enchilada sauce in DC/northern VA

[Fayd]

I hate to be that guy that agrees with Quebert, but every plain "enchilada sauce" I've had was tomato based. This includes in Mexico. Now, you can get other sauces, like verde or a style of mole, but the default is tomato based.

Uh, to my knowledge, the verde sauce *is* tomato based (well, tomatillo, a close relative). red enchilada sauce should not be tomato based.

 

[Fayd]

to update: i didn't actually make it to the ethnic markets yet.

i did however make a a sauce from scratch, sans recipe. turned out pretty decent. a little sweet (it smelled bitter, so i threw a spoon of sugar into the pot as it was cooking down.)

bunch of puya peppers, reconstituted, deseeded (shoulda left seeds in. turned out too mild)
bunch of cumin
bunch of chili powder
black pepper
salt
chicken bullion
2 cups hot water

->blend

make a roux, pour blended peppers into roux, simmer for awhile. sauce.

next time i'll leave the seeds in and add some garlic.

 

[MongGrel]

The op is a lost cause. I'll bet he's never step foot in an ethnic grocery or pawn shop in his life. 🙂

Some of the best spots for goodies.

+1

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

Make a bunch of it then portion it out and freeze what you don't immediately use. It's very easy.

 

[AyashiKaibutsu]

Um, like every grocery store I go to has giant international sections, and there's korean/latino markets all over the place that sell nothing but such foods (either will have a mix of the other). Granted, I'm just barely north of DC in Silver Spring, but I find it hard to believe you're having such problems.

 

[MrPickins]

FWIW, there are a ton of different enchilada sauces:

Enchiladas con chile rojo (with red chile) is a traditional red enchilada sauce, composed of dried red chili peppers soaked and ground into a sauce with other seasonings, Chile Colorado sauce adds a tomato base.[15]
Enchiladas con mole, instead of chili sauce, are served with mole,[16] and are also known as enmoladas.[17]
Enchiladas placera are Michoacán plaza-style, made with vegetables and poultry.[18]
Enchiladas poblanas are soft corn tortillas filled with chicken and poblano peppers, topped with oaxaca cheese.[19]
Enchiladas potosinas originate from San Luis Potosi, Mexico and are made with cheese-filled, chili-spiced masa.[20]
Enchiladas San Miguel are San Miguel de Allende-style enchiladas flavored with guajillo chilies by searing the flavor into the tortillas in a frying pan.[4]
Enchiladas suizas (Swiss-style) are topped with a white, milk or cream-based sauce, such as béchamel. This appellation is derived from Swiss immigrants to Mexico who established dairies to produce cream and cheese.[21]
Enchiladas verdes (green enchiladas) are made with green enchilada sauce composed of tomatillos and green chilis.
Enfrijoladas are topped with refried beans rather than chili sauce; their name come from frijol, meaning "bean".[22][23]
Entomatadas are made with tomato sauce instead of chile sauce.[16]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enchilada#Varieties

And no, a chile con carne or chile rojo sauce should not be tomato based.

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

Here you go.

you can do this in no time

 

[QueBert]

FWIW, there are a ton of different enchilada sauces:



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enchilada#Varieties

And no, a chile con carne or chile rojo sauce should not be tomato based.

There's a reason they have names attached to them. If I went into a Mexican restaurant and ordered Enchalidas and all the menu said was Enchalidas. And they brought me something with a Chili Verde like sauce or anything except the way I know they're suppose to be made? I would get up and walk out. It's fine if they make them differently, but they need to specifically state so on the menu.

The Real Academia Española defines the word enchilada, as used in Mexico as a rolled maize tortilla stuffed with meat and covered with a tomato and chili sauce

Any other way and it's an Enchalida LIKE dish.

 

[MrPickins]

There's a reason they have names attached to them. If I went into a Mexican restaurant and ordered Enchalidas and all the menu said was Enchalidas. And they brought me something with a Chili Verde like sauce or anything except the way I know they're suppose to be made? I would get up and walk out. It's fine if they make them differently, but they need to specifically state so on the menu.

The Real Academia Española defines the word enchilada, as used in Mexico as a rolled maize tortilla stuffed with meat and covered with a tomato and chili sauce

Any other way and it's an Enchalida LIKE dish.

All the sauces have names...

The one you seem to be referring to is chile con carne sauce (chile rojo if it has no meat in the sauce).

Ranchero sauce is the tomato based sauce, and that is generally not the standard sauce.


Also, if I'm eating at a place that doesn't bother to mention the type of enchilada sauce on the menu, I'm not eating the enchiladas there. D:

 

[QueBert]

All the sauces have names...

The one you seem to be referring to is chile con carne sauce (chile rojo if it has no meat in the sauce).


Also, if I'm eating at a place that doesn't bother to mention the type of enchilada sauce on the menu, I'm not eating the enchiladas there. D:

But if you just say Enchilada, by the actual definition I expect the cause to be tomato based. Similar to how if I say I'm making Enchalida I don't have to mentioned I'm using corn tortillas. I've had Enchiladas made with flour tortillas where it wasn't even mentioned. I understand people adapt things to how they like it, but it gets confusing when the changes them made aren't implicitly stated.

I know all the sauces have names, OP was looking for Enchilada sauce, which is tomato based. He didn't ask for Enchilada Con Rojo Mojito Pendejo sauce or whatever the shit he's after.

