These grain-free enchiladas are also gluten-free and paleo friendly. A flavor-packed healthy weeknight dinner the whole family will love!

Surprisingly, you can still indulge in delicious Mexican cuisine even when you’re paleo and/or cutting gluten out of your diet. Just grab some gluten-free gluten free enchilada sauce” target=”_blank” rel=”noreferrer noopener”>gluten-free enchiladas sauce and make this delicious recipe for the cheesiest and most delicious beef enchiladas.

“But wait, it that cheese on top? I thought cheese was not allowed on paleo?” I hear you and yes we can talk about this!

Are these gluten-free enchiladas also paleo?

Can we talk about cheese and being paleo for a second? I recently hashtagged a salad with goat cheese as paleo on my Instagram. Someone commented asking,

“I thought cheese wasn’t paleo?” To which I responded,

“If it’s local, organic and grass-fed and works for your digestion – it’s totally fine.”

The commenter said she was just starting out with a paleo diet and was so confused about “all of the rules.”

You guys. You make the rules. You know what works best for you. If you aren’t sure what does or does not work, I highly recommend doing a Whole30.

A Whole30 eliminates sugar, dairy and grains for 30 days so you can reintroduce after the elimination period and see what may not be working for you – or conversely what works just fine.

But there is no set of hard and fast rules you have to adhere to to be paleo. You are an adult. You make your own damn choices. OWN what works for you.

For me? Cheese works. As evidence below. And damn was it good.

overhead shot of a casserole with gluten-free beef enchiladas

Paleo is not black and white!

Being “paleo” is more about what you don’t eat than what you do eat. Let me explain that.

You can be “paleo” by not eating refined sugar, gluten, most grains, processed foods, soda, etc.And you can still be “paleo” while eating broth cooked white rice, soaked gluten-free oatmeal, grass-fed cheese. It’s what works for YOU on an individual level. We’re all different.

Therefore if you want to remain strict paleo, if you have an autoimmune disease, if cheese doesn’t agree with you – simply leave it out of the recipe.

How to make Gluten-Free Enchiladas

ground beef being stir-fried with spinach for making gluten-free enchiladas

Start by preheating your oven to 375F.

To get grass-fed ground beef delivered and two get two pounds FREE, click here!

Sauté that ground beef, with some onions. Remove the meat and fry the spinach in the beef fat until wilted. I like to add a bit of gluten-free enchilada sauce during this point.

Afterward, add about 1/2 cup of the leftover enchilada sauce to the bottom of a baking dish.

Spoon the beef mixture and some spinach into the This is a great recipe.

How to find gluten-free enchiladas sauce:

The best solution if you want to make sure your enchiladas sauce is gluten-free and paleo approved is to make it yourself. Here is a great recipe.

Additionally, you know, store-bought enchilada sauces are typically made with GMO corn starch and soy ingredients, and can also have MSG, gluten, and hydrogenated oils. No es bueno!

Instead you definitely want to scan that list of ingredients and make sure your sauce is free of added sugar, preservatives, and artificial flavors. Many enchilada sauces may contain also wheat or malt as a thickening ingredient. Oh, and soy. All no-nos.

Hatch enchilada sauces are gluten-free. Here are some great options for healthy enchilada sauces. You can find amazing (seriously so delicious) Tips for making gluten-free enchiladas:

gluten-free beef enchiladas being layered in a casserole dish with gluten-free enchiladas sauce

For more healthy gluten-free Mexican recipes, check out my Paleo Steak Tacos or my Gluten-free Mexican Pizza.

Grain and Gluten Free Enchiladas

This recipe is so delicious, healthy, packed with protein and veggies and great to meal prep!
4.80 from 10 votes
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Course dinner
Cuisine Mexican
Servings 6 people
Calories 157 kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 1 lb ground beef (or chicken, pork, etc.)
  • 1/2 onion, diced
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 small bell pepper, diced
  • 5 oz spinach
  • 1 bag Siete almond flour tortillas
  • 1 jar gluten-free enchilada sauce (whatever you like)
  • 1 8 oz bag of shredded Mexican cheese (preferably organic)
  • pico de gallo and/or guacamole
  • favorite spices: cumin, smoked paprika, taco seasoning

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 375.
  • Saute your ground meat in a tbsp of olive oil.
  • Remove meat, drain if necessary.
  • Add other tbsp of olive oil to the pan and saute the onion, bell pepper and spinach.
  • At this point add any spices you like, I add garlic powder and paprika. Taco seasoning would work as well.
  • Return the meat to the pan along with a drizzle of the enchilada sauce, give it all a stir.
  • Get ready to assemble! Add some of the meat and veggie mixture into a tortilla, add some cheese, roll it up and place it in a pan seam side down.
  • Repeat for all 8 tortillas. If you have leftover meat and veg, just sprinkle over top.
  • Pour the enchilada sauce over all of the tortillas evenly.
  • Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the tortillas.
  • Bake on 375 for about thirty minutes, until all these cheese is nice and melted.
  • Top with pico de gallo, guacamole, sour cream – whatever you like!

