This sauce is just…amazing. Smokey, with a bit of a kick, this ranchero sauce is the real deal.
And you will be amazed at how easy it is to make the super flavorful sauce! It is deep in flavor and comes together in a short amount of time. It is perfect for huevos rancheros, but it is amazing on so many savory dishes from eggs, baked potatoes, grilled steak, burgers, and much, much more!
How to Make Homemade Ranchero Sauce
This incredible sauce has as much flavor as it does generations and generations of history!
You just can’t believe that something so easy to bring together can be so deep in flavor.
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The Ingredients You Will Need
The ingredients in the sauce are not exotic at all. Chipotle peppers can be found in the Hispanic section of many well-stocked supermarkets or found online.
Here’s What You’ll Need:
Oil – Canola or vegetable are good options
Onion – Chopped
Jalapeño – Seeds removed and roughly chopped
Garlic – Minced
Diced tomatoes – Canned are great, just drain them
Tomato sauce – Grab the small 8 oz. can
Chili powder – Ancho is good, but any type will work
Chipotle – You’ll need the pepper and some of the sauce (adobo)
Salt and pepper – Kosher and freshly ground
How to Serve
As mentioned, this sauce is a key ingredient in Huevos Rancheros, but we make a batch frequently and use it in burritos, over scrambled eggs, or any kind of protein.
Jar the sauce with a lid and it will keep in the fridge for up to 10 days. It freezes beautifully.
EXPERT TIP: After sautéing the onions, peppers, and garlic, you’ll want to transfer them to a blender with the remaining ingredients to purée the sauce. This can also be done in your food processor.
Tips for Perfect Ranchero Sauce
Control the Heat – Chipotle peppers are deeply flavorful, but they carry a lot of heat (they are dried jalapeños in a smokey adobo sauce). To reduce the heat considerably, open up the pepper and remove all of the seeds. For minimal heat, just go with half of the chipotle pepper, or none at all (just use the sauce). Mild heat, and go with one pepper. For medium, two peppers, extra spicy, leave the seeds in.
Concentrate the Flavors – It’s important to cook the sauce down before using or storing it. That’s why transferring the puréed sauce back to the pan and cooking for another 15 minutes is vital. This will eliminate excess water and reduce the sauce.
Serve Warm or at Room Temperature – The sauce is great served warm or at room temperature. For hot dishes, such as huevos rancheros, we recommend warming the sauce. When used as a condiment over eggs or a burger, it’s great at room temperature.
This sauce is classic Mexican and New Mexico cuisine at its best.
When you make huevos rancheros, you will not want to miss the sauce.
It’s so good and is so versatile!
Now, go forth and make some Amazing Ranchero Sauce!
Amazing Ranchero Sauce
Equipment
- 1 Blender or food processor
- 1 Large skillet/saucepan
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp canola oil
- 1 medium onion chopped
- 1 jalapeño seeded and minced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes undrained
- ½ cup tomato sauce canned
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1 chipotle pepper canned in adobo sauce, diced, seeded
- 1 tsp chipotle adobo sauce
- ½ tsp Kosher salt
- ¼ tsp black pepper
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat.
- Once hot, add the onion, jalapeno, and garlic, and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes.
- Transfer the mixture to a blender.
- Add the tomatoes and their juice, the tomato sauce, chili powder, and chipotle pepper and sauce, and puree.
- Return to the saucepan, and bring to a boil over high heat.
- Reduce the heat to medium-low, and cook, stirring frequently, until reduced to about 2 cups, about 15 minutes.
- Season with salt and pepper.
- Let cool, then store in airtight container, until ready to use.
Notes
Nutrition
POST UPDATE: This recipe was originally published in anuary 2015, but was updated with improved tweaks to the recipe with new tips and photography and a new video in January 2023!
My go to ranchero sauce!
AWESOME!! So good on so many dishes!
Hi! I was just wondering if the calories listed are the calories for the whole batch or per serving. I would think because it’s so high it would be the whole batch but I just want to make sure. I’ve been trying to find a healthy ranchero sauce and I love this recipe.
