This smoky and savory enchilada sauce is simply delicious! My family won't eat out at Mexican restaurants anymore; they make me cook!
New Mexico and California chilies work too. Look for LARGE dark red dried chilies **To save time, after roasting and cleaning the seeds out, lightly simmer the chilies for 20-30min in the broth. Once soft add the chilies and the broth you cooked them in to the blender and add 1/4-1/2 cup more broth to compensate for some cooking off. AllRecipes won't let me update the recipe to say this I'm sorry!! ****If you read the reviews you'll see those who stuck with the recipe as is gave it a high rating, those who tweaked it first with other options gave it a lower rating... My rule of thumb for ALL recipes is to try it how it's written first (unless I am simply SURE there is some ingredient I don't like). Once I try a recipe as written, then I will almost always tweak it the following times I make it. I don't think it's fair to change the recipe as written and then give it a poor review... Try my rule of thumb and make it 'as written' the first time before tweaking it, you will probably still tweak it to your liking, but probably in a totally different way than you expected.******** To the reviewer that had bitter sauce: that happens sometimes if the chilies get roasted too much, it only takes 30 seconds of over doing it to over roast the chilies. If you try again watch them VERY closely, they should just start to smell nice, the color really should not darken and if they look black at ALL then they are over roasted and will make a bad bitter sauce... done it too! Love, Christine
Read MoreNew Mexico and California chilies work too. Look for LARGE dark red dried chilies **To save time, after roasting and cleaning the seeds out, lightly simmer the chilies for 20-30min in the broth. Once soft add the chilies and the broth you cooked them in to the blender and add 1/4-1/2 cup more broth to compensate for some cooking off. AllRecipes won't let me update the recipe to say this I'm sorry!! ****If you read the reviews you'll see those who stuck with the recipe as is gave it a high rating, those who tweaked it first with other options gave it a lower rating... My rule of thumb for ALL recipes is to try it how it's written first (unless I am simply SURE there is some ingredient I don't like). Once I try a recipe as written, then I will almost always tweak it the following times I make it. I don't think it's fair to change the recipe as written and then give it a poor review... Try my rule of thumb and make it 'as written' the first time before tweaking it, you will probably still tweak it to your liking, but probably in a totally different way than you expected.******** To the reviewer that had bitter sauce: that happens sometimes if the chilies get roasted too much, it only takes 30 seconds of over doing it to over roast the chilies. If you try again watch them VERY closely, they should just start to smell nice, the color really should not darken and if they look black at ALL then they are over roasted and will make a bad bitter sauce... done it too! Love, Christine
This sauce is easily the best I ever made. I'm a Texan who unfortunately lives out of state and I CRAVE a real enchilada sauce- well this is it. It's as good or better than any I ever had in Texas. The description is accurate: smoky and savory... and I might add DELICIOUS!!!!!
I followed the directions exactly and this turned out really good. I would recommend adding crushed red pepper before blending to add some heat to this as its very mild.
This is the BEST sauce we have tasted. My husband is half Mexican American and grew up eating authentic cuisine and he just raved. He is still raving this morning. I toasted my chilies in a dry cast iron skillet til they began smoking and slightly puffed. After cooling, I deseeded them and soaked them in simmering broth about 30 min. Then continued with the recipe. I only added salt at the end because broth contained salt. Served this with a side of corn with jalapenos, also from this site. That one is also 5 stars!! Thanks Christine. I have waited a long time for a recipe like this.
I tried the recipe as is and it was good, but very time consuming. I decided to boil the chilies with a couple of jalapeños for about 25-30 mins. Strained only the ancho chilies. Then moved on to step 3. Included the jalapeños and left out the tomato paste and did not add the broth until it was in the sauce pan. I also used 1/2 a knorr caldo de pollo bullion cube with a cup of the water I used to boil the chilies. Slowly added that to the sauce to make sure it did not come out too watery. I only used about 1/2 of the broth. This saved a lot of time and still came out very tasty.
I LOVED this sauce...and I am Picky about my enchiladas (tend to prefer traditional sauce). I couldn't find Ancho Chiles dried, so substituted dried California chiles. I burned black the first batch, so put fewer in than called for (only 4). I also added more tomato paste (my can was bigger). My hubby said it was tangy (prob the extra paste) but liked it with sour creme on top. At first I thought Oh-boy a whole hour to soak! But, the time flew by as I was making the enchiladas, and the sauce was really quite easy. Thanks so much!!!
