Homemade Green Enchilada Sauce
This simple, homemade green enchilada sauce tastes far better than storebought. It can be used in so many recipes as a substitute!
Is it normal for one to get insanely excited about homemade enchilada sauce? Is it?
Come on, tell me the truth; you don’t have to spare my feelings.
I must be really ok with my nerdiness to confess that I think I let out a little scream of joy when my friend, Liz, sent me this recipe for homemade green enchilada sauce.
I don’t think I knew until that moment that I’d been waiting my whole life for this. Insert angels singing.
I frequently use the sauce part of this recipe when I want homemade red enchilada sauce but a delicious green variety has eluded me, and I am so very happy to add this to my DIY collection.
It tastes a million bazillion times better than the brands I’ve bought in the past and is pretty darn simple.
Just wait until you see the first recipe I used it in.
Think: 30-minute skillet meal bursting with all sorts of Tex-mex fall flavors. {Update: here’s the divine enchilada skillet I posted using this homemade green enchilada sauce.}
I can’t wait to use this mean green sauce in some of our family favorites that call for green enchilada sauce:
Smothered Sweet Pork Burritos
Skillet Chicken with Mexican Green Rice
White Chicken Enchiladas
Honey Lime Chicken or Pork Enchiladas
Chicken Enchilada Pasta
FAQ For Green Enchilada Sauce
Yes, after the peppers have been roasted, dice and measure them.
Unfortunately, this recipe has not been tested for canning safety and I cannot recommend that it be water bath or pressure canned.
Yes! Many people have commented they’ve made this recipe with Hatch chiles, and it turns out delicious!
One Year Ago: Classic Tomato Soup (and Tuna Melts!)
Two Years Ago: Creamy Garlic Alfredo Sauce {My Go-To Dinner Saver!}
Three Years Ago: Cream Cheese Chicken and Vegetable Soup
Homemade Green Enchilada Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons oil
- ½ cup finely chopped onion
- 1-2 garlic cloves, finely minced
- 3 tablespoons flour
- ¼ teaspoon cumin
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 ½ cups low-sodium chicken or vegetable broth
- 1 cup Anaheim or poblano chiles, roasted and peeled OR 1 cup canned diced green chiles, rinsed and drained
- ¼ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 medium jalapeno, finely diced (optional)
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat until hot. Add the onion and garlic and cover. Cook for 5-6 minutes, stirring once or twice to make sure the garlic and onions aren’t sticking (adjust the heat if they are). Cook until the onions are soft but not browned.
- Stir in the flour and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly. It’s ok if the flour clumps around the onions, just keep stirring to let the flour get golden and toasty.
- Gradually add the broth, whisking quickly and constantly to smooth out any lumps.
- Add all the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. The sauce should be silky and thickened – able to coat a spoon but still drip off. Add more broth to thin out if needed.
- Add additional salt to taste, if needed. The sauce can be processed in a blender if you prefer a smoother consistency. It will keep well in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. Otherwise, it can be frozen – probably up to a month or two if well sealed.
Notes
Recommended Products
Recipe Source: from my friend, Liz K. (thanks, Liz!)
202 Comments on “Homemade Green Enchilada Sauce”
This has been a staple in my house for years. My youngest took the recipe with him when he got married and moved out. It was his favorite. I add just about 1/2 c. of heavy cream which just makes it so awesome.
This is the best homemade enchilada sauce I’ve ever made. I used prepared Knors bouillon, and I did add 1 small can of Rotel tomato with green chilies because I needed a little bit more sauce. Then I added cut up Thanksgiving turkey to make my enchiladas. Thank you so much for this 5 star recipe. I really look forward to making more of this and other recipes of yours. So blessed I found your “kitchen cafe”.
i quadrupled the recipe for a (freezer) burrito rolling marathon (285) and added this to the refried beans. Everyone was obsessed with this sauce. I just have to say that I have never complained about green sauce from a can but I am totally converted and wonder what else I am missing in life. Everything is so much better made fresh and with love. Thanks for inspiring me to try more new things
Was looking for a quick and easy green hatch chili sauce and this one fits the bill!!! It was ready in less than 20 mins. Served this with roasted pork loin slices on top of Mexican hominy and drizzled it over top. I then added some fresh cilantro for garnish with a lime wedge and corn tortillas! The kids loved it! Will use remaining for chicken enchiladas tomorrow night! Thank you for a great recipe!
I used 2 large red bell peppers instead of anaheim or pablanos. about half a yellow onion. Didn’t have broth so just used water and basically doubled all the seasonings. Added a little bit of this and that, umami seasoning, sea kelp, italian seasoning, more garlic, onion powder. I had to add a lot more water to the pot because it was too thick at first. Added Oyster mushrooms and canned jackfruit then let it simmer covered for about 30 minutes. Scooped it into corn tortillas, rolled tight, and air fried for 10 minutes. Topped w guacamole. Delicious!
This is a very good and simple recipe I love it
I made this tonight so I can make the honey lime enchiladas tomorrow. This was so good. I had a bunch of Anaheim peppers that needed to be used so this was perfect. I doubled the recipe and roasted the peppers on the grill. I’m so glad to have an extra serving when I need it. I will probably use this recipe again when I have another big batch of garden peppers.
Easy and delicious. I used no sodium broth so I can add salt to my taste. I also increased cumin to 1 tsp and used fresh oregano. Also, I had bought 2 flats of roasted chili peppers (one mild, one hot) and the heat was perfect- did not need jalapeño . Because I had 6 cups of chopped chilis I 6 times recipe, jarred sauce in hot mason jars and put them in a water bath on simmer for 25mins and they came out beautifully. Made 8 jars (1 2/3c each) This is my 2nd batch of sauce . Cans well. So much better than canned sauce- Hatch green chili enchilada sauce in grocery store has 2520 mg of sodium in one 15 oz can!!
I made a batch of enchiladas using this sauce recipe tonight and my granddaughter just came and told me the enchiladas are so good!! It’s all in the sauce!! It’s the best!!
