This easy Ranchero Sauce Recipe is made with fire-roasted tomatoes, jalapeños, onions, and simple spices for a bold homemade Mexican sauce. It is perfect for huevos rancheros, tacos, enchiladas, burritos, and dipping tortilla chips.
We love making this homemade sauce because it comes together quickly with pantry ingredients and adds rich Tex-Mex flavor to easy weeknight meals.
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This Homemade Sauce is the perfect addition to burritos, corn tortillas tacos and enchiladas. The blend of the fire-roasted tomatoes, sweet onions, jalapenos and simple spices makes this sauce full of deep flavors that compliments any Tex Mex Dishes.
Making Homemade Sauces taste so much better than store bought sauces. If you like this sauce you must try Honey BBQ Sauce, Alabama White BBQ Sauce and Hot Honey BBQ Sauce. For even more flavor to your recipes make Homemade Fajita Seasoning Recipe or Blackened Seasoning Recipe.
Quick Glance at this Recipe
- Easy Homemade Sauce: Ready in about 30 minutes
- Family-Tested: Mild to medium spice level
- Best Uses: Huevos rancheros, tacos, enchiladas, burritos
- Budget-Friendly: Made with simple pantry ingredients
- Cooking Method: Stovetop sauce recipe
- Freezer-Friendly: Great for meal prep
Ingredients
- Large Tomatoes and White Onion – Chopped into bite size pieces. Use any type of onions.
- Jalapeño – Seeded and diced. But for a hint of spice keep some of the seeds in the jalapeno peppers.
- Minced Garlic – Learn How to Mince Garlic
- Olive Oil – Substitute with Vegetable Oil or Avocado Oil
- Chicken Broth – Feel free to substitute with vegetable broth
- Chili Powder, Ground Cumin, Salt, Black Pepper, Oregano – The combination of these spices gives the sauce the best Mexican Flavor.
Scroll to the bottom for the full recipe and ingredients in the recipe card.
How to Make Ranchero Sauce
Step 1 – Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and jalapeño, cook until softened, about 5 minutes.
Step 2 – Add garlic, cook for 1 minute more.
Step 3 – Add tomatoes, chili powder, cumin, oregano, salt, pepper, and chicken broth. Bring to a simmer then stir.
Step 4 – Reduce heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes until tomatoes break down and sauce thickens. Use an immersion blender or food processor to puree until smooth, or carefully transfer to a blender.
Step 5 – Then the sauce is ready to serve and enjoy!
Recipe Tips
- Tomatoes – Use ripe tomatoes for the best flavor.
- Sauce Consistency – For a thicker sauce, simmer longer. For thinner, add more broth.
- Spice Level – Jalapeños can vary a lot in spice level, so if you want extra heat, leave the seeds in.
- Chopped Vegetables – To ensure that the veggies are about the same size, we like to use a vegetable chopper to chop the veggies.
Addition Ideas
Making homemade sauce allows your to change the ingredients to what you prefer. Try these additions for a delicious variation.
- Fresh Cilantro – Adds fresh flavor and flecks of green throughout the sauce.
- Fresh Lime Juice – This adds brightness to the bold flavors. The perfect combination.
- Mexican Oregano – Substitute dried oregano with ½ teaspoon of Mexican Oregano
- Chipotle Pepper in Adobo Sauce – Add in one can for rich and smoky flavors.
- Green Chiles – Love the flavor just one can gives the homemade sauce
How to Serve
There are many ways to serve ranchero sauce. You can easily drizzle the sauce over Blackstone Scrambled Eggs. Top the smoky flavor sauce over Flank Steak Tacos, Blackstone Steak Tacos or Blackstone Chicken Tacos.
We have served the sauce as a dip with tortilla chips or to dip our Blackstone Cheese Quesadillas into it.
Frequently Asked Questions
There is a difference between the two sauces. Ranchero Sauce is more of a tomato and pepper based sauce. Enchilada sauce is made without tomatoes and usually has a milder flavor.
This sauce can have a spicy taste. Since it is loaded with peppers the sauce tends to be spicy with a bold flavor.
Store the leftovers in the refrigerator for about a week in an airtight container.
Yes, you can freeze ranchero sauce in a freezer safe container for up to 3 months. When ready to serve, thaw in the fridge overnight when ready to serve.
More Easy Sauce Recipes
This easy Homemade Sauce Recipe is one of our favorite homemade Tex-Mex sauces because it is simple, flavorful, and works with so many meals.
If you make this recipe, leave a comment and star rating below. We love hearing how your family served this sauce.
Ranchero Sauce
Ingredients
- 4 large tomatoes chopped
- 1 jalapeño seeded and diced
- 1 white onion chopped
- 2 teaspoons Minced Garlic
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
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Instructions
- Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat.
- Add 4 chopped large tomatoes, 1 seeded and diced jalapeño, 1 chopped white onion, and 2 teaspoons minced garlic.
- Cook for 5-7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables begin to soften.
- Stir in 1 cup chicken broth, 1 teaspoon chili powder, 1 teaspoon ground cumin, 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon oregano, and ¼ teaspoon black pepper.
- Reduce heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes until tomatoes break down and sauce thickens.
- Use an immersion blender to puree until smooth, or carefully transfer to a blender.
- Then the sauce is ready to serve and enjoy!
Rich in flavor and loved serving it as a dipping sauce!