CHICKEN ENCHILA DA SKILLET DINNER: LOW CARB TEX-MEX
One pan chicken enchilada skillet dinner recipe is quick, easy, and low carb. It cooks in about 15 minutes, has 7 net carbs per serving and is so good the whole family will love it! This, y’all, is the perfect weeknight meal! It’s cheesy, creamy explosions of Tex-Mex flavor in every single keto-friendly bite. Be sure to check out my giant guide to cauliflower rice techniques, too!
For this recipe you’ll need: cauliflower, chicken, chicken stock, oil, tomatoes with chiles, canned whole baby corn on the cob (usually available in the Asian foods section), chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, Mexican oregano (or regular oregano), Mexican blend cheese, cilantro
This was one of my most satisfying adaptions ever. I mean, I’ve made low carb chicken enchilada casserole before but honestly the lack of corn tortillas and corn flavor kind of left me frustrated. It was like biting into a beautiful chocolate cake and finding out it was carob – no matter how many times someone tells me that carob tastes like chocolate my tastebuds vehemently disagree.
Ick.
So I kept trying to figure out something that would give me that early, sweet corn flavor without the carbs. Finally I read that baby corn on the cob – those minuscule corn cobs used in Asian cooking have almost no net carbs! Apparently the tiny cobs are harvested before the sugars develop so it’s mostly fiber.
Fiber with the flavor of corn.
This has opened up a world of possibilities to me! The very first one being that I can now have chicken enchilada skillet dinner without the high carb backlash. You have no idea how happy that makes me.
I’ve been struggling so much, lately. About 2 months ago my body stopped absorbing the thyroid meds I was on and I put on about 15 pounds pretty much overnight. I cried all the time, I was so tired that my hair hurt, and every muscle ached. I had NO idea that something was wrong. I guess it was the hypo-thyroid brain fog?
Every day I continued to push myself to get up at 4:30 am and go to the gym. I pushed myself through my regular workout. I cut back on calories, finally going on straight protein shakes and fat. I felt puffy and icky. At my regular appointment my doctor took blood and his nursed called me in something like 14 seconds.
“We’re changing your meds. I have no idea how you even made it into the office.”
Apparently over the years I’ve gotten really, really good at pushing myself beyond what is humanly possible.
So they changed my meds. It’s been 8 weeks and I had a blood test today. I’m still waiting on the results. If you think this has a happy ending and I’m going to tell you how terrific I feel you’re wrong. I feel awful. I am exhausted. I haven’t been able to take off the weight that I gained even though I bumped up the intensity of my workouts and added 30 minutes for 90 minutes a day total – 5 days a week. My inner anorexic teenager is disgusted with how I look and I’m tempted to just throw in the towel and grab a handful of the Apple Jacks the kids left on the table.
But I won’t. I won’t because I refuse to give in to my lack of thyroid. I refuse to back down and become a lump of exhausted flesh. I refuse to give up my life to this … I don’t know… is it a disease once your thyroid has been removed?
Syndrome.
So, why am I telling you this? Because out of the couple of hundred thousand people who read Lowcarb-ology every month (thank you, by the way. Muah!) there has to be a few of you that are struggling and I want you to know you are not alone. It is a struggle and NO ONE understands the complete and utter exhaustion. Even if you aren’t hypothyroid staying on low carb can be a struggle – we all have struggles.
But you can do this. You can do it for the rest of today. And when you get up in the morning you can do it for tomorrow. And the next day. And you know what? Eventually that fat is going to give up. That hypothyroid demon that sits on your shoulders? It’s going to give up.
Eventually you’re going to win because you’re not going to stop — and neither am I.
As long as you keep reading I’ll keep trying to make our favorite foods into foods that support our health goals, k? Deal?
Good.
YOU MAY NEED…
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This is a nonstick skillet I’m considering. It’s lighter in weight than my cast iron (which I love but it’s getting more and more difficult to pick it up) but doesn’t have any of the weird chemical residues of nonstick pans – and it looks cool! Also – if you can’t find baby corn where you are you can get it on Amazon for a pretty decent price – Whole Baby Corn
LOW CARB CHICKEN ENCHILADA SKILLET DINNER RECIPE
Chicken Enchilada Skillet Dinner
Prep Time 5 mins
Cook Time 10 mins
Total Time 15 mins
Low carb and gluten free! Feed your Tex-Mex cravings fast with this easy chicken enchilada skillet dinner. Freezes well so it's perfect for weekly meal prep.
Course: Dinner
Cuisine: low carb, Tex-Mex
Servings: 4 servings
Calories: 356 kcal
Ingredients
- 2 cups cauliflower , raw, chopped fine - all liquid pressed out
- 2 tablespoons oil
- 2 cups chicken , cooked and diced
- 1/2 cup tomatoes with chiles
- 1/2 cup chicken stock , 0 carb
- 1/3 cup whole baby corn on the cob , canned
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin , ground
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon Mexican oregano , may substitute regular oregano
- 2 cups Mexican blend cheese , grated
- 1/3 cup cilantro , chopped
Instructions
- Slice the baby corn into small slices. Set aside.
- Press all of the liquid out of the cauliflower.
- Add the oil to a pan and heat it until it begins to shimmer.
- Add the cauliflower and saute for about 2 minutes.
- Add the remaining ingredients except the cheese.
- Cook, stirring, until most of the liquid has been absorbed and the cauliflower has taken on a reddish color.
- Add about half the chopped cilantro and stir in well.
- Stir in half the cheese and cook over low heat for about 1 minute.
- Top with the remaining cheese and cover. Turn the burner off and let sit until the cheese has melted - about 2 minutes.
- Top with remaining cilantro and serve.
Nutrition Facts
Chicken Enchilada Skillet Dinner
Amount Per Serving
Calories 356
Calories from Fat 243% Daily Value*
Total Fat 27g
42%Saturated Fat 11g
55%Cholesterol 74mg
25%Sodium 488mg
20%Potassium 375mg
11%Total Carbohydrates 7g
2%Dietary Fiber 2g
8%Sugars 3g
Protein 20g
40%Vitamin A
16.6%Vitamin C
35.6%Calcium
40.5%Iron
9.7%* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
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