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Just a few pantry staples and about 20 minutes, you have rich and thick flavorful Homemade Easy Enchilada Sauce. Use it on all your Mexican food for a complex and delicious flavor!
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Please let me know if you have any questions about this recipe. I read all the comments myself and I try to help as soon as I can. I have readers from all levels of comfort and experience in the kitchen on my site, and I’ve tried to answer some of your questions already in the post. But if I’ve missed anything, please feel free to leave a comment and ask.
Quick enchilada sauce
If you make a lot of Mexican-inspired recipes like I do, you need to give this red enchilada sauce a try. This is way better than canned sauce, and so worth the minimal effort that it takes to make it.
This recipe makes a nice big batch, so you can use it for several meals. You can also freeze it for use at a later date.
This fast recipe has great flavor and it’s versatile for those who don’t like or won’t eat heat, because you can always add the heat later.
Is homemade enchilada sauce hard to make?
No, making enchilada sauce from scratch isn’t hard at all.
In fact, my enchilada sauce is quick and easy to make. If you can measure a few ingredients, and heat them on the stove, you can make this delicious Mexican flavored sauce.
And there’s no chopping involved!
How long does it keep in the refrigerator?
Homemade enchilada sauce will keep in the fridge for up a to two weeks.
We always keep a jar of this sauce in the fridge for just about any meal, from breakfast to dinner, even snacks! And I’m sure you’ll find all kinds of ways to use it too!
Can I freeze it?
Yes, it freezes well. Let the sauce cool completely, and store it in a tightly covered freezer-safe container. It will keep for several months. And defrosts easily in the microwave.
Can I make spicy enchilada sauce?
Yes, my recipe makes for a very mild sauce. If you’d like it to be hot and spicy, you can add hot sauce, or add in a pinch or two of ground cayenne pepper to the chili powder.
You can also use ancho chili powder in place of the American chili powder for a spicy sauce. Oh, you could also make a smoky and spicy sauce by using ground chipotle chili powder in place of the regular chili powder.
American-style chili powder
Ok, since we’re talking about chili powder, I thought I’d clarify something. When I first posted this recipe back in 2014, I got several comments that it must be a spicy hot sauce. No, in fact, it’s quite mild if you use American-style chili powder.
Since I live on the west coast of the US, I have grown up with chili powder, and it’s usually very mild, and not hot and spicy at all; it’s actually a blend of various mild chilies and seasonings.
American Chili powder blends are made of chili peppers and other spices, commonly including cumin, onion, garlic powder, and sometimes salt. I have two different brands in my kitchen right now, and the ingredients include, “spices (including red pepper, chili pepper), salt, garlic” in one, and “chili pepper, salt, cumin, oregano, garlic” in the other. Neither are spicy hot. Keep in mind that different brands of chili powder may produce different flavor, color, and spiciness results. Experiment to see what you like best.
Want to make your own chili powder? I have a delicious recipe for homemade chili powder, which is amazing and so delicious!
You’ll want to use a good-quality brand of chili powder for this recipe, since it is the main seasoning used here.
And if you happen to be an international reader, please look for an American-style chili powder, which will not include too much cayenne pepper and won’t be too spicy.
How to make easy enchilada sauce
Simply place the chili powder and the thickener (flour or starch) in a small pan, and stir to combine. Then mix in the oil. Heat the chili powder and oil mixture to bloom the spice, until it smells nice and fragrant, about 2 minutes.
Mix in the broth, tomato paste, oregano, and cumin. Don’t worry about any lumps, they will cook out. Then, bring that to a boil, turn down the heat, and let simmer and thicken for 10 minutes.
Once the sauce has simmered, add in the final seasonings of salt and a little sugar. I add in 3/4 teaspoon of salt (as called for in the recipe card), but please note that the amount of salt you’ll need will directly relate to how salty your veggie broth and chili powder are.
It’s ready to use to slather over a batch of enchiladas. And, I have lots of other recipe ideas a little lower for you! Or, you can store it in the refrigerator for up to two weeks or in the freezer for up to 4 months.
Gluten free option
Back when I first published this recipe, I had a question on making it gluten free, so I did a little recipe testing.
When I make this sauce now, I always use potato starch. I like the way it works, that it’s naturally gluten free, and that it doesn’t have the gritty mouthfeel that cornstarch can have.
Feel free to use a gluten free baking mix (like Bob’s Red Mill), potato starch, or cornstarch. Because you mix the starch with the chili powder and oil you don’t have to worry about making a slurry with water before making this change in the recipe.
What can I use this sauce in?
Of course, it’s delicious in enchiladas. Try my seafood enchiladas, Stacked black bean enchiladas, and Sweet potato enchiladas.
Use it as a sauce for all kinds of dishes, I love it on breakfast tacos – add a light smear to the tortilla, then top with scrambled eggs, cheese, hash browns (or tater tots), and sausage.
Serve it as a dip with tortilla chips along with some Jalapeno cheese sauce and Restaurant style salsa.
