The sauce that is poured over enchiladas varies as much as the filling inside. As Americans, we’re more accustomed to using red enchilada sauce from a can, like the one pictured below. More recently, some brands have begun to market it in a pouch, like this Frontera product:
You can also find green enchilada sauce in a can or pouch:
The key difference between the red and green versions is simple: red sauce is made with red chilies and green sauce is made with green chilies. Having said that, however, some enchilada sauce recipes don’t call for chilies, but rely more on tomatoes for the red tint, tomatillos for the green color, and chili powders for the flavor. Actually, there’s no right or wrong way; it varies from region to region and cook to cook.
One of these days we’ll play around with making our own easy version from scratch, but for now we love this simple recipe for red sauce, from Mexico in My Kitchen, a great resource for authentic Mexican food. She roasts quajillo and ancho peppers, then adds water, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper. That’s it! No tomatoes. But, finding the peppers and roasting them properly can take time.
Some recipes call for canned tomatoes and chili powder, and others make a roux of flour and oil before adding vegetable broth and spices. See what we mean about the variations?
Green enchilada sauce is similar. Some are made strictly with green peppers, while others use tomatillos. There are recipes that are thickened with a roux, cream or nothing at all. However, If you’re like us, you like to save time when you can. That’s why prepared enchilada sauces are staples in our pantry. We’re big fans of the new pouched sauces primarily because the ingredients are a little healthier.
Next time you’re thinking about making our Green Chili Chicken Enchiladas (recipe coming out this week) or Taco Casserole, check out the Mexican Food section in your grocery store and read the ingredient list before deciding which one to buy.