I screwed it up. I totally burnt the peppers while toasting them. HAHAHA. Watch the time!!!! Wah. No more peppers on hand, but I really wanted the sauce so I just used a whole bunch of chili powder and a itty bit of paprika for a smoky flavor. I'm still giving it five stars. I can tell this recipe is awesome by the ingredients. The only thing I was going to omit was the oregano because I didn't want even the slightest reminder of spaghetti sauce flavor but that's a matter of personal taste. I soooo wish I didn't burn the anchos. My adjusted sauce was OK: the chilis would have brought the sauce to perfection! So thanks for putting me on the right track. Next time!
Be very careful with those chiles. I had to roast 12 in order to get the six I needed. I had to substitute a different kind of dried chile, beef bouillon and water for the beef broth, and I only added 1 teaspoon of salt. I don't like most red sauce because it's too salty. I used the sauce to make Spinach Enchiladas on this site. They were fabulous.
This is the real thing. Very similar to a recipe I have been using for years. You can roast the peppers in a little oil on the stove also, or even in a hot dry pan. Your kitchen will smell very Mexican. I have had enchiladas in restaurants done this way, but it was many years ago.
The first thing my daughter said was, "Why can't restaurants make enchilada sauce this tasty." And I replied, "Score!" Wonderfully smokey and full-bodied flavor without being too spicy for tender palates. I was in a hurry and used fresh poblano peppers instead on rehydrating. Roasted, peeled, seeded, chopped, then pureed according to instructions. I'll definitely stock ancho chiles in my pantry for the next time the enchilada bug bites me.
This is so delicious, I would give it 10 stars if I could. Thank you soooo much for posting this!!! This is 1000% better than the canned stuff!!!
Absolutely amazing!!! I've probably drank 1/2 c just tasting it. I will never buy canned sauce again. I didn't even attempt toasting the peppers, I used maybe 1/4-1/2 c ancho powder instead. I also added cayenne to taste. Next time I'll add another clove or two of garlic. You really should try this sauce!
Wow... I really loved this and I made several substitutions based on what I had on hand but the recipe still stood up to my alterations. I didn't even add the garlic because I accidentally read over it and skipped it entirely. The garlic would be delicious though. Or even a whole head roasted and then pureed. I will certainly try different things. The first thing I'll try is the true way with the ancho chilies though! It seems great. Instead I used one minced Chipotle Chili and some adobo sauce (like the combo comes in a can). Since chipotle chilies (smoked jalapenos) are 10 x as spicy as ancho (and 3 x as spicy as normal jalapenos) I only used one and it came out with some heat! I didn't have tomato paste I had a container of chopped tomatoes in juice so I pureed them til I had 2 c of liquidy tomato puree and added 1 cup of beef broth and 2 bullion cubes (to flavor the remaining 2 c of tomato liquid). I figured all that equaled 3c broth and tomato paste. I used less salt because of the bullion. I simmered mine until it was thickened to my liking. I also subbed 1 teaspoon marjoram instead of oregano and 1 pinch of oregano. I added a pinch of thyme (a nod to the chicken broth) and heaped my 1/4 teaspoon of cumin. I served this smoky, rich sauce over potato and mixed vegetable filled enchiladas with sour cream on the side. They got rave reviews. I really can't wait to try this recipe again but I'm so happy it worked as a base for future times I won't want to roast peppers.
Mmmmm...the best. Oh yeah. Not spicy at all but this had a nice flavor and it made enough to cover 2 9x13 pans of enchiladas. After eating this, I won't ever buy canned sauce again. My only addition was a tsp of sugar to cut the bitter from the peppers (my tweak). SO delicious, Thanks!!!
Wow! What a great sauce, very versatile. You will be trying to find other recipes to use it in. Outstanding!
Loved the sauce and loved the flavor! Next time I will try straining the sauce afte pureeing it to get out any "skin" left. Will definitely use again. Thank you for sharing!
Everyone liked this enchilada sauce. I used vegetable broth instead of beef, and I soaked the chiles in the broth for an hour then used that liquid in the recipe. I won't have to buy canned enchilada sauce anymore!
