Table of Contents
This simple enchilada sauce is a family recipe that we’ve made for generations!
You may think that buying a can of sauce is good enough, but trust us, once you have this homemade version, you will never look back! The flavors are NEXT LEVEL, and it only takes about 20 minutes. Plus, you can save a batch for later to save time.
We use this homemade enchilada sauce to make everything from Cheese Enchiladas to Empanadas to Burritos and, honestly, SO much more! Pretty much any Mexican dish can benefit from a drizzle of flavor.
Once you go homemade, you’ll never buy canned stuff again!
Why we think you’ll love it:
- Common ingredients. This delicious sauce takes just a few simple pantry ingredients, most of which you probably have on hand!
- Freeze for later. You can easily make a big batch and freeze or store it for later use, saving time and effort in future dinner recipes.
- Adjust the spice level. The chili powder does have some spice, but you can change the amount of powder used based on what your family likes.
Enchilada Sauce Ingredients and Substitutions
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil – or canola oil or olive oil
- 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons chili powder – We prefer Gebhardt’s chili powder. For a milder sauce, decrease the chili powder. For a spicier sauce, increase the amount used or use a spicier brand of chili powder, such as ancho chili powder or chipotle chili powder.
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon oregano
- ½ teaspoon salt – you can add pepper as well, if desired.
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- 2 cups chicken broth – or vegetable broth
- optional tomato – Stir in 1-2 tablespoons of tomato paste or tomato sauce. Note that this will thicken the sauce as well.
How to Make Enchilada Sauce
- ROUX. Add oil to a pot or saucepan and heat on medium heat. Pour in flour and create a roux by whisking it together for 1-2 minutes. (See How to Make a Roux for extra info)
- SEASONINGS. Add chili powder, garlic powder, salt, cumin, and oregano and mix until clumpy.
- THICKEN. Pour in chicken broth, whisking the entire time, until there are no more lumps. Simmer for about 15 minutes or until the sauce is thickened. The sauce is thick enough when it coats the back of a wooden spoon well.
Kristyn’s Recipe Tips
- We highly recommend Gebhardt’s Chili Powder – it’s flavorful and doesn’t give you the brown color of sauce as some generic chili powders do. Increase or decrease the chili powder based on the spiciness level you are looking for.
- This sauce freezes so well!! When reheating, remove the freezer and let it thaw in the fridge overnight and then reheat in a pot on the stove (heat and whisk until smooth). Add more chicken broth if needed to thin it out.
- PRO TIP: Quadruple the batch of seasonings, or even the homemade red enchilada sauce recipe to use for later. Combine the following ingredients and keep them in a jar in the cabinet:
- ¾ cup Gebhardt chili powder
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- Spoon out 3 heaping tablespoons of the mixture which is equivalent to about one batch of red enchilada sauce. Makes for easy cooking.
Enchilada Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons chili powder, (we prefer Gebhardt’s)
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon oregano
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- 2 cups chicken broth
Instructions
- Add oil to a pot and heat on medium heat. Pour in flour and create a roux by whisking them together for 1-2 minutes.
- Add chili powder, garlic powder, salt, cumin, and oregano and mix until clumpy.
- Pour in chicken broth, whisking the entire time until there are no more clumps. Heat for about 15 minutes or until the sauce is thickened. The sauce is thick enough when it coats the back of a wooden spoon well.
Video
Notes
- ¾ cup Gebhardt chili powder
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- Spoon out 3 heaping tablespoons of the mixture which is equivalent to about one batch of red enchilada sauce. Makes for easy cooking.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Recipe FAQ
To thicken without changing the taste, use a cornstarch slurry. In a separate bowl combine 1 teaspoon cold water and 1 teaspoon cornstarch. Once smooth add it to the pot of sauce. Simmer and stir for a few minutes to thicken. Repeat if necessary.
Whisk in ½ cup of heavy cream. This is especially nice when you want to use the sauce as dressing for Nachos, Tacos, or a dip for Quesadillas.
