Kitchen Tip: Chipotles in Adobo Sauce

I’m sharing all of my favorite recipes here but before I can do that, I have to share with you some of my super-secret-ingredients. This is my favorite. Chipotle peppers in adobo sauce. It comes in a can and a little goes a long way. Unless you are just crazy with your spice needs, one or possibly two of these peppers is enough for a large recipe.

Here is a little trick I use to prepare my chipotle peppers for a recipe. Since you’ll only need a small amount for recipes, chop/process the entire can at once and save some for later. I like to open a can and prepare it for later use in my recipes. Follow these easy steps so the next time a recipe calls for chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, you’ll be ready.

Recipes usually call for a pepper or two. The rough equivalent is one pepper equals one tablespoon, chopped or processed. I recommend you add less than a tablespoon to your recipe and taste first. You can always add more but you can’t take away.

Preparing Chipotle peppers in adobo sauce:

1. Buy chipotle peppers in adobo sauce (7 ounce can). Sold in grocery stores next to jalapenos and salsas.

2. Open can. Place entire contents of can into food processor.

3. Process in food processor until smooth. If you have a mini-food prep processor, this is excellent for the job. If you don’t have one, you can also chop these up with a knife. Chop or mash them up until they’re very small. Don’t discard the sauce the peppers come in. Mix it all together and pulse until smooth.

4. Place in 2 small jars. Label jars. Yes, nerd alert, I have a label maker. I have to label everything otherwise I have no idea what it is. These are very, very small glass jars that I saved from years ago.

5. Store 1 jar in refrigerator and freeze the other jar. That’s it. So easy.

Once you start adding this to your dishes, you’ll never go without it. These peppers have heat, flavor, and depth.  You’ll feel like you’ve hit the sweet spot of Mexican food when you add this to your recipes! I use it in chili, cooked beans, Mexican hummus, mixed with sour cream, and added to homemade mac and cheese.

My source for this super ingredient?  This guy. His name is Jose Cervantes and his lovely mother taught him to cook (and dare I say dance, too?).  Thanks Jose!!

If Jose (or his mom) ever share a recipe for homemade chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, I will definitely share it.

What’s your super-secret ingredient? Do you have a spice you add to dishes?

Go Gingham related links:

Homemade tortilla chips
BBQ sauce that you can add these peppers to
Corn and black bean salad
Our favorite secret sauce – sour cream chipotle sauce
Spices in the kitchen