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    Chipotle Sauce Recipe

    April 24, 2012 by G. Stephen Jones 36 Comments

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

     

    Chipotle Sauce Recipe

    What the Heck Is A Chipotle?

    I just recently learned this but a chipotle is a smoke-dried jalapeño pepper. It comes from the word chilpoctli which means smoked chili pepper.

    A very popular pepper in Mexico, jalapeños that have been left on their plants at the end of the growing season turn bright red and lose a lot of their moisture. These are then picked to be used for making chipotle.

    Placed into a smoker, the ripe jalapeños are smoked for several days until they lose their moisture and get prune like. I read that it takes 10 pounds of jalapeños to make 1 pound of chipotle. The heat of the chipotle has a lot to do with the heat of the jalapeño it comes from.

    Sauce or Salsa

    I call this recipe a chipotle sauce but it can also be called a chipotle salsa because salsa means sauce in Spanish. I think of salsa in the more traditional American way and that is as a salsa cruda  or pico de gallo, you know, the stuff we serve with corn chips while watching sports. See my version of salsa cruda here.

    I learned how to make this simple sauce(salsa) from my friend Paula who is from Mexico. She is a wonderful cook and has been teaching me the basics of Mexican cuisine and I'm not talking about anything fancy, just simple, traditional and very tasty.

    What's really great about this sauce is you combine heat with a smoky flavor and you can use it with just about anything.

    I've tried this on pan fried chicken, fish, tacos, beef, leftover rice and pasta or as a snack with corn chips. It's easy to make at home and a lot cheaper than some of the commercial varieties.

    roasting_tomato

    roasted tomato

    Chipotle Peppers

    puree chipotle peppers

    chopping cilantro

    taco with chipotle sauce

    Chipotle Sauce Recipe
    Print Recipe

    Chipotle Sauce Recipe

    How to make chipotle sauce from scratch.
    Prep Time10 mins
    Total Time10 mins
    Course: Sauces
    Cuisine: Mexican
    Keyword: chipotle, sauce

    Ingredients

    • 2 tomatoes
    • 2 chipotles from a can - more if you want it hotter
    • ½ cup of water
    • 1 or 2 sprigs of fresh cilantro - chopped

    Instructions

    • Start by roasting the tomatoes. You can roast them in the oven or right on top of the stove. In the photo above you see Paula roasting one over the flame of my gas burner.
    • Being careful not to burn yourself, you hold the tomato with a fork over the flame until the skin turns black and then peel it off over the sink.
    • Transfer the tomatoes into a blender.
    • Add the chipotles to the blender and then the water. Puree this together in the blender and pour into a bowl.
    • Stir in the chopped cilantro and you are ready to go. If the sauce is too thin for you liking, you can cook it down some in a pan but realize the sauce will get hotter the more you cook it down, so be careful.

     

     

    « Gluten Free Fried Flounder Recipe
    Strozzapreti Pasta with Imported Italian Tuna Recipe »

    I'm a work-at-home dad who enjoys cooking, learning everything I can about the culinary world and sharing it with you. To learn more about me... Read More…

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Jenni

      April 24, 2012 at 1:27 pm

      Yum! Chipotle hot sauce is one of my favorite things--we just had some w/our dinner last night, as a matter of fact. Now, I can make my own. Thanks, RG, and thank you Paula!

      Reply
    2. Amber @ The Cook's Sister

      May 15, 2012 at 2:30 am

      Love this chipotle sauce! I made this and used it as a meatloaf topping. Delicious!

      Reply
    3. Suzanne Roberts

      January 24, 2013 at 1:37 am

      It's too bad the person showing how to make this sauce has terrible finger nail polish. It looks awful, rather unprofessional-either where polish or don't. I don't even want to try this recipe because her nails turned me off.

      Hi Suzanne, I can assure you the sauce was delightful even though it was prepared by someone with working hands. - RG

      Reply
      • SSalas

        July 22, 2014 at 1:29 pm

        No need to be tacky & rude; no need to post your personal opinion that has nothing to do with the recipe!!

        Reply
      • Esther

        August 01, 2014 at 3:19 am

        My how you major in minors. So sad for you. You are perfect, right?

        Reply
      • Cooker

        July 28, 2016 at 9:39 pm

        So rude!

        Reply
      • Liz Swan

        May 26, 2017 at 8:13 pm

        I decided to try this recipe BECAUSE of the nail polish! It told me the cook is a real person who cares about preparing good food for the people she cares about, not someone who cares only about appearances. Thanks for being real!

        Reply
      • Ruby Rodriguez

        June 11, 2019 at 5:49 pm

        She is just showing you how to prepare the sauce yourself, not asking you to eat the one she made.. #SoIgnorant

        Reply
    4. Sid

      February 09, 2013 at 11:40 pm

      WOW. RG you really need to learn online etiquette. When you present material online and that too about food - HYGIENE and PRESENTATION are essential. You being cheeky means you have no respect for your readership.

      There are a million sites out there about sauces, not many with smart aleck editors.

      Sid, not even going there. - RG

      Reply
      • Cooker

        July 28, 2016 at 9:40 pm

        Sid you r as tacky as the nail polish commenter

        Reply
        • Whitney Metts

          February 24, 2018 at 11:53 am

          Sid,
          This is a crazy great sauce, and if ground and cooked in a molcajete with: halibut, scallops and shrimp. That pretencious, elitist attitude might melt.

          Reply
    5. L.S.

      February 27, 2013 at 6:47 am

      Tasted delicious with shrimp!

      Thanks for the guide.