 

[PenguinPower]

But if you just say Enchilada, by the actual definition I expect the cause to be tomato based. Similar to how if I say I'm making Enchalida I don't have to mentioned I'm using corn tortillas. I've had Enchiladas made with flour tortillas where it wasn't even mentioned. I understand people adapt things to how they like it, but it gets confusing when the changes them made aren't implicitly stated.

I know all the sauces have names, OP was looking for Enchilada sauce, which is tomato based. He didn't ask for Enchilada Con Rojo Mojito Pendejo sauce or whatever the shit he's after.

Since when does "a sauce made with tomatoes and chiles" = tomato-based.

Tomato-based = entomatada.

 

[QueBert]

Since when does "a sauce made with tomatoes and chiles" = tomato-based.

Tomato-based = entomatada.

Because Tomato are the main ingredient? and no it's not Entomatadas, I looked those up and those are fried, you don't fry Enchiladas. In an authentic sauce there will be close to 2 pounds of tomatoes for every few tbsps total of some sort of chili peppers. That makes the base of the sauce Tomatoes, the chilis are essentially seasoning.

 

[MrPickins]

But if you just say Enchilada, by the actual definition I expect the cause to be tomato based. Similar to how if I say I'm making Enchalida I don't have to mentioned I'm using corn tortillas. I've had Enchiladas made with flour tortillas where it wasn't even mentioned. I understand people adapt things to how they like it, but it gets confusing when the changes them made aren't implicitly stated.

I know all the sauces have names, OP was looking for Enchilada sauce, which is tomato based. He didn't ask for Enchilada Con Rojo Mojito Pendejo sauce or whatever the shit he's after.

🙄

So you're used to a ranchero sauce. Good for you.

Call it what you want, that's what it is.

 

[PenguinPower]

Because Tomato are the main ingredient? and no it's not Entomatadas, I looked those up and those are fried, you don't fry Enchiladas. In an authentic sauce there will be close to 2 pounds of tomatoes for every few tbsps total of some sort of chili peppers. That makes the base of the sauce Tomatoes, the chilis are essentially seasoning.

Where does it say tomatoes are the main ingredient? The name literally means to season with chili, dude. Early, "authentic" recipes make no mention of tomatoes. Regional variations fry them.

Let it go. It's ok to be wrong.

 

[Fayd]

Because Tomato are the main ingredient? and no it's not Entomatadas, I looked those up and those are fried, you don't fry Enchiladas. In an authentic sauce there will be close to 2 pounds of tomatoes for every few tbsps total of some sort of chili peppers. That makes the base of the sauce Tomatoes, the chilis are essentially seasoning.

yes, you most certainly do.

the tortilla needs to be fried to soften it up, prepare it for rolling. you don't hard fry, but you do lightly fry.

 

[QueBert]

Where does it say tomatoes are the main ingredient? The name literally means to season with chili, dude. Early, "authentic" recipes make no mention of tomatoes. Regional variations fry them.

Let it go. It's ok to be wrong.

10 drops of Ghost Pepper extract could overpower an entire pot of stew but I wouldn't say it's the main ingredient if I used it. A seasoning by virtue of what the word means cannot be the base for a dish, it's an addition to a base used to enhance the flavor.

 

[PenguinPower]

10 drops of Ghost Pepper extract could overpower an entire pot of stew but I wouldn't say it's the main ingredient if I used it. A seasoning by virtue of what the word means cannot be the base for a dish, it's an addition to a base used to enhance the flavor.

Seriously? Reductio ad absurdum.

Since you are fond of pulling from wikipedia - and you are ignoring my more salient points - I'll do the same as you in an attempt to connect.

"An enchilada (/ˌɛntʃɨˈlɑːdə/, Spanish: [entʃiˈlaða]) is a corn tortilla rolled around a filling and covered with a chili pepper sauce."

and

"In their original form as Mexican street food, enchiladas were simply corn tortillas dipped in chili sauce and eaten without fillings"

Salient points in bold.

 

[acheron]

find a bestway grocery store. not sure if there is more than one but i've been to the one in alexandria. you will find it in there.

oh yeah? there's a Bestway in Herndon, but I've never been in. maybe I'll give it a try.

 

[QueBert]

Seriously? Reductio ad absurdum.

Since you are fond of pulling from wikipedia - and you are ignoring my more salient points - I'll do the same as you in an attempt to connect.

"An enchilada (/ˌɛntʃɨˈlɑːdə/, Spanish: [entʃiˈlaða]) is a corn tortilla rolled around a filling and covered with a chili pepper sauce."

and

"In their original form as Mexican street food, enchiladas were simply corn tortillas dipped in chili sauce and eaten without fillings"

Salient points in bold.

What I quoted from Wikipedia which was simply citing 2 links from Real Academia Española & Oxford Spanish dictionary. Both of which I verified by going to the actual sites and double checking. The definition I posted was correct. I would NEVER post shit from Wiki without fact checking it 1st. Also my GF's 90 year old Spanish great grandma who doesn't speak a lick of English agrees with me - I think any ways lol. I have to trust my GF translating what she says back to me here.

Do definition change? Sure, I had a white pizza the other day used an Alfredo sauce, I tried to explain nicely to the owner it wasn't a white sauce nor a white pizza, to which they told me "yes it was" I understood it as a matter of opinions as we could both pull up 500 links from Google to back up our stance here.