Jordan Myrick
Gwynedd Stuart
When you make enchiladas at home, wouldn’t it be great if they tasted pretty much exactly like that bubbly plate of cheesy, saucy, stuffed corn tortillas at your favorite local Mexican restaurant? Yeah, we agree. So that’s what we had in mind when we taste tested a bunch of jarred and canned enchilada sauce for this ranking.
What we looked for in the best enchilada sauce
Well, that depends. The best green enchilada sauce is fresh and zippy tasting. The best red enchilada sauce is savory and warm. There are super smooth enchilada sauces and some with more texture, almost like salsa—all enchilada sauce is valid, and most of it will work with chicken, beef, or cheese.
In three separate taste tests, we dunked our spoons into piping hot bowls of enchilada sauce and judged them on flavor, consistency (they shouldn’t be too watery), and authenticity—at least the kind of authenticity you’ll find at your local beany-cheesy Mexican spot. Grab a Margarita and let’s talk about the best enchilada sauce.
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- Great Value Green Chile Enchilada Sauce
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If you’ve ever had enchiladas at a beany-cheesy Mexican restaurant, you know how this stuff tastes. It’s tangy, peppery, and has just a hint of cumin. The secret ingredient (in this and our #1 green sauce pick) is MSG! It brings all the flavors to life and makes it taste so, so savory. And it’s only $1! I kept this can of sauce and actually made chicken enchiladas for dinner (bobo ones wrapped in low carb tortillas, but still). Sadly, our local Walmart was out of Great Value red enchilada sauce, but I’ll bet it’s pretty good, too—we’ll try it in our next taste test. —Gwynedd Stuart
Credit: Liv Averett / Walmart
- Las Palmas Green Chile Enchilada Sauce
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Las Palmas makes the best green enchilada sauce at the grocery store. It’s a little tangy, super savory, and it tastes very fresh, even though it’s canned enchilada sauce. If you’re a green sauce lover, you will be thrilled with this premade enchilada sauce. You won’t just want to stop at enchiladas! Wet burritos, loaded nachos, and tortas would all welcome this zesty store bought enchilada sauce with open arms. —Jordan Myrick
Credit: Liv Averett / Instacart
- La Victoria Creamy Green Chili Enchilada Sauce
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If you prefer a creamy enchilada sauce, La Victoria Creamy Chili premade enchilada sauce is the best enchilada sauce at the grocery store. This premade enchilada sauce, which comes in a jar rather than a can, isn’t spicy at all, even though it has the word “chili” in its name. Instead, it’s rich, savory, and herbaceous. It’s the store bought enchilada sauce you should be buying for at-home enchiladas suizas (aka chicken enchiladas in a creamy green sauce). Tasting this sauce made me want to start shredding chicken with my left hand and holding a Margarita with my right. —Jordan Myrick
Credit: Liv Averett / Instacart
- Somos Red Enchilada Sauce
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This mild red enchilada sauce is like a cross between salsa and enchilada sauce. It doesn’t have that viscosity that you’re used to, but it does have visible pieces of pureed tomato and pepper. It’s made with roasted tomatoes, ancho peppers, and guajillo peppers—the fire roasted flavor is there, but it’s not too aggressively smoky either. Just a nice complement to the savory-sweet tomatoes. There’s no MSG in here, but you’d think there was. All the flavors come together so nicely. I want a fat ground beef burrito drenched in this stuff. —Gwynedd Stuart
Credit: Liv Averett / Instacart
- Hatch Organic Red Enchilada Sauce
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If you’re looking for the best red enchilada sauce, go for Hatch. This can is all you need to cook enchiladas at home that taste like they came from a restaurant. First of all, the sauce is the ideal thickness. It will drape itself around your tortillas. And when it comes to flavor, this is spot on. It’s a little smoky, slightly tomatoey, and chili-forward without being spicy. I truly believe that this is the best store bought enchilada sauce because it could (and will) please anyone and everyone. It’s that good. —Jordan Myrick
Credit: Liv Averett / Instacart
Best Budget Enchilada Sauce
Best Green
Best Creamy
Best Enchilada Sauce for a Smothered Burrito
Best Red
Other enchilada sauces we tried
La Victoria Lime Tomatillo, La Victoria Green, Old El Paso Green, La Victoria Traditional, Old El Paso Red, Great Value Red, El Pato Green, Hatch Green Chili, Macayo, Siete Red, Siete Green, Hatch Green
Joe Rumrill
Luke Field
Jessica Block