I used leftover jarred jalapeños from my son’s grad party. Bought a huge container at Sam’s Club. This is wonderful. So many uses for it. I also added about 1/4 cup of honey to tone down the heat a bit. I put the honey in last and kept tasting until I got our perfect heat. Thank you for this recipe, I will be making it again. I combined with sour cream and used it as a dip. I also added it to a cornbread casserole for extra flavor.
Sorry just seen the note in the FAQ above the recipe – thanks!
“Are the peppers measured after they are chopped? Yes, after the peppers have been roasted, dice and measure them.”
Hi Mel and friends,
I’m really excited to try this sauce as we’re growing Anaheim peppers for the first time this summer (especially for this recipe!! 🙂 We’ve never tried them before as they’re not available where we live).
Three chile peppers that are nearly ready to pick and I’m trying to eyeball their volume to see if they’ll be enough… 😉
**??Just wondering whether the chiles should fill 1 cup prior to roasting or after roasting??**
Many thanks!
Delicious! Made it with frozen fire roasted chiles and it tasted so good. Boyfriend loved it too
I was raised just south of Hatch, NM… this creamy green sauce is on point with what’s served at some of my favorite restaurants! I’ll definitely be keeping this and putting it on my regular rotation!
Fantastic! We will make it again.
I doubled the recipe, that was a mistake, I should have quadrupled it! Absolutely delicious! I puréed it, because picky teens, other than that I followed the recipe. It’s a winner!
Thoroughly enjoyed and will do again!!
I love this sauce. I have made it about 4 times so far. I roasted 2 jalapenos and 2 pablano peppers plus added canned green chilis. I made my own broth. It’s easy to make and freezes well so I made a double batch. Ty for sharing your recipe.
Disgusting. If you’ve never had authentic green chile sauce, you might enjoy this. Very not recommended.
You must not have made it correctly if you didn’t like it. I love eaten tons of green Chile and this stuff rocks
I see that on the recipe that you cannot find fresh chile you can order fresh green chile online I believe it’s Young Gun chile company you can try looking them up.
At 65 I have recently fell in love w/ poblamo peppers. I guess I just wanted to branch out my taste buds. I live in Fla and easy to get. I will be making this and some of your other recipes this week.
Bless you Mel! There’s no green sauce to be found for your amazing smothered pork burritos. Now I’m saved.
We live in south central Idaho and have no probs growing Anaheims, poblanos, serranos or jalapenos. And a note on roasting; I roast on my gas grill and once roasted, place the peppers in a zip-lock bag, seal and let cool. Roasting outside on the grill keeps the house from getting too filled up with roasted pepper smell (although there are worse things!), and it lets my Spanish neighbors know that this boy can cook food also…..
This green chili sauce is easy and absolutely delicious!
I’ve made this for the past 3 years. It’s a winner every time. I’ve never not been asked for the recipe. Definitely worth your time …. And taste buds!
Mel, I can it just like I do for Tomatoes, so easy and nice to have on hand,,
Mel, Great recipe, I use fresh Tomatillo roasted on the grill or in the oven , take off the paper skin first, and roast them, just make sure they are on a cookie shee to save the juice.
Chilies I prefer poblano chilies, put them in a plastic zip lock for a few mins after you roast them , if you can find them yet. The skins fall off much better, then everything goes into a food processor just to combine. Leave it a little chunky.
Do you know what the sodium content of this would be without the canned chili’s? I need very low sodium diet for my hubby and me. Also with the canned chili’s? Thanks
I’m afraid I don’t know the sodium content – I’m sorry!
have you ever bottled this recipe? I found this when there was no green sauce in the store and I will never go back to canned stuff. I just would like the convenience of having bottled already Thanks Trisha
I haven’t, I’m sorry!
I have. Well I haven’t done this exact, recipe but I’ve done many green chili and/tomatillo Enchilada sauce recipes solely for canning Because I’m not getting tomatillos for a one off recipe for a family of three so I pretty much have to plan ahead for a couple years. the one thing you want to do is omit the flour. You’re gonna want to add lime juice to a point that it safe to water bath or are use best methods And whether or not I use lime juice I still pressure can. it’s delicious l, stores really well canned, and it last for years. Again even though I haven’t use this exact recipe I’ve used similar ones and it turns out great
Can this be canned?? I am growing A LOT of poblano and jalapeno peppers and I want to make a bunch of this to hopefully last through the year. I have made it and we love it! Thanks for the nummy recipe!
I don’t think it has been tested for canning safety – sorry!
Okay, Thank you for the reply…I may test one myself and see if I croak. 🙂
I have pressure canned it. 45 min for the recommended pounds of pressure for your altitude. I love having it on hand. It does have to be pressure canned.
Technically any recipe with flour added is not safe to can according to the USDA.
Good base recipe that can be easily tweaked to your liking. I always fire roast fresh Anaheims and a Poblano. I prefer mine blended smooth and throw a sprig of cilantro in. I make enough to freeze in small containers and in ice tray cubes. It freezes well for at least 9 months, if it ever stays around that long. Stir in a spoonful of sour cream for a silky, creamy sauce that drapes beautifully over chicken enchiladas. Delish!
I made this with fresh roasted Hatch Chilis. It was amazing. They are seasonal so I’ll make this next with canned chilis. Love this recipe!!!
Where can you buy “real” Hatch chilies? I’ve heard that they’re actually hotter than Anaheim but that doesn’t make sense to me because what I eat hatch chilies out of a canned they’re very very mild can anyone explain
They have differing heats of the chiles from mild to very hot. You can usually buy them in August/September but it’s hit or miss if a grocery store outside of New Mexico sells them. Costco sells a bottle of 505 green chiles that is very good.
I’m New Mexican and we swear by our Hatch Chiles! You can buy a jarred version, from Hatch, on Amazon. The 505 brand I find to be a bit milder than I prefer. We stock up for the year at the end of summer because chiles go on well… everything around here but occasionally we run out and need a fix. My preference is the Hatch brand whether bottled or frozen but I never use canned… yuck!
Amazing! And all these ingredients are available in Canada, so double yay.
