This recipe for easy homemade enchilada sauce is incredibly quick and easy to make. You can whip it up in about 20 minutes. That’s perfect for anyone who wants to whip enchiladas quickly.
I love Mexican food. It’s my jam. Although I’ll admit right here and now that I like my Mexican food a bit watered down. While I love spicy food, it doesn’t always love me back. This recipe for enchilada sauce is perfect for peeps like me who like a more mellow enchilada sauce.
On occasion I’ll kick it up a notch and add some fiery spices, but only if I know I’m not going anywhere special the next day. Nothing is a mood killer like the aftermath of spicy Mexican food. You know what I’m talking about. You get a little crazy with the spices and the next day you’re blaming the dog for tooting. Meanwhile we all know it was YOU!
Come on now, we all know you do it. We all blame the dog, or the guy standing next to us. Who amongst us hasn’t passed gas and then blamed someone else. Hubs is notorious for doing it in stores then walking away so the next person gets the blame for it. I always feel sorry for the people in the aisle with us because I know someone is going to get the stink eye from someone passing by.
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I was never a fan of Mexican food growing up. That changed when I was a teenager. My Dad remarried a women with some serious cooking chops years after my Mom passed away. I was happy my Dad was happy, and had found someone to spend time with. She taught me to love Mexican food.
I have to admit I hated her something awful though. Even is she could cook like a angel. She could whip up Mexican Recipes with her eyes closed. She also rocked seafood because she spent a ton of time on the east coast when she was younger. Some of her dishes were pretty impressive. Yet I could not stand the woman.
Before you judge me for hating on her, let me tell you my reasons were valid. During my parents’ marriage my Dad had an affair, with this woman he later married after my Mom passed away. I know, it’s the stuff soap operas are made of. I lived it. It sucked. During my parents’ marriage this woman did some really nasty things to my Mom. She was evil incarnate.
She would call my Mom on the phone to rub her face in the affair. Once she showed up while we were fishing with my Dad. Another time she showed up while we were ice skating. We had no idea who she was and went home to tell my Mom about the nice lady we bumped into. Can you imagine? My poor Mother.
It gets worse. During the height of the affair my parents thought about splitting up. My Dad encouraged us kids to join the YMCA in the city. Every Saturday we would head in to the city and spend the day playing sports while Dad “went off to work”. We made friends with some kids there. Little did we know, until months later, they were my Dad’s mistress’s kids.
Yes, you read that correctly. Can you imagine how mortified we were when my Mom put the pieces together? Or how horrible my Mom felt when she found out who our friends were? I know, it sounds crazy. Unfortunately, it’s all true. It’s also why I needed therapy as an adult. My childhood was a bit of a hot mess.
The only thing I’m grateful to my Dad’s ex-wife for is leaving him years after they got married. She charged up his credit cards, and took huge amounts of money from various accounts. My Dad didn’t find out how much money was gone until the day she left. He called the bank to freeze all the accounts. It was seriously messed up.
So I learned three things from this woman. The first thing I learned was prenups are crucial no matter how well you know someone. The second thing is always be honest with your kids, because they’re going to figure things out eventually anyway. And lastly, I learned how to make decent Mexican food. All great lessons.
This recipe is one I’ve used for some time. It’s a cross between the recipe my Dad’s ex-wife made, and a recipe from All Recipes. I combined them to make this sauce, which I love because it’s not overly spicy. I hope you love it too. It stores beautifully and the flavour is off the charts.
Recipes you can use this Easy Homemade Enchilada Sauce in:
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- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 1/4 cup chili powder
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 8 ounces tomato sauce
- 1 1/2 cups liquid vegetable stock
- 1/4 tsp cumin
- 1/4 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp minced garlic
- 1/2 tsp salt
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In a large skillet cook the olive oil, flour, chili powder and tomato paste over medium heat. Stir while cooking until everything comes together and the colour deepens a bit. This should only take a few minutes.
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Add the tomato sauce, vegetable stock, cumin, onion powder, minced garlic, and salt. Continue cooking over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the sauce comes to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and continue to cook for about 10 minutes, or until sauce thickens.
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Use sauce immediately, or store in an air tight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks, or in the freezer for up to 2 months.
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Serve over enchiladas, or enchilada casseroles, with a big old "not so spicy" smile!
Slightly adapted from my Dad's monster ex-wife and All Recipes. *grins*
You are going to want to slather this on everything in sight!
Recipes using this Easy Homemade Enchilada Sauce:
If you’re looking for more easy recipes feel free to swing by my recipe index. There’s tons of great recipes in there so take your time and poke about.
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Toodles! xx
Brooks says
I’ve missed your voice, Kim. So great to come by and check-in after a prompt from your email newsletter. I’m loving this enchilada sauce recipe, and the first thought I had as I set out to read this was ‘enchilada casserole’. And voila, there’s a link to your casserole too! Your words cut straight through to the heart and the truth of life. Keep up the great work.
Marti says
Did I read that right? 1/4th CUP of chili powder??
Kim Beaulieu says
Oh man, I hope not!! I’m using a new recipe plug in and some recipes are not converting properly. Checking now!!
Kim Beaulieu says
Hi Marti. Yes, it is 1/4 cup which is 4 tablespoons. I had to check my notes. You could reduce it to 3 tablespoons if you like.