Ranchero Sauce
by Sommer Collier — last updated on Jan 18, 2025 
The Best Ranchero Sauce Recipe Ever – Looking for the ultimate ranchero sauce recipe? You found it! Creamy, robust, and a hint spicy. This sauce makes every dish taste better!
Mexican Dinner Night
This silky sauce adds a perky punch of flavor to any dish!
I guarantee once you make this recipe, you will use it over and over again. It’s a creamy smoky sauce with tons of zest and a little hint of spice.
In fact, I believe this to be absolutely The Best Ranchero Sauce Recipe Ever!
What is Ranchero Sauce?
Ranchero sauce is a type of cooked salsa made with tomatoes, peppers, smoky chiles, and spices. It can be pureed smooth or left chunky (although we like it smooth) and can be spooned over everything.
Ranchero sauce is similar to red enchilada sauce. However, it is lighter on the chiles, giving it a brighter, perkier flavor than enchilada sauce. But don’t let that stop you from using Ranchera over enchiladas!
How to Use Ranchero Sauce
You could put “The Best Ranchero Sauce Recipe” on just about anything, and it would improve it…
Eggs, potatoes, steaks, pork chops, fish, grilled vegetables, risotto or grits, leftover holiday dishes, old shoes.
Anytime I make this easy Ranchera Sauce Recipe, my family rants and raves about whatever I spoon it over. They say things like, “This is the best chicken ever!” and “This is the best-roasted asparagus ever!”
Yet in reality… It’s always the sauce that brings out this reaction.
Don’t believe me?
Make a batch to keep in the fridge this week. Warm it up and serve it over your leftover turkey, dressing, or green beans. You won’t believe what a difference it will make.
What Ingredients You Will Need
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 shallots, peeled and chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 15 ounces tomato sauce (1 can)
- 12 ounces roasted piquillo peppers or roasted red peppers (1 jar)
- 4.5 ounces chopped green chiles (1 can)
- 1 cup chicken stock (or chicken broth)
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon liquid smoke
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
How To Make Ranchero Sauce
Instructions…
Place a saute pan/large skillet over medium-high heat and add the oil and shallots. Sauté the shallots for 2 minutes. Then add the garlic and sauté another 1-2 minutes.
Drain the piquillo peppers. Add all remaining ingredients to the saute pan except the heavy cream. Simmer the ranchero sauce for 10 minutes. Remove from heat.
Using an immersion blender, puree/blend the sauce mixture until smooth. Then, stir in the heavy cream. Salt to taste.
Serve with your favorite Mexican dish and garnish with some cilantro.
Get the Complete (Printable) Best Ranchero Sauce Recipe + VIDEO Below. Enjoy!
Frequently Asked Questions
You can store this sauce in an airtight container (like a mason jar) in the refrigerator for up to 7 days!
This sauce would be super tasty with most of your favorite Mexican dishes or Tex-Mex dishes. You can use this with taquitos, fajitas, as an enchilada sauce, on burritos, huevos rancheros, or even tacos!
Shallots are a type of onion, so yes, you can swap them for sweet onions or red onions. Shallots tend to have a more gentle, sweet flavor compared to most onions, so you might want to pare back if making a substitution.
Check the printable recipe card below for nutritional information including calories, cholesterol, sodium, and sugar percentages.
Best Ranchero Sauce Recipe
Video
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 shallots, peeled and chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 15 ounces tomato sauce (1 can)
- 12 ounces roasted piquillo peppers or roasted red peppers (1 jar)
- 4.5 ounces chopped green chiles (1 can)
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon liquid smoke
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
Instructions
- Place a saute pan over medium heat and add the oil and shallots. Sauté the shallots for 2 minutes. Then add the garlic and sauté another 1-2 minutes.
- Drain the piquillo peppers. Add all remaining ingredients to the saute pan, except for the heavy cream. Simmer the ranchero sauce for 10 minutes. Remove from heat.
- Using an immersion blender, puree the ranchero sauce until smooth. Then stir in the heavy cream. Salt to taste.
I made this to put on my carnitas I was making and this sauce added so much flavor now I think I need this sauce for any time I make carnitas.
Can your set it as enchilada sauce?
Hi Connie,
Sure! Ranchero sauce is slightly more sweet and smoky than classic red enchilada sauce, but it would definitely taste amazing over enchiladas. :)
So fabulous! I’ve been making this for a few years now and always have some on hand…the yummiest!
I just made this and it’s terrific. Like another poster I added a chipotle instead of liquid smoke. I upped the garlic because garlic, more green chiles, and didn’t add the cream. Used it for heuvos rancheros and we loved it. This is a great sauce for enchiladas too. Faster than my go-to enchilada sauce and just as good. Thanks for posting this.
Fabulous recipe! I’e made it 5 times over the last 6 months and it is a fan favorite. Added chipotle in adobo sauce instead of liquid smoke. Didn’t have a can of green chilis so used a 10 oz can of Rotel and an 8 ounce can of tomato sauce as a replacement for the green chilis and the 15 oz can of sauce. Came out perfectly. Will make chicken enchiladas with this amazing sauce!
Excellent idea – rotel and tomato sauce! And I thought the same with adobo instead of liquid smoke! All pantry staples – no extra trip to the grocery store. Thanks for sharing. 🤗
How long will this sauce last in the refrigerator?
Hi Debbie,
It should last about 1 week if covered and placed in the refrigerator.
Absolutely delicious! Pretty easy to make too!
Amazing!!! The blend of flavors takes this entirely over the top and it only takes a few minutes to make. My kind of recipe!
Is there a different milk you would use in place of heavy cream? Husband is allergic to milk :(
Hi Catherine,
You can substitute thick unsweetened coconut milk, but it will create a different overall flavor. Another option would be to make cashew cream using 1 cup of raw cashews and 1 cup of water. Puree in the blender until very smooth and creamy. Then measure out what you need for the recipe.
Can I substitute a different onion instead of shallots? Ranchero sauce recipes are hard to find! Thank you!
Hi Jan,
Absolutely! Try using sweet onions or red onions.
This is the most amazing sauce I have ever made and so simple to make!
Has anyone tried freezing the sauce?
Not personally but I bet it freezes just fine. When you reheat it, don’t make it boil or the cream will separate out.
Yes it freezes great!