Store this homemade red enchilada sauce in a jar in the refrigerator for up to 4 days or freeze for up to 2-3 months.
More Like This
Mexican Sauces and Dips
Recipes to Make With Enchilada Sauce
Collections
This recipe was originally published January 2019.
Best sauce ever. Delicious
I have never made enchilada sauce before. It sounds good. It is on my to make list. Thanks
This sauce is so good that it is worth making from scratch! Opening a can would be so much quicker, but 20 mintues to make this sauce takes my enchiladas to the authentic level. The difference is amazing! Happy cinco de mayo : )
Once made, can this homemade enchilada sauce be frozen and, if so, for how long please?
I love this recipe. Not sure why my batch is more brown than red. Thanks for sharing.
You’re welcome!
Hi there!! Just double checking. Is this recipe 3,303 mg of sodium? Where is that coming from? Thank you!
The sodium comes from the chicken broth, chili powder, garlic powder, cumin, salt and flour.
Hands down the best enchilada sauce I’ve ever had! Only used 2 tbs of chili powder. I’ll never buy canned sauce again! The recipe was super easy! I can’t believe I’ve never tried to make it from scratch before now. Thank goodness I ran out of canned, otherwise I never would have found this recipe. Thank you so much for this delicious recipe!
Can you can this sauce?
I wouldn’t, but you can freeze it! Divide the sauce into 3-4 airtight freezer-safe containers, label, and freeze for up to 2 months. Then when I’m ready to make enchiladas I typically take out the sauce the day before and let it thaw overnight in the refrigerator. I then heat it up on the stove until it is smooth.
Best sauce ever. It’s very forgiving.. we don’t care for oregano so I omit it. We’re seniors who enjoy spice but not heat, I cut the garlic and cumin back to 3/4 of what recipe calls for we use 2 1/2 TBSP of Chile powder. I find that I use my spices regularly fresher powder spices depending on brand can be exceptionally strong. I can always add more once my taster husband tries it. Thank you for the authentic original enchilada sauce recipe. Kudos
Fast easy and delicious with Hatch fine ground red Chile. Better than canned, I prefer homemade.
I’ve made mine almost the same but forgot main ingredient my grandma used for flavor…cumin!! Thank you!!
You’re welcome!
The sauce and the leftover roast beef enchilada recipe are unbelievable great. I have given this recipe out to 2 of my friends so far. My husband and I LOVE it. Thank you.
Hi! I am new to your site…. Made the enchilada sauce earlier… it is perfect! I added some onion powder as well. Thanks for a keeper!
You’re welcome! I’m so glad that you loved the recipe! Thanks for giving it a try!
Made this last night for dinner and it will now be my go to recipe for red enchilada sauce. My 11 year old daughter loves it so much. Thank you for sharing! The key I learned was whisking it well to get that consistency I wanted. I did add a little more brother and a little tomato sauce and it was just perfect. I just shared this recipe with my sister who uses the canned sauce. Once you have all your kitchen staples stocked you can easily prepare delicious homemade sauces like this at any time.
Used just 2.5 tap of chili powder and it was perfect for my parents. We usually make a big batch from scratch (chilis). Love making enchiladas and with my parents moving in, wasn’t sure what I should do. This was easy and good. Mom even said she wanted the recipe for the beef enchiladas I made today.
Absolutely 𝗔𝗠𝗔𝗭𝗜𝗡𝗚 and delicious!
Quick and easy to make. 𝑻𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒌 𝒚𝒐𝒖 for all the tips through your recipe, you are very much appreciated.
𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝘂𝗲𝗱 𝗕𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 to you & yours.
I haven’t tried this yet because of the sodium content being quite high. Is this an error? I love the recipes of yours that I have tried previously!
Thank you!
You can definitely adjust the amount of salt in the recipe to lower the sodium content. You’ll have to let us know what you do and how you like it! 🙂
Great flavor. I didn’t like the canned enchilada sauce. It was very thin and tasted like the can. This sauce has a great flavor and was thicker.
