Homemade Green Enchilada Sauce
How to Make Green Enchilada Sauce – This smooth, bright, and zesty green sauce is easy to make with roasted poblano peppers, cilantro, and lime juice (plus spicy jalapeños, if you like). It’s delicious on cheese, veggie, or chicken enchiladas – or use it to make other favorite Mexican recipes!
Why We Love This Easy Green Enchilada Sauce Recipe
Yes, you can buy green enchilada sauce in a can at the grocery store. (There are times that even I have used canned sauce in a pinch!) However, for the most amazing chicken, pork, or veggie enchiladas, you need to make a quality Homemade Green Enchilada Sauce!
And thankfully, as it turns out, green enchilada sauce is super easy to blend up from scratch! We’re simply roasting whole poblano peppers, garlic, and onions before blending with bright cilantro, fresh lime juice, and a few basic pantry staples. Together, they create a smooth and zesty sauce that’s smoky yet vibrant, savory, and versatile… You can even make it as mild or spicy as you like!
The poblano sauce comes together in under an hour, and is terrific to prepare ahead and have on hand for enchiladas, last-minute taco nights, or to make all kinds of other Mexican-inspired dishes!
Ingredients You Need
- Olive oil – or other high-heat and neutral-flavored oil for roasting, like avocado or canola oil
- Poblano peppers – choose ripe, deep green peppers that are slightly soft
- Onion – sweet yellow or white onions are best
- Jalapeños – optional, for heat
- Garlic – peeled and minced
- Cilantro – fresh, roughly chopped
- Vegetable broth – or water
- Lime juice – fresh squeezed
- Spices – ground cumin, salt and pepper
How to Make Green Enchilada Sauce
- Preheat the oven and set out a large rimmed baking sheet.
- Place the whole poblano peppers, onion wedges, jalapeños, and garlic cloves on the baking sheet. Drizzle them with olive oil, move the veggies around, and get everything well-coated in the oil. Roast in the oven for up to 20 minutes.
- Allow the roasted veggies to cool until they are easy to handle. Then, peel the waxy skins off the green chiles. Remove the stems and shake out the seeds, leaving only the soft pepper flesh. (If using roasted jalapeños, remove the stems and shake out the seeds from the jalapeño pepper husks as well.)
- Place the roasted poblano peppers, onions, jalapeños, and garlic cloves in the blender. Pour the pan juices into the blender.
Pro Tip: If you are worried about the spice level, do not add the jalapeños yet, or only add one jalapeño. You can always add more later!
- Now add the cilantro, cumin, broth, lime juice, and ½ teaspoon of salt.
- Cover and purée until the sauce is very smooth. Taste, then add additional salt and pepper if needed. (If desired, add extra jalapeños here, then puree again.)
Get the Complete (Printable) Green Enchilada Sauce Recipe + VIDEO Below. Enjoy!
Recipe Variations
- Spicy Sauce – Poblano peppers are mostly smoky and sweet with very little spicy heat. However, you can get a spicy one on occasion. Add an extra jalapeno pepper or two to ensure your green enchilada sauce is packing plenty of spice. Or consider adding hatch chiles!
- More Mild – If you are concerned about the spice level, leave out the jalapenos or even swap some of the poblanos for green bell peppers.
- Broth – We use veggie broth to make this vegan poblano enchilada sauce. But feel free to use chicken broth for a more savory flavor if you aren’t concerned about keeping it vegetarian.
- Batch Size – This recipe yields about 4-5 cups of sauce. This is enough to make at least one large batch of enchiladas. But I suggest doubling the recipe to make two batches… One to use now, and another to freeze for later!
Ways to Use Green Poblano Sauce
This green sauce is not only fantastic on veggie enchiladas, Chicken Enchiladas, and creamy Enchiladas Suizas, but you can use your homemade enchilada sauce as a smooth creamy salsa on tacos and nachos with tortilla chips over burritos and Quesadillas, and in burrito bowls! Here are a few of our favorite Mexican recipes for you to try:
- Spicy Turkey Tacos
- Shredded Chicken Tacos
- Baked Tacos
- Vegan Tofu Tacos
- Homemade Chipotle Bowls
- Bubbly Taco Salad
It’s also great for adding pizzaz to all sorts of Tex-Mex casserole dishes! Use it in place of jarred enchilada sauce or salsa verde to make King Ranch Chicken Casserole, 7-Ingredient Company Potatoes, or any other recipes that call for a green salsa.
Frequently Asked Questions
Traditional salsa verde sauce is made with tomatillos, and has a tangy and sweet taste. This green sauce, however, includes roasted poblano peppers for a more deep, smoky flavor.
It really depends on the ingredients… Add jalapeño peppers to anything, and it’ll be spicy! Most red enchilada sauce recipes are made with chili peppers and are pretty spicy, but jalapeños are hotter.
Keep the green sauce in an airtight container and store it in the fridge for up to a week.
Yes, you can! Transfer the sauce to a freezer-safe airtight container and keep in the freezer for up to 2 months. Thaw it in the fridge overnight before using it.
Looking for More Classic Tex-Mex Recipes? Be Sure to Try:
- Ranchero Sauce
- Avocado Crema (for Tacos)
- 3-Ingredient Magic Taco Dip
- Avocado Salsa Verde
- Chamoy Sauce Recipe
Homemade Green Enchilada Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 ½ pounds poblano peppers
- 1 large sweet onion peeled and cut into wedges
- 1-2 jalapenos optional
- 4-6 cloves garlic whole
- ½ cup chopped cilantro
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 ½ cups vegetable broth or water
- ¼ cup fresh lime juice
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. Set out a large rimmed baking sheet.
- Set whole poblano peppers, onion wedges, jalapeños, and garlic cloves on the baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil, then roast in the oven for 15-20 minutes.
- Allow the roasted veggies to cool until they are easy to handle. Then peel the waxy skins off the poblano peppers. Remove the stems, and shake out the seeds, leaving only the soft pepper flesh. *If using roasted jalapeños, remove the stems and shake out the seeds of the jalapeño peppers as well.
- Place the roasted poblano peppers, onions, jalapeños, and garlic cloves in the blender. Pour the pan juices into the blender. *If you are worried about the spice level, do not add the jalapeños yet, or only add one jalapeño. You can always add more later.
- Add the chopped cilantro, ground cumin, vegetable broth, and lime juice. Add in ½ teaspoon of salt.
- Cover and purée until very smooth. Taste, then add additional salt and pepper if needed. (You can also add additional jalapeños here if desired, then puree again.)
I’ve been cooking authentic Mexican food every since I was a little boy at the tender age of 10..
My mother taught me how to cook ,she being from Mexico
I have never seen her or I use cumin in our dishes ..!!
and her back then was the best cook ever until I took over that title.
I don’t know why everyone thinks that cumin is a staple spice
for great authentic Mexican food..I always have never liked that
spice I never will because I don’t like cumin!!
and everyone that eats my food loves it and tells me why I don’t have
any restaurants by now..
This recipe is incredible! The balance of flavors is perfect – not too spicy, just the right amount of tang, and so much depth from the roasted ingredients. YUM!
Absolutely the best green enchilada sauce I’ve ever made! It was super easy to make too.