I can't wait to try your sauce recipe. I grew up making this sauce with my mother and grandmother. We didn't use an oven to toast we used a cast iron skillet/flat and to keep the sauce from having to much bitterness if you over-toast you change the water that you boiled the chili in and that will give you the great toasted flavor and not the bitterness of the burn. Can't wait to try your sauce!!!
Amazing!!! I have always been fairly satisfied with canned enchilada sauces but have longed for the more authentic sauces served in restaurants. Snowed in, with a bit of time (and the ingredients) on my hands, I gave this recipe a shot today. It was perfectly delicious!!! Easy to prepare, simple ingredients, and it was a thing of beauty over a fresh batch of turkey enchiladas. The only changes I made to the recipe was to go to more of a mole style sauce. I added 3 dried cayenne (arbol) chiles to the anchos, and added a splash of cinnamon and 1 ounce of unsweetened mexican chocolate to the sauce as it was simmering. Delicious! You guys have got to try this one, you'll never dump a can again (or have enchiladas that taste like lasagne!).
Really good sauce! I didn't have ancho chilis so I used 3 tblsp pure ancho chili powder. Turned out beautifully!
This is a good sauce. Because time was short, I didn't roast the chiles and just added some smoked paprika for the smoky flavor. And I added a pinch of Mexican style hot chili powder, also, for a little punch of flavor. I had to sub chicken stock for beef broth as I had none in the house, but it didn't seem to matter. I served it over beef and onion enchiladas and when I ran out of room in the dish, I made some cheese ones and added the rest of the meat mixture to the leftover sauce and used that over the cheese ones. They turned out to be our favorite! This is much better than the canned sauce.
I am from Las Cruces, New Mexico, 15 miles south of the Green/Red Chile capital of the world, Hatch, NM. This is a delicious recipe, tastes just like home! A few changes I used 5 medium sized fresh tomatoes from our organic garden. Also my partner is vegetarian so we used vegtable broth instead of chicken.
Wanted to use up the rest of a smoked brisket that my hubby had made over the weekend. This sauce made for the perfect enchiladas! Complimented the smokiness of the meat wonderfully! I've been making my own enchilada sauce since moving to South Florida. Never thought about using dried chiles. Thanks for the recipe Christine!
HOLY SMOKES!!! This stuff is great!! I used Dried California Chili Pods (because I decided at the store to make sauce and THEN searched for a recipe) This stuff is the bomb...we want to drink it out of a glass. I better hurry with the enchiladas or there will be no sauce left to make them!
We couldn't find dried ancho chiles at our New England grocery store, so I used 3 tablespoons of Mexican chile powder and 1 tablespoon of chipotle chili powder instead. I also only used about half the amount of stock when reheating the sauce to thin it out. The results were fabulous--flavorful and spicy but not overwhelming--and I will definitely make this again. Variations could include cocoa powder and cinnamon. In fact I bet you could use this sauce as a good base for mole. Great recipe--thank you!
This is the best enchilada sauce I've come across. Great consistency and taste. I use it on tamales. I've started substituting Guajillo chilis in place of the ancho and the flavor is even smokier and more complex. If you try Guajillos, roast them for half the time as the anchos, as they are thinner and will burn otherwise.
Excellent! I made the recipe as it was written. Next time I might add one or two spicier chiles like chile de arbol, just for some variety. Watch your chiles carefully while they are toasting because they will burn quickly. This recipe was easy and I will never go back to canned enchilada sauce.
I made this recipe as is and it turned out AMAZING! It was the best enchilada sauce I have ever had. I used a food processor to puree the ingredients instead of a blender, but that was all I changed. Thanks Christine for the awesome recipe!
This was very, very good! My sauce came out much darker than the photo, but I'm not sure that my dried chiles were anchos, and that's not a complaint in any event :) I used this on chicken enchiladas, and it was a hit! My brother in law even said it was better than my mother's, and she's an AMAZING cook who makes everything from scratch. No longer will I use nasty, sodium-filled canned sauce!
WOW! Delicious. My first attempt and it was fantastic. A little messy and a couple of stains on the shirt but I'll be getting enough practice so that I get better at making this. Everyone loved it.
Absolutely amazing! There is no better enchilada sauce recipe than this. Comes out right everytime!