Love this recipe! First time I tried it and I will never go back to the can version! So yummy and easy ❤
This is one of our favorites. We never buy enchilada sauce we only make it now.
I didn’t write because I haven’t use the recipe yet. I like everything else that you have so I figured this would be a hit as well. I just wondered why you do not have to use tomato paste or tomato sauce because most of the recipes that I used before call for one of those. Thanks
So easy just like how my mom made it!
Addicting!!! I make enchiladas just so I can eat this sauce!!!
Yummy!! I’m so glad you love it. I could practically drink the stuff. 😉
Didn’t include all ingredients and measurements (broth or flour)
Hi Culinary Student! If you scroll to the bottom of the post, or you can click on “jump to recipe” up at the top, it will take you right to the recipe card which includes ingredients, measurements and instructions for the sauce.
Love this recipe!!! This is perfect sauce!
Thank you! I’m so glad you loved the sauce. It’s our favorite!
Being a mother of 5 I didnt stress out about getting dinner on the table. I grew up with can sauce and with covid it totally gave me a chance to venture out more. Super easy and ingredients I already have in hand !! Lil Luna is trusted and this family aprroves
Thank you!! That means so much! I’m so glad you love the recipes!
Sorry that is not enchilada sauce.all you need is guajillo chiles,soaked to hydrate or boiled to soften.garlic onion salt to taste,blend all heat cooking oil then fry the chile sauce until cooked…add water to determine sauce thickness- not flour-…that’s all folks
Your recipe for enchilada sauce sounds great too. There are lots of ways to make recipes, aren’t there? 🙂 Thanks for sharing!
Great sauce and quick! I grew up in the Southwest and had a lot of friends with little grandma’s who made us authentic Mexican food this sauce reminds me of that food.
Oh my gosh, the best red sauce I have ever had. No more can sauce for me. Easy to make and the entire family loved the flavor.
I’m not sure how you got to a calorie count of 100…
2 tbsp of vegetable oil = 240 cal
4 tbsp of flour = 128 cal
2 cups chicken broth =25 cal
Should be around 400 cal per jar…
Still, fantastic recipe. Delicious.
Great content can’t wait to experiment
Hope you enjoy!!
Bar none the Best enchilada sauce ever had!
Thank you! So glad you love the sauce too!
Made this for some ground beef enchiladas to take to work. I also made another batch with a jarred sauce (which is a good sauce BTW) and it was voted that this homemade sauce was better by 90% of my team! Win Win!
Yes!! That’s so awesome. So glad everyone enjoyed the sauce! Thanks for sharing.
My hispanic mother made her sauce like this. So glad I found you.
Is this sauce very spicy? Hers wasn’t. Hers was mild for the grandkids to eat. Dad and the rest topped it off with Chile if they wanted hotter. I’m now 76 and I have to watch hot food.
I live in Oregon now and I can not find this brand mom used it also.
Where can I find it?
We to had Xmas eve with Mexican food. Especially tamales! I want to do Mexican for Xmas eve this year.
Love and have made several of your recipes.
Thank you Merry Christmas
We love Mexican for Christmas Eve too! Such a fun tradition. I don’t think the recipe is overly spicy. You can adjust the heat depending on how you and your family like it by how much chili powder you put in it. I have found this brand at Walmart or my local Kroger store. You can find it on Amazon as well. Merry Christmas!
The best enchilada sauce!! So simple yet soo good!
Hands down the best red enchilada sauce!
I had no idea it was this easy to make! I’m never buying canned again!
Best homemade red enchilada sauce! And I do t even like red enchilada sauce!!
This is sooo much better then store bought sauce! Love it!
This is the the best! I was always scared to make my own sauce because I thought it had to be hard! This was so easy and way better than anything from a can! Make sure to use Gebharts!
