What to serve with enchiladas? We’ve got you covered with this collection of side dish recipes for enchiladas. This roundup of tasty ideas is broken into beans & rice; salad, slaw and other veggies; and of course, we have chips, salsa and guacamole. We also link you to some good enchilada recipes and tips for wine pairing for enchiladas.
We are big fans of enchiladas, so as Cinco de Mayo approaches we wanted to help you put together a delicious Mexican meal featuring homemade enchiladas. The best sides to go with your enchiladas will bring great flavor to the table and make the meal complete.
I’m guessing you might already have an enchilada recipe in mind. But in case you don’t, I will share a few quick links to some good enchilada recipes, before getting into our enchilada side dish collection.
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Enchilada recipe links
Here are some tasty enchilada recipes from Cooking Chat and around the web. You can generally go with corn tortillas or wheat tortillas for these recipes.
- Beef and Black Bean Enchiladas – our tasty enchilada recipe brings medium heat to the table, pleasing a wide range of palates.
- Green Chicken Enchiladas from the State of Dinner, made with green chiles and salsa verde.
- Chicken and Black Bean Enchiladas with green sauce, our latest enchilada recipe here on Cooking Chat.
- Vegetarian Hatch Chile Enchiladas, another Cooking Chat favorite.
- Ground Turkey Enchiladas with Mexican wine pairings – in addition to a tasty and healthy recipe, this one could inspire you to track down some Mexican wine!
- Easy Chicken Enchiladas with a red sauce, corn tortillas, sour cream and plenty of cheese! From Isabel Eats.
OK, now that you have some basic recipes for the main course, it’s time to get into answering the question, What to serve with enchiladas?
Chips, salsa & guacamole
I have to have some chips on the side when eating any kind of Mexican food! And where there are chips, salsa and guacamole can’t be far behind!
Salsa and Guacamole
Chips and salsa are a must when you are serving enchiladas! Oh yes, don't forget the guac! We also include some other good dips to serve up for your Mexcian meal. A tasty collection of recipes.
An easy to make chipotle salsa.
This easy pineapple salsa recipe is fresh, super delicious, sweet, savory and spicy at the same time. It's also vegan and gluten free.
Sharing our own go-to recipe for guac! In addition to the tasty recipe, we cover some suggestions for good wine pairings to go with guacamole.
A super simple salsa recipe with tomatoes, peppers, onions, cilantro, and lime juice.
If you want something a little heftier to go with your chips than just the salsa, give our Baked Fiesta Dip a try!
Simple and refreshing mango salsa is a perfect complement to enchiladas: can be made with fresh or frozen mangoes and has been paired with jalapeños and lime juice to give it a bit of a kick!
This chorizo dip recipe starts with a layer of cream cheese, followed by a delicious chorizo and tomato mixture. These layers get baked along with a topping of melting cheese for a savory and spicy snack, perfect for game day or your next gathering.
Beans and rice
I love beans and rice on the side with enchiladas! Of course, beans and rice can be a meal on their own, but today we focus on how they can round out an enchiladas dinner.
Beans and Rice
When I get enchiladas at a restaurant, I always enjoy that side of refried beans on the side! Here we give you several options for making beans at home, including authentic Mexican refried beans recipe. And of course, beans and rice go together, so in this section we also give you several ideas for rice dishes to serve on the side.
The Easiest Refried Beans are not only simple to make, they are SO much better than store-bought. Use a food processor to combine a nice veggie sauté with pinto beans, a touch of hot sauce, and some butter. Some cilantro sprinkled on top at the end makes a nice presentation!
Instant Pot Ranchero Charro Beans are the perfect side dish to accompany enchiladas or any Mexican entree. This flavorful side dish is budget friendly and easy to make with a few pantry ingredients.
Fiesta Saffron Rice Recipe is an easy side dish that starts with a rice package that includes seasonings. Add fresh vegetables for a fiesta of flavors and colors!
Forget about Chipotle’s Cilantro Lime Rice and make your own! This recipe is bursting with fresh lime and cilantro flavor, and is perfect in burrito bowls or as a side dish for tacos, enchiladas and more!
Authentic and creamy Black Beans get loads of flavor from a few simple ingredients. Great as a side dish for enchiladas.
Costa Rican Style Gallo Pinto is a rice and beans dish with its origins in Central America.
Salads, slaw and other veggies
Enchiladas are definitely a hearty main course! So it’s a good idea to include some veggies on the side. We’ve selected some great salads, slaw and other veggies for you to serve along with your enchiladas.