MEL thanks for this recipe. I used to get cheese enchiladas that had a similar sauce at restaurant only believe it or no,t it had celery in it too. Onions, chilis and celery were cut chunky. It was the best! Sadly after 20 or so years it closed. So I’m excited to try this recipe.
Absolutely delicious and the BEST green chili sauce recipe out there. I use this recipe for everything from breakfast burritos, chicken enchiladas, to a sauce for pork roast. I even use this recipe to make green chili soup (I add a bit more chicken broth, add pork tenderloin) then put some rice in a bowl then top it with the soup . I finish each bowl of soup with Monterey jack cheese, sour cream on top, and a side warm tortillas for dipping. Soooo good!
Yummy!!!! Thank you!
Never mind. I’m a dummy! I see it. Sorry.
You failed to say what size can of green chilies. or did I miss that?
So I just made this recipe tonight, using 4 fresh Anaheim and 1 fresh poblano, followed the rest of the recipe to a T and it was a little bland after I blended it and added a little salt. I grabbed a can of hatch chili peppers just in case I didn’t have enough fresh peppers after cutting them up, so I added that in with a little cilantro and it was delicious! I think next time I’ll try all canned chilis and try to remember to update my review. Poured it over salsa chicken enchiladas. Very good!
I’ll probably make this using hatch chilis when they’re in season. Great base recipe, easy to tweak and make delicious if your fresh peppers were a little bland like mine.
Came out awesome I used all3 types of Peppers oh my goodness definitely will make more
My 3 kids and I loved this recipe. I have 1 kid that usually complains when i make enchiladas for dinner, and tonight she ate her whole enchilada and thanked me for a delicious dinner. Win!
This sauce is delicious!! I use it to make sweet potato black bean enchiladas… Something about the sweet potato with the tangy sauce is out of this world! I do blend the sauce after it cooks to smooth it out. And I don’t bake it because I don’t add cheese, so baking it just dries the sauce out. I’ve made this almost every week since I discovered it!
WOW!!! Super easy, great tasting sauce with ANYTHING you want a little added spice!!! Keep it chunky for a great steak sauce!!!
I’m fortunate…also having access to the amazing Hatch Green Chili…which eliminates the need for extra heat from the jalapeno in this recipe (I purchase the “hot” Big Jim variety). I generally make a double recipe – having enough for dinner, a container to freeze & a container to share with my neighbor, who supplies me with homemade tamales!!!
Great recipe Mel.
Use “Hatch” canned chilies if you can get those – don’t rinse or drain you’ll lose flavor- then skip the added salt- Walmart might be able to ship Hatch chilies- good recipe- for the rating below there are no words next to the bubbles
I am making this as we speak however i roasted poblano and green chilis on a charcoal bbq. Using them instad of anahiem. May not be as spicy but i also roasted some jalapeno too that i can add if its not hit enough
This is the best enchilada sauce!! We make it frequently from Anaheim’s and jalapenos I grow in the garden. (And I second using an immersion blender!) We even dip chips in the leftover sauce or use it in quesadillas. Yummy!!
Your home made green enchilada sauce is excellent! The sauce is so easy to make – I will not buy canned sauce again. Thank you!
Wow! This was delicious! I did take a few liberties…used beef broth cuz that’s what I had…ran the onions, garlic and jalapeno under the broiler to get a nice char…used the immersion blender (love that thing!) to smooth it out. Thank you! I’ll be using this recipe again. Beats the hell out of any store-bought green enchilada sauce.
I love this recipe. I haven’t bought green enchilada sauce since the first time I made it. I usually end up using half and throwing half in the freezer for later. It is perfect and simple. The flavor cannot be beat! I have only ever used canned chilies, but would love to try it with fresh when I can get my hands on some!
Very Good Easy Enchilada Sauce Recipe. Love my Green Chile.
Simply amazing!
As a fellow green chile aficionado and New Mexico transplant to a land of poor chile choices, I have a quick recommendation for you. You can order really good green chile from Hatch and have it shipped!! Personally I use chilemonster.com, but there are lots of options, just search for Hatch chile delivery
Thanks, Stephanie!
Love this recipe! Our garden is vomiting Anaheim peppers (as well as several other varieties) right now. I pick a big bucket full of them every 4 days or so. I made this recipe last summer and it was great! I used half of it on our dinner that night and froze the other half for a future meal. I’m getting ready to double or maybe triple the recipe to freeze in batches. Great way to use up our peppers!
Is it possible to substitute the flour for 1 1/2 Tablespoons cornstarch and mix that into 1/2 cup of the chicken broth before combining with the onion and garlic and then thickening? Then adding the remainder of the chicken broth after?
I’m trying to minimize the carbs. But I don’t want to use an extremely low carb thickener. Thanks!
I think others in the comment thread have used cornstarch with good results.
Made this today using canned green chiles, unrinsed and left the salt out. I made this to share with a couple who are gluten free and substituted arrow root powder instead of the flour, using 1.5 tbsp (21 g). It turned out perfectly. I puréed in a blender and it looked just like store bought but much healthier and tasted great.
this is a reasonable version of the basic recipe, for sure [corrales new mexico, lived here for 49 years, san antonio when a boy].
poblano chiles are near-universally available now in most groceries–if not go to to your local MEXICAN grocery–they’re everywhere too.
best, grow them yourself. second best buy them from you neighbors.
if you do get fresh, even from the store, roast them on your grill. best taste–even here in new mexico the grills at the stores are naptha or butane fired and give a back taste i hate.
I’m making this recipe tonight. I looked on Amazon and you can buy the poblano seeds to grow yourself. We grow jalepenos but have never done poblanos but peppers are easy to grow. Bell peppers are more difficult but the hotter varieties on the scoville scale are easier. Try it in your kitchen window or patio!
How do you think this would work using green salsa in place of the canned diced chilies and leaving out the 1/2 tsp. salt? Would the chicken broth need to be lowered?
No, just no. Please do not do that. It will not be the same or taste as it should.