This is so good and easy! I usually double it my family likes it so much! My chili powder is pretty strong so I do decrease that amount some. Never buying can or jar sauce again!
This sauce was so good! Everyone in the family loved it!
I had never made homemade enchilada sauce until I found this recipe. It is SO easy and I love it!
So glad you love it! Once you try it homemade, it’s hard to go back to the canned stuff. 🙂 Thanks for giving the recipe a try!
Excellent recipe. Perfect every time 😊
Seriously the BEST sauce enchilada sauce! THE BEST!!! So creamy and yummy!
What kind of oregano do you use?
I use dried oregano. Any brand works, honestly. McCormick is always a good brand that you can find at most grocery stores, but store brand works fine too!
I have made this countless times and put it on everything!!!
Ah, that is so awesome! I’m glad that you love the sauce!! Thanks for sharing.
My wife and I love your red enchilada sauce. I would like to add beef stew meat or beef tips and make red burritos. How would you prepare and cook the “basic” meat with out much seasoning as to not change the flavor of the sauce? I would add the warmed meat to the sauce when done.
Thanks in advance.
Daryl
Oh I’m so happy to hear you enjoy the sauce!! Yeah, adding beef is a great idea. We love using leftover pot roast (or even just cooking a roast) like in our Beef Enchilada recipe. This has both the beef and uses the red enchilada sauce: https://lilluna.com/beef-enchiladas/. We highly recommend! 🙂
How much chicken broth do you add to the recipe?
2 cups 🙂
I was just about to make your enchilada recipe and opened my cans of enchilada sauce. The canned sauce was terrible, so I made this homemade sauce and it is absolutely delicious!
Yay!! Happy you think so! Thank you!
Delicious!!
Can you can this sauce?
I will quadruple the entire sauce recipe and then STORE the leftovers in a freezer-safe container in the freezer (which can last for up to 2 months). It can also be stored in the fridge for up to 4 days. Then, when I’m ready to make enchiladas I typically take out the sauce the day before and let it thaw overnight in the fridge. I think heat it up on the stove until it is smooth. If it’s too thick, you can add a little more chicken broth to thin it out.
I should have made a double batch. So much more tasty than store bought!
Love to hear that!! Thank you so much!
Your red enchilada sauce is the best EVER! I made it for the first time today and will never use another recipe or canned sauce again.
You’ve made my day! Thank you for saying that!
Have been searching for a recipe that I could use that reminded me of my moms. This is the best and most similar sauce that I can compare to what I grew up on. For a spicier sauce we use New Mexico chile powder and it gives it a good kick.
I am glad you found it! Thank you!
This is such an easy and delicious sauce!
I ran out of canned enchilada sauce one time and I’m glad I did! I used this recipe and oh my, game changer! Never again will I buy canned when this is cheaper and so much better! Do yourself a favor and make this instead of canned!
I grew up with homemade enchiladas from my Mexican grandmothers who passed it town to my parents. When I moved away it was very hard to recreate…UNTIL I found This one! It’s easy and delicious!!!
I don’t like canned enchilada sauce. I’ve tried several recipes and this one is my favorite. I actually think this is how I found you.
This is by far the best enchilada sauce ever. Enchiladas are delicious!
Thank you for sharing your “family recipes” with us! I love this sauce…it’s taken me a while to find a red sauce that my entire family likes and this is it!!
You will never buy red enchilada sauce in a can again!! This is my go to recipe when making enchiladas.
My family loves this!!
I am so happy they do! Thank you for letting me know!
We love your enchilada sause, i make it evertime i make chicken enc for my famil. I have to triple the recipe.
I love to hear that! I am so happy you like it! Thank you for letting me know!
I must say, I made this so easily. it was shocking. I plan to freeze dry it and then have it powdered for using when I want. I saw your Green enchilada sauce worked up this way–it gave me the idea. I will be doing that as well. Thanks for the excellent recipe. Wow
Glad to share 🙂 You will have to let me know how it turns out 🙂
“Can never go back to canned!
