Great salsas are now everywhereโfresh and locally made favorites can be found in most U. Even discriminating food consumers regularly turn to cans of one of the three national suppliers when making enchiladas from scratch. Fillers, sugars, starches and other additives are listed on the labels of these cans. They lack real pepper flavor and frankly are not very good. The solution? Dried peppers from your local store and 20 minutes of time. Heat level: This recipe should give you a medium-hot enchilada sauce, however, a lot depends not only on the heat level of peppers you choose, but whether you include the seeds.
My typical combo is anchos they are dried poblano peppers and New Mexico peppers. If it winds up too hot, throw a few pieces of raw beet into your blender and it will cool the sauce down. Not hot enough? Then add some dried red pepper flakes from your cupboard or a few drops of hot sauce. A note on dried peppers: when you find a store that carries them, buy extra, they will keep easily for 6 months if stored in a sealed container like the original packaging or a ziplock in a cool cupboard.
Mixing several varieties you will get a more robust layered flavor, but straight-up anchos the easiest ones to come by will be delicious even alone. I made mine that way for years. Stores are now beginning to carry more varietiesโBallard Market in Seattle has a good supply of fine quality dried peppers in bulk. Bewareโhabaneros are really really really hot. If you are using anchos, that would be about 6 peppers. Give the peppers a rinse under warm water. If no seeds come out then cut a bit lower on the pepper.
You may also just break off the tip of the pepper with your handsโ please remember to wear gloves as the pepper seeds can cause burning. Keep your hands away from your eyes when handling peppers, and wash them thoroughly as soon as possible to avoid skin irritation. Bring liquid to boil and immediately turn pan off and cover with a lid for 15 minutes until softened. They can sit in the water longer. If you are in hurry, bring to boil and reduce to a low simmer for 10 minutes with a lid on, then turn off heatโthey should be softened at that point or within 5 minutes.
Peel and dice the two onions. I do this all in the Cuisinart, using the on-off pulse method. I usually salt and pepper to taste as they cook down. Pour the peppers and the liquid from the sauce pan into a blender, and puree for seconds. Turn the blender back on to puree or increase the speed to higher level if you desire. I run my blender until the sauce is uniformly smooth. Taste the sauce. Add the other half if you like it.
