Quick Red Enchilada Sauce

Several years ago, I learned a super quick enchilada sauce recipe. It called for broiling onions and garlic, then simmering them for 7 minutes with a can of peeled tomatoes, 1 chipotle in adobo sauce, and a little bit of water.

For the effort, the sauce tasted incredibly complex with notes of smoke and char as well as a good balance of acidity and sweetness.

Last week, when the tomatoes began arriving both in the farm share and the garden, I made the sauce using fresh tomatoes in place of the canned. And, inspired by this salsa roja recipe, I broiled all of the vegetables — the tomatoes, onions, garlic, and jalapeño — together.

In 10 minutes, when the vegetables had blistered, I puréed them with a chipotle in adobo sauce and enough water to thin the sauce to a pourable consistency. The purée alone tasted delicious, but a touch too sweet thanks to all of the peak season produce. To balance this sweetness, I added a few tablespoons of fresh lime juice — just the job!

Friends, this enchilada sauce is so tasty. It has all the elements you expect from this type of sauce — heat, smoke, acidity — but it has a freshness and brightness that its forerunner lacks. What’s more, it’s truly a snap to throw together. It yields about a quart of sauce, enough to make many servings of your favorite enchiladas. Find a few of mine below.

PS: Quick Sautéed Cherry Tomato Sauce

5 Favorite Enchilada Recipes

1. Lasagna-style enchiladas: Here, you layer tortillas in a casserole dish with enchilada sauce, cheese, scallions, cilantro, and shredded chicken (or grilled, rotisserie, roasted, etc.). Then you bake it for 15 minutes — so simple, so good.
2. Roasted vegetable enchiladas: In place of the chicken in this recipe, use roasted vegetables: eggplant, peppers, onion, summer squash — whatever you have on hand. Leftover corn, stripped from the cob is a great addition.
3. Black bean and cheese enchiladas: The success of this recipe relies on using well seasoned black beans. These slow-cooker black beans are so tasty and so simple — the base recipe has become my favorite way to cook beans.
4. Chicken tinga: I learned this recipe many years ago while working at Fork. I typically use tinga for tacos or tostados, but recently I’ve been using it as an enchilada filling with Monterey Jack cheese. (I recently made this in the Instant Pot … recipe soon!)
5. Kale and mushroom: Sauté a mix of mushrooms with a little bit of garlic. Add finely slivered kale. Cook briefly until the kale wilts. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Layer with Monterey Jack cheese.

Here’s the play-by-play: Gather your ingredients: tomatoes, 1 onion, 6 cloves garlic, and a jalapeño. You’ll need 1 chipotle in adobo sauce as well as a lime.

Spread the vegetables onto a sheet pan. Toss with a tablespoon of oil and a teaspoon of salt.

Broil for 10 minutes or until nicely charred.

Transfer to a food processor, and purée until smooth.

Add a chipotle in adobo sauce, and purée again.

Add fresh lime juice and salt, and purée again.

Taste, and adjust with salt. Add water to thin.

Transfer to storage jars until ready to use.

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