Easy Enchilada Sauce

This homemade enchilada sauce recipe tastes incredible, and you can make it with pantry staples like chili powder, tomato paste, and spices.

We love enchiladas (see our chicken enchiladas and green enchiladas as proof!). This enchilada sauce recipe is ridiculously easy to make. I bet you even have most, if not all, of what you need sitting in your kitchen right now.

This sauce is perfect for homemade enchiladas, burrito bowls, drizzling onto tacos, and more! The flavor beats the store-bought cans, too. If you want a more authentic sauce made with dried chiles, see this authentic enchilada sauce.

Key Ingredients

• Flour and Oil: This combo helps thicken our enchilada sauce. You’ll cook a bit of all-purpose flour in avocado oil (substitute olive oil or vegetable oil) to make a roux that will thicken your sauce nicely. For gluten-free enchilada sauce, use your favorite gluten-free flour blend.
• Chili Powder: I use a generous amount of chili powder for this sauce. I love ancho chili powder, or use your favorite store-bought blend. When I have it on hand, I also love this homemade chili powder, which is much more flavorful than most options sold at stores.
• Extra Spices: I add ground cumin, garlic powder (or fresh garlic), coriander, and oregano to create a complex and delicious sauce. Mexican oregano is my preferred choice if you can find it.
• Tomato Paste: This adds a rich flavor and color to our delicious sauce.
• Broth: I use a light broth. Low-sodium chicken broth or vegetable broth from the store is excellent, but I also love homemade chicken broth or veggie broth if I have them on hand. tomato broth would be good, too!
• Salt and Apple Cider Vinegar: Salt seasons the sauce, while the vinegar balances the flavors and brings everything together. I only use 1 teaspoon of vinegar, which makes a big difference.

Find the full recipe with measurements below.

How to Make Enchilada Sauce

Tip 1: Cook flour with oil. The first step to this simple sauce is giving the flour a bit of time to cook eliminates any raw flour flavor. You want the saucepan to smell a little toasty. When it does, you can follow up with the other enchilada sauce ingredients.

Tip 2: Add tomato paste and spices. Stir the spices (chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, coriander, and oregano) and tomato paste into the flour and oil. Then, let it cook, stirring frequently, until the tomato paste turns from bright red to orange before pouring in the broth. This is a great tip for any recipe that calls for tomato paste. If you don’t cook it, it tastes raw.

Tip 3: Make it mild or spicy. As written, our enchilada sauce turns out mild, but you can always bump up the heat. Consider whisking a little ground hot chili powder or cayenne into the sauce at the end. If you have a local Mexican market, look for ground chile powder to add, too.

Ways to Use Enchilada Sauce

I love using this sauce for chicken enchiladas made with shredded chicken mixed with enchilada sauce, wrapped in corn tortillas, and baked with cheese on top. Or make veggie enchiladas filled with veggies and beans (like these creamy black beans).

But it’s versatile too! Try tossing it with roasted shrimp or other proteins for rice bowls or salads. It even adds a delicious kick to scrambled eggs, taco salad, or soups like chicken tortilla soup.