This sauce is so good, so thick and just like in your favorite mexican restaurant. highly recommend!
Thank you for saying that 🙂
Loved your bio. Stinking kids. Love it!
Awe, thank you 🙂 Hope you find some recipes to try!
Made this using avocado oil, gluten free flour, and vegetable broTh. Amazing!!
Glad you think so 🙂 Thank you for sharing what you did!
Can you sub veggie broth for the chicken broth? Thank you. I look forward to making this.
yes you can-I made it vegetarian the first time I made it. Very good!
you’re right, I will never by canned sauce again. Thanks for the great recipe! So easy and delicious ?.
Woohoo!! Happy to hear that! Thank you so much!
I’ve tried different recipes for enchilada sauce and this is the Best by far. Simple and comes together fast. I usually double mine cause I love my enchiladas saucy. Thanks for the recipe!!
You are welcome!! Thank you so much for saying that! That makes me so happy!
Made this, delicious! Wen a step further. I put sauce through a fine mesh stainer. Made the sauce silky smooth saved the “paste”. Put in ice cube trays. NOw i have seasoning for chili, tacos, enchilAdas, etc.
Great idea!! I will have to try that! Thank you so much for sharing that!
Wow!, i Never like enchilada sauce when trying many different mexi RESTAURANTS..To the point I always order enchiladas without it. But, i hesitantly tried this sauce and absolutely loved it!….This sauce is easy and so much better than store bought.
That makes me so happy!! I love to hear that 🙂 Thank you so much for giving it a try!
So INCREDIBLY easy And insanely delicious! I havent had better enchilada sauce ever i honestly cant believe I was able to make this in my home!
Glad you can make it on your home, too! Thank you for saying that!
Really easy and yummy on the spice factor. Only change would be less salt. A bit to salty FOr us.
I am so glad you tried it 🙂 Thank you so much!
I have used all kinds of canned enchilada sauces, but that has changed due to this recipe. I was the easiest and had the most amazing flavor. I will never by canned again. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
You are so welcome!! I am so glad you found this recipe 😉
This was amazing! My fam always loveS my enchiladas but they said this sauce made them over the top good!
Yay!! I am so glad your family liked them! Thank you so much for sharing that!
Excellent!
So glad you think so 🙂 Thank you so much for letting me know!
I’m surprised to see no recipe for homemade tamales or sopapias, two recipes I’d really like to have! Love hot tamales, love sopapias with a drizzle of honey!
No, I do not, but I would like to! My family makes tamales & I love them, so maybe one day, I’ll the recipe up!
There are no ingredients shown here to make the sauce red. How does it become red sauce?
The chili powder makes the sauce red 🙂
There are several questions about chili puree but the recipe does not have it listed or did i miss something??
I have updated the recipe, so it could be from the previous one 😉
Can you use flour tOrtillas instead?
You sure could 🙂 Enjoy!!
Being a Texan in Montana i have been looking for Good enchiladas. This amazing sauce allows me to make Great enchiladas right at home. super easy and delicious! Thank you, KrIstyn!
You are welcome!! I am so glad you like it, as much as we do! Thank you!
Could a person make enough to can it
Yes, for sure. It lasts in the freezer for a couple months or in the fridge for like 4-5 days. Best to keep in the fridge or freezer.
Can a person make this and can it
You can keep it in the freezer for up to 2 months or in the fridge for 4 days. I like to make more & freeze it 🙂
This is seriously so much better than the store bought stuff! So Easy tO make too! Thanks for the RecipE @ liLluna!
You are so welcome!! So glad you like it, as much as I do! Thank you!
I’ve made this twice and my family is crazy about iT! I doubled the recipe this time, because the single batch wasn’t quite enough for our cheese enchiladas. This will definitely be a go-to recipe for me now.
That makes me so happy to hear!! Thank you so much for letting me know & trying it!
