Rich and robust and a thousand times better than store-bought, this homemade authentic enchilada sauce recipe packs some serious FLAVOR!  Not just for enchiladas, this sauce will take your soups and stews to a whole new level!
Nothing beats homemade. That’s a phrase that fits most everything when it comes to cooking. And it’s most definitely fitting of homemade enchilada sauce.
Rich and robust and at least a thousand times better than store-bought, this authentic enchilada sauce (red chile sauce) packs some serious FLAVOR!
It’s very easy to make, you just need the right ingredients. Above all, you need quality chiles (more on that later). And for a truly fantastic, authentic red chile or enchilada sauce it’s also vital that you follow a few important rules:
How to Make the BEST Enchilada Sauce
For the best red enchilada sauce there are some important steps you need to take and several ingredients you need to use and avoid:
-  Use dried whole peppers, not ground chili powder. Using whole dried peppers, roasting them, then reconstituting and pureeing them will give you a much richer, more complex, more flavorful sauce with flavor notes you won’t get from chili powder. There really is no comparison. And adding a dash of smoked paprika won’t compensate for not using dried whole chilies and roasting them.
- Toast the dried peppers. This really enhances the flavor.
- Don’t scorch the dried peppers. If you scorch the peels while toasting them you’ll end up with a very bitter sauce. In the even that that happens, add some additional onion and a dash of sugar to take the edge off the bitterness.
- Use fresh garlic, not garlic powder. Roast it along with the peppers for optimal flavor.
- Use fresh onion, not onion powder. Roast it along with the peppers for optimal flavor.
- Say NO to flour. That’s used in some red chile sauce recipes to compensate for not using whole dried chilies. The whole chilies, once reconstituted and pureed will be the natural thickener for your sauce. Keep the flour for your tortillas, not your enchilada sauce.
- Cook the sauce. After pureeing and straining the sauce, cook it. As flavorful as the sauce already is, don’t skip this step, it is vital for bringing out the FULL depth of flavor of the sauce.
Before it’s cooked you’ve got a bright red and flavorful raw chile paste (see below), but after it’s cooked the color darkens to a brownish red and the flavors deepen. Oh, how they deepen!
Now let’s talk peppers!
The Best Chile Peppers for Enchilada Sauce
Which variety to use largely comes down to personal preference. You can choose one kind or a combination of peppers, which is what I like to do. Here are a few of my favorites with links to the brands I personally use and recommend:
Guajillo: Bright red, sweet with a touch of acidity with mild to medium heat. It’s one of the most commonly used chilies in Mexican cuisine with an earthy-sweet flavor and are great for adding body to stews, sauces and adobos.
Ancho: Very mildly spicy with a rich fruity and lightly smoky flavor. They contribute a beautiful dark red color to sauces. Ancho chilies are poblano chilies that have been allowed to fully ripen to a deep red and then dried. Also one of the most commonly used dried peppers.
Pasilla: Sweet, fruity flavor with medium heat. The name “pasilla” comes from the word pasas, meaning “raisins”, because of its deep fruity flavor.
Arbol: Earthy flavor and very spicy. While these don’t have a ton of flavor, they are your friends if you want to kick the heat up several more notches.
A critical key to making the best enchilada sauce is to select the best quality dried chilies you can find.
Most dried chiles I come across in grocery stores and online are poor quality. They’re old and brittle and flavorless.
How to Choose “Fresh” Dried Chiles Â
1) They should be pliable and flexible (think a stiff version of fruit leather), not overly dry or brittle. 2) Their skins should be glossy, not dull. 3) They should have a good smell, a little like dried fruit, not a dusty smell.
Enchilada Sauce Recipe
Let’s get started!
Start with that all important step: Roasting! Heat a heavy non-stick skillet (I like to use cast iron) over medium-high heat. Don’t add any oil. Lay the dried peppers on the skillet and toast them for a minute or two on each, just until they become very fragrant. It’s better to under-toast than to over-toast them as they will become very bitter if scorched. Remove and set aside. Next place the onion, garlic and tomatoes on the skillet and toast until lightly browned.
Note:Â Adding tomatoes is optional but I recommend it for curbing the sharpness of the peppers, balancing out the flavors and adding a touch of sweetness.
Remove the stems from the peppers (using gloves if you’re using hot peppers), slice the peppers open and remove and discard all of the seeds and the membranes (contrary to popular belief, it’s the membranes not the seeds that are hot, the seeds are bitter). Place the peppers in a bowl.
Pour the boiling water or chicken broth over the peppers, cover the bowl and let them sit for 20-30 minutes until soft.
