Big-Batch Ranchero Sauce
There is no other aroma coming from the kitchen — not truffle, not freshly peeled orange, not a chocolate cake baking — that will stop you in your tracks and make you inhale as deeply as this ranchero sauce simmering away. Here’s a large batch to use in many ways: Poach eggs in it for brunch, simmer shrimp in it for taco filling, or spoon it over shredded chicken with avocado slices inside a flour tortilla for lunch for the kiddos. Put it in tightly sealed Mason jars and bring it to friends as a host gift.
- Total:
- Serves: 3 persons
Ingredients
- 6 ½pounds/about 100 ounces canned whole, peeled plum tomatoes and their juices (or one restaurant-style No. 10 can)
- 1bunch cilantro, leaves and stems washed and roughly chopped
- 1cup peeled garlic cloves
- 4serrano chiles, stems and seeds removed then roughly chopped
- 2guajillo chiles, stems detached
- 1tablespoon achiote paste
- Kosher salt, to taste
Instructions
Step 1
Combine everything in a large pot or rondeau, and simmer over gentle heat for 1 hour, stirring occasionally to prevent any scorching on the bottom. Add a little water if it becomes any thicker than ketchup. Allow to cool before puréeing.Step 2
Working in a blender in batches, purée until smooth. Check the salt seasoning. Let cool.Step 3
Transfer to quart or pint containers, and stock your freezer, or put the sauce in something more attractive — rubber-sealed jars with hinged lids? — to make gifts of the stuff. Ranchero sauce keeps well in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks, or in the freezer for up to 1 year. (It may separate a little, in which case you can simply reheat and give a new buzz in a blender to reunify.)