Life changing! It may sound corny but seriously, this sauce was soooo delicious and super easy! I have been using another blogs homemade recipe for the last few years and decided to give this one a try. So glad I did!!
I am glad you did, too! Thank you for trying it!
Lovely sauce!! Thank you for making it so eAsy to do! WondEring how much a serving size is for the 100 cals And also do you think you could do a variation for the chili powder, like adobo maybe? Thank you!
sauce came out dark brown for me and just tastes like chili powder. what did i do wrong? recipe calls for 3 tablespoons of chili powder, but it seems like way too much.
It is 3, but you can use less, depending on what your family likes.
i substituted masa corn flour for regular flour, letting it lightly browned before adding remaIning ingredients. It gave the sauce a wonderful roasted corn flavor!
Perfect! Thank you for sharing that!
This sauce us ABSOLUTELY amazing!!! I will never use any other saUce for my enchiladas!! My kids loved it!!!
Yay!! I love hearing that! Thank you for sharing that!
Love it. I am now making your sauce. Thank you for sharing.
You are so welcome!! I am so happy you like it! Thank you!
Excellent sauce! Clear directions. I used vegetable broth due to having a vegetarian eater. I was a little concerned that i had not taken into Account the salt in the Broth, but it turned Out great. I skipped the oregano becaUse i didn’t think my diners would be expecting that flavor. To make 18, i doubled the recipe. They were plenty saucy, but might triple next tIme and make tWo dozen and have some sauce ledt over for drizzLing on top before baking.
Thank you for sharing that!! Glad you liked it!!
I just spent the last two hours trying to re-find this website amongst all the imposters! I absolutely love this recipe and it will be passed down from generation to generation in my family forever!!! Thank you for sharing.
You are so welcome!! I am glad to share what I love & I am glad you found me!!
I have to be gluten free. I use potatoe starch instead of flour. Should I use that here or corn meal?
I haven’t tried either, so I would use whatever you usually use to substitute. I wouldn’t know how they each make it turn out.
Wonder sauce!!! I live alone, so I pour sauce into ice cube trays, freeze, then ziplock the cubes for meals. I was us a very good sauce from AllrecipEs, but Yours is even bettEr. I still do enchladas the old fashioned way, fry the tortillas lightly, dip, & roll. My kids do the prep still, but they stack into a casserole style. Thanks for posting!! Blessings!!!
That sounds perfect!! I will have to try that! Thank you!
What was the old recipe? My family loved that one and i cant find It. Thanks
I no longer have the older version 🙁 But, this one is just as good 🙂
Hello, recently made your basic bread recipe, first time using yeast and it turned out phenomenal!! My husband and i ate way more than 2 people should HAVE….Anyways, I’M looking through your other recipes and have stumbled on this sauce. Curious HOW long it lasts? If i make the sauce and am not using it IMMEDIATELY. Can i store it in the fridge for a bit? Thank you for your help!
Yay!! Thank you so much for trying the bread! Yes, you sure could. I would keep it a week or so.
this looks so good. I know what is going to be on my menu next week! i prefer homemade sauces so thanks so much for this new recipe!
This is the saMe sauce recipe my hispanic grandma uses! It is perfect for anY recipe calLing for red enChilada sauCe. So good!
Mine too. With the exception of served New Mexico style (layered flat) and with minced white onion. Top off with a fried egg. Soooo good.
Our favorite red chili sauce! Easy to make and comes together quickly. I love to make this in a big batch so I can use in other recipes. Such a great sauce to have on hand.
This sauce is amazing! it is perfect for enchiladas! It is so easy to make & love that I can store it, to use for other recipes.
wHAT IS MEXICAN CHEESE? PLEASE EXPLAIN
It is a cheese blend of usually, Monterey Jack, Cheddar, A Queso blend.
please post the oil and flour measurements. really excited to try!
It is 2 tablespoons of oil & 4 tablespoons of flour 🙂 Hope you like it!
I haven’t watched the video, but I don’t see the measurements for the oil or flour in the recipe.