Homemade Chipotle Sauce

Adding chipotle sauce to your dishes adds a smokiness, heat, and zingy flavor. You can drizzle it over tacos or make a creamy dip with it. With just a few pantry staples, you can make this recipe in no time.

A key element of elevating recipes is the use of sauces and seasonings. There is nothing better than chipotle sauce when it comes to creating Mexican-inspired recipes. Here’s how you can make it at home if you have never tried it before.

Chipotle Peppers in Adobo Sauce

Chipotle peppers in adobo are the secret to this homemade sauce. What is adobo? Let me explain. The Chipotle pepper is a red jalapeno that has been dried and smoked. Adobo sauce is made from dried chili peppers and is velvety, sweet, and tangy.

It’s no wonder that they’re packaged in jars together since together they make for a zesty, spicy, ridiculously flavorful combo.

Chipotle peppers can be used to make a spicy, smoky sauce. For a subtle, fiery sweetness, add a teaspoon of sauce. If you like adding a spice kick, you can’t go wrong with this pantry staple.

Making it from starch

You may already have the ingredients you need for this dish. In a food processor, simply mix all the ingredients until smooth and creamy.

Simple as that!

Mayo: A chipotle sauce would not be complete without this.
Sour Cream: Gives the sauce a creamy texture.
Chipotle Peppers in Adobo: Spicy and smoky flavor comes from this ingredient.
Lime Juice: A slight acidity tempers the heat.
Garlic and Salt: These two flavors tie everything together.

Is chipotle pepper spicy?

Chipotle peppers are as hot as jalapenos. The Scoville Scale rates it anywhere from 2,500 to 8,000 heat units. For context, a bell pepper has 0 units and a dash of cayenne pepper has 30,000 to 50,000.

Chipotle Powder

Have you ever used chipotle powder? Let us discuss here what this powder is and how to make it. In case you cannot find fresh chipotle peppers, you can substitute dried or ground versions. Just keep in mind that half a teaspoon of the chipotle powder is equivalent to one dried chipotle pepper. This may not be enough for you, so you can always add a little more and blend.

Variation of chipotle sauce

Here are a few options for meeting dietary needs or switching up the flavors.

Replace the sour cream with cashew sour cream to make it dairy-free.
Use cashew sour cream and vegan mayonnaise to make it vegan.
Adding half of a chipotle pepper can spice up this recipe.

Storage process

Storing chipotle sauce in the fridge for up to 1 week requires scooping it into an airtight container and storing it in the fridge.

You will likely only be using a quarter of the can of leftover chipotle peppers because the peppers and sauce have a strong flavor. It would be best to freeze them in a glass container or freezer-safe bag. It would be best to freeze them in a glass container or freezer-safe bag.