Green Enchilada Sauce

Homemade Green Enchilada sauce is tangy and rich and, best of all, such an easy recipe to make yourself! Just roast green chiles, then simmer them with tomatillos, onions, garlic, jalepeños and spices. Give the mixture a quick blend and you're ready to make authentic chicken enchiladas from scratch!

Course Main Course

Cuisine Mexican

Keyword blender, Cinco de Mayo, easy, gluten free, low fat, vegan, vegetarian

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 50 minutes

Total Time 1 hour

Servings ¼ cup servings

Calories 20kcal

Author Marissa Stevens

Ingredients

1 ½ pounds Hatch chile peppers or Anaheim chile peppers
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound tomatillos papery coverings removed and diced
2 medium white onions thinly sliced
8 cloves garlic peeled and coarsely chopped
2 jalapeño peppers stem, seeds and membrane removed, chopped (see recipe note #1)
1 tablespoon ground cumin
3 cups water
salt and freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400°F.
Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and arrange chiles on it in a single layer. Roast chiles for 30 minutes then transfer to bowl and cover for at least 15 minutes or until cool enough to handle.
When chiles are cool enough to handle, remove stems, skin and seeds; coarsely chop.
Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add tomatillos, onion, garlic and jalapeño; cook and stir until soft, about 15 minutes. Add chopped chiles, cumin and water and bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Blend in 2 or 3 batches, taking care to have a similar ratio of liquid to solids and covering the blender with a towel not the lid if the sauce is hot.
Pour sauce into canning jars or other heat-safe containers and let cool. Refrigerate or freeze sauce or use it right away!

Video

Notes

Important Notes:

Please note that handling raw chiles that have been cut up can severely irritate your skin. I always recommend wearing gloves when working with raw chiles.
Hatch chiles and Anaheim chiles may be used interchangeably, but Hatch are often hotter. Take care when buying your chiles, to notice whether they are 'mild,' 'medium,' or 'hot.' The spiciness of your sauce will reflect your choice of chiles! And note that seeds add heat. So if you want a mild sauce, be sure to discard them.
Feel free to use chicken stock or chicken broth in place of water if you prefer.
This sauce freezes beautifully and this recipe makes 9 cups, enough for 3 batches of 8 enchiladas. I recommend freezing leftover sauce in 3-cup portions.
Refrigerate the enchilada sauce up to 5 days or freeze for up to 3 months.

Nutrition