This homemade from scratch gluten free and grain free enchilada sauce is the perfect sauce to smother all of your mexican inspired dishes.

Growing up my Grandma made enchilada sauce from scratch. She was from New Mexico and would have family bring or send her authentic New Mexico chili to make her sauce.

When she made her sauce, it was hot! I remember as a kid not being able to tolerate the heat! She would also structure her enchiladas individually, making them one at a time instead of a casserole style like I tend to do.

Why I love Gluten Free Enchilada Sauce

Once I was on my own, I would just buy a can of sauce. I was too lazy to attempt it from scratch.

However, after realizing I had to be gluten-free, I didn’t trust the pre-made sauce. So, I made it from scratch since the ingredients were pantry staples.

The homemade from scratch gluten free enchilada sauce blew my mind!

I kept it on rotation ever since! Often, I would double it up just to freeze it to have on hand for easy meals.

Once I found out my son was allergic to corn, I simply swapped the cornstarch for tapioca to make this a grain free enchilada sauce recipe.

Making it a vegan enchilada sauce is simple as well, just swap the chicken broth for vegetable and voila!

You can also find this grain free enchilada sauce in my cookbook, 101 Incredible Gluten Free Recipes. It is on page 172.

Below I made chicken enchiladas with dairy free cheese, with dairy free enchilada sauce this is perfect for those of you that are dairy free or lactose intolerant.

You can use my Salsa Chicken recipe to make easy tacos and burritos. Just drain the chicken first, because it is very runny right out of the instant pot.

Some of my favorite ways to use this dairy free enchilada sauce are…

Bean Dip
Wet Burritos
Soups
Enchiladas

Ingredients needed to make this a Vegan Enchilada Sauce

Oil: I like avocado oil, but any neutral oil will work
Starch: I use tapioca to make this grain free, but potato or arrowroot will work great too. If you are not grain free, you can use cornstarch.
Chili Powder: I prefer a really bright red color for my chili powder. Use your favorite!
Cumin
Granulated Garlic, Salt and Pepper
Tomato Sauce
Broth: I like chicken broth, but to make this entirely vegan simply use vegetable broth.
Dried Oregano

How to make this Grain Free Enchilada Sauce

Heat your pan and add the oil.
Sift in the tapioca starch, chili powder and cumin.
Stir well and add the granulated garlic.
You should start to form a paste, reduce heat to medium low and add the tomato sauce, stir vigorously.
Add one cup of broth at a time and stir while pouring it in (4 Cups).
Keep stirring and allow it to start to thicken and then add the other 2 cups (one cup at a time while continuing to stir).
Taste it and add your salt and pepper at this point.
Let it continue to cook for another 5 or so minutes stirring every minute.
Turn off heat and add oregano and stir. Serve hot. Enjoy!

You can store this sauce in the fridge for 4-5 days or put it in freezer bags and freeze for up to 4 months. I like to put 1 cup in a quart size freezer bag and have individual portions to take out for bean dip and burritos.

Gluten Free Enchilada Sauce

This easy to make grain free enchilada sauce is delicious!

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Course: Seasonings

Cuisine: Mexican, spanish

Keyword: dairy free enchilada sauce, gluten free enchilada sauce, gluten free enchilada sauce, dairy free enchilada sauce, grain free enchilada sauce, vegan enchilada sauce, vegan enchilada sauce

Servings:

Calories: 171kcal

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Ingredients

1/3 Cup plus 2 TBSP. Avocado Oil
2/3 Cup Tapioca Starch
2/3 Cup Chili Powder of your choice this can really change the flavor, use one you love!
¼ Cup Cumin
1 TBSP. Granulated Garlic
Salt and Pepper to Taste
6 Cups Broth Chicken or Vegetable
2 Cups Tomato Sauce
2 TBSP. Dried Oregano

Instructions

Heat your pan and add the oil.
Sift in the tapioca starch, chili powder and cumin.
Stir well and add the granulated garlic.
You should start to form a paste, reduce heat to medium low and add the tomato sauce, stir vigorously.
Add one cup of broth at a time and stir while pouring it in (4 Cups).
Keep stirring and allow it to start to thicken and then add the other 2 cups (one cup at a time while continuing to stir).
Taste it and add your salt and pepper at this point.
Let it continue to cook for another 5 or so minutes stirring every minute.
Turn off heat and add oregano and stir. Serve hot. Enjoy!

Nutrition

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

I know you will all love this recipe as much as us! Enjoy!

Want more delicious gluten and dairy free dinner recipes? I’ve got you covered….

Gluten Free Dairy Free Beef Stroganoff

Vegan Cauliflower Alfredo Sauce

Gluten Free Dairy Free Butter Chicken

Vegetable Soup (Gluten Free and Vegan)

This post was originally posted in August 2016 and it as updated and reposted in April 2023.

2 Comments

Brittany says:

at

What broth are you using that’s corn and gluten free?

1. Living Freely Gluten Free says:
  
  at
  
  My favorite broth is Kettle & Fire. We are corn lite, so if you have a serious allergy I would contact them about their protocols.