Take your enchilada game up a notch with this white enchilada sauce! It’s smooth and creamy, with a slight kick from the spices and cheese. What’s better is that this white enchilada sauce recipe is multi-purpose, and isn’t just for enchiladas! Similar to queso, it’s a delicious dip or topping for your favorite Mexican dish.
Smother your new go-to sauce on these white chicken enchiladas, top your taco baked potatoes or our stuffed poblano peppers with this creamy, flavorful goodness! When it comes to the many ways to enjoy our white enchilada sauce, the list goes on and on! You can even use it as a dip for spicy nachos.
Why This Recipe Works
White enchilada sauce is the enchilada sauce you never knew you LOVED.
Rich, creamy, and cheesy, it’s like the white queso of enchilada sauces, and we’re certain this recipe will become a new go-to!
Our creamy white enchilada sauce is:
- easy to make with less than 10 ingredients required!
- Quick to prepare. Comes together in under 20 minutes and you can store leftovers in your fridge to use as a dip or sauce later.
- Cheesy, buttery, and silky smooth.
- Packed with flavor that carries a slight kick from the spices.
The Ingredients
This is a cheesy, sour cream enchilada sauce that has a bit of seasoning and spice from the Monterey Jack cheese.
So, what is white enchilada sauce made of?
- butter
- flour
- cumin powder
- salt
- pepper
- chicken broth
- whole milk
- sour cream
- shredded Monterey Jack cheese
How to make White Enchilada Sauce
This is the easy part and there’s really only a small amount of effort involved. The biggest piece of advice here? Watch the sauce as it cooks and don’t let it get too hot.
Here’s a quick, step-by-step of the process for our white enchilada sauce recipe. For the full recipe and ingredient amounts, scroll to the bottom of the page and view the printable recipe card.
- Cook the flour and butter: Melt the butter then add the flour, cumin, salt, and pepper, whisking until smooth.
- Add the broth: Slowly whisk in a little bit of broth at a time. Continue cooking until it is thick and bubbly.
- Stir in the dairy: Lower the heat and whisk in the milk, then the sour cream and cheese.
That’s it! Simplicity never tasted so good!
Tips for the Best Results
- When adding the broth, pour it in slowly and whisk it constantly. If you add too much liquid all at once, the sauce will get lumpy.
- If you still end up with lumps, strain the sauce through a wire mesh sieve.
- The sauce will seem a bit thin after you add the milk but it will thicken up after you add the sour cream and cheese.
- Do not cook the flour and butter mixture for too long. Although browning the mixture will add a nutty flavor, the browned flour will lose its thickening power. You will end up with a thinner sauce if you brown the flour and butter mixture.
We know you’ll love everything about this creamy white enchilada sauce recipe! From the silky texture to the delicious, cheesy flavor and slight tanginess from the sour cream, there’s so much packed into this simple creamy sauce.
And if you love it, you’re bound to enjoy this spin on chicken enchiladas, as well! It’s a comforting, family-style dish everyone will love.
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- whisk
- small saucepan (we love the rounded sides on this pan)
- measuring cups for measuring liquids
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White Enchilada Sauce
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 3 tablespoons flour
- 1 teaspoon cumin powder
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 1-½ cups chicken broth
- ¼ cup whole milk
- ¾ cup sour cream
- 1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour, cumin, salt, and pepper and whisk until smooth.
- Slowly add the broth, a little at a time, whisking constantly. When all the broth gets added, continue cooking until thick and bubbly.
- Lower the heat to low and whisk in the milk. Whisk in the sour cream then the cheese. Continue stirring over low heat until the cheese melts.
Notes
- Pour the broth in slowly while whisking constantly. Initially, if you pour too much liquid in at one time, it will be hard to whisk out the lumps. After you get about half of the broth incorporated, you can pour the rest in quicker. If you still end up with lumps, strain the sauce through a wire mesh sieve.
- The sauce will seem a bit thin after you add the milk but it will thicken back up after you add the sour cream and cheese.
- Do not cook the flour and butter mixture for too long. Although browning the mixture will add a nutty flavor, the browned flour will lose its thickening power. You will end up with a thinner sauce if you brown the flour and butter mixture.
Tim Hogan
Wednesday 29th of November 2023
Easy to make and in just minutes we had a beautiful sauce to go with the turkey enchiladas..dip in corn chips..thanks!
Dahn Boquist
Wednesday 29th of November 2023
I'm so glad you enjoyed the sauce! Turkey enchiladas sound amazing; I also use this as a chip dip. It is so quick and easy. Thanks for the comment.