Obviously it won’t taste the same, but will it still taste good? I only ask because I’m making Mel’s honey like chicken enchiladas and it says you can use green salsa or enchilada sauce. I thought it would be a good compromise and I don’t have green chilies right now.
Hey Becca – I personally think anything is worth a try as long as you are ok with a change in flavor. If you don’t have green chiles, might as well try it, but I think when you do try it with chiles, it’ll taste a little better. 🙂
Thank you for this! Wonderful flavor and great texture.
I am so excited to try this recipe! I will have access to chili’s in order to roast them (I am in Arizona) but quick hint when roasting your own peppers coat them in oil first, preferably olive oil.
I’m not trying to make you guys feel bad, I live about 30 miles from Hatch, New Mexico.
I ran across your green chili enchilada sauce recipe and I’m about to try it. I’ll let you know how it turns out. Sounds good.
I have become extremely jealous. My skin is the color of a fresh Hatch chili.
We live in the south california mountains and can only find fresh Hatch chilis for maybe a week each year. When we find them I take home every one they have. They make the mostest bestest chili rellenos, and many sauces and can well.
Yummy I made it yesterday delicious and easy!
Whoo-EEE! My garden went bananas with jalapenos and yellow chiles. The flavor of this was absolutely delicious but My use of about 8 or 9 jalapenos and 4 yellow chiles meant it had some HEAT! I’m sure poblanos it’s perfect!!! I oven-broiled the peppers, onion, and garlic until starting to get blackened, then sauteed in the oil until they were cooked the rest of the way through. I did use an immersion blender. Aside from the heat (and that was my bad!), it was outstanding! SOOOO much better than anything vinegary and tinny tasting, out of a can!!! What a great recipe!
Hi Mel!
I was wondering a couple of things about this recipe: 1. How much does it yield as written, and 2. If I wanted to make this in large batches for canning, would I just increase everything equally?
Also, I noticed in one of the older comments someone asking about canning this in a hot water bath. It should be canned with a pressure canner at 10 lbs of pressure for 50 minutes if processing in pint jars. Thanks so much!!
It makes 2-3 cups. And yes, I would just increase everything proportionately. Good luck!
Made this recipe with hatch chilies (almost the same as an anaheim) tonight for enchiladas, delicious!
The best! TY
Great recipe, being from El Paso I am picky about green chili anything.
This is the best green chili sauce. Thanks for sharing. J Thompson, colorado springs
Omg. I have been trying to find a green chile sauce recipe for years with no luck. None come out the way I want. Until this one. Tastes exactly how I wanted it to come out. Thank you!
Lived in California years ago and discovered Mexican food. Now back in Scotland and was craving some green enchiladas. Came across this recipe and absolutely love it, as does everyone I feed these to. Have to use the jar of chillies but to be honest tastes as I remember. Thank you for sharing this. This is a simple and easy sauce to make.
Delicious and worked perfectly for me since I had no tomatillos and every other recipe seemed to call for them.
Cindy
I made this today to top a vegetarian enchilada recipe I found on The Spuces website. I roasted and peeled fresh poblano chile’s and subbed vegetable stock for the chicken stock. This sauce made this dish! It was spectacular! Will definitely make this again and again…truly a great recipe. Thank you!
If I double this recipe do I also double the amount of flour?
Yes, I would double all the ingredients.
I whipped this up last night with what I had on hand, meaning canned chilies. I also didn’t have any broth but I had a package of chicken ramen noodles so I took the soup packet and used half of that. And to add zip I threw in a pinch of cayenne to substitute for the optional jalapeño. It was good. I liked it and I imagine with fresh chilies it’d be even better.
The best! No more can o soup!
It appears Canadian retailers aren’t interested in the Latino community or it’s food . Simply, not enough to make any money on so the food products are not brought into Canada.
A check of any grocery store or a Wally mart will show Mexican food as Tacos…that’s all that’s it!
I have found frozen bags of Hatch green Chile’s at Wal-Mart. Maybe you can also?
How many tomatoes?
I agree with several reviews that this recipe is a green chile gravy. 3T. of flour is the giveaway. If you enjoy a lighter, brighter sauce rich in citrus notes, this isn’t for you. Would work as a base for posole.
This is a wonderful recipe! I did make two changes that may or may not appeal to the masses. I fried two pieces of Applewood Smoked Bacon and used the grease in lieu of the oil to brown the onion and garlic. I didn’t use the actual bacon in the sauce. And, I added 2 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lime juice to brighten up the flavor. I have used many recipes from Mel’s Kitchen Cafe and they are all fantastic! Thank you for sharing them!
I am making it for the third time. Using it for chicken enchiladas. I enjoy the flavor so much. The commercial canned sauce is distracting with the spicy bite. This sauce lets you enjoy the remainder of the ingredients you used to make the enchiladas. And it is not difficult to make. Just do it!
This turned out delicious! I didn’t use jalapeño as I didn’t have it on hand, but it still was quite tasty. The whole family loved it on homemade enchiladas 🙂
It turned out really good! Spicy, because of some peppers I bought from a local fruit stand. The only addition was cilantro. And I roasted my peppers and blended them with a can of green chilies.
My extended family owns the Hatch chili Co. we always made appoint to pick up chili when we visited my great- grandparents in Deming, NM. You can order green chili purée from them or get fresh green chili sent to u.
Si sinor in Deming makes the Best green chile. I wish I had their recipe, we live in Oklahoma.
I just made this with 3 poblano chiles, and have a question! Do I peel the poblano chiles’ skin or the inside stems? When I made it, I peeled the skin, not knowing what you meant, and it came out really tasty! So, thank you for posting, but would appreciate some clarity. Thanks!
Hi Rosanna, yes, if you are using fresh chiles and have roasted them, you’ll want to peel off the blistered outer skin (sounds like you did it just right!).
I love green sauce. Can you suggest how to make yours without flour?
I haven’t ever made it without flour, so you’ll have to experiment. Sorry I’m not more help!
I use corn starch instead of flour.
