This homemade enchilada sauce recipe is easy, tastes fantastic, and is a million times better than store-bought. This enchilada sauce is packed with flavor and ready to give your enchiladas, stews, and soups an authentic Mexican flavor.
Try the best enchilada sauce recipe on my black bean enchiladas, whole enchilada pie, or my beef enchilada casserole to get you started.
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🏠 Homemade enchilada sauce
Once you try this homemade red enchilada sauce recipe, why would you ever buy sauce again! This homemade sauce is bursting with flavor that can be used on a variety of Mexican recipes from fajitas, tacos, burritos, and of course enchiladas like my favorite enchilada pie and beef or chicken enchiladas.
After making this recipe more than 1,000 times, I can safely say I've perfected it. This recipe has a nicely balanced tomato flavor with spices like cayenne pepper and chili powder that'll make your taste buds dance. Check out my easy roasted red pepper sauce recipe that also pairs fantastic with any dish.
Sauce recipes like this demand quality spices. Check out these amazing spices from Spiceology. I recommend the Mexican oregano, the light or dark chili powder, and smoked paprika. However, all of their spices are fantastic and affordable.
🍞 Is there gluten in enchilada sauce?
Yes, most enchilada sauces contain gluten. If you wish to make this recipe gluten-free, remove the wheat flour. Flour is added to thicken the sauce early to make a roux. In comparison, cornstarch requires a shorter cooking time and higher heat to activate the thickening properties. For this reason, add cornstarch at the end while you simmer the sauce.
🍽 What you need
Making enchilada sauce from scratch is pretty easy, and you likely already have the ingredients needed. For an authentic Mexican flavor, make the roux by mixing the flour and chili, then mixing the other ingredients until it is combined well and thickened nicely. Choose the strength of heat you want by adding in a spicy chili powder or a milder variant and adjusting the quantity of cayenne pepper.
Equipment
If you're missing kitchen equipment or need to replace a worn item, take a peek at the list below for the best kitchen deals.
Ingredients
Find the best ingredients at the best prices online. And when it comes to hard-to-find ingredients, this is the best option.
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons chili powder
- 2 cups water
- 1 can tomato paste - (8 ounces)
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano - preferably Mexican oregano
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper - or to taste
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
If you missed my note earlier, these are the spices you need if you're a spice lover.
🔪 How to make
Learn how to make homemade enchilada sauce with my step-by-step instructions and full recipe video. You can easily make a double batch of this easy enchilada sauce to use on other dishes throughout the week. This sauce is also excellent for quick and easy meal planning.
- Heat a large skillet with the vegetable oil over medium-high heat,
- Add the flour and chili powder.
- Whisking constantly to coat the flour, then stir in the water, cumin, garlic powder, cayenne, tomato paste, oregano, onion powder, salt, and pepper to taste.
- Continue to whisk the sauce together until it has a smooth consistency. Then, simmer the sauce over medium heat for 10 minutes until it thickens perfectly.
Let the red enchilada sauce cool before adding it to your enchiladas, or serve it warm as a spicy tomato sauce over your favorite meal.
💭 Top tips
- If your sauce is too thick, add water.
- If your sauce is too thin, simmer longer.
- For a more intense flavor, simmer the sauce for 4 hours, adding more water to the pot every hour to keep the consistency right. Great option when making large batches.
- Give your homemade enchilada sauce a smokey feeling by adding a teaspoon of smoked paprika.
- If the homemade enchilada sauce contains lumps of flour from making the roux, whisk vigorously until dissolved completely or pour the sauce through a sieve and carry on simmering it.
📖 Variations
- Give the sauce extra flavor by adding a flavored broth instead of water. You can add chicken broth when preparing chicken enchiladas, vegetable broth for vegetarian enchiladas, or beef broth for beef enchiladas, etc. Adjust the salt and freshly ground black pepper accordingly, as the broth will likely contain salt.
- For a full-on tomato taste, try grilling 3 or 4 plum tomatoes for 15 minutes and then blending them with the other ingredients. You may need an extra spoon of flour to keep the red enchilada sauce at the right thickness.
🥗 What to serve with
While originally created for enchiladas, this sauce is fantastic on hotdogs, sandwiches, pasta, burgers, basically anything that requires a bit of heat and needs some extra flavor. You can also use enchilada sauce as a base for spaghetti Bolognese, chili con carne, lasagna, or other tomato-based dishes.
It is a great utility sauce that enhances any dish and can be used to create delicious recipes.
🥫 Storage
Homemade enchilada sauce can last 4 to 5 days in the fridge and around 3 months frozen, unlike store-bought enchilada sauce that can last years in a jar or can because of the preservatives. The taste, though, is incomparable, and it's worth making a double or triple batch to use some during the week with other meal prep recipes and freeze for the future.
Fridge
All you need to do is pour your enchilada sauce into an airtight bottle, let it cool, and then store it in the fridge for 5 days maximum. Stir the sauce or shake before using.
Freeze
What I like to do when freezing enchilada sauces is to pour the sauce into several freezer bags, lay them flat in the freezer, and freeze them. Once frozen, they are easy to stack and organize. Making frozen blocks of enchilada sauce is excellent for meal planning and quick and easy meals.
Reheating
The best and most convenient way to reheat enchilada sauce is by microwaving it for 2 minutes. Still, you can also heat any leftover sauce in a pot until warm.
Related Enchilada Recipes
For more mexican recipes, check my collection of best mexican soup recipes.
👪 Serving size
This recipe makes 2 full cups, enough to pour over 10 portions of enchiladas. Consider doubling or tripling this recipe for quick and easy meals or use it for meal planning throughout the week.
🎥 Video
Make this delicious bright red enchilada sauce for your next Mexican food night to feel the real taste of Mexico. Once you try my homemade enchilada sauce, I'm positive you'll never buy canned sauce every again.
📋 Recipe
Enchilada Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 2 tablespoons chili powder
- 2 cups water
- 1 can tomato paste - (8 ounce)
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper - or to taste
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a skillet over medium high heat.
- Stir in the flour and the chili powder, then reduce the heat slightly, and stir constantly until starting to brown.
- Stir in the water, tomato paste, oregano, cumin, cayenne, garlic and onion powders and salt, and mix until smooth.
- Simmer over medium heat until thickened, about 5 - 10 minutes.
Video
Notes
- If your sauce is too thick, add water.
- If your sauce is too thin, simmer longer.
- For a more intense flavor, simmer the sauce for 4 hours, adding more water to the pot every hour to keep the consistency right. Great option when making large batches.
- Give your homemade enchilada sauce a smokey feeling by adding a teaspoon of smoked paprika.
- If the homemade enchilada sauce contains lumps of flour from making the roux, whisk vigorously until dissolved completely or pour the sauce through a sieve and carry on simmering it.
Audre moore
Can I put in jars and can this?
Betty
You have purée in the ingredients and paste in the directions. Which is it?