Ready in 15 minutes or less, this homemade enchilada sauce will quickly become your go to for all your favourite Mexican dishes. Say goodbye to the canned stuff forever!
Why make enchilada sauce from scratch?
I love making dips and sauces from scratch and avoiding the canned stuff as much as possible.
When the canned goods have tons of artificial colours, flavours, added oil and sugar, it just makes sense to make your own. Especially when it’s THIS easy!
In only 15 minutes, with minimal prep work you can have an absolutely delicious, perfectly spicy Mexican red sauce. Plus, when you make it yourself, you have full control on the level of spiciness.
As an added bonus, this enchilada sauce recipe is not only vegan, but it’s gluten free, soy free, nut free and very allergen friendly.
How to make homemade enchilada sauce
This recipe for Mexican enchilada sauce really couldn’t get much easier.
Gather your ingredients:
- Jalapenos, anywhere from 1-3 depending on your spice tolerance. For a mild sauce, stick to 1 jalapeno and remove the seeds. For medium, 1-2 jalapenos with the seeds and for hot, use 3 jalapenos and their seeds.
- Low sodium vegetable broth (or skip the salt if using regular sodium)
- Tomato paste
- Chili powder
- Cumin
- Garlic powder
- Salt
- Corn starch to thicken, optional depending on your use for the sauce.
Finely chop your jalapeno and add them to a small sauce pot with a tablespoon or two of the vegetable broth.
Sauté for a couple minutes, until softened.
Then add all remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium/low and simmer until slightly reduced and thickened, approx 8 minutes.
Serve your vegan enchilada sauce with all of your favourite Mexican dishes, or any dish that could use a little spice.
How long does it keep?
Any leftover sauce will keep in a sealed jar or container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Alternatively, you may freeze for up to 1 month.
How to use enchilada sauce
You can add this sauce to any dish that you’d like to kick up a notch, but one of my very favourites is this Veggie Enchilada Casserole.
It would also make a great addition to my Easy Vegan Cauliflower Tacos or Mexican Zucchini Boats.
More Mexican favourites!
- Mexican Stuffed Peppers with Walnut Cheese Sauce
- Mexican Corn Salad
- Oil Free Mexican Inspired Taco Buddha Bowl
- Instant Pot Mexican Casserole
- 3 Minute Easy Guacamole
If you tried this recipe, please let me know about it in the comments below. I always love hearing from you! Don’t forget to Subscribe to This Healthy Kitchen to be among the first to get my new recipes! You can also FOLLOW ME on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and Twitter to see more delicious food and get all the latest updates.
Buon appetito,
Rosa
📖 Recipe
Ingredients
- 1-3 jalapenos very finely chopped
- 2 cups low sodium vegetable broth
- 4 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch to thicken, OPTIONAL
Instructions
- Add the jalapeno with a tablespoon or two of your broth to a small saucepan and sauté for 2 minutes.
- Add all remaining ingredients, mix well and bring to a boil. Then reduce heat to medium low and simmer for 8 minutes until slightly reduced.
- Use in your favourite Mexican dishes.
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