How to Make Enchilada Sauce
Enchilada sauce is so easy to make! This red enchilada sauce recipe comes together in ten minutes. I've tried all the other recipes and this is the best!
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on August 28, 2024
I’ve been working on my enchilada game lately, for both the cookbook and an upcoming enchilada recipe. There is an art to making great enchiladas, and the sauce is a key component.
I thought I’d share my tested and perfected enchilada sauce recipe today, in case you want to try it on your favorite enchilada recipe. It’s ready in under ten minutes, and I promise, it’s so tasty you won’t want to go back to the store-bought kind again.
When I developed my go-to sauce (first seen on my spinach artichoke enchiladas), I tried at least five of the top sauce recipes on Google, all with different ingredients and techniques.
I tried making sauce with tomato sauce, which tasted too raw and was kind of goopy. I tried making sauce with blended diced tomatoes, and it had the same issues. I tried sauce without any tomato ingredients, and it didn’t taste quite like the enchilada sauce I grew up eating, or the sauce at my favorite Mexican restaurants. I tried sauces made without any thickener (like flour or cornstarch), and they pooled at the bottom and turned my enchiladas into a soupy, texture-less casserole.
Finally, after some experimentation and cross-referencing with America’s Test Kitchen, I landed on the perfect enchilada sauce. Vegetable broth forms the base of the sauce, but it’s only added after you make a simple roux of flour and oil. You need a full three tablespoons of each to properly thicken the sauce. I tried making this sauce with a gluten-free flour blend and that worked great as well.
The Best Enchilada Sauce
Four reasons to love this recipe:
- This sauce is full of authentic Mexican flavor. It comes from a combination of dried spices, which are sautéed in oil to bring out their best, and umami-rich tomato paste.
- The cinnamon is optional since some people just don’t like it in savory applications, but just a pinch adds some lovely warmth and complexity.
- The final kicker is a tiny splash of vinegar, which really amps up the flavor.
- Unlike canned enchiladas sauces, this homemade sauce is free of unnecessary processed ingredients and MSG (that’s monosodium glutamate, which gives my mom migraines).
I love this sauce and I’m confident you will, too, since it’s gotten rave reviews on my spinach artichoke enchiladas and veggie black bean enchiladas.
Please let me know how this recipe turns out for you in the comments! Your feedback keeps me going.
Watch How to Make Enchilada Sauce
Homemade Enchilada Sauce
This homemade red enchilada sauce has authentic Mexican flavor! It’s so good and easy, you’ll never go back to store-bought sauce again. You can even make a double batch and freeze half of it for later. Recipe as written below yields about 2 cups (16 ounces) sauce.
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 tablespoons flour (whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour and gluten-free flour blends all work!)
- 1 tablespoon ground chili powder (scale back if you’re sensitive to spice or using particularly spicy chili powder)
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon salt, to taste
- Pinch of cinnamon (optional but recommended)
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 cups vegetable broth
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar or distilled white vinegar
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- This sauce comes together quickly once you get started, so measure the dry ingredients (the flour, chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, oregano, salt and optional cinnamon) into a small bowl and place it near the stove. Place the tomato paste and broth near the stove as well.
- In a medium-sized pot over medium heat, warm the oil until it’s hot enough that a light sprinkle of the flour/spice mixture sizzles on contact. This might take a couple of minutes, so be patient and don’t step away from the stove!
- Once it’s ready, pour in the flour and spice mixture. While whisking constantly, cook until fragrant and slightly deepened in color, about 1 minute. Whisk the tomato paste into the mixture, then slowly pour in the broth while whisking constantly to remove any lumps.
- Raise heat to medium-high and bring the mixture to a simmer, then reduce heat as necessary to maintain a gentle simmer. Cook, whisking often, for about 5 to 7 minutes, until the sauce has thickened a bit and a spoon encounters some resistance as you stir it. (The sauce will thicken some more as it cools.)
- Remove from heat, then whisk in the vinegar and season to taste with a generous amount of freshly ground black pepper. Add more salt, if necessary (I usually add another pinch or two). Go forth and make enchiladas!
Notes
Enchilada sauce recipe adapted from my spinach artichoke enchiladas.
Storage suggestions: Extra enchilada sauce will keep well in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Or, freeze it for up to 3 months. Let it cool to room temperature before transferring to a wide-mouth mason jar, leaving some room at the top for expansion (don’t screw on the lid completely until the mixture is fully frozen), or a freezer bag (remove excess air before sealing).
Make it gluten free: Just use gluten-free all-purpose flour blend. I tried with Bob’s Red Mill brand and it worked great.
