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An easy green enchilada sauce recipe is perfect when you want enchiladas that are better than opening a can.
I love enchiladas, but especially salsa verde enchiladas. There’s something about tart, spicy, and rich flavor combined with creamy cheese that gets me every time. It’s easy to pick up a can of enchilada sauce in the Hispanic section of your supermarket, but like everything that comes from a can, it leaves you feeling…meh.
Luckily, it’s pretty easy to make a pretty killer green enchilada sauce and doesn’t require anything more than a broiler and a blender.
You need the right ingredients, however, which these days may be a challenge. Start with tomatillos. If you’ve never bought or cooked with them, they look similar to green tomatoes with a papery husk on the outside. You’ll probably find them near the avocados/tomatoes in your grocery store produce section. They’re kind of sour, harder than a tomato, and are much denser. These are one of the main flavor components of your sauce.
Next, poblanos. These smoky, dark green peppers add a tiny bit of heat, but more of a vegetal smoky pepper flavor. An onion, some garlic, and jalapeños or serranos, and you’re well on your way.
All of these ingredients go on a sheet pan. Line with foil for easy cleanup, but don’t use parchment. Next, broil. You want everything to be nice and charred, especially the peppers. The beauty of this method is it doesn’t require much chopping — cut your onions into quarters, but that’s about it.
Once you’ve got a nice blackened char on everything (it will take 5-10 minutes) you’ll peel your peppers. It’s super easy with a clean kitchen towel — just rub until the skins come off.
Then, throw everything in the blender with some water or broth. Add some cilantro and a can of diced green chilies, and you’ve got a sauce. If you want a creamy sauce (or if it’s too spicy!) add a scoop of sour cream.
Okay, now that you’ve got a sauce, how do you use it? Easy. Fill some corn tortillas with your favorite protein and cheese. Roll up, pour the sauce over top and bake. You could use chicken, shrimp, black beans, or squash. Or just cheese. Just make sure your protein is cooked first. Then, enjoy with a margarita or an ice cold beer, because congrats — you made enchiladas from scratch!
Easy Green Enchilada Sauce
A blender is all you need to make an easy green enchilada sauce from scratch. Perfect for a busy night when you want to eat healthy and fresh, but without the effort!
Equipment
- Broiler
Ingredients
- 1 pound tomatillos husks removed
- 1 poblano pepper
- 1-2 serrano or jalapeno peppers to taste
- 2 cloves garlic peeled
- 1 small onion peeled, quartered
- 2 cups broth or water
- 1 bunch cilantro leaves
- 1 4- ounce can diced green chilis
- 1/4 cup sour cream optional
- Sea salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
Instructions
- Put an oven rack about 4 inches below the broiler.
- Line a sheet pan with aluminum foil. Put the tomatillos, peppers, garlic cloves, and onions on the pan. Broil on high for 5-10 minutes until vegetables are well charred, turning after 2-3 minutes.
- When peppers are well charred, use a clean kitchen towel to rub the skin off. Place all of the vegetables in a blender with the broth, cilantro, and green chilis. Puree until smooth. Taste, and add salt and pepper to taste. Add sour cream if using.
- Use in any enchilada recipe in place of sauce.
Notes
Storing leftovers: Store in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
