Salmon Enchiladas

I just picked up blue corn tortillas at my local Latin market for 99 cents (three dozen), and created a colorful enchilada dish, using orange hued salmon from a can and green enchilada sauce. All my ingredients were cheap of course, but this dish is very rich in flavor.

It's a little messy to make but tasty to eat. You can use metal tongs to dip and coat the tortillas, but they may tear them, so I just used my hands. I also used green enchilada sauce (although typical red sauce can be used). Green enchilada sauce is mild but more citrus/tart, and not as spicy as red.

Normally tortillas are brittle and must be heated in oil to soften for stuffing then rolling up; but I have a lighter and easier method -- just loosely stack and microwave for 30 to 45 seconds until soft.

So if you are looking for a flavorful (and lighter-than-normal) Mexican entree, try out The 99 Cent Chef's Salmon Enchilada.

Ingredients (serves 2-3)
6 corn tortillas
15 oz. can of enchilada sauce - I used green, but you can substitute with easier-to-get red sauce.
7 1/2 ounce can of salmon - drained. The can size (or soft pack) of salmon you use will determine how many enchiladas you can make.
7 slices of cheese - about 7 ounces. You can use any favorite, including American cheese. I used white Monterrey Jack that was on sale.
1/4 onion chopped - optional.
1/4 bell pepper chopped - optional.
1 tsp. of chopped garlic fresh or from jar - optional.
Salt and pepper to taste.
1 tsp. oil for sauteing onion and bell pepper.

Directions
Saute chopped bell pepper, onion and garlic until soft, about 5 minutes. Drain can of salmon and loosely break it up in a bowl. Slice cheese into strips, or shred cheese if it is in block form. Microwave loosely stacked tortillas for 30-45 seconds until soft and pliable. On a large plate pour enough enchilada sauce to almost cover.

Dredge tortilla in enchilada sauce on both sides. Place sauced tortilla into baking casserole dish and add enough cheese and salmon to cover middle of the tortilla. Add a teaspoon of sauteed veggies. Fold two sides of tortilla and place seam side down. Repeat this paragraph's steps for the other 5 tortillas.
Once all the tortillas are stuffed and assembled in baking dish, add the rest of the cheese, any leftover sauteed veggies over the top and pour on the extra enchilada sauce.

Bake in a preheated oven at 375 degrees about 15-20 minutes until the cheese is melted and the sauce is bubbling. When done, allow to cool for a minute then serve.

If you are not a salmon lover, then substitute with cooked chicken from a can, fresh grilled or poached, and shredded. You can also use sauteed (and cooked through) ground turkey, or beef, mixed with a packet of taco seasoning.

In less than a week The 99 Cent Chef serves up a scrumptious "August Hot Dog Month." And it will be a tasty selection of some of the best hot dog joints in L.A.

In search of encased meat, this cuisinier treks from Fab Hot Dogs in the Valley (where the Chef has a comedic radioactive reaction to the Day-Glo relish on a Chicago Dog), to Earlez Grille on Crenshaw Blvd. in South L.A. for a Spicy Beef Link Dog with all the fixings, and to Carney's on the Sunset Strip for a zany and boozy Beer & Hot Dog Happy Hour -- all shot on video in Chefscope!

You will have a ravenously good time the whole month long checking in for the latest video (3 done and more on the way), and I'll throw in a hot dog recipe or two along the way. Ever have a bacon-wrapped, grilled pepper-and-onion-topped L.A. Street Dog slathered in mayo, ketchup and mustard? The combination shouldn't work, but it does, and The 99 Cent Chef will take you step-by-step through the creation of a Los Angeles street corner culinary classic.

So check back the first of August for a month of mouth-watering videos, photos and recipes.