Is it Cheaper to Make or Buy Enchilada Sauce?
Our family loves Mexican food, and we regularly make enchiladas at home with canned enchiladas sauce. Just like other foods, the cost of these canned sauces keeps going up and up.
I decided to see if making my own homemade enchiladas sauce would save me money. Let’s find out!
How much does it cost to make enchiladas sauce?
For our homemade enchiladas sauce, we will use a simple recipe from Shelf Cooking. For the full recipe, click here.
| Homemade Enchiladas Sauce Ingredients | Total Cost | Cost for this Recipe |
| 2 tbsp oil | Great Value 48oz vegetable oil= $3.64 | $0.07 |
| 2 tbsp flour | Great Value 2lb bag of Flour= $1.16 | $0.01 |
| 1/4 cup of chili powder | Great Value 3oz jar= $1.12 | $0.37 |
| 1/2 tsp garlic powder | Great Value 3.4oz jar= $1.12 | $0.10 |
| 1/2 tsp cumin | Great Value 2.5oz jar= $1.28 | $0.02 |
| 1/4 tsp oregano | Great Value 0.87oz jar= $1.12 | $0.02 |
| 2 cups chicken stock/broth | Great Value 32oz box= $1.33 | $0.66 |
| Total Cost to make Enchiladas Sauce: $10.77 | Cost for This Recipe: $1.25 | Cost per Oz (Recipe makes 12oz): $0.10 |
I priced this recipe out at my local Walmart because that is the cheapest grocery store in my area. Depending on where you shop, your totals may vary.
If we had no ingredients at all and had to buy them all, we would spend $10.77 to make this recipe. The actual recipe portion would cost $1.25.
This recipe makes 1.5 cups of sauce, so that comes out to $0.10 per ounce of homemade enchiladas sauce.
How much is enchiladas sauce at the grocery store?
Now let’s head out to a bunch of grocery stores and see what the average cost of canned enchildas sauce.
| Canned Enchiladas Sauce & Number of Ounces | Store & Price | Cost per Ounce |
| La Preferida Red Chile Enchilada Sauce, 10 oz can | Kroger, $1.89 | $0.18 |
| Meijer Enchiladas Sauce, 10oz can | Meijer, $2.59 | $0.25 |
| Frontera Enchiladas Sauce, 8 oz pouch | Fresh Thyme Market, $3.59 | $0.44 |
| Market Pantry Enchiladas Sauce, 10oz can | Target, $1.49 | $0.14 |
| La Preferida Red Chile Enchilada Sauce, 10 oz can | SaveALot, $2.65 | $0.26 |
| Old El Paso Enchiladas Sauce, 10oz can | Publix, $2.71 | $0.27 |
| Food Lion Enchiladas Sauce, 10oz can | Food Lion, $2.19 | $0.21 |
| Harris Teeter Enchiladas Sauce, 10oz can | Harris Teeter, $1.59 | $0.15 |
| Old El Paso Enchiladas Sauce, 10oz can | Piggly Wiggly, $2.79 | $0.27 |
| Old El Paso Enchiladas Sauce, 10oz can | Lucky’s Market, $2.89 | $0.28 |
| Average Cost Per Oz: | $0.24 |
We checked out 10 enchiladas sauces at 10 different grocery stores and found a pretty wide range of prices. The cheapest option was Target’s Market Pantry sauce at $0.14 per ounce.
The most expensive enchiladas sauce was at Fresh Thyme Market with a cost of $0.44 per ounce.
So even the cheapest canned enchiladas sauce was more expensive than the homemade version!
Is homemade enchiladas sauce worth it?
I love enchiladas sauce and use it regularly, but I noticed recently that the sodium in each can of sauce was pretty high at about 290mg per 1/4 cup.
We have been trying to eat as healthy as possible and lower our sodium intake, so making my own enchiladas sauce is not only cheaper but also much healthier compared to the canned stuff.
It honestly doesn’t take hardly any time to make enchiladas sauce on the stovetop, and it is not very difficult. So, from now on, I am skipping the canned stuff and making my own!
For more cost breakdowns of making versus buying, check out “Is it Cheaper to Make or Buy Egg Rolls?” and “Is it Cheaper to Make or Buy Everything Bagel Seasoning?“