I tried this sauce over the winter…. totally another HOMERUN, Mel! Now that chilis are in season I want to make a huge batch to freeze in small baggies for super easy school night dinners. With school starting next week in our neck of the woods, I’m itching to get going. I’ve found great specials on Hatch chilis (but not Anaheim nor Poblanos). I know that you use canned chilis, but was wondering if anyone has used Hatch with any luck? I think that they’re pretty similar to Anaheim and Hatch refers more to the specific region they’re grown in. However, I wanted to see if I could get any feedback prior to making a giant batch. Thanks!
I see that your post was a few years ago but, want to let everyone know that my experience has been that Hatch green Chile’s tend to be hotter than the alternatives. You can always mix the mild with some of the medium!
This sauce turned out excellent, Thanks! I am bookmarking your site. I used gluten free flour called glutino and it was excellent!
You should order some pablano seeds online. Here we in CA have chilies everywhere. Growing chillies can be done in containers in the house too its super easy.
Anytime I am bringing a meal for someone I make enchiladas and I ALWAYS get asked for the recipe, it is also on my 2 week meal rotation. I make this to a T with the 505 brand green chiles in a jar from Costco. Amazing.
Just made this tonight and it doesn’t even compare to the canned sauce! I love your blog and recipes even though I may not always comment- you’re awesome!
So miy name is Lisa I’m not use to getting recipes off the internet but I was looking for an easier n better recipe for a wet burrito then I ran into urs at first I was hesitant to incorporate the bown sugar into the recipe well I made the sauce last night n I decided to put a little in a sm dish n add the brown to see what it would taste like n Omg it was amazing n quick n easy .Good job thanks for the recipe
Thank you for changing my life. This is amazing!
Thanks! I’ve been looking for a green enchilada sauce recipe!
Wow!!! Love this sauce. Just made it for dinner tonight to use for my dad’s green Chile enchiladas…. YUM-O. Even my dad went back for seconds (and I got a compliment from him, which almost never happens!)
Thank you so much for this recipe! I will be coming back again to check out the rest of your recipes.
Awesome green Sauce, only could find 3 questionable Anaheim peppers so added 2 hatch peppers. roasted them on grill, Made everything else per plans. Very flavorful and since I love the heat the hatch peppers worked out great! Will not ever use store bought again. Thanks!
Hi – did anyone ever find out if this sauce can be water bathed and canned?
I have looked & looked for a good green sauce! Thank you sooooo much!
Holy enchilada sauce! This was delicious. I usually make red enchilada sauce, but I felt like making green themed enchiladas this time. I am so glad I used your recipe! Delicious.
This is a staple in our house now and I’m so glad to kiss the canned green enchilada sauce goodbye. In case it is helpful for others, 3 large anaheim peppers or 3 average poblano (sometimes called pasilla) peppers usually give a cup when roasted, seeded and roughly chopped. I nearly always double the recipe since roasting more peppers isn’t much more work. Thank you, Mel!
A-MA-ZING!!! This was so delicious, and easier to make that I had thought. There isn’t a green enchilada sauce available where I live, but I have been able to find canned green chiles. This sauce was so yummy that I will never use a red enchilada sauce again. Thank you!
This is very close to the recipe I’ve used for years. I roast everything in a broiler/toaster oven, then blend it. Never have had to add flour (yuk anyway) or the salt. Just use less broth and flour isn’t needed. Do put some lime juice and fresh cilantro while blending.
It’s been over a year since this post but I want to thank you and your friend Liz for this recipe! I live in NM and have eaten lots of enchilada sauces of widely varying quality. Ive made good red but never tried to make green. I belong to some foodie groups that inspire me and todays project is bluecorn (that I grew myself and ground) bacon and cheese waffles. It called in my mind for a green enchilada sauce. I used yours with locally grown roasted green chile and this really good low sodium vegetable bouillon I have to mail order because I live in the middle of nowhere. I’m glad I decided to make a double batch to freeze some! It’s the bomb!
Picking up fresh Poblono peppers, I was eager to find a recipe to utilize these tasty peppers. Thinking enchiladas sounded good, I found this sauce recipe in my search. I roasted up the poblonos, peeled, seeded, and finely diced them. My wife came home to the alluring aroma of roasting peppers. Wondering what I was doing, She reminded me that we already had dinner set up with family. Homemade chicken fried steak was on the menu at my folks house. Hopes for an enchilada dinner were dashed! Undeterred, I was at the final stages of simmering and adding a little salt for taste. Even without the jalepeno, the flavor was wonderful with just the right kick. Since the poblono is thick pepper, I grabbed the immersion blender to chop it a little finer. This step did an amazing thing to the sauce. It thickened to the consistency of gravy. Since my wife broke the news, I had been trying to prepare my palate for chicken fried steak and cream gravy. Mmmm Gravy! I’ll bet you can guess the rest of the story. All I can say is FANTASTIC! This one is a keeper.
Loved your comment, Jason – thanks for your tips and glad you loved the recipe!
Okay, Mel! I have to share a tip about this (if anyone reads this comment). I’ve made it several times and really enjoy it. Last night, I was short on time, so I decided to broil/roast the peppers whole, rather than halving and seeding them first. I used 2 Anaheims and 2 Poblanos. After they roasted & cooled, I peeled the skin off, cut them in half, and discarded the seeds.
That was 20 hours ago, and my fingers are still slightly burning from the spice!! Not to mention, the sauce was INCREDIBLY spicy! When I Googled it, I found that the heat of (unseeded) peppers can be increased after cooking, since cooking releases the capsaicin (heat) in the seeds. So, lesson for anyone who’s roasting the peppers- I recommend seeding them FIRST, unless you like a ton of heat (and burning fingers!). 🙂
Thanks for the tips, Michelle – that’s annoying about your burning fingers!
Big thumbs up. I used your recipe as a base for Crock Pot Green Chile Enchilada Soup and it was a roaring success. I “accidentally” made it a little hot so a little goes a long ways. This has also been my go-to for my chicken enchiladas and as a ketchup replacement where ever humanly possible. Thanks for helping me warm up a cold Saskatchewan winter with a little tex mex heat.
