Monterrey Jack cheese, and add cayenne pepper instead of chili powder. And of course pour on some chile sauce so your face will turn red and steam will come shooting out your ears.
• I did not add any salt to this dish because seafood and cheese are naturally salty and I don’t need any extra saltiness. Feel free to add salt if you so desire.

Nutrition

Calories: 413kcal | Carbohydrates: 7g | Protein: 35g | Fat: 26g | Saturated Fat: 15g | Cholesterol: 274mg | Sodium: 1115mg | Potassium: 266mg | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 18.3% | Vitamin C: 9% | Calcium: 54.3% | Iron: 13.5%