Adobo Sauce

Our Food 52 Cookbook Club selection for this month is Josef Centeno's Amá: A Modern Tex-Mex Kitchen.  This was the selection made back in February, before it was crystal clear just how much of a lock down the country would be in in May (although truthfully, if you looked at China you would have some idea).  Despite library's being closed and specialty ingredients being harder to come by, the decision was to go ahead with the choice, and I think this kind of food is comfort food for many of us.
But very early on we hit a road block.  No adobo sauce.  Nary a can of chipotles either, and we can say that with certainty because spring cleaning occurred this year.  So hear is our pandemic solution--Make it yourself.

•  Scant 1/2 cup ancho chile powder* (2 oz)
•  1 1/4 cups water
•  8 garlic cloves, peeled
•  1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon, preferably Mexican canela
•  1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
•  1/8 teaspoon ground cumin
•  1 teaspoon dried oregano, preferably Mexican
•  3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
•  1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt

Scoop the chile powder into a blender or small food processor. In a medium saucepan, bring the water to a boil. Pour the hot water over the chile powder, loosely cover the blender or secure the top of the processor, and pulse to create a smooth slurry. Let cool.

If you prefer a straightforward and quick adobo, toss the peeled garlic cloves in a microwavable bowl, add enough water to cover, and microwave on 100% for 1 minute. Drain. If you prefer a sweeter, toastier flavor to your adobo, toss the garlic cloves, still in their papery skins, in a dry skillet and place over medium heat, turning them regularly until they turn soft and blotchy black, about 15 minutes. Let cool and then remove and discard the papery skins.

Toss the garlic in the blender along with the cinnamon, pepper, cumin, oregano, vinegar, and salt and process until a smooth purée forms. If necessary, stir in some water, a splash at a time, until the adobo is the consistency of barbecue sauce.