We’re talking just 7 ingredients and under 15 minutes to make the most delicious enchilada sauce!

The Story Behind the Recipe

Maybe my palate just isn’t sophisticated enough, but I’ve never found a canned enchilada sauce that I actually like. I feel like that’s a weird thing to say, but it’s true.

But I do love enchiladas, and they’re such an easy (and delicious!) dish to make at home.

Traditional homemade enchilada sauce is made with peppers/dried chiles and I often see flour in the ingredients, too. Tomato, surprisingly to me, seems more like an afterthought than a main ingredient.

I decided to work backwards and, using a recipe from a cute old thrifted cookbook called The Sunburst Farm Family Cookbook as a jumping off point, make an enchilada sauce that started with tomatoes and added flavors from there.

The result is a super fast and easy homemade enchilada sauce that tastes amazing – way better than canned in my opinion, and much easier than trying my hand at a super authentic sauce.

Why You’ll Love This Easy Homemade Enchilada Sauce

• Comes together quickly – just 15 minutes to make.
• Delicious! The tomato, onion, and chili powder combo is so good.
• Easy to double or triple, then freeze for easy homemade enchiladas anytime.

Ingredients

• Olive oil – For sauteing the onion and garlic.
• Onion – You’ll want one whole onion for lots of onion flavor.
• Garlic – Two cloves, minced, for signature garlic flavor.
• Tomato puree – Grab a 12-ounce can of your favorite brand of puree.
• Vegetable broth – You can get boxed broth at the store or use homemade veggie broth.
• Chili powder – Use a mild or more spicy blend, your choice.
• Cumin – For signature Mexican cuisine flavor and an earthy note.
• Smoked paprika – For a smoky touch.
• Salt – To taste.

I hope you love this homemade enchilada sauce as much as we do! Use it to make any type of enchilada you like. I make a black bean enchilada recipe with this sauce that’s so delicious (watch for that recipe soon!)

More Sauce Recipes

• Homemade BBQ Sauce
• Favorite Pizza Sauce
• Peanut Sauce

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Easy Enchilada Sauce Recipe

This simple 7-ingredient homemade enchilada sauce beats the pants off of store-bought canned! Now, it might not be the most authentic enchilada sauce recipe out there, but in my opinion, it tastes the best of any I've tried, authentic or not!

Keyword easy enchilada sauce, enchilada sauce recipe, homemade enchilada sauce

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 15 minutes minutes

Servings 3 cups

Calories 158kcal

Author Kare

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 medium onion diced, about 2 cups
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 12 ounces tomato puree about 1 1/4 cup
• 1 cup vegetable broth
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt plus more to taste

Instructions

• Place a skillet over medium-low heat. When hot, add the oil. When the oil is hot, add the onions and sauce for 5-6 minutes, until soft and tender. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for another minute.
• Add the tomato puree, vegetable broth, chili powder, and cumin, smoked paprika, and salt. Simmer until slightly thickened.
• Taste and add more salt if desired.
• I like to puree my enchilada sauce so that it's completely smooth, but this step is optional if you prefer it a bit chunkier. To puree, let it cool a bit then transfer to a high-speed blender. Puree by blending on high, adding more veggie broth if needed to thin it out, until smooth, about 1 minute.
• Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. You can also freeze this enchilada sauce for up to 3 months.

Notes

Recipe adapted from The Sunburst Farm Family Cookbook

Nutrition

Calories: 158kcal | Carbohydrates: 17g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Sodium: 586mg | Potassium: 627mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 1627IU | Vitamin C: 15mg | Calcium: 48mg | Iron: 3mg

The post Easy Homemade Enchilada Sauce Recipe appeared first on Kitchen Treaty.

Table of Contents

• The Story Behind the Recipe
• Why You’ll Love these Chickpea Sloppy Joes
• Ingredient Info
• How to Make These Vegetarian Sloppy Joes
• What to Serve with Chickpea Sloppy Joes
• Can You Freeze These Vegetarian Sloppy Joes?