Make it tomato free: You can omit the tomato paste. You might want to up the spices a bit. The sauce won’t taste quite like the enchilada sauce you might buy at the store, but it will still be good!
Change it up: The chili powder, cumin and garlic powder are essential here, but feel free to change up the other spices to suit your preferences.
If you love this sauce: Check out more of my Mexican recipes here!
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
I am commenting before making this enchilada sauce for reasons that will become apparent.
My method of coming up with good recipes is to scour the internet for several recipes that have top recommendations and then see what 3 or 4 of the best have in common or seem most interesting. I have run across several of your recipes before and incorporated them into my own comparison/combination process with very good results.
I am currently exploring Southwestern/Mexican cooking and when I went looking for a recipe for enchilada sauce I ran across this one. I won’t be making it for awhile, but I know it will provide a good framework for my own tinkering.
I am not a vegan/vegetarian, so I will be using chicken stock or beef stock instead of vegetable stock, which will of course change the flavor profile.
In addition, I am currently trying out a variety of ground chile powders and combinations thereof to get just the right amount of heat and chile flavor(s). Given the many types of chile powders and combinations this is a simple or quick task.
I generally don’t like to use a roux as a thickener, but since you include it I will give it a try. I may also try masa harina (corn flour) instead of regular flour to make the roux.
I use fire-roasted canned diced tomatoes in some of my dishes, so I may try the recipe first as you specify with just tomato paste, and then with tomato paste plus canned tomatoes. I may also see if draining the canned tomatoes and putting them through a blender will allow me to eliminate the roux thickener.
As a retiree I have a lot of free time for experimentation, and I appreciate the opportunity to be informed by your great recipes.
Thanks!
You’re living the life which we all wish we had. Go forth and carpe diem
I’ve made this before and as is, the recipe is just okay. Adding some real serranos would taste a lot more authentic than just chili powder. Wasn’t a fan of the flour, think the flavor was impacted by it. Your idea for using masa harina sounds like a great swap.
I got closer to my desired enchilada sauce taste when making a diy taco sauce for street tacos (think it was an ehow recipe?) It involved blending 2 serranos, tomato paste, vinegar, water (broth would be better) and then simmering. Super easy. Needed more water/beef broth than the recipe called for because the chili taste stood out too much.
I’m from texas so finding good mexican recipes online isn’t that easy but if you know what the end result should taste like it’s not too hard to modify and get the results you want.
Another tip: please use corn tortillas, not flour, for enchiladas. Save the flour for burritos.
Have fun with your kitchen experiments and your retirement!
Bob, I added a couple is teaspoons of smoked chipotle sauce (not the peppers) and it added a smokeyness and a bit of heat! It really brought it up a notch!!! My husband loved it and he said I have to make it homemade from now on!!!!!
While I don’t usually have chipotle peppers or chipotle sauce on hand, I always keep a supply of ground chipotle pepper in my spice drawer. I sometimes even use it in foods besides Mexican dishes if I want to add nice layers of heat and smoke. (Many people I know find chipotle pepper very hot, so proceed with caution because a little goes a long way.)
If you don’t have chipotle sauce or ground chipotle pepper, try a bit of smoked paprika, which will also amp up the red color; for the heat you can use cayenne pepper or sriracha or some other fairly neutral heat source.
When I made this recipe I used not only a bit of ground chipotle pepper powder but a helping of a commercial ground chili powder blend I bought on-line from a woman in Texas who develops and tests chili powder blends and who runs chili cookoffs and competitions.
Even though I grew up in California and Texas and ate my share of Tex/Mex, Cal/Mex and Mexican food I never knew there was such a thing as “designer” chili blends, though they have probably been made for a few centuries north of the border and probably 1 or 2 thousand years south of the border.
After trying Kate’s wonderful recipe and adding a couple of tweaks, I no longer have any use store-bought enchilada sauce. I now have a couple of orphan cans of enchilada sauce gathering dust on my shelf because home-made is simply the best!
Thanks again, Kate!
You’re welcome, Bob! I appreciate your detailed review. I’m glad you love it!
Love this recipe – add a little heat if you like it – it’s my go to. Bob – if you can get them pick up some Roasted Hatch green Chili’s for your Mexican recipe.
Margarita, I love Hatch chilis. However, I can’t get them fresh or roasted so I always keep two or three 4 oz cans of Hatch’s diced green chilis in my pantry. There are lots of diced green chilis out there but Hatch’s have that little extra something that the New Mexico terroir provides.
I also keep a supply of Hatch’s ground chili powder on hand; it comes in two forms: mild and dial 911. Both the Hatch’s diced green chiles and the Hatch’s ground red chili powder are great candidates for use in Kate’s wonderful recipe.
