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The Best Homemade Enchilada Sauce

March 17th, 2010 11:56:40 am

Enchilada sauce is very easy to make, and once you've tasted it you'll never want the canned store-bought stuff again. It's perfect not just for enchiladas, but also for nachos, tamales, dribbled over tacos, burritos, huevos con chorizo or as a base for chile con carne-- you get the picture. I like to use it as a base for a delicious red sopa de albondigas, too. Really, its uses are endless. This may be the most versatile Mexican dish you ever make.

This is a basic recipe I've been using for years. You can customize it to your family's tastes, of course, but I think it's pretty much perfect as is. Of course, I might be biased.

HOMEMADE ENCHILADA SAUCE
Makes about 3 Cups

Ingredients:

4 Tbsp vegetable oil
6 Tbsp flour
4 Tbsp chili powder
1 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. Mexican oregano powder
3/4 tsp. salt
1 pinch ground cinnamon (really, just a tiny amount)
1/2 tsp. sugar
3 Cups chicken broth (can use water, in a pinch)

Directions:

Pour the vegetable oil into a saucepan over medium heat and whisk in all the dry ingredients. Cook for about 1 (one) minute, whisking the whole time, until everything is thoroughly mixed. Be careful not to let it burn.

Now add the 3 cups of chicken broth, whisking steadily the whole time so no lumps form. Cook over medium heat until the sauce has thickened to the consistency of a thin gravy, stirring constantly. This takes just a few minutes. Remove from heat, and it's ready to go!

Once in a while I'll add about 1/2 tsp. of cocoa powder to give it a bit of a mole flavor. Don't overdo it-- a little bit goes a long way.

Buen provecho!

If you have a favorite recipe for a Mexican or Mexican-inspired dish, I'd love to add it to our recipe box! email lahuerita2@gmail.com (and put "recipe" in the subject box so I'll know what it's about)

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