This is awesome! I got back from New Mexico yesterday and was already missing green enchiladas. For whatever stupid reason you cannot get green enchilada sauce in DC – just red – so I determined to make it myself and man am I glad I found your recipe! I was super skeptical at first (no tomatillos?), and the first taste-for-salt taste was no bueno (bland!), but then, after the half hour simmering and the blending up – perfection! I used a spoonful of coconut flour with a tad bit of xanthan gum because I didn’t have wheat flour, and I only had a half cup can of green chilies, so I added some cayenne to make up for lost heat, and it came out GREAT. So psyched (can you tell?). THANK YOU. Will definitely make this again.
I’ve had my eye on this…..finally made it tonight and used it for the chicken enchilada stacks. Yum! I left out the jalapeños and used mild green chilis as my kids don’t like any heat. Next time I’ll use regular chilis AND make a double recipe so I can freeze half!
Hey, I’ve been planning on making this for a while now and finally might get around to it with the last produce from my garden but one detail wasn’t covered (because you couldn’t do it with fresh): after I roast and pull the skin off the peppers, to I open and take the seeds out? Or maybe beforehand? Surely the seeds don’t go in the sauce….? Anyway iron that one out for me or tell me where to find out and I’ll be rolling! Thank you so much for giving us a good plan to make this ourselves, green sauce is the bomb.
Actually you could leave the seeds in the sauce if you want a bit more heat, if not, I’d scrape them out after the peppers have been roasted.
Delicious! I made this on a whim for dinner tonight using ancho chillies that we harvested from our garden. Served it over black bean enchiladas! My kids ate up all of their dinner. =)
My hubby doubled this recipe and threw it in the croc pot with a pork roast for about 8 hours on low. We smothered nachos with the meat last night and it was AMAZING! 🙂 Thanks for such a yummy addition to our recipe book!
I made this tonight (again), and I love it!! I used 2 Anaheim and 1 poblano chiles, and I roasted and peeled them along with the jalapeno. It’s so flavorful, just the slightest bit spicy (but not too much for my kids), and it just tastes SO MUCH more real & fresh than the canned kind!!
Sometimes I buy it & sometimes I make it, but after reading the ingredient list and seeing that (among other things) the canned kinds all had food coloring in them (?!?), my goal will be to always make it from now on. It takes longer, but the end result is so much better!! Thanks!
I recently bought some roasted hatch chile peppers and have been looking for something to do with them.. thinking I’ll be making this soon.. thanks for the recipe
Hey Mel, just wanted to write and say I love making everything from scratch and hate all the garbage ingredients of store bought food. Because of this I’ve had to go away from green sauce on Mexican food which has been hard. So anyway one day I tried this recipe and it was so good but the major PAIN in the butt was peeling the stupid skin off all those chiles! Is it really just something people that are particular about Mexican food don’t mind doing, or am I doing it wrong because dang! I can’t make that kinda time commitment on a typical Tuesday night! I just broiled them in my oven but getting the skin off them was a pain and I seemed to lose so much of the meat of the pepper that it was just hugely frustrating. Maybe you should do a video tutorial….or maybe I should just get a clue! Idk. Anyhow, you’re so AWESOME for blogging recipes that are so home cooked and unprocessed and DOABLE. You have made me a rock star, thank you!
Holy moly this is GOOD! I didn’t have a jalapeño, and I wanted a little heat, so I add a quarter teaspoon each of jalapeño and Chipotle flakes. Aaaaaaaamazing!
BTW, this was my first stop on your site. Very readable, interesting, and well organized. Keep up the good work! I’ll definitely be back!
I m looking forward to trying several of your recipe, they look delicious. I am trying to pin them to my boards but do not see a Pinterest link. thanks for your help.
Rosemary – There is a Pin It button on any image if you hover over the picture. Also, there is a Pinterest link below the Recipe Source. Let me know if you continue to have issues.
Wow! I just made this sauce this evening. It was so easy to follow and super tasty! Thanks!!
Kate
Hi Mel, thanks for posting this yummy looking recipe. Just want to let you know that WalMart Superstores carry frozen diced new Mexico Green chiles in both mild and Hot. They are far superior to the canned green chilies, especially when cooked. If using them as a garnish, I will saute them in a frying pan. Hope that helps.
I prepared this sauce last night to make the Green Chili Chicken Enchilada Stack for tonight. I will NEVER, EVER go back to store brought sauce — EVER! This sauce is so succulent and tasty nothing like the many varieties I have tried from the store. I made it with freshly roasted polano chilies. Such a cool, first time experience for me. Thank you so much for this excellent recipe and for the foresight on giving instructions on how to roast peppers. I learn so much through your blog!
Hi Mel,
I have dried Poblano chillies, can I use them for the homemade enchilada sauce, and if so, please advise on how to use them in the recipe.
Bessie – I’ve never used dried chiles in the recipe so you will have to experiment; perhaps you could google how to use dried chiles in place of fresh. Good luck! Report back in the comment thread how it works out for you. I am sure there are other readers who would want to try that as well.
Thanks for the recipe! I needed a tasty green sauce for spinach enchiladas and this sauce was perfect. I used canned chilis (Macayo brand) because that is what I had handy and the sauce was great tasting, quick and easy to make. It will be our go-to recipe and we know we can vary the flavor by what green chilis we choose to use, be it fresh or canned. Thanks again.
You forgot the tomatillos…
I tried this recipe today and had to use a mix of canned chiles and frozen roasted chiles I had on hand. I also ended up using chicken bouillion instead of broth. Despite these substitutions the sauce came out great. My son liked it so much he said it was ” An unending party in my mouth”. I liked how easy it was to make. I look forward to trying more of your recipes.
Curious to see if I can can this. The ingredients look awesome and since I live 30 miles from Hatch, I get fresh green chile every August and store (hoard) it away for a year. Told my husband when I was reading the recipe that it sounded “right”. He asked me how I could tell. I told him it didn’t have strange ingredients and that it was very simple and didn’t consist of 20 different ingredients as well. He just looked at me. I can’t wait to try this. Thank you.