Nutrition

Calories: 157kcalCarbohydrates: 2gProtein: 17gFat: 9gSaturated Fat: 2gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0.3gCholesterol: 47mgSodium: 73mgPotassium: 429mgFiber: 1gSugar: 1gVitamin A: 2263IUVitamin C: 17mgCalcium: 35mgIron: 3mg
Keyword gluten free
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

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Paleo Enchiladas | Grain-free, gluten-free and paleo friendly enchiladas! These are an easy, healthy dinner and perfect for lunch leftovers! Perfect for paleo potlucks or dinner parties  #paleo #mexicanfood #potluck #glutenfree

32 Comments

  1. I love how you keep it real Dani! We’ve all been beaten down by “diet rules” that make us feel as though we’ve failed if we don’t follow them perfectly. But, like you said, we get to make the rules for our bodies! Thanks for being a voice of reason 🙂

  2. These grain free enchiladas were fantastic! My 14 year old who tried enchiladas for the first time last night said that he was in “Meat Heaven”!
    Instead of rolling the enchiladas individually, I layered them flat more like a lasagna. It’s a little faster and easier for me that way. Thanks so much for sharing this recipe!!!

  3. 5 stars
    These look AMAZING! And they sounds like a super family friendly dinner option!

  4. Is the calorie count per serving or total? Also, what measurement would be a serving?

  5. I am fixings this dish tonight and want to know about the Siete tortilla shells. Do you follow the package directions or use them as they come out of the frig?

  6. In the instructions, it says to drain the fat then return it…why do you have to drain it to just return it to the same pan?

    • dani Reply

      You drain the fat from the meat and return the meat, not the fat.

      • Might want to change that then. It definitely says drain fat and then return it.

        • dani Reply

          OH MAN, total mess up. Meant meat! Thanks for catching!

  7. 5 stars
    I made this recipe for my family last night and it was a huge hit. I’m hoping to make it again and make two pans. What would be the best way to save the second pan for another night? Would putting it in the freezer and then bake it before eating work? Thanks so much!

    • dani Reply

      I haven’t tried freezing it but I think that would work! So glad you loved it!

  8. 5 stars
    These were so simple and tasted amazing! Even my kids loved them

  9. 5 stars
    I made this recipe for my family last night and it was amazing. I used vegan cheese because that was all we had in my fridge and it still tasted great. Thanks!

  10. 5 stars
    I made this recipe last night for my family and it was a huge hit! Definitely a new family favorite. Thank you!

  11. 5 stars
    Amazingly scrumptious! Added some hatch chilies into the mix with a paleo green chili/garlic enchilada sauce. I highly recommend adding some cilantro, cotija cheese, and Crema Mexicana { if you can find it at your market } on top. Thank you!

  12. It says to pour 1/2 the sauce in the bottom of the dish, but what do I do with the rest?

  13. I’ve been learning to make new recipes every Wednesday night. I am 18 and adding to my cooking list for whenever I move out. I’ve had a lot of fails but I made this recipe with some adaptions and my parents absolutely loved it!!!!
    I made a homemade enchilada sauce and I used corn tortillas and an Irish cheese (yeah I know. Mixing Irish and Mexican. It worked though!) and it was amazing. I made it two days ago and we still have leftovers!!!
    Thank you for this amazing recipe!!! I will definitely be trying more of your recipes!!!

  14. 3 stars
    Paleo isn’t whatever you want. Paleo is paleo. Whole 30 is whole 30. Period
    What you’re looking for is intuitive eating.
    But don’t make false claims ?
    Tagging things paleo that aren’t actually paleo is incredibly frustrating for people who can’t have dairy or grains

    • dani Reply

      Like I said, literally substitute cheese and it’s paleo.The tortillas are grain-free. It’s really not that hard. Use common sense.

  15. 5 stars
    The whole family loved this meal! It’s so difficult to find meals that my very very picky daughter will eat. She didn’t even complain about the spinach! I will keep this on our rotation for sure! The kids walked in from practice and rehearsal both saying wow that smells soooo good ?!

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