Canning Enchilada Sauce
One last recipe to close out tomato season
Hopefully by now, you’ve met all your canning goals for the season and you’re looking forward to that first frost to end the long weeks of growing and canning so you can start to enjoy your slow winter rest… And planning your next garden. (Just admit it. You’ll be lucky if you make it to Christmas without thinking about how grand that garden will be.)
But perhaps you’re like me and your tomato harvest is still trickling in for now, you’re not sure what to do with them, but you certainly don’t want to waste them!
Might I suggest putting up a batch of enchilada sauce for your family to try over the winter?
This was exactly what I did last year and there was mass disappointment among us when those sample jars ran out shortly after the new year. You can bet I’m going into this winter well-stocked!
This recipe is fairly mild. It has just enough heat to please my hot sauce-loving man and the more sensitive palates of my kids. You can sample it before canning and adjust the seasoning to kick it up as hot as you like it. I also add pepperoncini pepper flakes saved from my 2021 garden but I’ve not added those to the recipe since they are unusual and not necessary. If you do have other varieties of hot peppers in your garden certainly add some to the sauce to make it yours. I think the variety of different peppers really helps to create the best flavor.
It must be noted this is not an approved canning recipe. Proceed at your own risk. If you realize you must not can sauces that are too thick so the heat can permeate all the way through and that you must can them as a low-acid food you’ll be using common sense practices. Both pints of spaghetti sauce without meat and meat stock are canned for 20 minutes and that is the standard I use for this recipe. I’m comfortable with that, though I daily eat food that isn’t government-approved.
Our favorite ways to enjoy this enchilada sauce last year were on tacos, over eggs, and in breakfast enchiladas. Though with so much more sauce on the pantry shelves this year I’m sure we will expand that over the coming months.
Enchilada Sauce Recipe for Canning
You’re welcome to download this recipe card to your device to save or print. Enjoy!
Ingredients
10 pounds tomatoes, chopped
1 pound onions, chopped
1 head garlic, minced
Enchilada Sauce
Roasted tomato sauce, about 2 quarts
2 quarts meat stock
3 Tablespoons paprika
1 ½ Tablespoon salt
1 Tablespoon chili powder
1 Tablespoon cumin
2 teaspoons oregano
½ teaspoon cayenne powder
½ teaspoon black pepper
½ cup butter
½ cup flour
Directions
Roast the tomatoes, onions, and garlic until the tomatoes have released their water.
Drain the liquid and puree until smooth. You can run the sauce through a foley mill to remove seeds if desired.
Add the sauce, meat stock, and spices to a stockpot and simmer over medium-low for 30 minutes.
Create a roux by melting the butter and then whisking in the flour.
Cook for a minute then whisk the roux into the sauce.
Simmer the sauce for 10 minutes to thicken it slightly. Don’t thicken it too much so it can be safely canned. (Further reduction can be done if desired prior to using.)
Ladle the sauce into half or quarter-pint jars and prepare for canning.
Pressure can half pints for 20 minutes at 11 lbs standard altitude pressure. Adjust to your altitude if necessary
Love this!