Yes, Chipotles!! I was born & raised in South Texas near the border. My Mexican step-mom and her mother taught me how to make red sauce when I was 15 because I loved it so much I would drink it like soup! They also used Chipotles.
I like to use 1/3 Chipotle Red Chili Powder with 2/3 Red Chili Powder. Sometimes I process onions, minced garlic, and stewed canned Chipotles to beef, chicken, or vegetable broth before adding to a light roux. (We like all 3 broths but prefer beef).
It’s not hard to find really good red sauce in Texas (except East Texas, lol). However, truly great rojo sauce is just as much about what is not added. I prefer not to use any tomatoes at all.
I’ve also had great success using 2/3 King Arthur Gluten Free rice flour with 1/3 Bob’s Arrowroot starch/flower.
Do excited to try this tomorrow. Thinking how to do it to make 3 cups of enchilada sauce. Can I use chicken broth instead? Thanks!
Hi! I know several have and haven’t minded the results.
Vegetable broth is fine for those who lean to the veggie side of things or who like a nice neutral taste.
I often use chicken broth when I know the sauce will be used with chicken enchiladas or other chicken dishes, or beef broth when I plan to use the sauce with beef enchiladas or other beef dishes.
Kate’s excellent sauce is very versatile as is or with a few tweaks like picking a different broth.
Added a squirt of sriracha instead of peppering to taste and it turned out perfect.
Best enchilada sauce I have ever had! My family loved it too
This was excellent! I used cornstarch to make it gluten-free and it was just the right consistency. Thanks for sharing!
Just made this! It turned out great, used chicken broth instead of vegetable and added a little more tomato paste.
This was also yummy with double the tomato paste and then two ounces of semi-sweet baker’s chocolate stirred in until melted, just before the teaspoon of vinegar- something between red enchilada and mole sauce, and the hint of cinnamon was perfect. Delicious over simple cheese and shredded zucchini enchiladas. Why have I always used enchilada sauce from a can? Never again! Thanks for sharing this great basic recipe. So many good ways to change it up.
I’m glad you loved them! Thanks for taking the time to review, Karen.
Best enchilada sauce around!!
best i made … i added paprika, chile de arbol powder and cans of tomato sauce and instead of vegetable broth i did chicken broth…delicioso
In my personal opinion it was the Worst I have ever tasted ! Made this exactly as recipe stated ended up down the sink . However sorted it by making my own using : tinned tomatoes ,tomato puree , some pickled onions , herbs ,garlic ,chilli powder, hot beef stock ,Worcester sauce , and salt n pepper ,blending it all together and using it – note this does not need pre cooked and if you want to make it more creamy throw in a tin of baked beans in tomato sauce such as heinz or supermarket own brand when blending this adds extra protein aswell .This sauce can also be used as a Base for a nice bean/veg or meat soup if you want and you can use any stock -beef,veg ,chicken or lamb depending on your own taste .
IMHO that sounds disgusting. Is it enchilada sauce after adding Worcester, canned baked beans (too sweet)and pickled onions? I did tweak mine a bit with chicken broth, 3Tbl chili powder and a tsp of dark unsweetened cocoa. It’s perfect every time and my picky son loves it.
Hi. Can this receipe be jarred for storage in half pint jars doing a water bath.
Cookie R.
Hi Cookie! This is sauce can be frozen, but it isn’t designed for canning.
This is my go to enchilada sauce recipe! It’s the best!
That’s great! I’m glad you think it’s the best, Alison.
This enchilada sauce is so good and pretty easy to make. I’ve made it quite a few times now. Absolutely love it!
That’s great to hear, Candice!
I did make this version for my grandson, who is three years old and very picky when it comes to my cooking. He usually says,”grama Liz, the “comida” (food) you make is too spicy for me.” But when I made this sauce for his enchiladas he gave me a “thumbs up!” Thanks for this new sauce version for my menu. It’s so flavorful without the heat! (My enchilada sauce is the real thing … Tex Mex chili queens use real chiles … pasilla and ancho chiles.) I needed a calmer version for the loves of my life. This ROCKS!
¡mil gracias!
eLizabeth M. … AKA “grama Liz”
Best Enchiladas sauce EVER thank you so much.
I made this to the letter and thought it was very good. I may have over thickened it though. Flavor is going to depend on which kind of chili powder is used (I used one I picked up in Santa Fe).
For the enchilasagna I made, I needed 3 cups at least, so at the end I felt like I was skimping. I’d recommend making more than you think you’ll need and if you have extra, freezing it. My only complaint was that I thought it tasted a little too flour-y and would choose to thicken with masa or corn starch next time.