What to make with enchilada sauce besides enchiladas?
Use this sauce for all kinds of dishes!
For breakfast or brunch, try making my Chilaquiles cups
It’s wonderful in black bean soup
Besides enchiladas, try making enchilada pasta, or corn fritter sliders. I love it on pizza instead of the traditional red sauce. Try making Mexican flatbread pizza, or Street corn pizza.
I’ve made it into veggie casserole. I love to top chicken tenders with it. And appetizers like these stuffed potatoes are a hit with this enchilada sauce.
Sometimes I’ll make enchilada bowls for lunch with rice, veggies, some cheese, (chicken for the husband), and top it all off with enchilada sauce. It’s a great easy lunch idea!
This is truly the best Enchilada Sauce recipe! It’s quick and easy to make, naturally vegan and vegetarian, super versatile, and full of the best flavors.
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Easy Enchilada Sauce Recipe
Easy Enchilada Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour or potato starch
- ¼ cup chili powder
- 2 tablespoons light tasting oil of your choice
- 2 cups low sodium vegetable broth
- 6 ounce can tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon sugar
Instructions
- In a small saucepan, mix flour (or potato starch) and chili powder together. Add oil, and mix to combine. Heat on low for 2 minutes, or until fragrant.
- Turn the heat up to medium, add broth, tomato paste, oregano, and cumin, stirring to combine. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and cook, covered, for 10 minutes, until sauce thickens and smooths out. Add salt and sugar, and taste for seasonings, adjusting to taste.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations, and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary based on brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes, and more.
anyonita green
Love the idea of using potato starch for this sauce to keep it gluten free! 🙂 What a lovely recipe, Debi! Enchiladas are a big hit in my family but I’ve never tried making my own enchilada sauce before! I paired yours with a nice pack of gluten free tortillas and went to town! 🙂 It was so good! I’ll make it again.
nmburk
Hey, Debi! Looks delicious! Happy to have you as co-host this week 🙂
Michele
Hum-with 7 Carbs per serving this is ok for diabetics as well-Thank you-I think it’s delicious
cindy b
OMG I just tried this, and it’s delicious! I love enchiladas! Thanks so much for the wonderful recipe!
jugglingrealfoodandreallife
Hi Debi! Thanks so much for co-hosting with us at Let’s Get Real. This is such a great recipe because it calls for ingredients I almost always have on hand. Thanks for all of the different uses for the sauce too. I made it last night and it’s smooth and yummy.
Robin
That sounds awesome. We are big Mexican food fans in our house!
robertlfulton
You show this being stored in a mason jar. Can this be canned for storage vs freezing?
Debi
Hi Robert, I don’t actually go through the canning process, but I do store all my sauces in the canning jars because they are so convenient. If you would like to can this, please check the instructions from the USDA’s National Center for Home Food Preservation https://nchfp.uga.edu/ or the official site from the makers of Ball jars https://www.ballmasonjars.com/ . After a brief look, it looks like they say it’s ok, but I’d always suggest reading their stuff first. Thanks for asking!
Heather
Oh I love enchilada sauce! I’ve never made it on my own though. I got the courage up to try it with chicken enchiladas this year and being able to make my own sauce for it makes it that much better. Thanks for the recipe.
Joanna Sormunen
That sounds like a delicious, and hot, sauce. Thank you for the recipe!
mamatomanyblessings
This seems so easy to make, I have never made enchiladas before.
Ashley M
Thanks for the recipe – I recently watched Fed Up and was horrified by the amount of sugar in everyday foods so I’ve committed to making more of my own sauces.
Donna
I’ve never made my own enchilada sauce before. It was easy to mix up, and so good on my enchiladas!
Allison
Debi! Thanks for your recipe testing -really, that is so nice! I was so honoured that you called me a new blogger friend 🙂 The feeling is very mutual! I made the sauce with potato starch last night and it worked amazingly! My sister made the enchiladas with brown rice wraps and her favourite fillings. It was an awesome meal! Thanks for the wonderful recipe!!! It’s a long weekend here, so I might make them again, in fact. I’m on a real Mexican food kick 🙂
Payal Bansal
Deb! The ingredients give me the hint that this sauce is kinda spicy… cant wait to make some for me
Liz Mays
Oh, I’ll definitely have to try this. I can see that the flavor would be so much better than store bought!
Winnie
It sounds amazing and I’d really like to try.
I’ve never made enchilada before 🙂
Silvie
I’ve never made my own enchilada sauce before, but your sauce looked so delicious I had to try it. It was everything I had hoped for. easy. yummy. 🙂
Shelley
Wow! This IS really easy! And it’s just delicious! I’m constantly pouring salsa or hot sauce on anything I can think of – not only is that a great way to pump up flavor, but these types of sauces also pack so much nutrition (lycopene, etc …) to amp up the nutrient profile of your food so easily! This gorgeous enchilada sauce is just perfect to have on hand, too!
thetinyprofessional
I have never tried anything like this, but it looks delicious! Great pictures!