Name: Red Enchilada Sauce
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 20 min
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons avocado oil or olive oil; 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour*; 1/4 cup chili powder*; 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder; 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin; 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano; 2 cups chicken or vegetable stock; fine sea salt, to taste

My favorite homemade enchilada sauce recipe is easy to make with pantry ingredients, it only requires about 5 minutes of prep time, and it tastes so flavorful and delicious.

Red Enchilada Sauce

avocado oil or olive oil

all-purpose flour*

chili powder*

teaspoon garlic powder

cumin

oregano

stock

fine sea salt,

Cook the roux and spices

Heat oil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Add flour and cook for 1 minute, whisking constantly.  Add in the chili powder, garlic powder, cumin and oregano and cook for 1 more minute, whisking constantly.

Simmer

Gradually pour in the stock, whisking constantly to combine until no lumps remain.  Continue cooking until the sauce reaches a simmer.  Then reduce heat to medium-low to maintain the simmer (the sauce should continue lightly bubbling) for about 10-15 minutes, uncovered, until the sauce has slightly thickened.

Season

Give the sauce a taste and season with salt, as needed.  (I typically add 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt, but the saltiness of the sauce can vary depending on the brand of stock that you use.)

Serve

Use immediately in your favorite recipe and enjoy!

I just wanted to say that I whisked the flour and the spices together before I made the roux.  It made it EVEN easier and worked beautifully.  I was about to run to the store to pick up some enchilada sauce ... So thanks for saving me time, money and providing me with a great recipe!

My only regret is that I did not make more sauce.

I have made this many times. It doesn't disappoint.

Hands down the best red enchilada recipe I have ever come across.

I am intrigued by the addition of chocolate as suggested in the comments but that would make it more of a mole sauce. May have to play around with this a bit.

Once again, thanks for sharing

love this sauce. I will never buy store bought again.  Based on the comments I added a tsp of brown sugar, a tsp of cocoa powder and a tsp of smoked paprika

Delicious! I added chipotle powder and smoked paprika, two favs. My one comment is that my sauce is a bit granular, like the spices didn’t all cook/disintegrate. What’s the solution?!

I used this for the enchiladas recipe and it worked well! I thought it was going to be difficult but it was really easy. I forgot to season with salt at the end but it tasted great to me! I don’t usually like enchiladas sauce but I really enjoyed the flavor of this one.

I used this for the enchiladas recipe and it worked well! I thought it was going to be difficult but it was really easy. I forgot to season with salt at the end but it tasted great to me! I also didn’t have cumin(which i’m not really a fan of anyways) so I substituted paprika instead. I don’t usually like enchiladas sauce but I really enjoyed the flavor of this one.

Best enchilada sauce!  Thank you for the recipe!

Best recipe ever. My go to! So easy and it's delicious.

This is super quick, super delicious. Thanks for the recipe!

I followed the recipe exactly and ended up with a VERY bitter sauce. Not sure if I was too high on the heat? Maybe burned the roux or toasted the spices? Who knows. I'll have to try it again and see if it turns out different.

I ended up adding tomato paste and some sugar which made it quite good. Nice blend of spicy, savory and sweet. Maybe a tad too spicy for some. There's always the option to reduce the chili powder if needed.

I’m amazed that the reviews here are so controversial. We make this sauce all the time and love it. Couldn’t be easier!

[READ THIS REVIEW] I was so disappointed with this sauce. The enchiladas itself was good, but the sauce ruined it. First, when I made the roux, it turned brown after stirring for like 30 seconds. The recipe says to stir for one minute. At this point, I add the dry ingredients (chili powder, oregano, garlic powder, cumin) and it looks like a lot of tiny balls. And after 15 minutes of simmering, the sauce was EXTREMELY thin, so I had to add a lot of corn starch to thicken up. After it thickened, the sauce was so dark. Like not black, but a very dark brown. It ended up making the enchiladas bitter. To all of you reading this review, I highly recommend a tomato-based enchiladas sauce because it will genuinely taste like an authentic Mexican enchiladas.

??? love this sauce. Couldn’t be easier and we put it on everything!

I use this recipe every time I make enchiladas! It’s soooo good. The mild spice gives it a little kick and it’s packed with flavour. No need to buy enchilada sauce in the store ever again!

Wow, this was even better than I was expecting…can’t wait to make it again!

This turned out well after I doctored some stuff because the spice was way too much. I think there should be a disclaimer that there are different levels of heat within "chili powder." Not all are created equal. My husband and I love spice, we live in Southern California and have been raised on Mexican food, but I think our chili powder (from an authentic Middle Eastern market) was too potent and I should have checked it first. I ended up adding more vegetable stock, 1/2 cup tomato sauce, and a couple swigs of lemon juice. It was still too spicy alone but in the zucchini enchilada casserole it turned out perfect with a nice, but doable, spice factor. It was so easy and I had all of the ingredients on hand, I will make it again, keeping the chili powder spice in mind.