Place the peppers and their liquid along with the onion, tomato, garlic and all remaining ingredients (except for the chocolate if using) in a blender and blend until completely smooth.
At this point determine for yourself whether your sauce needs to be strained. I use a Vitamix which does an excellent job of blending the sauce to a very smooth puree, so I don’t bother straining it.
Heat a tablespoon or so of oil to a pot then add red sauce. Simmer it uncovered for about 30 minutes. Add a little more water if you prefer it thinner. The sauce should be the thickness of heavy cream.
For an added flavor touch, add in a small piece of semi-sweet chocolate at the end and stir until melted.
If the sauce is very bitter, add a touch of brown sugar.
Store it in the fridge for up to a couple of weeks or freeze it.
This sauce freezes well, so feel free to make extra so you have it on hand when you need it. I like to freeze it in ziplock bags, about one cup per bag so I can conveniently grab a bag whenever I need it.
Enjoy!
Use this sauce to make the Ultimate Pozole Rojo!
For more delicious homemade sauces be sure to try our:
- Teriyaki Sauce
- Hollandaise Sauce
- Sweet and Sour Sauce
- Bearnaise Sauce
- Big Mac Sauce
- Black Bean Sauce
- Hoisin Sauce
- Chinese Plum Sauce
- Tartar Sauce
- Horseradish Sauce
- Remoulade
- Kecap Manis
- Sweet Chili Sauce
- Yum Yum Sauce
- HarissaÂ
Authentic Enchilada Sauce
Ingredients
- 3 ounces dried ancho peppers
- 3 ounces dried guajillo peppers
- 2-3 or more dried arbol peppers (OPTIONAL: for heat)
- 1 medium white onion, peeled and cut in half
- 2 ripe tomatoes, halved
- 4 cloves garlic, peeled
- 4 cups boiling water or chicken broth (for even more flavor)
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- Small piece of Mexican or semi-sweet chocolate (optional)
Instructions
- Start with that all important step: Roasting! Heat a heavy non-stick skillet (I like to use cast iron) over medium-high heat. Don't add any oil. Lay the dried peppers on the skillet and toast them for a minute or two on each, just until they become very fragrant. It's better to under-toast than to over-toast them as they will become very bitter if scorched. Remove and set aside. Next place the onion, garlic and tomatoes on the skillet and toast until lightly browned.
- Remove the stems from the peppers (using gloves if you're using hot peppers), slice the peppers open and remove and discard all of the seeds and the membranes (contrary to popular belief, it's the membranes not the seeds that are hot, the seeds are bitter). Place the peppers in a bowl.Pour the boiling water over the peppers, cover the bowl and let them sit for 20-30 minutes until soft.
- Place the peppers and their liquid along with the onion, tomato, garlic and all remaining ingredients (except for the chocolate if using) in a blender and blend until completely smooth.Note: At this point determine for yourself whether your sauce needs to be strained. I use a Vitamix blender which does an excellent job of blending the sauce to a very smooth puree, so I don't bother straining it.
- Time to cook the sauce: Heat a tablespoon or so of oil to a pot then add red sauce. Simmer it uncovered for about 30 minutes. Add a little more water if you prefer it thinner. The sauce should be the thickness of heavy cream.Optional: For an added flavor touch, add a small piece of semi-sweet chocolate at the end and stir until melted.If the sauce is very bitter, add a touch of brown sugar. SEE NOTE.
- Store in the fridge for up to 2 weeks or freeze it for several months. I like to freeze about a cup of it per freezer bag so I can conveniently grab a bag as needed.Makes approx. 5-6 cups.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Originally published on The Daring Gourmet September 21, 2018
MOBETTA says
I give this 5 stars!
MOBETTA says
This is an excellent recipe. I use it as a base and use 6 different kinds of dried peppers. We love heat and I always make a huge batch and freeze many bags of the base for enchiladas and posole. It is wonderful!
BrendaInOregon says
Seriously the nicest responses answering all! Shows you care about not only teaching but care about each person. I look forward to making this sauce and learning more. I have never used the dried peppers but feel confident with your teaching! Thank you…stay safe…will look for a good crispy carnita recipe from you. Oh and I am looking for a great roasted tomato salsa with mint. We have a restaurant that serves it and it is fabulous…sweet with heat and flavor!
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Thank you, Brenda, I hope you enjoy the sauce and friendly greetings to Oregon! :)
Paul and Barbie Terry says
Nice dark red sauce with very nice flavor. It was fun making with my wife. We used new Mexico and California dried chili. Had a old cookbook years ago with a homemade recipe in it but as the years rolled by so did the loss of that book along with that recipe. Only thing I changed on this recipe is addition of half teaspoon cinnamon and half teaspoon of peanut butter. Very good. thank you for bringing back some great memories. we used about 20 chilis, didn’t have a scale to weigh so we just guessed. The bags were 11 OZ and we used about 3/4 of the bag. We did use chicken stock and a few choc chips.