The Story Behind the Recipe

Stormy weather has hit Washington state. Wind, rain, and no sign of letting up – in fact, quite the opposite. Eek! I am a storm wimp. When I was a kid, storms were just adventures, but now they’re only about 10% fascinating and 90% scary. I guess the older you get, the more you see, and then you realize that bad things actually can and do happen. At least that’s my theory.

Or maybe I’ve just become a class-A weenie with age.

Fall came fast here in the Pacific Northwest, and this storm has pretty much sealed the deal. I’m in full-on cozy-making mode, obsessing over plaid throws and sweater rugs and Crock Pot meals. Segue to these Slow Cooker BBQ Chickpea Sloppy Joes!

Why You’ll Love these Chickpea Sloppy Joes

First of all, these vegetarian sloppy joes might just be the easiest around! Dump some stuff in the slow cooker, cook it all day, come home and toast up some buns and serve it up.

With chickpeas and a few red lentils thrown in, they’re super hearty and full of protein. Oh AND of course they cook up in the slow cooker, so you know. Awesomesauce and all that. (For what it’s worth, that’s the first and last time I will use “awesomesauce.”)

Chickpeas add “meatiness” and stick-to-the-ribbishness while the red lentils help thicken things up enough to pile it on. And with what’s basically a BBQ sauce base, these chickpea sloppy joes are tangy and just a little different. In a good way, I think.

Ingredient Info

• Chickpeas – I use two cans, which equates to three cups.
• Split red lentils – I love the added protein split red lentils add, plus they break down while cooking, making these chickpea sloppy joes nice and thick and perfect for serving inside buns.
• Onion & garlic – gotta have these for flavor!
• Tomato sauce – Tomatoes are key in sloppy joes AND barbecue sauce so a must in this hybrid recipe!
• Apple cider vinegar, brown sugar, vegan Worcestershire, dry mustard, crushed red pepper flakes – all powerhouse ingredients that give that unmistakably BBQ flavor.
• Hamburger buns – brush them with olive oil and get them toasty. You won’t regret it!

How to Make These Vegetarian Sloppy Joes

Well, let’s just say if you’re looking for a chickpea sloppy Joe recipe with lots of prep steps and time, you’ve come to the wrong place.

Because you literally pour all of the ingredients into your slow cooker, except for the buns. Once the filling has cooked, grab a potato masher and mash it a bit. Stir, cook a bit longer, toast up some buns, and serve. That’s it!

What to Serve with Chickpea Sloppy Joes

I love a nice hearty kale salad with sloppy joes, or some oven-roasted potatoes. Both great! Vegetable fries are great alongside too. I have ones made with sweet potatoes, butternut squash, carrots, green beans, or zucchini – take your pick!

Can You Freeze These Vegetarian Sloppy Joes?

Chickpea sloppy joes are a great freezer recipe! You can freeze the cooked filling in a freezer bag for up to three months. Reheat in the microwave, over the stovetop, or even in the slow cooker with a splash of water. I’ve also assembled the raw ingredients in a freezer bag for a future Crock Pot meal – my favorite way to meal prep! Just let it thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then add to the Crock Pot in the morning. Dinner’s ready that evening!

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Slow Cooker BBQ Chickpea Sloppy Joes

Tangy, hearty, and easy! Chickpeas and red lentils cook up thick and rich in a tomato-BBQ base.

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 8 hours hours

Total Time 8 hours hours 10 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Calories 353kcal

Author Kare

Ingredients

For the BBQ Chickpea Sloppy Joe filling:

• 2 15-ounce cans chickpeas, drained
• 1/2 cup uncooked split red lentils rinsed
• 1 small onion diced [about 1 cup]
• 3 medium cloves garlic diced [about 1 tablespoon]
• 1 15-ounce can tomato sauce
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup dark brown sugar
• 3 tablespoons vegan Worcestershire sauce can use regular Worcestershire if not vegetarian or vegan
• 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
• 1/4 teaspoon red crushed pepper flakes
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt + more to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper + more to taste

For the buns:

• 4 hamburger buns*
• 2 teaspoons olive oil

Toppings (optional):

• Sliced red onion
• Dill pickles or sweet pickles

Equipment:

• 3-quart or larger slow cooker

Instructions

• Add all ingredients to the slow cooker. Cook on low for 8 hours or on high 5-6 hours, until the lentils are cooked through and the mixture thickens. Open the slow cooker and, using a potato masher, mash about 1/3 of the filling. Give it a good stir, replace the lid, and let it cook for another 30 minutes or so until thickened.
• Meanwhile, toast the buns. Brush insides with olive oil and place cut-side-up under the broiler in your oven. Broil 30 – 60 seconds until golden.
• Place buns on plate and spoon filling over the top. Add toppings if desired. Serve.
• Leftover filling keeps well in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 2-3 days.