Very very delicious...I bought a can of tomato sauce because I just knew this wasn't going to make enough sauce for my enchiladas....Boy was I wrong! Sooo good. I did end up using chicken broth instead of the beef, but I think next time I will use the beef. I literally could have drank this sauce! Very awesome recipe...thank you for sharing!
This was very good! Thanks for a simple tasty recipe. I did need to add a tiny bit of sugar at the end to help pull the "can" flavor out of the tomato paste, so I think next time I will cook the paste a bit before putting the rest of the ingredients into the sauce pan with it and then whisk it together.
This was awesome! I followed the recipe exactly and it came out delicious. I used it with butternut squash enchiladas, and my boyfriend - who hates squash - devoured them. Thanks for sharing!
Excellent sauce and very easy. Only differences were that I used New Mexico chilis and didn't add as much beef broth as the recipe calls for since I thought at about 2 cups it looked thin enough. I will never buy the canned stuff again.
I LOVE THIS! It takes alot of love to make but it is so worth it! I think that ancho chilies are a little too spicy so I use mulato peppers
I took the suggestion to place the chiles in the beef broth to soften to save time. After that place the broth and chiles and add'l broth into the blender. Wowzers! I made this for Christmas dinner and everyone loved it. It is exactly as stated "smoky and savory". Will definitely use this again.
Definitely an enchilada sauce worth the time. This doesn't require a whole lot of effort, but it does take time... that's OK though, just make it early in the day. Has a nice, smoky flavor from the dried peppers (which are usually smoked as well). As far as consistency, add the remaining 2 cups of beef broth a bit at a time after you put the pureed mixture into a sauce pan. I seemed happy with the thickness after using about 2 1/2 cups of beef broth overall. I agree with reviewers who get upset with people rating a recipe after they have made their own changes to taste. That's not what this is at all! After saying that I did have to use peanut oil instead of corn oil, because I didn't have corn oil on hand and was too lazy to go shopping. Other than that, stuck to the posted recipe. I was worried that the skins would present a problem, but they blended up smooth with the rest of the ingredients. A nice and mild, smoky sauce that will leave you putting the canned junk back on the shelf forever.
I asked my wife, "So, you think its worth the time for me to make this enchilada sauce?" She said "Absolutely"
This is such a great, easy recipe. The sauce is restaurant quality. I've made this many times and it's always perfect. I didn't change a thing!
This is great, but I cheated. I had Bill Echol's Taco Seasoning from this site already prepared. It has chile powder, garlic, cumin, oregano, and salt in it. I just subbed that instead of bothering with the fresh chiles and other spices. Turned out wonderful and a heck of a lot easier.
Having access to as much Mexican food as anyone could ever want here in southern California, I can say that this enchilada sauce is delicious. Toasting the chiles adds a wonderful flavor (watch them carefully! they burn easily.) The balance and complexity of the sauce was excellent, and I know I'll make it again. Also, as another reviewer stated, it is also delicious with California chiles, if you can't locate ancho. Well done, Christine!
I didn't have dried ancho chilies, so roasted some fresh red ones I had on hand. Otherwise, followed the recipe as is. The result was - for my taste - a bit salty, too hot, and a bit too runny, but that could be fixed by simmering longer. The spiciness may have been because of my pepper substitution. In spite of this, I was pretty pleased with the result as it is definitely on the right track toward what I'm looking for and I base my rating on this. I'm guessing that the right peppers give it not only heat but flavor as well. The chilies I used had no flavor - just heat! Later, I made some modifications on this recipe: added 1/2 TBSP cocoa powder, a medium pureed onion (since I had no onion powder), and 2 TBSP flour to thicken it some. I'm even happier with the results now and will continue making this with these additions.
Yummy! I've never made my own sauce before. I just finished it and it was so easy!! This is going to be my "go to" recipe when I need to make enchiladas. I followed the recipe except I added more garlic. So, good!
This really is the best enchilada sauce I have ever tried. It's easy and I have also used Anaheim chiles too. Way better than canned.
