Mexican Entrées Under 300 Calories

Updated April 16, 2008

Make every night a Mexican fiesta with these lightened south-of-the-border favorites.

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Chicken Enchiladas

Credit: Johnny Autry; Styling: Mary Clayton Carl

Chicken Enchiladas Recipe

Creamy and indulgent, these low-calorie chicken enchiladas have less than 300 calories per serving while still being smothered in cheddar cheese. Each serving also packs in a healthy dose of veggies from carrots, onion, celery, tomatoes, and salsa verde.

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Beef Carnitas Empanada

Credit: Becky Luigart-Stayner

Beef Carnitas Empanada Recipe

Carnitas is a Mexican dish of braised pork that's cooked until very tender and shredded or torn into small bits. This beef version features carnitas as filling for empanadas, but you can also use it in tacos, enchiladas, or burritos.

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Black Bean Tacos

Credit: Becky Luigart-Stayner; Jan Gautro

Black Bean Tacos Recipe

This veggie taco is loaded with protein from the beans and seitan (wheat gluten). Look for seitan in health food stores or near tofu in larger supermarkets. If you prefer to skip the seitan, use another can of black beans, tofu, beef, or chicken in its place.

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Pork Chops Mole

Pork Chops Mole Recipe

Chocolate is the key ingredient in this traditional sauce, which can be whipped up quickly using ingredients like dried spices that are already in your pantry.

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Crab-Stuffed Poblano Chiles With Mango Salsa

Credit: HOWARD L. PUCKETT

Crab-Stuffed Poblano Chiles With Mango Salsa Recipe

Fresh mango and lump crabmeat add a Caribbean twist to these stuffed chiles. Add a chopped jalapeño pepper to the crabmeat mixture to spice things up.

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Chipotle-Lime Roast Chicken with Tomatillo Sauce

Credit: Lee Harrelson

Chipotle-Lime Roast Chicken with Tomatillo Sauce Recipe

Buying a whole roasting chicken is an efficient way to help cut costs at the grocery store, but you can use individual chicken breasts if you prefer. The tomatillo sauce is a perfect match for the chipotle-and-limed flavored chicken, and it's also good over baked fish or grilled beef.

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Tex-Mex Beef Tacos

Credit: Karry Hosford

Tex-Mex Beef Tacos Recipe

Weeknight dinners are easy when you make tacos using on-hand ingredients like frozen corn, canned beans, and canned tomato sauce. These tasty tacos are ready in about 20 minutes.

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Black Bean and Chicken Chilaquiles

Credit: Randy Mayor

Black Bean and Chicken Chilaquiles Recipe

This layered tortilla breakfast dish is usually laden with cream and cheese, but our lightened version boasts less than 5 grams of fat and an intensely rich flavor.

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Turkey Enchilada Casserole

Credit: James Carrier

Turkey Enchilada Casserole Recipe

This simple casserole is perfect when feeding guests because it makes 8 servings, but go ahead and make it when you're serving fewer people because it reheats well and you can serve it at another meal.

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Chiles Rellenos Gratin

Credit: Photography: Randy Mayor; Styling: Melanie J. Clarke

Chiles Rellenos Gratin Recipe

Stuffed with a fresh veggie, black bean, and queso fresco mixture and then baked in a creamy white sauce, these chiles are a sure to be a hit at your supper table.

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Huevos Rancheros

Credit: Randy Mayor; Lydia DeGaris-Pursell

Huevos Rancheros Recipe

Turn an ordinary dinner into a weeknight fiesta with this healthy breakfast-for-dinner recipe.

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Chipotle Chicken Tortilla Soup

Chipotle Chicken Tortilla Soup Recipe

If you like food with a little spicy heat, then this Chipotle Chicken Tortilla Soup will have your taste buds doing the Lambada. Round out the meal with corn muffins from your grocer's bakery or servings of packaged Spanish rice.

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