Excellent recipe! Needed it in a pinch when I realized I forgot to pick up sauce from the store. The only change I made out of necessity was instead of two cups vegetable broth, using one cup tomato sauce and one cup water. Delicious and the family loved it!
Made this sauce for the second time tonight. It turned out wonderfully both times! I used brown rice flour to make it gluten free, and I subbed chicken stock for the vegetable stock. My guests raved that these were the best enchiladas they’ve ever had. Thanks for sharing this recipe!
I’m happy to hear that, Sarah! I thank you for sharing.
Oh My Stars this is an amazing sauce, I don’t like hot food at all but love spicy. I saw the chilli powder and said Id take a chance. This sauce is very mild, Perfect for someone like me. Take a chance and give it a go!
How can I make enough for just one cup of this sauce
This is a great sauce and very easy to make. Also very easy to make a double batch. Thanks!
I live in South Africa and Mexican isn’t a big cuisine here. I’m going to attempt this recipe on Sunday! I’ve never eaten or even attempted to make enchiladas but been hearing amazing things and my mouth is watering. On looking for a recipe I stumbled across yours and it legitimately looked the best :) thank you! I’ll let you know how it goes
I at first followed the recipe exactly. The flavor was good but the color was kinda brownish. In your photos, your sauce is a more appetising color. More red than brown. I added an additional tablespoon of tomato paste. This didn’t help the color much.
I’m sorry to hear this didn’t turn out just like the photos. How was the flavor?
Can you make the roux with butter vs oil?
Hi Tom! I like olive oil best here, but you can try it. Let me know!
I give this recipe 3 stars, mostly because it is quick and easy and can be made from pantry staples. I was really looking for a quick and easy recipe that wouldn’t require a trip to the store. This recipe covered those bases and I set my expectations accordingly. I made the recipe as described, with the exception of substituting a light chicken stock for the vegetable broth, and then doctored the results extensively to get the flavor and texture that I wanted. Overall I found the sauce to lack flavor and body. The color, a drab brown, left a lot to be desired and I imagine was the result of the McCormick dark chili powder I used. I found the recipe came out great with some add-ins. Most importantly, the addition of a roasted and pureed red bell pepper gave it the fresh pepper aroma, taste and texture that was fundamentally lacking in the original. I also doubled the tomato paste, added a little bit of chipotle in adobo (I usually have this on hand in the freezer). I gave it a bit of dried coriander, some paprika and a little lime juice in addition to to the red bell pepper and pureed it all together in a blender. Definitely came out superior to any canned sauce I might have been tempted to use. All in all, a convenient foundation. I will try again in the future and will use masa flour and bacon fat for the roux. Thanks for providing a strong backbone that can be made quickly with on-hand ingredients.
Hi Andrea, I’m sorry you didn’t love this one as it’s written. Thank you for your feedback.
Amazing and easy. I will never buy a can of sauce ever again. Thank you!
This was so good! Never buying the canned stuff again. Hello from a fellow KC veggie as well.
I made this homemade enchilada sauce. I have never had anything but canned enchilada sace and certainly never fathomed making my own. It is amazing and I will not go back to canned. Thank you.
I made this tonight and it was absolutely delicious! Thank you!
I loved this. Sure won’t be buying canned anymore.
Hooray! That’s what I love to hear. Thank you for your review, Lynn.
I have made this several times and we love it!! Tried both with and without cinnamon, recommend with! Follow as written and you won’t be disappointed
I loved it! I just needed something to throw onto some chicken for some tacos and this was perfect! I would never bother with canned sauce and this turned out nice even with mid-grade chili powder :)
This recipe was really good and easy to make. The suggestion of another cook to add a little Shiracha was perfect. The only other change I made was using homemade bone broth instead of vegetable broth but the broth flavor overpowered the spices. However, I doubled the spices and it was perfect and even healthier! Thanks for the recipe.
I made the sauce….again, and again, and again! It truly is a winner. Do exactly as noted in the recipe, but you certainly can experiment. I love the little bit of sweetness that the vegetable stock seems to give, but in a pinch I have used chicken broth and it is equally delicious. The tomato paste is the key, as is the pinch of cinnamon and apple cider vinegar. Making the roux and having the spices already measured and together in a bowl is helpful because, as noted, it does come together quickly. I’ve also used butter instead of olive oil and I do love the underlying taste of that. I’ve also used just a bit of smoked paprika! It adds a nice rich smokiness and more redness to the sauce as well, which I find appealing too. My best batch thus far has been butter (vs olive oil), vegetable stock, a little less chili powder and some added smoked paprika! Overall, just delicious and I will never, ever, ever buy canned again.