I made this last night to use in a recipe that I got from Food.com for Creamy Corn, Spinach and Chicken Enchiladas. The original did not have the chicken in it but I had some left over roasted chicken from the night before that I added. The recipe called for a jar of Green Tomatillo Sauce I used this instead and it was perfect. I made it with the canned chilies. Next time I will double the recipe as the enchiladas were a little dry.
Thank you so much for sharing and God bless you and your family.
Mel, I don’t know if you have already checked, but here, they sale frozen diced green chile in the freezer section. You might check to see if you can see it. Its just diced green chills that are frozen. It makes phenomenal green chili!
Hallelujah! I get absolutely giddy over any food I can begin to make at home verses buying it from the store! I always thought I would need tomatillos for green enchilada sauce, I’m stoked that I don’t (I will be using canned green chiles, though, because I’m pepper-naive and don’t know how to find them in the store much less prepare them at home). One thing I found when making this, in case it’s helpful – I had extra green chiles so I one-and-a-halved the recipe and still only came out with 2.5 cups.
Okay – I’d better go, time to make your black bean and butternut squash skillet enchiladas to go with the sauce I just cooked up!
Hi Mel – just wanted to let you know that I can no longer get your “Print recipe” button on your website to work. I’ve tried it on several recipes and I just get a blank page. I used to be able to use it and it worked great. Not sure if settings changed on your end or mine, but just wanted you to know. Of course, I still can do a copy/paste to save the recipe to my files, but your little “Print recipe” button was really quite convenient! Thanks for all the great recipes and tips.
I made this tonight and my whole family LOVED it! Definite keeper! Thanks Mel!
I’m a Mexican food addict! This looks like it would be perfect with so many recipes! It’s going straight to the list of things to do this weekend! Can’t wait!
Made this sauce yesterday (just used these great marinated chiles that I use in everything) and made spinach and mushroom enchiladas. They were so good they reminded me of my favorite tex-mex restaurant. Thank you so much for the recipe! I didn’t think I even really liked enchiladas until this sauce!
Mel- Thank you for the wonderful recipes.. Yesterday for dinner, I made honey lime enchiladas using this green sauce, shredded the chicken as you suggested in simple shredded chicken. So all in all, it was a combination of your 3 recipes and the result was ammmmmmazzzinggggg !!!! My husband loved it,he is taking that for lunch today….Thanks dear !!!
Mel- thank you for your constant quest to rid your pantry (and ours!) of artificial, preservative laden foods. This looks amazing, and I can’t wait to try it!
Is the one cup of fresh peppers measured after they are chopped, or before. Sorry to be clueless on that one. Thanks for posting this, I will be sure to give it a try.
Kim – the peppers are measured after they are chopped.
I am SO glad you posted this one!!! I make your honey lime chicken enchiladas ALL the time. In fact, I just made them last weekend for my friends from school, and they all wanted your recipe because they loved them so much. Now I have an excuse to make them again, since I have to try it with this homemade sauce. 🙂
Hallelujah!! THIS is what my life has been lacking! The sad part is we had Honey Lime Enchiladas for dinner last night with canned enchilada sauce…but that will be the last time.
This looks great. How much greater would it be if it could be canned and stored on the shelf ready to use anytime you wanted to cook up another great Mel’s recipe?
Totally normal to get so excited over this. I’ve been so happy ever since I discovered making my own enchilada sauce, but this green version must be added to my list! Sounds fantsatic!
Angela…just had to say “Love your state!” My husband and I eloped to Santa Fe and was married in the most beautiful old courthouse there and honeymooned in Taos. That’s where I was introduced and fell in love with the “green”. Once a year I stock up on Hatch greens when the season rolls around. Whole Foods and several other grocers in New Orleans will carry them. I roast them on my bbq pitt, make my green chile sauce, freeze some whole and some chopped. They freeze beautifully. Same goes for the sauce.
Oh, and you can process green chile, but I’m not sure how to do the sauce. You have to pressure can rather than water-bath. There are instructions via NMSU on how to do it, but I can’t post the link for some reaaon. Google “canning green chile” and there will be a pdf file that comes up on the search. It has good information about why you have to pressure can. Good luck!
This looks good! Being a New Mexico gal, I’m so happy your recipe does not include tomatillos! So many I look at do, and it bugs me, quite frankly. Just a heads up, you can order green chile from Hatch, NM online! They will ship it to you roasted, frozen, and packaged. Try biadchili.com or hatch-chile.com. I personally like the Big Jim variety!
Great info, Angela.
We can buy the fresh Hatch green chiles here every fall and you know when you walk in the grocery store or especially near the produce section, that the peppers have arrived! Smells heavenly! I didn’t know that you could order them online though. Thanks for the information to do so. Green enchilada sauce is always my favorite over red. My tummy just does better on green. 🙂 That’s the biggest reason for me!
Emily: how about freezing it? (if you have the space). I bet it would come out fine!
Also…has anyone tried making a green enchilada sauce with roasted tomatillos? I have a salsa recipe that is basically identical to this using tomatillos instead of the poblanos and it is DEEvine. I’m thinking it might work for this too. Thanks Mel!
This is a happy day!!! Every can of green chili enchilada sauce that I have looked at in the last 10 years contains gluten. It has definitely been a food I’ve missed! I tried a recipe this summer that was okay, but I’m sure yours will be better!! I can easily substitute the 3 T. of flour and make this gluten-free! That will open up our menu options to at least 5 new meals that I’ve been hungry for…. For a long time! I agree with the other comment that the only thing that would make this even better is to know how to can it and keep it shelf stable. Due to allergies, everything is prepared from scratch at my home. I don’t mind the ingredients required, but TIME is really hard to come by!
Emily what non-wheat substitute do recommend to replace the flour?
Thank you!