Krusatyr says
My enchilada sauce prep was quite similar to above. However, I roasted poblanos, green bell and red bell peppers in addition to anchos and chipotle peppers.
Importantly, I made a bone/skin chicken stock after roasting a chicken since I needed shredded chicken for the enchiladas.
Bone stock from a freshly roasted chicken is made from boiling the bones, gristle, neck, back bone strip, wing tips and giblets, after first picking and setting aside the meat.
Jenny says
I’m not sure what happened. I followed the recipe to a T, even weighing my peppers to the exact oz. I ended up with way more than 5 cups, so much so that I actually had to split the puree to fit it all in my blender. It was so spicy (and I’m not shy about spice) that I ended up just blending the tomato, onion, garlic & other ingredients with 1/2 the pepper/broth puree. It’s delicious & is exactly the flavor I was hoping for, but I just have so much extra sauce, and the proportions would have been off if I’d used all the pepper and broth called for. Any idea what I got wrong?
Chris Lynch says
I just made this today, and my goodness was the spiciness simply too much. And like you, I have no problem with hot sauce or spicey food. The instructions here are simply scaled incorrectly is my take. Kimberly’s pictures even show a small amount of peppers (no way they are 3 ounces of ancho and guajillo peppers each) when toasting and then blending.
I’m going to do like you next time I make this. I will measure out 1 ounce of peppers, to the normal amount of tomatos, onion and garlic for 1x ingredients.
JOSH HOLLIDAY says
Well, guess I have some more peppers to add to my garden this year. Had already planned on peppers for hot sauce, among other things, but enchiladas are top priority!
Mike says
I didn’t over-roast the dried peppers for sure- but this was so bitter for me. The dried peppers were sombrero brand- just opened the bags for this recipe. . it was just awful. The sugar didn’t really make much difference.
Wiley says
try adding a little brown suger next time. It can help cut the bitter. Also make sure your chiles aren’t to brittle this can mean they are older and can come out bitter.
Over roasting can make them bitter as well. Better luck next time.
Mikemo says
I prepared this yesterday and I was not disappointed. It hit all the marks for me. A deep savory flavor with a rich and bold profile. I have been looking for this combination of aroma and taste for quite some time. Thank you very much.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Fantastic, Mikemo, thank you so much!
Mikemo says
This sauce is fabulous, The real deal. I’ve been looking for a complex, deeply flavored enchalada sauce like this for years. Thank you so much for a real winner.
James says
I have had great luck, so far, with this sauce. Though my last batch I did scorch the peppers a bit and oh my, the bitterness went way up just as you warned/promised. I actually now have New Mexico style enchiladas (corn tortillas, served flat, some cheese, sauce, fried egg, lettuce and tomatoes for toppings) for breakfast nearly every morning and this sauce is perfect for breakfast!
And when I have friends over I can simply add some shredded chicken or beef between the layers of tortillas and the entire crowd can enjoy the sauce for dinner with me!
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
That’s wonderful, James, I’m so glad you enjoyed it and thanks for the tasty ideas!
Julie says
Great method. Made this yesterday, and it was great. I had an extra ounce of chilis, and I added an extra cup and a half of liquid. It made about 6 cups, even after I cooked it down at the end. Made great enchiladas and I plan to freeze the other half. Saving this recipe for my next batch of chili.
David Z says
Outfreakinstanding recipe! Thank you! Adding dark chocolate gave it a mole-like flavor.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Awesome, David, thanks so much!
Kristine says
The best sauce EVER! I’ve tried many and my husband and I prefer this recipe above all others. I invited our Mexican friends over for dinner. They were floored and asked where I bought the sauce or who made it. Lol. Being a pretty darn cook, not sure if I was insulted or felt proud. Printed it out finally. It’s a must have for us. Thank you!
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
What a great compliment, Kristine, from both you and your husband as well as your Mexican friends! Thank you so much!
Suzanne Kuzbyt says
Request from my family to make my Chicken Enchiladas for Christmas. I was searching for the kind of chili’s to use for the sauce and am glad I came upon this recipe. Thank you for sharing. Merry Christmas everyone!
Bek says
I love this! I’ve recently found a supply of Mexican dried chillies in Australia so have been having lots of fun getting to know them. I love this recipe! I didn’t have chocolate so added a little panela, and I also added lime juice for an acid kick. I’m totally in love with it, thank you!
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
I’m so glad you enjoyed this, Bek, thank you! :)