Salads, Slaw and Other Veggies
Need some veggies to go with your Mexican meal! A good salad can round out an enchilada meal nicely. Slaw can be a great option, too. And we have some other creative veggie dishes for you, too.
Spicy Mexican Street Corn Salad is a favorite dish to serve with enchiladas or fajitas! It’s great for a crowd because you can make it ahead of time and you can make it as spicy or as mild as you like.
Ensalada de Nopales (or Cactus Salad) is a tasty, vegan-friendly, and refreshing side dish that's a staple in Mexico. It's quick and SO versatile.
Slightly sweet with a burst of fresh crunch, this apple jicama slaw makes a delicious and healthy side for enchiladas.
Our Cucumber Radish Salad with Maple Vinaigrette has a tasty combo of crunchy and a bit of sweetness. A light, healthy side for your enchiladas.
This Southwestern Quinoa Salad is a simple and colorful side dish with a zesty salsa lime dressing. Recipe is gluten free and vegan.
The combination of ingredients along with the blending of the lime, oil and balsamic vinegar makes this black bean salad perfect side dish for enchiladas.
This Mexican Air Fryer Corn On the Cob is juicy and cooked to tender charred perfection in just 10 minutes. Delicious with enchiladas!
Make this quick and easy Mexican Pickled Red Onions Recipe using red onions and vinegar as its base. A very popular 5-ingredient condiment or side in Mexico for tacos, enchiladas, tostadas, tortas, and more!
Healthy sides for enchiladas
Of course, the salads and veggie recipes above are healthy. But as we circled back for an update to this collection, we saw there was interest in healthy sides for enchiladas. So we are covering that topic here!
Healthy Enchilada Sides
Here we put a focus on healthy side dishes for enchiladas!
This Black Bean Avocado Salad is a quick and easy recipe that tastes amazing! Using easy-to-find ingredients and ripe avocados, this is a sure winner in any crowd!
This broccolini slaw recipe is light and fresh, with crisp vegetables and a flavorful mint dressing. Perfect as a healthy side for enchiladas!
Sautéed Arugula with Red Bell Peppers and plenty of garlic is a tasty and easy vegetable side dish. A healthy side dish for enchiladas!
Calabacitas are a delicious, healthy & easy zucchini side dish that’s typical in Mexican kitchens.
This Mexican coleslaw is a combination of shredded cabbage, black beans, corn, red peppers, jalapeño and avocado, all tossed in a creamy dressing.
A crisp & fresh Mexican Watermelon & Cucumber salad is a delicious side dish. The Tajin dressing adds a ton of flavor to juicy watermelon, fresh cucumbers, & crunchy pepitas.
These spicy Mexican Pickled Carrots are so delicious and addicting. They are the perfect side to any Mexican meal!
More sides to serve with enchiladas
We’ve got a few more recipes that you can serve with enchiladas that didn’t fit into our other categories!
More enchilada side dishes
A few more tasty side dishes for enchiladas that didn't fit in our other categories!
These vegan jalapeño poppers use simple vegan ingredient swaps to make this delicious appetizer with just 4 ingredients (and plenty of optional add-ins). You can make them baked or air fried (not deep-fried) in under 30 minutes!
This zesty black bean dip is easy to make with canned black beans and a Ro-Tel. It's a healthy side with chips or topping for enchiladas.
This Mexican street corn casserole is a Mexican-inspired dish that’s perfect for enchiladas and any time the cravings for Elote appear. This dish is full of delicious Mexican street corn spices, queso fresco cheese, and cilantro.
This Mexican style Gazpacho with poblano and jalapeño has just the right amount of kick to it to elevate the flavor in anything you compliment it with.
Mexican stuffed peppers are a healthy, colorful, and comforting dinner that you can make in just 30 minutes. The peppers are stuffed with a tasty well-seasoned filling made with brown rice, and ground turkey or chicken, they’re then topped with some melty cheese.
Papas con Rajas is a tasty Mexican side dish made of potatoes and roasted poblano peppers. Top with melted cheese, and dig in!
More Mexican recipes
In case you are interested in some other Mexican main dish recipes, here are a few of our favorites.
What to serve with enchiladas — do you have other favorite sides to share? Leave your suggestions in the comments!
Tara
Awesome ideas. I’ve bookmarked several. I’m all ready for Cinco de Mayo!
Cooking Chat
Thanks for sharing your tasty recipe, Tara!
marcie
Enchiladas are a favorite and there are so many great options to serve with them here. Thank you for including my recipe!
Cooking Chat
I agree! Thanks for contributing, Marcie!
Chef Mireille
Thank you for including my gazpacho. These all look so good and I can’t wait to try some of the others.
Cooking Chat
Sure, it looks delicious!