This Seafood Enchiladas Divorciadas Recipe Will Ruin All Other Enchiladas For You

Mashed recipe developer Patterson Watkins knows what she likes, which often inspires her decisions when it comes to food. "I need more enchilada in my life, for sure," she tells us. "After making this recipe, I quickly determined that enchiladas are gonna have a permanent place on the monthly dinner menu." The recipe in question is seafood enchiladas divorciadas, which is a fun enchilada variation featuring both red and green enchilada sauces along with a hearty filling.

"Enchiladas are so satisfying. The soft corn tortillas, the savory shrimp filling, the creamy/refreshing queso fresco topping, the zesty sauces — there's a lot to love here," Watkins describes, "The green sauce is bright and zesty, the red sauce is savory and smoky, and they both work so well together." While this recipe is a little more elaborate than popping open a couple of cans of store-bought enchilada sauce, the results are worth it. "There's also something so satisfying in crafting homemade sauces — this might just be me — but I feel so much pride when I make a kicka** sauce (not to mention two kicka** sauces — as in this recipe)," she points out. 

There are a few components that make up this hearty recipe. First, to make the green and red sauces you'll need olive oil, yellow onion (chopped), garlic cloves (peeled and minced), a Serrano chile pepper (chopped), tomatillos (chopped), chipotle peppers in adobo, fresh cilantro, chicken or vegetable broth, apple cider vinegar, tomato paste, ground cumin, dried oregano, and salt. Next, to assemble the dish, get cooked shrimp (chopped), salted butter (melted), hot sauce, sour cream or crema, queso fresco crumbles, olive oil, and corn tortillas. If desired, you can get more queso fresco and fresh cilantro to garnish.

To make the green sauce, heat the olive oil in a small saucepan over medium heat.

Once hot, add the onion, garlic, Serrano pepper, and tomatillos to the saucepan, stir to combine, and saute for 5 minutes.

Add the broth to the saucepan, stir to combine, and bring to a simmer. Cook for 5 more minutes, stirring occasionally, or until the vegetables are soft.

Transfer the mixture to a blender and add the fresh cilantro leaves.

Puree until smooth, season with salt, and set aside.

To make the red sauce, place the broth, chipotle peppers, vinegar, tomato paste, onion, garlic, cumin, and oregano in a small saucepan, and stir to combine.

Bring the sauce to a simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Cook for 10 minutes or until the veggies are tender.

Transfer the sauce to a blender and puree until smooth. Season with salt and set aside.

Place the cooked shrimp, melted butter, and hot sauce in a large bowl. Stir to combine.

Place the sour cream and queso fresco in a medium bowl and stir to combine.

Drizzle a large skillet with olive oil, just enough oil to cover the bottom, and heat over medium.

Once hot, and working in batches, dip tortillas into the hot oil, and cook for 15 seconds or until soft. Sandwich the warmed tortillas in between sheets of paper towels to drain.

To assemble the enchiladas, spread a tablespoon of the queso cream onto the warmed tortillas.

Spoon about ⅓ cup of the buttered shrimp onto each tortilla.

Roll the filled tortillas into a tight cylinder and place on a platter.

Spread the green sauce on half of the tortillas.

Spread the red sauce on the other half of the tortillas (you want each enchilada to be coated in both the red and green sauces).

Serve the enchiladas with extra queso cream on the side or dolloped on top (you can also sprinkle with some extra queso fresco or chopped cilantro for garnish).

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A quick guess at the translation of enchiladas divorciadas would correctly suggest that it means divorced enchiladas. "Enchiladas divorciadas are a whimsical dish that pits two classic enchilada sauces against each other; a red sauce and a green sauce," Watkins describes and notes, "The contrasting colors and flavors are what give this dish that 'divorced' name." There's a definite split on the dish, with half of it displaying a bold red hue and the other a vibrant green. 

"I love this so much. I am a lady who likes the best of both worlds, and this duo of sauces satisfies that for me perfectly," she shares. Indeed, if you're often torn between what enchilada sauce to use or are the type of person who always gets a half-and-half pizza, this recipe offers you the perfect solution. "The sauces are spooned onto the enchiladas, creating this fun culinary division," Watkins explains, "But we, the eater, totally win with this best of both approach." Sure, it's an extra step to make a second sauce, but sometimes a little extra effort is all it takes.  

Though this seafood enchiladas divorciadas recipe is already a fun twist on more basic versions of the dish, you can definitely add your own modifications to switch it up. "Shrimp is a relatively neutral seafood option, liked by most," Watkins points out and suggests, "If you'd like to flex with even more seafood, I wouldn't mind these enchiladas being stuffed with shrimp + crab meat + lobster (that sounds absolutely luxurious)." Other fish that would fit in with the flavor profile, according to Watkins, are salmon or white fish. On the other hand, she says, "If you want to forgo the seafood altogether, cooked chicken or steak would be super scrumptious." 

Meanwhile, there's room to play with the sauces too, which she describes as being of medium heat. "If you'd like to boost the heat level, you can decrease the tomatillos in the green sauce to ¾ cup and replace that with even more Serranos or add-in jalapeños," Watkins suggests. "For the red sauce, I would reduce the chicken broth by ¼ cup, and replace that missing portion with your favorite hot sauce," she adds — a surefire way to boost the spice factor. On the flip side, "If you'd like to reduce the heat to low, I would eliminate the Serranos from the green sauce and add in another smaller tomatillo, and for the red sauce, I would reduce the chipotle peppers to 1 tablespoon," Watkins recommends.

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