Have to say, this is one of the most delicious sauces i have made thanks to your recipe as a baseline for measurements. Left out the cinnamon as im not a fan of this flavour and also used chicken stock as this was all that was in the press. Also left out the vinnegar as i didnt have the exact specified and i used basil instead of oregano.
Consistency was perfect, and flavour was beautiful. Really glad i came accross your recipe.
Our family loves this enchilada sauce recipe. My daughter and I made it the first time together. It was so good. My daughter invited her friends over the second time, I have also gotten another request for the recipe from another friend. We have made the enchiladas with black beans, another time chicken, it depends on who is eating with us. Thank you so much for sharing your gift with everyone. You are right, will never buy store bought again.
Kate,
This truly is the best enchilada sauce recipe! I tried it several months ago and can never go back — I’m not sure how I ever used the canned stuff. Thank you for this (and many other!) great recipes.
Angela
I’ve made this enchilada sauce a handful of times now over the past 3ish years and it is so easy and so flavorful that it’s our go to recipe. I used homemade chicken stock instead of veggie stock, but otherwise I use this as is. I can make a pan of 4 servings of enchiladas with exactly one batch of sauce, no leftovers or shortage.
This sauce is amazing! Thank you for sharing this recipe!
I was nervous in making this sauce because I love enchiladas but I am incredible picky about the sauce. I grew up in a Mexican household and watched my mother labor for hours over the enchilada sauce! But after reading the comments, I decided worse case scenario, it will be “good”, which in my mind translates to “decent”. So tonight I made this, and oh my goodness! It isn’t just “good”, it’s beyond delicious! Even better than my mother’s and grandmothers (shhh don’t tell them). I substituted vegetable broth for organic chicken broth and flour for cornstarch (to make this gluten free). It was so good that I was eating the sauce by the spoonful before rolling my enchiladas. The best thing is, my three sons, who are incredible picky eaters, and have never liked enchiladas from anywhere, loved them! Each one of my boys had four enchiladas! They begged me to make it for dinner tomorrow too! And two hours after dinner, I was still getting compliments. I’ll tell you, that’s a first around here! I’m excited to have one more meal to add to our regular repertoire and thrilled to have found this gem!
It seemed to me that the sauce hit all the low notes but missed something – High notes? So, what I did was add a tsp of splenda – I would have used sugar but my daughter is Type 1 for diabetes. It worked! I may never buy canned enchilada sauce again!
I made this once before and it was delicious! Exactly the flavor I was looking for. I used chicken broth instead of vegetable. I also added more hotness. I am making it again today. I will never buy it from the store again. Thank you for your recipe
It looked tasty, but… too much flour. I only put in half the flour the recipe called for. I guess that’s why authentic enchilada sauce doesn’t have flour… it’s not meant to be in it.
WONDERFUL! I’ve searched long and hard, and tried many other recipes in my search for a delicious enchilada sauce. This is the one! And it’s so easy! Thank you, Kate!
You’er welcome, Tanara! I’m excited you like it.
I needed enchilada for a recipe and scoured three different grocery stores in my area for a can . . . since I came up empty handed, I found your recipe and am happy to know I don’t ever need to buy the canned version. I didn’t have any veggie stock on hand so I added two cups of water with two tsp vegetable seasoning. Yummy!
I will never buy canned enchilada sauce again! So easy and you should have everything in your pantry. Used chicken broth because I was out of veggie broth.
Greetings from Vietnam!
This recipe omg, it came out so good and super delicious, I agree the cinnamon gives it a little subtle kick, thanks so much for such a great recipe.
Omg…it was delicious. This was my first time doing enchilada sauce and I loved it!
deliciousness, used chicken broth and gf flour..thanks!!
Soo good and worthwhile!
This was delicious. I didnt change the recipe at all. Thank you. Canned sauces are tinny and ill never go back
You’re welcome, Donna! I appreciate your review.
Thanks….we enjoyed our enchiladas…have needed good flavor and your recipe delivered. Thank you.!
Great recipe that is quick and easy and adaptable. (I put in more chili powder and cumin.) I think Bragg’s Apple Cider Vinegar is essential – amazing how a little bit of acid can elevate the flavors.
Thanks!!
I was looking for a sauce to match (or at least come close) to the one from my favorite mex restaurant here in South Texas. They have the best chicken enchiladas!!! I am so glad I tried this sauce because the flavor is spot on! This sauce is so delicious. I followed it exactly only I doubled the recipe as I love extra saucy enchiladas. Please don’t be afraid to try it. Yummy!