Really good! Followed directions exactly. Roasted chiles for only 2 minutes, as my oven runs hot. Used in enchiladas made with carnitas. Very delicious. Can use a generous amount of this sauce on your enchiladas, there is no "too much"! :)
Christine, this was AMAZING! I knew I was doing something right when the sweet lady at the Mexican Market asked what I was making with the chilis, and when I told her enchiladas, she smiled brightly and told me that was the best way to go. I had a small dinner party so I made it ahead and refrigerated until I was ready to cook. Doubled the recipe for 18 enchiladas and had enough to serve on the side. Not a single drop left! Thanks for the tips. Was nervous about burning the chilis, but they were perfect. Mine took 2-1/2 minutes. Not sure why folks are concerned about the oregano, I did exactly what you wrote and my folks raved as they gobbled! I could hug you!!!!!!
This sauce is great! I didn't have ancho chiles in my grocery store, so I used dried New Mexico chilies. I think any large red chile would work! It turned out great! Not as much work as other enchilada sauce recipes I've tried but just as good or better! Love it with the cottage cheese enchiladas from this site.
great sauce!! this sauce I use with a healthier version of enchiladas that I also found on this site.
Love this recipe. TIP: Find a produce/farmers market that roast chilies there on the spot while you wait (usually late summer). You can buy 1/2 to a bushel of chilies and have them roasted for you. Bring them home, let them cool, and bag up about 15 chilies, blackened skin and all, per quart freezer bag. When you need some for a recipe then thaw a bag or two, then clean and de-seed them. Roasted chilies goes great in so many dishes like this one.
loved this sauce. so easy. thick and rich, like a mole. for recipe consistency I just went with the whole 2 oz bag of ancho chili pods. I swapped olive oil for veg oil and used chicken broth. I toast my anchos stove top in a cast iron pan, that way I can keep a better eye on them, and I wasn't gonna heat up the whole oven for it to only be needed for a few minutes. I also seed and stem them before toasting when they are more pliable. I have tried New Mexico, ancho and guajillo chile pods. I like the guajillo flavor the best.
Definitely a 5 star rating in my book! This red sauce was so incredibly good and really I thought it was quite simple! I won't make enchiladas without this sauce ever again!
I've been looking for a good enchilada sauce recipe ever since I moved from Texas to Germany 3 years ago, and this is it. Thanks, Christine! I used flour tortillas, since corn tortillas are impossible to find here, and used a mixture of Monterey jack and mild cheddar. Before rolling, I dipped each tortilla in the sauce on both sides, and drizzled more sauce and cheese on top after filling. They tasted just like the cheese enchiladas at my favorite Mexican place back home. I'll never buy canned enchilada sauce again! This was delicious and SO easy.
Excellent! This turned out so well that I already went out and bought another bag of dried chiles for the next time.
This turned out pretty well... my store didn't have ancho chilies so I used Japanese chilies instead and I only used 4 because I was afraid it would be too spicy for my 2 and 4 year old. I will definitely use this again! ;)
I couldn't find ancho chiles so i used 6 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce added 2 tbl spoons of diced jalapanos and pureed them together. I didn't use oregano but instead added crushed red pepper , chipotle chilli powder, chipotle chili flakes and anco chile pepper powder. this gave the receipe a nice warm heat. My family LOVED it! I also did not put the oil in the recipe as didn't add anything but fat. One last thing we were makeing chicken enchilada so i used chichen broth instead of beef.
Terrific! Doubled it and made 50 chicken enchiladas for a dinner co-op. (5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thights). I used chicken broth rather than beef, and used about 3/4 c. less than recipe called for because the consistency was lovely; I hated to make it watery. After cooking them, though, would have included all broth so i had more to pour over just before cooking.
I followed Christine's recipe EXACTLY and it turned out great!! I didn't take any short cuts, followed all the measurements and my enchiladas were delicious. The sauce is smoky, flavorful, and not too spicy. I'm so glad I tried this out! It's a permanent addition to my rotation!
This stuff is delicious and super fast and easy to make, not to mention very inexpensive. Like others I heat up a cast iron skillet over medium heat and lay the chiles in there for just a few minutes. They'll get toasty and soft, making it easy to remove the stems and seeds. They don't need to soften for an hour - maybe 15 minutes in the boiling water. Throw everything in the blender and POOF! Excellent red sauce you can make your own with any number of changes or additions. I just made an enchilada casserole that's in the oven now and I can tell you this sauce will be a staple here. Thanks Christine for a most excellent recipe!
Super! I also used 3 tablespoons of dried ancho and only used 2 cups of broth. Definitely a keeper.
