Red Enchilada Sauce

One of the things I am doing when trying to figure out which new recipes to try is to think of foods that I love when I go out or foods that I depend on that are processed somehow.  By making them myself, I can hopefully make them with fresher, more healthy ingredients and save money by not eat out at restaurants.  This is how my quest for making a red enchilada sauce came about.

My first attempt was a horrible disaster.  I was most upset about the ounce of semi-sweet chocolate that went into the recipe that was wasted when I had to throw out the whole pot of sauce.  To console myself, I ate the other three ounces; that helped a little.

Since I had all the other ingredients ready to go for shredded beef enchiladas, I had to find another recipe to try with the stuff I had on hand (which was no longer chocolate as I ate it).  Thankfully, the second attempt was much better!

Ingredients

2 tablespoons canola oil
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 cups water
1/4 cup tomato sauce
salt to taste
garlic powder to taste

Directions

1. Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute, then add the chili powder and cook for 1 more minute.
2. Gradually stir in the water, mixing well with a whisk to make sure you get out all the lumps, then stir in the tomato sauce and season with salt and garlic powder to taste.
3. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes.


It was pretty good sauce and something that I will for sure make a double or triple batch at a time and put in the freezer for convenience sake. The recipe made enough for me to for the 6 enchiladas I made for both dipping the corn tortilla in the sauce before stuffing it and to pour over the top before putting cheese on and throwing in the oven.  I will be making this again soon!