Our Family's Sonoran Flat Enchiladas

Grandma LaVetta Bushman learned how to make Sonoran Flat Enchiladas from her mother Pearl Cluff Bingham.  They lived in the Mexican Mormon Colonies in the early 1900s, and we think they learned this recipe there.  The Bingham family recipe has evolved slightly from the original Sonoran Enchilada, yet it is still delicious and has turned into a family favorite.

Everyone in the family has slight varitions to this recipe, but it is basically the same.  I filmed my mother making her version.  Here is a demonstration video.

Sonoran Flat Enchiladas Ingredients
Serves 8-10 people

Sauce:
2 lb. Ground Beef
1 Medium Onion
2 Qt. Tomato Juice
1 29 oz can Rosarita Enchilada sauce
2-3 Tbs Cornstarch--mix with water up to 1/2 cup

Toppings: (these are all optional according to your preference)
3-5 Tomatoes
1 head Iceberg Lettuce
2 C. Shredded cheese
2 Cans of Olives
Sour Cream
Salsa
Guacamole
Cilantro

Instructions:
First, brown 2 lb. of ground beef

While it’s browning, chop 1 medium onion

After draining and rinsing the ground beef, put it back into the pot and add the onion.  Cook until the onion is translucent

Pour in about ¾ of the 2 qt. bottle of tomato juice 

Add the 29 oz can of Rosarita Enchilada sauce.  Pour a little water in the can to get the rest out.

Next, thicken the sauce by mixing about 2-3 TB of cornstarch with water in a separate container—it’ll come to about ½ cup after it’s blended. 

Wait until the sauce is boiling before pouring in the cornstarch mixture.  Slowly stir it in and watch till the desired thickness.  Let it continue to simmer and it will thicken further.

While it’s simmering dice up about 3-5 medium tomatoes

Check in the thickness of your sauce.  In this case we wanted it a bit thicker so we put in another mixture of cornstarch and water.  If it gets too thick, you can add in more tomato juice to thin it down.

Chop up a head of iceberg lettuce

You can have an array of toppings—olives, sourcream, lettuce, tomatoes, shredded cheese, cilantro, and salsa or guacamole. 

We like tortilla chips on the side to dip in the delicious enchildada sauce or in salsa.

There are several ways to soften the corn tortillas--my grandma dipped them in hot oil or boiling water and then poured the sauce on top.  But, we prefer to dip the corn tortilla directly in the simmering sauce with a  spatula—don’t keep it in too long or it will break apart.

You can stack as many layers as you want.  The first layer, put what toppings you want---then stack another layer on top add more toppings etc.  On your last layer, place all the toppings you’d like.  

Enjoy!

p.s. The original Mexican recipe was served with a fried egg on top.

Eric Bushman's Sonoran Enchiladas

My mom's youngest brother made this video in 1988 demonstrating how to make enchiladas.  It is similar to the above, but he briefly fries the tortilla before dipping it into the enchilada sauce.  He makes it more like my Grandma did.  It's worth watching.  I love my Uncle Eric!