Smoky & Saucy Enchilada Sauce on a Shoestring

By awright0511

The actual assembling of enchiladas is a snap: Just warm 10 to 12 of your tortillas of choice until they’re soft and pliable. I much prefer to warm tortillas in a hot ungreased cast iron pan than in the microwave. Then grease a 9 inch by 13 inch glass baking dish with cooking spray, and set it aside. Set up mise en place with whatever you’d like to eat inside your enchiladas. The sky’s the limit. I did a mixture of sauteed onions, browned ground beef and cooked cubed pancetta, followed by a mixture of one part sour cream with one part shredded cheese. Then spoon some of each filling across the bottom half of a softened tortilla and roll away from yourself until closed. Place the enchilada width-wise into the greased pan. Repeat with the remaining tortillas, placing them side by side in the baking dish. Sprinkle some extra grated cheese on top, then pour the whole of the enchilada sauce on top of all of the enchiladas. If you used a glass baking dish, you can finish the dish in the microwave. If not, or if you are willing, bake in the oven at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for about 10 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and the sauce is bubbling.

This is also a great make-ahead dish. If you assemble it all and cover it, it will keep really well in the refrigerator for a couple days until you are ready to bake or microwave it. It also freezes beautifully. For when you want to make something out of the ‘freezes beautifully’ section {movie, anyone?}.

Ingredients

• 4 tablespoons canola oil
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed and peeled
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose gluten-free flour (I use Better Batter)
• 2 tablespoons chili powder
• 1 14-ounce can fire-roasted diced tomatoes (or substitute an equal amount regular diced tomatoes)
• 3/4 cup stock (vegetable or chicken do nicely)
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
• kosher salt, to taste

Preparation

Step 1

In a medium saucepan, heat the canola oil over medium heat. Add the crushed garlic, and cook, stirring frequently, until soft and fragrant (about 2 to 3 minutes). You really just want to infuse the oil with garlic flavor. You can then either leave the cloves of garlic in the oil, or remove and discard them.
Add the flour and chili powder to the hot oil, and stir frequently until the oil is thickened, about 1 minute. Add the diced tomatoes, stock, cumin, sugar, and smoked paprika. Stir to combine well and bring to a boil. Simmer briefly until the sauce begins to thicken. It will start out pretty thick, so it won’t need to reduce much. Add kosher salt to taste.
Using an immersion blender if you have one, or a regular blender if you don’t, blend the sauce until smooth.
Serve warm.