This green enchilada sauce recipe tastes so much fresher than store-bought! It's bold, tangy, and spicy, made with roasted tomatillos, onions, and chiles.
Are you team green enchilada sauce or red enchilada sauce? I’m team…well…both, but right now, I’m really loving this 8-ingredient green enchilada sauce recipe. It’s adapted from my favorite salsa verde, made with roasted tomatillos, onions, garlic, and jalapeños. The tomatillos give it a super tangy and bright flavor, while the jalapeños add a nice spicy kick (don’t worry—if you don’t love spice, I have a few tips for how you can reduce the heat!).
Try it the next time you’re making enchiladas verdes—with all the veggies in this recipe, it tastes so much fresher than green enchilada sauce from the store.
It makes just about the perfect amount of sauce for one pan of enchiladas, but if you end up with a little leftover, I don’t think you’ll have any trouble finishing it. It’s delicious on Mexican dishes like quesadillas or huevos rancheros…or with tortilla chips!
Green Enchilada Sauce Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need to make this green enchilada sauce recipe:
- Tomatillos – Tomatillos have an intensely tangy flavor on their own, so much so that I found that I didn’t need any lime juice in this recipe! I roast the tomatillos to get them nice and juicy, then blend them to create the sauce’s flavorful base.
- White onion – I roast it alongside the tomatillos to bring out its natural sweetness. If you don’t have white onion handy, yellow onion works too.
- Jalapeño peppers – One roasted and one raw jalapeño give this sauce its heat. If you’re not a fan of spice, remove the jalapeños’ seeds and membranes, or use just one pepper (1/2 roasted, 1/2 raw) instead of 2. If you’re like me and you love spice, use serranos instead of jalapeños for a little extra heat.
- Fresh garlic and onion powder – For savory depth of flavor.
- Avocado oil – For body and richness. Another neutral oil, such as vegetable oil, would work here too. You could also use olive oil if you prefer, though I find that it sometimes tastes bitter with the cilantro and tomatillos in this recipe.
- Fresh cilantro – It adds fresh depth of flavor.
- And sea salt – To make all the flavors pop!
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
How to Make Green Enchilada Sauce
This green enchilada sauce recipe has 2 simple steps:
- Roasting the vegetables
- Blending the sauce
Start by roasting the vegetables. Peel the papery skins off the tomatillos, then rinse them to remove their sticky coating. Pat them dry and place them on a baking sheet with the onion and 1 of the jalapeños. Drizzle with avocado oil, sprinkle with salt, and roast at 450°F until the tomatillos are soft and bursty, about 30 minutes.
Then, blend the sauce. Place the roasted veggies in a blender with the remaining raw jalapeño, garlic, avocado oil, salt, and onion powder. Blend until smooth, then add the cilantro and blend again.
- Tip: Don’t have a blender? A food processor works too!
Season to taste and use on your next batch of enchiladas verdes!
How to Store Green Enchilada Sauce
This green enchilada sauce keeps well in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. I love to make it a day or two before I make enchiladas to streamline my prep.
Unfortunately, I don’t recommend freezing this one. I tried it, and I found that the sauce separated after thawing.
More Sauces and Salsas to Try
If you love this recipe, try one of these homemade sauces or salsas next:
Green Enchilada Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 pound tomatillos, about 7 to 8 medium
- ½ medium white onion, sliced into wedges
- 2 jalapeño peppers, stemmed
- 1 garlic clove
- 1½ teaspoons avocado oil, plus more for drizzling
- ½ teaspoon sea salt, plus more for sprinkling
- ⅛ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ cup fresh cilantro
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Remove the husks from the tomatillos and rinse to remove the stickiness. Pat dry and place on the baking sheet with the onion wedges and one of the jalapeños. Drizzle with avocado oil and sprinkle with salt. Rub with your hands to coat and spread evenly on the baking sheet. Roast for 25 to 35 minutes, or until the tomatillos are soft and bursty.
- Blend the sauce. Transfer the roasted tomatillos, onion, and jalapeño to a blender and add the remaining raw jalapeño, garlic, avocado oil, salt, and onion powder. Blend until smooth, then add the cilantro and blend again.
- Use on these enchiladas verdes or your favorite enchilada recipe. Leftover sauce keeps well in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