Hi Mel,
Sorry if this comment was already submitted, no time to read them all, the last recipe I looked at had dozens of comments, you have quite a following. Instant trust! I just printed out the Alfredo and the Green Chile Sauce. I am in N.TX. You might try growing Poblanos? Peppers are a little hard to grow ,but with the right temps, they will flourish. We grew them year and gave them partial shade (full sun here is just too hot in mid summer for peppers) and they looked and tasted great. There are other nice roasting peppers that are not that hard to grow either. We have “Red Marconi” going now and dozens of peppers on the plants are turning red. Good luck!
Thank-you! I can’t even find canned green enchilada sauce where I live and your red enchilada sauce is one of our favorites.
Thank-you! I can’t even find canned green enchilada sauce where I live. Your red enchilada sauce is one of our favorites so I’m sure this will be too.
So glad to see a recipe that has chiles instead of tomatillos. Green chiles are so amazing, tomatillos not so much.
I am so glad to see this recipe!! I just moved from Texas to Missouri and cannot find my favorite green enchilada sauce anywhere (Hatch brand). The store brands are not cutting it! I will definitely have to try this out. Thanks!
This. This right here. This is why I love your blog so much Mel. You constantly read my mind! I just made honey lime enchiladas this week and was thinking, “gosh, it’s too bad I don’t have a green enchilada sauce recipe to use for these.” Then here is this post!
Thanks for being a little bit uncanny with your timing.
You have made my day by posting green enchilada sauce!!! I am super excited to put this into our menu! Thanks!!!
Girl you are not alone! Hatch green chiles are my favorites and can’t wait each year for the season to roll around. I never seem to buy enough to last ALL year. I did a post not long ago on my love of the green chile ( http://tinasdeliciousdishes.com/burrrrr-chile-today)
I’ve printed all of your recipes so I can have some new ones for this years stash! Especially looking forward to the Honey Lime Chicken!
I’m also happy to have this recipe. I live out west and Mexican food here is very different from Tex-Mex. Do not rinse the green chiles, if sodium is a problem, just leave the 1/2 t. Salt out of the recipe. The liquid from the green chiles is packed full of flavor. If I find a can of chiles with a lot of liquid, I save it in the fridge, use it in other sauces, dips and salad dressing. Add the liquid with some cilantro to your favorite Ranch dressing. I also save the liquid from the jar of roasted red peppers. The liquid from the peppers will elevate your food and give depth like nothing else can. I make a similar sauce with sour cream and frozen corn added, as a topping for cheese tamales for a meatless meal. We have roasted a 25 lb gunny sack of Hatch green chiles many times, but I prefer the canned, because of the ease. It’s a messy, time consuming job. Thank you for this good basic sauce.
I shrieked out loud when I read the title of this post. I’ve been searching for a recipe for green enchilada sauce because I can’t find it to buy in this part of the world. (Southern Ontario)
Love this recipe! I haven’t seen one for a green enchilada sauce before and I hate always having to use canned/jarred. Do you have a go-to recipe for red enchilada sauce?
Hi Laura – I use the red enchilada sauce from these enchiladas when I want a homemade version.
Do you know if this recipe can be canned in a water bath? Homemade sauce is way better than the stuff you buy at the store. ATK also has a great green enchilada sauce recipe, but I don’t know how to tell if they are safe for home canning.
Rachel (and others who inquired) – I have not canned this sauce (I keep it in canning-type jars in the refrigerator or freezer). I am not enough of a canning expert to give advice on whether or not this can be canned but I’ll take a glance in my Ball book of canning to see if they have a recipe for green enchilada sauce and the different factors in their recipe versus this one (acidity and ingredients play a huge role in whether a food needs to be water bath canned or pressure canned – my guess is this doesn’t have enough acidity for a water bath canner).
If you add tomatillos, will that be enough acid to water Beth can it?
I’m not sure – sorry!
Canning safety questions are best left to the experts (not me!) 🙂
I am glad you posted this recipe I have had a hard time finding this sauce around here and had to get it cross border so I guess I can now make my own which I’m sure taste much better! 🙂
I didn’t scream, but I am excited about this!
Love this green sauce on SO many things!! Can’t wait to try it homemade 🙂
You photographed this in a canning jar. Did you process this for later use? I would love to have it on hand to use quickly in the future.
I too have used the red enchilada sauce from your chicken enchilada recipe several times in other recipes. I haven’t known that I’ve needed a green one, since I haven’t had a problem with the canned sauce I’ve bought so far. But I love diy sauces, giving me more control over what goes into us, and feeling empowered that I can do this. I love smothered pork enchiladas and thank you for this sauce recipe to try!
Oh yeah! I definitely want to try this. For some reason I am in the mood for enchiladas lately. Can’t wait to try this!
Yes! Excited but not to the point that I hear angels singing. 🙂 Truthfully, I was always a little irritated when you posted those delicious recipes calling for green enchilada sauce that I make for my family without recommending a good sauce. Quality ingredients affect how a recipe comes out and a sauce is a huge factor in taste in any recipe. I have to drive 35 minutes to find a sauce that is mediocre without the addition of lots of sour cream or heavy cream and other spices. Thank you bunches and bunches, Liz and Mel!
Who knew you could make green enchilada sauce at home with only 12 easily found ingredients?!? I actually have all the ingredients, even the diced green chiles which I keep on hand for your creamy white chili recipe. I will be making this today to use in your green chili chicken enchilada recipe that I plan to make tomorrow. Yes, I cook something from your site at least five nights a week! ( Last night we had the green lentil soup with curried brown butter. Delicious.)
I have to admit that you have made my WEEK and maybe even month with this recipe. My friend Jen is an amazing cook and introduced my family to black bean burritos cooked in a green enchilada sauce, and we love it! But I was so sad to read the ingredient list for sauce-think msg. I guarantee that my kiddos will shout for joy when they see the burritos back on our meal plan! (They love being fed everyday. Wierd, huh?) Thanks so much for restoring this goodness back to our family! (PS: I recently received my rockin’ apron. It is awesome!)
This is perfect! I just picked some last of the season peppers yesterday before the big frost came and was wondering what to do with them! Thanks, Mel, you helped me use them up in a really tasty way!!!