Hi Michelle! We are so glad you asked! We have a new nutrition application that much more accurately assigns nutritional value to our recipes. You are correct the calories for this ranchero sauce was way too high. We’ve re-calculated and they came down quite a bit. You can see the full list of nutritional values at the bottom of the recipe card. Let us know if you don’t see them or have any other questions. And let us know if you make it and what you think. We think you’ll love it!!! All the best, Kris & Wesley
We loved the ranchero sauce! I hope I can find enough ways to use it up. Can it be frozen?
Hi Catherine! So sorry for the delayed response! Absolutely! Our ranchero sauce freezes beautifully. It’s awesome on eggs of all kinds, burgers, grilled chicken, and…the sky’s the limit! Stay in touch!! Best, Kris & Wesley
Omg I’m in love with this recipe. It’s a little spicy on its own but perfect when on top of eggs. Today in a pinch I used diced tomatoes with green chiles… yum! Thanks for sharing!
Hi Amanada! Yay!!!! So glad you liked this recipe! It’s so fresh and yummy, right? And diced tomatoes and green chili’s sound wonderful! Thank you for letting us know! We so appreciate that! Please stay in touch! All the best, Kris & Wesley
Absolutely delicious!
First time I made it following the recipe, however it was still a bit too spicy for our youngest (my eldest l-o-v-e-s heat). Subsequently I’ve made it *without* the chopped chipotle but *with* the adobo sauce (we find the adobo sauce adds warmth but not a spicy heat). Oh! And we double the recipe because it is sooo tasty that we end up putting it on just about anything which will stay still long enough … ha! We’re pretty strict vegan / vegetarian, so don’t worry — our pets are all safe.
Thank you for crafting + sharing this recipe with us.
That sounds amazing!! And the adjustments you made are perfect. We are so thrilled you and your family enjoyed this ranchero sauce recipe, we love it, too! (It’s so good on so many yummy things to eat!). And thank you so much for letting us know, we truly appreciate it! Stay in touch!! All the best, Kris & Wesley
Made this yesterday with a couple of minor changes. Still fabulous! I live in Costa Rica. Some ingredients are difficult to get. Chili powder is one. Had to leave that out but still. Had to use dried (and reconstituted) chipotle pepper. They don’t grow them here. But I did find a can of chipotle in adobo! Yay! So minor changes only but still amazing. Used part of the first batch to make Huevos Rancheros. So delicious! So, thanks guys. Really appreciate the work! Makes my life easier.
Hi Nel!! Sounds like you handled things perfectly!! So glad you enjoyed the recipe and there isn’t anything much yummier than homemade Huevos Rancheros, right? Yay!! Thank you so much for letting us know, that means the world to us!! Stay in touch! All the best, Kris & Wesley
I made this sauce this weekend, it was so delicious I ate half of it with a spoon. Thank you for this recipe, I am making it again tonight. I couldn’t go a week without it 🙂
Thank you thank you thank you!!! We love that Ranchero sauce, too!!! So thrilled that you liked it and thank you SO MUCH for letting us know!! Means the world to us!! Please stay in touch! All the best, Kris & Wesley
Delicious! I didn’t have canned chipotle so I used chipotle powder. I served it with tamales and it was most tasty. Thanks for sharing your recipe. I will definitely use it again
Awesome! Thanks so much for letting us know, Heather! We are so glad you loved this ranchero sauce!! Stay in touch! Kris & Wesley
Made this a few times now and it is the business. Make it the night prior and huevos rancheros are easy the next morning.
Couldn’t agree more, Steve. Huevos Rancheros is so easy and so good when you make this sauce ahead of time. Thanks!
This rahncero sauce does look pretty flavoursome and delicious – love the addition of all the spicy chipotle especially.
Hi Thalia! The chipotle, I think, is what makes it really sing. Gives it a kick, which is nice, but I REALLY love the smokey taste it gives it. So good!
This looks amazing!! I love homemade sauces like this.
Thanks Annie! I agree, it’s all in the details…a sauce can make or break a dish. And I love http://www.thegarlicdiaries.com/ by the way!! So good!!
I’m on a huevos rancheros kick lately, and I definitely need a good sauce for it! Must try this!
Thanks, Joanne! Huevos Rancheros is my favorite dish to put this sauce on. I just added my version of Huevos Rancheros to the site. Let me know how the sauce turns out!