I normally don't care for red enchilada sauce, and favor green instead. But this sauce is really great! I LOVED how this recipe wasn't tomato heavy! The beef broth works perfectly with all the chili flavors, and the seasoning is spot-on! After reading some of the reviews I got scared of burning the peppers, so i toasted them @350 for 3 min. I noticed that they darkened up a little bit, but definitely didn't turn black. Might be hard to tell if you burned them because the ancho chilies are already super dark, almost black already. I used 1 huge ancho, and 5 california chilies. Instead of covering the chilies with water, I used 2 cups of beef broth, and simmered them for 20-30 min. They really soaked up a lot of liquid, so I ended up still adding 2 more cups of broth. So total I used 4 cups broth, which happens to be an entire carton of beef broth. (perfect!) Once I got to blending everything, I also added one chipotle chili with a bit of adobo (from a can.) I didn't to that for heat, just to diversify the chili flavors. I added a little bit (1/4 cup) of caramelized onions to the blender, not that the recipe needed it. I just happen to be obsessed with onions, and can't seem to eat a meal without them.
Good recipe for the most part- I've found that all Ancho chiles, though I love them, makes for a bitter sauce- I use 2 oz. chiles, (1 Ancho and the rest red chiles such as California, New Mexico, or Guajillo) to 2 cups liquid (I use water with a bit of sherry or vinegar). I also like some aromatics (onion and celery, sauteed) and definitely no tomato. Kudos for not using starch to thicken- a common and counterproductive addition.
Actually got the sauce all made and totally forgot the oil. I think it will be fine without it. It tasted great after it had cooked. Going to use it in the cottage cheese chicken enchiladas on this website. It is better than an enchilada sauce that I usually use off of eatingwell.com website. I will be switching to this recipe from now on when I need red enchilada sauce. Thanks for the great recipe! Don't use canned red enchilada sauce, make this instead!!!
Incredible sauce; rich, smoky & tasty. Roasting & Soaking the peppers really isn't too difficult, and besides, it's the crux of the sauce!
Very good. Hubby said the enchiladas were my best ever. I did use fresh, and not dried, peppers then roasted them myself. The sauce wasn't spicy at all, so next time I'll kick it up a notch. Just our preferance. I had never used these peppers before, so I erred on the side of caution:) It was a lot of work for just the sauce, but well worth it. Thank you for sharing Christine!
Nice fresh taste. I messed mine up, halving the recipe but using 4 chiles instead of 3 (oops)!! After doctoring it up, it was great! I used fresh onion instead of the powder, and water instead of broth (didn't have).
Very good! I love that the ingrediants were all in my cupboards already! I made this to use in the butternut squash enchiladas.........nice combo and easy to make.
Great recipe. As a native Texan living outside the country (USA not Texas ??) this recipe was a godsend. I roasted dry red chilis in a medium hot dry pan until they released a nice aroma. Used chicken broth instead of beef with no issues. I like heat so I used extra peppers.
FANTASTIC!!!!! Made this over the weekend, for chicken enchiladas...after followind recipe exactly, I added a thin slice of onion (about 1.4 inch thick) pureed,then put into the sauce and cooked for 30 minutes. Loved it both ways.
This came out simply delicious modified a little extra garlic and used ancho chilies and chilies de Arbol but is definitely going to be used again
This was my first time making Enchilada Sauce; I had a can in the pantry just in case this didn't work out. Um, I had to resort to the can. I'm going to try to make one more time, with fresh ancho chiles when we get some...will update review.
This was so good and surprisingly easy! I soaked the chilis while I was putting my kids to bed and came back and finished the rest. My family LOVED it! Definitely will make this again.
Cannot wait to make it again! (But it will be a while because this made enough for 3 servings, I froze a couple bags for later use.) I just made mole so I had some other chilies on hand and added a couple pasila peppers and a brown chipotle. 1/4 a cup of oil seemed a little heavy so I reduced it to 2 tablespoons. I really don't know that it needs the oil at all and am going to omit it entirely my next batch. After it simmered, I decided to add another 1/4 tsp of cumin and it really made it that much better. I'll never buy this out of a can again! Thanks for the recipe!
