OMG! Home made enchilada sauce has me hooked!

[stormymater]

I had never made enchilada sauce from scratch until last night. I am smitten! I used 8 dried poblanos & 10 New Mexico chilies. This stuff turned out so incredibly delicious I promptly sowed 60 more Poblanos & 60 more Anaheims - all for us! Between harvesting green & firing before freezing & now drying ripe ones for long storage - I think I'll be set. Never to buy a $$ unsatisfactory can of enchilada sauce again!

[sprtsguy76]

Never made homemade enchilada sauce, but I do love it and could and would use it on alot of dishes! Thats also goes for any green, red, yellow etc homemade salsa!
Mind sharing your recipe?

Damon

[Ruth_10]

My DH always makes his own enchilada sauce. He uses dried New Mexico and guajillo (sp?) chiles that he purchases in the grocery store.

[stormymater]

Here ya go! Hope you enjoy it as much as we do.

Deep Rich Red Enchilada Sauce

• 8 ancho chilies (dried poblano)
• 10 New Mexico red chilies
• 4 onions , quartered
• 8 garlic cloves , peeled
• 2 tablespoons olive oil or 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 3 tablespoons dried chili powder
• 4 - 6 cups stock (pork, chicken, turkey, beef all ok - I used pork)
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 4 tablespoons fruit vinegar (i have pear vinegar we made last fall but white wine or white basalmic would work too)
• ½-1 tablespoon salt , start with the smaller amount, sample and adjust to your taste

1. Seed the chiles, rinse and set aside. Bring 4 cups of water to a boil. Remove from heat and add the chilies, pushing them down with a spoon so they are fully submerged.
2. Cover and let stand for 30 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, in a saucepan over medium heat, saute the onions and garlic until the onions are translucent; alternatively you can put the onions under the broiler to blacken.
4. Remove the soaked chiles from the water, reserving 2 cups of the liquid. In a food processor, blend the chilies, onions and garlic until pureed. Use water as needed to allow the vegies to puree.
   
5. In a saucepan over medium heat, heat the oil. Stir the cumin into the hot oil, being careful not to burn it.
6. Add the chile mixture and simmer for 3 minutes. Add 1 cup of the stock, 1 cup of the reserved chile liquid and the vinegar.
7. Add just enough additional stock and reserved liquid to make a sauce the consistency of thin gravy.
8. Add the 2 T sugar and 1/2 T salt and cook for 10 minutes longer, stirring occasionally, until the sauce is the consistency of a thin gravy.
9. Taste and add more salt and sugar if needed.
10. Set aside to cool. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 4 to 5 days, or in the freezer for 2 to 3 months.

[peebee]

Stormymater, are the NM red chilies fresh or dried?

[stormymater]

Dried - both were in bags from Walmart - very reasonably priced too!

[Skaggydog]

Originally Posted by stormymater

Dried - both were in bags from Walmart - very reasonably priced too!

WHAT?? That's no way to talk.

[feldon30]

What if I've only got dried Guajillo? How many would you put?

[stormymater]

Dunno - how big are they? The dried poblanos were thick meaty walled& heart-shaped - bigger than the palm of my hand. The Dried New Mexicos looked like dried Anaheims - thinner walled about 6 to 7 inches long & an inch across at the stem end...

[Petronius_II]

When fresh, the typical Guajillo pepper is a wee bit bigger than a New Mexico pod type, about the same heat level as a New Mexico 6-4, and has a very wonderful flavor all its own.

Since the recipe measures your peppers by pod, you could probably substitute 18 Guajillos for the 8 Anchos and 10 New Mexico peppers and have a sauce that won't taste exactly the same as Stormymater's sauce, but will be quite delicious nonetheless.

How hot it is, depends somewhat on what kind of peppers went into the "3 tablespoons dried chili powder." If it's not hot enough for your liking, you can always spice it up easily enough with a little bit of bottled hot sauce, such as the well-known McIlhenney's Tabasco.

Around here, this import from Guadalajara is the hot sauce of choice for many Albuquerqueans, including me. I have no idea how available it is anywhere else:

http://www.hotsauce.com/Valentina-Ex...ce-p/1133v.htm

[stormymater]

Valentina - linkee no loadee for me but I believe that is in the tall plastic bottle & has a variety with lime? If so it is MARVELOUS. I use the classic Tabasco only on my collards & fried okra/flounder - too vinegary for much else to my taste.

[Tracydr]

I buy a lot of dried chiles and chile powder from the Mexican grocery. I usually make enchilada sauce from a little oil, chile powder or ground chiles of mixed varieties, a bit of chicken broth, flour to thicken, salt as needed. Very easy to throw together.
If it needs a little acid, I add a little tomato, vinegar or lemon juice.
Works great for any kind of enchiladas.
I also like to make green chile enchiladas. My green chile stew is hatch green chiles (roasted and peeled, about one pound), 2-3 pounds of pork roast, chicken broth, onions, garlic, and corn meal to thicken. My very favorite!

[Petronius_II]

Sometimes that hotsauce.com link works for me, sometimes it doesn't. I only posted it because it might be a nice way for some Tomatovillians to mail-order if they want.

The Valentina products do usually come in a plastic bottle, sometimes glass bottles. You can't buy retail from their official site, but you can at least see what I'm talking about at:

http://www.salsavalentina.com/products

The Black Label is the extra hot. Not quite as hot as McIlhenny's Tabasco, but getting there, and not as vinegary tasting. Not as expensive as McI's Tabasco, either, at least not in the stores around here. Much more of an authentic Mexican taste.

[stormymater]

That's the stuff! I pick up a bottle when I go to AZ or NM - pack light & return with full luggage. NSF carry-on LOL.

[Petronius_II]

I also like to make green chile enchiladas. My green chile stew is hatch green chiles (roasted and peeled, about one pound), 2-3 pounds of pork roast, chicken broth, onions, garlic, and corn meal to thicken. My very favorite!

One Albuquerque favorite is chicken enchiladas with green chile sauce and sour cream. Stacked or rolled, either way they're wonderful. If you can make a decent green chile sauce, the rest is easy. About 1/3 to half as much sour cream as green chile sauce, I'd estimate.

One of the few restaurants in town that specializes in South-of-the-border cuisine, as opposed to New Mexican, is called El Norteño. I once asked a member of the family that owns that restaurant if she'd give me their recipe for Pescado Guaymas. Nothing doing. As you might expect.

Still, anyone who can put together a decent green chile sauce can slather it on top of some big thick filets of red snapper, top it with shredded Monterey Jack cheese, or maybe Asadero, [EDITED TO ADD: ...stick it under the broiler to melt the cheese,] and come up with a reasonable approximation of Pescado Guaymas. Probably best to poach the fish and the green chile peppers in a little chicken broth or chicken bullion for awhile; it always tastes to me like there's some chicken in there somewhere. Add a finely chopped serrano or jalapeño to make it a bit hotter, if you like. Is there any cilantro in the dish? Not that I can tell, buuuut... see above. Secret family recipe, not my family.

Onliest comment I can think to add at the moment is, it never occurs to most people that the flavors of chile peppers and the flavor of black pepper might play well together. They do.