I made this again today and want to update my review. I did it almost exactly, just 1 tablespoon of my super spicy chili powder and it is 5 stars! I did also add 1/4 cup tomato sauce because I like the tomato flavor, but it was awesome before I did that. I let it simmer a bit longer and the consistency is perfect. I am having some on my chilaquiles now, will be using some for albondigas soup tonight, and the rest for a roasted hatch chili flatbread later in the week.  Highly recommend.

Very good in the chicken Enchiladas! Has a distinct strong taste by itself but smoky &amp; great when with the dish. When I first started making it in a little pot I got nervous because mixing the spices with the little bit of hot oil was super dry and started burning. But I quickly added a little chicken broth and it mixed better. Then continued to stir as a poured a little more in. Followed the directions the rest of the way, stirring occasionally, and it thickened after 15 mins &amp; took off the heat.

Seriously, this recipe reminds me of watching a cooking show and a famous chef is making something so SIMPLE and everyone is raving over it as they reassure you that simple tastes better. I LOVE enchiladas - in a true Mexican restaurant... but NOT at home. Canned sauce, nooooo! I saw this recipe and thought why not?

WOW! I have made it twice in one day. My son and daughter-in-law just had a baby. When I tasted the sauce that took me all of 10 minutes to make... I thought I have to share (show off) what I just did! I took over a pan to them and then made another pan for myself (whipped up a new batch of sauce - better than the first). I have taken them 10 meals over the past 2 weeks and this one they texted me a RAVE review! 

I used rotisserie chicken and added a drained can of rotel to the chicken instead of the can of chiles. So simple, so easy and sooooooo impressive to the taste buds! Do it!

I was so happy to find this sauce recipe! For everyone that says this isn't authentic, my children had a babysitter from Mexico and she frequently made us enchilada's, Spanish rice, homemade tortillas, and tamales for us.  I watched her make the sauce for the enchiladas and she made a roux with oil and flour and then added the spices. She never put tomato into the sauce and it was sometimes rather brown. She never measured anything. This sauce is like a taste of the past and I love it. So easy and quick, give it a try, you will love it too!

I followed this recipe to a T and am disappointed in the taste.  As others have said, it has a bitter taste.  In my opinion 1/4 cup of chili powder is way too much.  I suppose it’s possible that once baked with the enchiladas it might be good but I’m too scared to try it in case it ruins my beautiful batch of enchiladas.  I will not be using it and will try another recipe that doesn’t call for as much chili powder.

I followed it to a T but then added one tbsp of tomato paste. This really cuts the taste of the chili powder you said your tasting. I am from south Texas and we have a lot of Mexican influence in our cooking. This sauce in my opinion is great with the added tomato paste and I highly recommend it. This is my opinion. And the roux is the most important part of the recipe. It's the base so if this isn't right then start over.

Made exactly to recipe but used ancho chilli powder (yes 1/4 c in faith) and added a shake of cinnamon powder and a squeeze of tomato paste to my cast iron pan on the BBQ (40 degrees here in Wasaga Beach Canada).
Packs a punch for sure and depth of flavour I’ve never tasted out of canned sauces. And looks like melted chocolate.  Gorgeous!

Here’s the problem.  A little goes a long way…how can I store/freeze the rest. Please let me know ASAP, don’t want to waste it.

Thank you🤗your recipes are always good, but I’ve never commented.

Wish I could send pics!  So far so good….have never baked enchiladas on the BBQ!

Just made this sauce and it turned out great!  Thank yiu for posting the recipe.

I tried this tomato-free enchilada sauce and was pleasantly surprised at the great taste, consistency, and how easy it was to make. I didn't have avocado oil on hand, so used olive oil. I'd like to try it with avocado oil. My somewhat picky son liked the taste. I used it wth chicken enchiladas.

Very easy to make and I love it. I usually have to buy canned enchilada sauce but no more. Although I do prefer to add in one or two tbsp of tomato paste to the recipe as suggested. It adds something to it. This is a great sauce and I know I will continue to use it. I was very impressed.

To the comments about this sauce being grainy or bitter--I made this sauce last night and after it had thickened, I tasted it on a spoon.  It seemed a little grainy and bitter--but it had something that was missing from my store-bought sauce.  I love Ali's other recipes, so I decided to do an experiment.  I made some cheese enchiladas with just her sauce.  I made some on the side that had a mixture of half my store-bought sauce and half Ali's sauce.  (My store bought sauce is a bit mild and sweet, but palatable.)  Both batches were terrific, but I preferred Ali's, and I even put some of her sauce on the other ones.  So if you're on the fence about this recipe you could do an experiment like I did.  Or just trust that the sauce works on the cheese, and take a chance.  (And maybe skip the toasting of the chili powder just to be sure you don't burn it.)

Excellent enchilada sauce.  Tried one last time with AC vinegar in the recipe, not near as good. Thank you

https://content.jwplatform.com/videos/iMnB6OdZ.mp4

My favorite recipe for homemade red enchilada sauce! It’s surprisingly easy to make, and makes just about any enchiladas taste delish!

Red Enchilada Sauce

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total: 20 minutes

Servings: 1

Author : Ali

Ingredients

Instructions

Top similar recipes