This sauce is delicious! The only reason I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 is that it is a bit time consuming. I as intimidated by the chilis since I hadn't worked with them before, but stripping them of the seeds was easy. toasting, easy, of course the soaking easy. The blender works great to break them up and I love love the smokiness roasting the chilis gives to the sauce. I will definitely make again!
i followed the recipe exactly and its just gross... i think the beef broth overwhelms the flavor and the oregano does also.... now im trying to add things to make it at least somewhat taste like enchiladas for dinner...
This sauce is awesome! I did not have ancho chilis, so I used a mixture of guajillo and chipotle chilis. Also did not have tomato paste, so I used a can of tomato sauce. It is so good that we were dipping chips into the pan of sauce. We had about a cup leftover after making our enchiladas and decided to turn the leftovers into a salsa. I did burn my first batch of chilis and had to throw them out. They roast very quickly. This recipe has been added to our list of favorites
I hate it when people change recipes then rate them but I sent my son to the store for ancho chilies and he came home with a huge jalopeno pepper and 2 large red bell peppers. I threw them in the oven at 400 to blacken, stuck them in a plastic bag to loosen the skins and then proceeded with the recipe. I did add some cayenne pepper and a bit more cumin in an attempt to compensate. I put the sauce on Chicken Enchiladas I from this site and they were awsome. I have had to order anchos from the internet - Spice Inc - and can't wait to actually follow the recipe. As good as it was with my forced substitutions, I can't wait to make this with the anchos. I'll keep you posted. Update July 28, 2010: Followed directions exactly and ended up throwing it out. Maybe because I toasted the chilis the day before for 3 minutes, soaked them and put them in a plastic bag until I was ready to make the next day. Never again.
Ancho, Anaheim or Pacilla's.....basically the same chili. Very mild. I'm a lightweight with the heat and love Pacillas. Nice flavor and no heat. So, if a recipe calls for Ancho or Anaheim look for a Pacilla....vise versa. They are the same chili used for Chili Rellanos in Mexican Restaurants. Oh, can't wait to try this recipe. Sounds exactly like what I'm looking for!
I made this and followed the recipe exactly. It was too thin, too smoky, a little too hot, and I didn't care for the flavor. What went wrong? I just want a simple restaurant style red enchilada sauce, no weird flavors.
Pretty awesome! Made something similar before but it didn't turn out as good. Only used two chilies because I didn't have any more. Didn't have any corn oil either. Used some homemade chicken broth instead of beef broth and it tastes great!
Excellent. Be careful not to burn the peppers.
This was so much better than canned sauces. Instead of steeping in hot water after roasting, I put the roasted and cleaned chilies in a pan with the rest of the ingredients and simmered for 1 hour. I added more broth to compensate for evaporation. When done, I just took my hand held immersion blender and blended it though. Everyone (even my picky kids) loved it.
This sauce was very good! I made the recipe as stated, and it produced a dark, deep, smoky flavored enchilada sauce that was very delicious. However, I like my enchilada sauce to be a little more "bright" in flavor. Next time, I will use chicken broth instead of beef broth, which I think will produce the 5 star sauce I am looking for!
I followed the toasting of the ancho chilis meticulously after reading about several others' burned pepper experience. That being said, this recipe was a huge disappointment. I had to massage the recipe every step of the way to make it palatable. From altering the salt (needed more than recipe called for) to sweetening it due to the bitterness of the chilis. It was a lot of work and I ended up thankful for my chopped cilantro, green onions, sour cream, cheddar cheese. There was little smoky, savory flavor from the dried anchos and I bought them from a highly reputable spice company. No, this sauce was too much effort for the result.
Delicious, authentic, healthy. I made as written, except, I used a vegan mock-beef broth that has a bit much salt, so I omitted the salt. I omitted the oil also, making this a very low calorie sauce. *tip: - I bought a big bag of dried ancho peppers at walmart, on an endcap in the produce section. They are not spicy, so if you desire heat, you'll need to add it.
Good, not great. Certainly not the best. My first attempt at this recipe turned into a bitter mess that couldn't be rescued. The sauce tasted as bitter as non-chewable vitamin C tablets. So I then did a little research to find that I likely burned the anchos. I can't imagine toasting them for 3-4 minutes at 400 will do anything other than burn them up. I took a second go at this recipe, this time toasting the anchos at 300 for 2 minutes and avoided any chance of burnage. Then it turned out fine.