Notes

Gluten-free option:

Use gluten-free buns or you can go the bunless route – the filling is also great over brown rice or spaghetti squash.

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 353kcal | Carbohydrates: 62g | Protein: 16g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Sodium: 765mg | Potassium: 709mg | Fiber: 16g | Sugar: 21g | Vitamin A: 50IU | Vitamin C: 7mg | Calcium: 104mg | Iron: 6mg

The post Slow Cooker BBQ Chickpea Sloppy Joes appeared first on Kitchen Treaty.

Especially these last couple of weeks. Because once I discovered that Fixer Upper was available on Amazon, let’s just say I’ve made up for all that lost HGTV time. By binging on a home improvement show. Livin’ the scintillating dream, that’s me!

Anyway, Chip and Joanna have convinced me to move our kitchen remodeling project to the top of our home project list. Knock out this wall here, extend that island there, bust out that backsplash, paint the cabinets. No problem! My guy mostly just listens and smiles – vaguely – when I talk about it. I can’t decide if that means he’s on board or not.

Meanwhile – light, white, open kitchen or not – these Slow Cooker Mango BBQ Vegan Baked Beans are going to be happening in there. A lot. They’re so so so perfect for summer.

I just can’t help but tout, over and over, how wonderful the Crock Pot is for summer cooking. You do all the work in the morning, before the weather turns sweltering. And then the Crock Pot just sits there nicely, doing its thing all day without transforming your kitchen into a sweat box. Crock Pots are perfect for toting to barbecues, too. Plus, they keep the goods warm until nosh time. Win.

These vegan baked beans are the bee’s knees. Note: no bees were actually harmed in the making of these beans. They (the beans!) are tender and tangy; the perfect balance between sweet and savory. They’re kind of new and a little unique without being weird. They’re ideal for summer potluck BBQs because they work well for just about everyone there – a saucy side for the meat-eaters, but also substantial enough to fill in as a main dish for the plant-based peeps.

Most of my barbecue sauce based recipes start with ketchup, but because I’ve moved more toward using non-refined ingredients, I decided to challenge myself with leaving it out. So instead, I started with tomato sauce, then added the flavors that you’d find in ketchup, along with a few ingredients and spices that transform the saucy base into barbecue saucy goodness. Then the beans stew in that saucy sauce along with chopped onion, garlic, and fresh mango. Saucy! I really like that word.

Oh, hello, savory-sweet, finger-licking BBQ beans.

Okay! Off to watch my very last episode of Fixer Upper! When does Season 3 come out again?!

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Slow Cooker Mango BBQ Baked Beans

Tangy, saucy, and savory-sweet, these easy Crock Pot beans practically scream “summer barbecue!” They’re one of those happy sides that’s perfect for all, but they also just happen to be vegan. Score!

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 8 hours hours

Total Time 8 hours hours 10 minutes minutes

Author Kare

Ingredients

• 3 15-ounce cans white beans (navy beans or cannellini beans are both good), drained (about 4 1/2 cups)
• 2-3 ripe mangoes peeled and diced (2 cups)
• 1 15-ounce can tomato sauce
• 1 medium yellow onion diced
• 3 medium cloves garlic minced
• 2 tablespoons agave nectar pure maple syrup, or granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons Tamari or soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons vegetarian Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt + more to taste
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes or more for more heat

Equipment:

• One 3-quart or larger slow cooker

Instructions

• Add all ingredients to slow cooker. Stir gently until combined. Cook on low for 8-10 hours or high for 5-6 hours. Taste and add additional salt if desired. Serve.

The post Slow Cooker Mango BBQ Vegan Baked Beans appeared first on Kitchen Treaty.