Basic Chile Sauce

After chiles are roasted and peeled cut the stem area off, and make a cut down the side of the chile. Open it up, and scrape the seeds out with a spoon. Blend chiles in food processor until chunky. Add in remaining ingredients and process until smooth. For a sauce made with dried red chiles, see how to re-hydrate the chiles here.

You can use the finished sauce immediately, refrigerate it for 2-3 days, or freeze it for up to 6 months.

Chile Options
Usually you want to choose larger chiles that are mild to medium in heat. There are not very many fresh, red chiles suitable for a chile sauce, but Chile Colorado chiles make a good choice. There are many good choices for green chiles. The mildest one is an Anaheim or a California. The next one would be a Poblano, a dark green chile which is mild to medium in heat with a sweeter flavor. For a little more heat, use Pasilla chiles (also known as Chilaca.) Depending on your region, you may have other chile options, or they may have different names. Just remember they need to be larger in size and mild to medium heat (your preference.) Jalapenos, Serranos and Habaneros are usually not suitable as a base for this sauce as they are far to powerful.