Smothered Chile Colorado Burritos
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Saucy, cheesy Smothered Chile Colorado Burritos made in 30 minutes. The sauce is so good you’ll want to eat it straight from the pan.
Enjoy this recipe with my Cilantro Lime Rice, Easy Guacamole, and Mexican Street Corn Salad.

When I was a kid my favorite food in the world was a bean and cheese burrito. Mom used to keep them stocked in the freezer 24-7, 365 days a year just to feed my addiction. She also said almost daily, “you eat so many burritos, you’re going to turn into a burrito” which, as a 9 year old, I thought would be just about the coolest thing in the world.
Sadly, many years later, I’m still human.

Thankfully, I eventually learned how to make my own non-frozen-store-bought burritos (cause that’s rocket science, obviously….) and now I’m obsessed with a new variety of burrito —> The super cheesy smothered colorado chile variety. Mmmmmm.

The sauce for these burritos is so insanely good, I literally couldn’t stop eating it straight from the pan. Frankly it’s a miracle that any of the stuff actually made it into the tortillas. But it did! And I am so glad that it did because the whole cheesy saucy smothered part takes it all to the next level of YUM.

More Recipes to Try
- Slow Cooker Santa Fe Chicken Tacos – an easy dump-and-go taco recipe perfect for busy weeknights.
- Baked Cheesy Chicken Taquitos – crispy on the outside, cheesy on the inside.
- Sweet Pork Enchiladas – creamy, cheesy, and so restaurant worthy!
When you make this recipe, snap a photo and tag me on social – I love connecting with you and seeing what you’re up to in the kitchen!

Smothered Chile Colorado Burritos
Ingredients
- 2 pounds flank steak or similar beef, cut into 1 inch pieces
- 2 10-ounce cans mild or medium red enchilada sauce
- 2 tablespoons adobo sauce , (from a can of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, found near the canned jalapeños)
- 1 anaheim pepper, diced
- 1 15-ounce can diced green chiles
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 1 ½ teaspoons onion powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 tablespoon cold water
- 2 tablespoons corn starch
- 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 4 burrito-sized flour tortillas
- 1 cup shredded Mexican-style cheese
Instructions
- Saute beef in a large sauce pan over medium heat until tender.
- Add enchilada sauce and next 8 ingredients (through cumin) to the pan. Whisk together water and corn starch in a small bowl, add to pan and stir. Reduce heat to a simmer, cover and cook for another 15 minutes.
- Add black beans and a generous amount of beef mixture to the middle of each tortilla. Wrap up tightly and place seam-side-down in a greased baking dish. Top with additional sauce from the beef mixture and sprinkle shredded cheese on top. Bake at 400 for 10 minutes until cheese is bubbly, then serve.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.













I have been making this burrito for over 8 years now and it’s an absolute hit. I opt out of the chipotle sauce because I don’t like the taste and use sirloin instead, and every time it’s just fantastic.
Looks delicious! My husband needs to limit red meat. Would chicken breast be just as amazing?
Yes, you can 🙂
Can Adobo all purpose seasoning be used instead of the adobo sauce
I think that would work 🙂
I made them enchilada style, so good! Also, I used flap steak (sirloin), meat very tender after simmering for 4-5 hours.
This is an awesome recipe that lends itself to a variety of cooking methods. The first time, I made it according to directions with just the addition of sautéed onion. This time I was looking for something more on the wintery cold comforting side. So, I trimmed and chunked up a chuck roast, seared it in my multicooker along with the onions. Added all the rest of ingredients according to the recipe.
Turned cooker to slow cook high for 4 hours. Did not add any additional thickener. Cooled the beef and shredded and assembled the enchiladas. Poured an additional can of enchilada sauce over as what was left in slow cooker had been pretty well absorbed by the meat. YUUUMMMMMM. Tons of flavor.
Could this be cooked in an instant pot? What would have to change?
I have loads of chicken in my fridge. Will this work with chicken? Sounds delicious.
For sure!