      Reply
    6. John Graham

      April 27, 2013 at 3:10 am

      Very professional.The word "loose" means "free", or "not tight". The word you wanted is "lose". Later, Suzanne Roberts used "where" instead of "wear". Let's brush up, folks...John Graham

      Reply
      • G. Stephen Jones

        June 06, 2014 at 10:07 am

        Thanks John for pointing that out. Paraphrasing Mark Twain, “I have no respect for a man who can spell a word only one way.

        Reply
    7. fatima

      February 13, 2014 at 4:02 am

      Is there anyother substitute for the jalapenos if they were unavailable? Can we use paprika instead of jalapenos?

      Reply
      • G. Stephen Jones

        February 13, 2014 at 2:58 pm

        If you can't find jalapenos, look for another hot and spicy pepper and if all else fails, maybe you could try hot pepper flakes that are readily available.

        Reply
    8. Grateful reader

      February 17, 2014 at 4:35 pm

      Please don't listen to these snobby chumps, RG! I for one am very grateful for this recipe. Thanks 🙂

      Reply
    9. mike

      March 07, 2014 at 8:22 pm

      Thanks for the recipe. Will definitely
      Try it when peppers come in. I find this helpful even though others are negative about"working hands"!

      Reply
    10. arlene

      March 21, 2014 at 12:00 am

      Who cares bout the nail polish. Do u want recipe 4 hotsauce or hot fingernails? Tee hee

      Reply
      • Romero Espindola

        June 03, 2017 at 8:11 am

        Hahahahaah...WRITE!!! It's ALL spicy chapolte sauce for ME. My husband is Mexican and LOVES Chapolte. I make "sincronizadas" for him how he is used to eating it growing up and have been looking for a Chapolte Sauce that will help me make a great quantity I can have on hand and not just when I need it for my "sincronizadas" which I use other ingredients for, ON TOP OF the Chapoltes. I'm so ecstatic to find this. !!!Yes!!! It's ALL CHAPOLTE BABY...ALLL CHAPOLTE. 🙂

        Reply
    11. Jaime

      May 09, 2014 at 11:27 am

      Wow, people are idiots. I'm very greatful for the recipe, that I found while at the grocery store after finding the prepared sauce that was in my recipe contained gluten. So thank you!

      Reply
    12. Dimitra

      May 24, 2014 at 9:12 am

      some people are very rude, i agree with Jaime and Arlene. Thank you for the recipe! And i am sure that traditional mexican families don't do manicure before to cook

      Reply
    13. amanda

      June 05, 2014 at 1:20 pm

      I like the recipe but I love the cheeky comments! I have no idea why people need to be ugly.

      Reply
    14. Lucy

      September 04, 2014 at 11:08 pm

      Awesome recipe I tried it with grilled fish tacos

      Reply
    15. Lindsey

      January 23, 2015 at 2:24 am

      Thanks for teaching me something new! I always thought chipotle was its own type of pepper. This is like learning that green and black tea are the same leaf. Thanks to you and Paula for the authentic recipe. Can't wait to try it.

      Reply
    16. Frank

      April 25, 2015 at 3:37 am

      I just found your recipe and will try it later. 2 tomatoes just went into the oven
      Greetings from Spain - Frank

      Reply
    17. J D

      September 02, 2015 at 2:38 pm

      This is very tasty made as described. Simple, quick, delicious what more can one ask??

      Reply
    18. CM

      January 07, 2016 at 11:25 am

      Thank you for posting!
      You can also use Poblano peppers just like the jalapeño peppers to create a similar sauce that is very tasty over enchiladas! I'm going to make some chipotle sauce and enjoy with family! Look forward to more recipes!

      CM

      Reply
    19. Mark

      February 21, 2016 at 6:26 pm

      Thanks for the recipe. Can you freeze the sauce?

      Reply
      • The Reluctant Gourmet

        February 23, 2016 at 10:01 am

        I don't see why not but it's so quick and easy to make I'm not sure why you would want to. I also can't tell you how long you can freeze it for.

        Reply
    20. Tammy

      January 22, 2017 at 4:41 pm

      Thank you!! I learned from some amazing cooks from Mexico also, and wanted something similar to chalula chipotle. I found it! Thanks again!

      Reply
    21. Esther

      February 09, 2018 at 2:30 pm

      While I agree that presentation is everything when it deals with food, etc., I never noticed the nails because I was too busy trying to memorize the Recipe. LOl Things folks concentrate on cracks me up. Either way, None of us are in her kitchen to eat with her so don't worry about her because you aren't invited to the Feast. Make it, eat it, enjoy it and share your Recipe with others you love.

      Reply
    22. Ross

      July 09, 2018 at 7:51 pm

      I absolutely agree with you Esther, I have an Mexican girlfriend and she was surprised when I cooked for her and used this sauce. Thank you!!

      Reply
    23. Glen

      December 17, 2018 at 11:39 am

      I think you have done a fantastic job! Thank you for showing how many of our mothers and grandmothers cooked. They not only loved to cook but loved those for whom they cooked.
      I have tried this with the dried chilpolte and it works well.

      Reply
    24. Bonita Ellis

      April 15, 2020 at 12:37 pm

      Thank you for the recipe. I make and can my own salsa every year. Last year I added some canned chipotle in adobo sauce to my salsa. What a difference. This not only gave me the recipe for chipotle sauce but explained how to smoke the peppers. Now I can use up all of those ripe (red) jalapeno's (that I never got around to picking) to make chipotle peppers to can. Will try this sauce from my homemade chipotles.

      Reply
      • G. Stephen Jones

        April 15, 2020 at 1:48 pm

        You are very welcome.

        Reply

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