Homemade Ranchero Sauce

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Homemade Ranchero Sauce Recipe:

Approx. 4 Cups

Ingredients

• 4 Large Tomatoes - roughly chopped
• 1 Poblano Pepper - roasted - diced
• 1 White Onion - diced
• 3 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1 - 2 Jalapeno Peppers - stem and seeds removed - If you want it hotter, leave the seeds
• 2 Cloves Garlic
• 1 Vegetable Bullion Cube - unsalted
• 3 Tablespoons Ancho Powder or made from 4 -5 Dried Ancho peppers
• 1 Tablespoon Sea Salt or to taste
• 1/2 Teaspoon Cumin Powder
• 1/2 Teaspoon Black Pepper
• 2 Cups Filtered Water or desired thickness

Instructions

Pepper

1. Roast the poblano on the stovetop at medium-high heat. A gas stove works the best but it will work fine on an electric stove.
2. Char the pepper on all sides turning with a pair of tongs.
3. When good and charred, steam them for 10 minutes in a covered dish or a paper bag rolled shut to hold in the steam.
4. Take a paper towel and rub off the char. It’s ok to leave a little of the char. Slice in half and remove the seeds and stems and dice. Set aside.

Assemble

1. Add the onions to a saute pan with the oil and saute on medium-low heat for 5 minutes.
2. Add the garlic and jalapenos and cook until onions are soft and the garlic just starts to become golden.
3. Add the tomatoes and let simmer.
4. While tomatoes are cooking remove stem and seeds from the dried ancho peppers and grind in a coffee grinder until it becomes a fine powder.
5. In a food processor, add the tomatoes, poblano. jalapeno, onions, garlic and bouillon cube and then puree. Or use a hand held immersion blender.
6. Pour back into the sauté pan.
7. Add the water and spices then cook on medium-low heat for about 1/2 hour. Make sure to stir occasionally.

Health Benefits:

Tomatoes are great for the heart due to the extreme antioxidant support, niacin, folate and vitamin B6 that help the reduction of heart disease.  They are also high in vitamins A, C, K and potassium.  The choline in tomatoes helps assist the absorption of fat and reduces chronic inflammation.  It also helps with sleep, muscle movement, learning and memory.  Tomatoes are high in Lycopene the antioxidant that gives tomatoes their red color.  Cooking tomatoes break down the cell walls, which helps to release the lycopene and is better absorbed by the body with a little bit of fat like olive oil.  The Zeaxanthin in them helps to filter harmful ultra-violet rays, which protect eyes from “age-related macular disease.”  They are also a powerful blood purifier and great for skin and bone health.

Poblano Peppers are extremely high in vitamin C; just one pepper has 95% of your daily value.  They are great for your immune system and help to reduce inflammation like in arthritis and asthma. They contain lycopene a powerful antioxidant, giving many fruits and vegetables their color, especially tomatoes, which is great for the prevention of cancers in the bladder, prostate, cervix and pancreas. They are also helpful with increasing oxygen so the body can burn more calories 20 minutes after eating peppers.

Jalapeno is a rich source of vitamin C, 1 pepper provides 18 % of the daily value for men and 23 % for women. They also have a good amount of vitamin A, which helps skin and eye health.  Jalapenos contain phenols, flavonoids and capsaicinoids that help the body fight free radicals, inflammation and promote weight loss.  The bioflavonoids are powerful antioxidants and help strengthen blood vessels. They also fight nasal congestion by stimulating secretions that help clear mucus from the nose.  They contain more vitamin B6 aiding the immune system, E that protect the cells and K, which increases bone mass, than any other pepper.