Food blogs need a long personal story before you get to the "meat" aka the recipe, right?
Long, long, long ago, it was a few days before high school graduation and I was helping my mom prep for a work party at our house and I made the fatal mistake of chopping jalapeños for guacamole. It seemed harmless until later that night, when I took my contacts out. There was a bit of a burn, but that was nothing compared to the next morning when I tried to put those contacts back in. No cleaner in the world could remove the hot pepper oil from those suckers. My eye doctor didn't want to give me a disposable set [insert rant about being held hostage each year in order to see here], but after much begging, I didn't have to go to my high school graduation in the pink plastic Sally Jessy Raphael glasses from middle school (my awkward phase, if you will).
Somehow, I picked 4 recipes from this book that require hot peppers of one kind of another - good thing you can find latex gloves in Costco again! Two types of salsa (smoky Salsa Fuego and Uncle R's (not so) Hot Sauce) to serve with friends at a barbecue this weekend then Sour Cream Chicken Enchiladas with Green Chile Rice.
Ingredients:
Uncle R's Hot Sauce:
1 28oz can of crushed tomatoes
1 medium onion, quartered
2 cloves garlic [or more...you know me, I put in 4]
1/2 c. cilantro [I have no idea how to measure cilantro - I just kept adding it until it tasted good]
1 TB chili powder
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 - 1/2 c. pickled jalapeño chile slices [I ended up with 1/2 c. since I was using the "tamed" slices]
2 TB lemon juice
Salt, to taste
Salsa Fuego:
2 dried pasilla chiles, stems and seeds removed
1 lb plum tomatoes
Salt, to taste
2-4 cloves garlic
1/4 medium onion
1 canned chipotle chile in adobo
1/2 c. cilantro
Sour Cream Chicken Enchiladas:
2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 TB olive oil
***
2 TB butter
2 serrano chiles, seeds and stems removed, diced [wear gloves!]
2-4 cloves garlic, minced [no need to go crazy mincing, it's going in the blender]
2 TB flour
2 c. chicken broth
2 c. sour cream
1 tsp cumin
Dash of cayenne [or more if you have a best friend named Cayenne]
1/4 c. chopped cilantro
1lb fresh tomatillos, husks removed, cut in half (or, a 11oz can of tomatillos, drained)
Salt and pepper, to taste
***
1 TB vegetable oil
12 corn tortillas
1/2 medium yellow onion, diced
2 c. grated Monterey Jack cheese (8oz)
1/2 c. cilantro, for serving
Green Chile Rice:
2 poblano chiles
1 jalapeño, stem and seeded removed
2-4 cloves garlic
1/2 tsp cumin
1 TB lime juice [I juiced 2 small limes]
1 TB lard or vegetable oil
1 c. uncooked rice [I used basmati]
1 1/4 c. chicken broth
Salt, to taste
Let's start with the easiest. For Uncle R's Hot Sauce, throw everything in the blender, adjust seasoning as desired [I added more cilantro, garlic, and jalapeños].
For Salsa Fuego, toast the pasilla chiles in a dry skillet on high heat for about 10 seconds a side until they start to puff. Fill the skillet with water to cover the chiles, bring to a boil, then turn off the heat and let the chiles soak until soft, about 30 minutes. Rinse chiles once rehydrated.
While the chiles are soaking, cut the tomatoes in half lengthwise, and place seed-side up on a foil lined sheet. Sprinkle with salt and place under the broiler for 20 minutes, they should be black. With tongs, gently turn the tomatoes over, add the garlic cloves and onion to the sheet and place back under the broiler for 5 more minutes. Scoop into a blender along with the pasilla and chipotle chiles, cilantro, and a cup of water. Blend until smooth. Add salt to taste. Both salsas will last a week in the fridge.
A note on timing: some of the prep below can be done simultaneously so if you plan on serving the rice and enchiladas together, aim to start the rice a bit before you put the enchiladas in the oven.
For the enchiladas, preheat the oven to 350F. Season chicken liberally with the salt and pepper. Fry in the oil in an oven safe pan, 3 minutes per side then bake for 30 minutes. Let cool slightly then shred [with claws if you have them!].
After finishing the chicken, I broiled both the fresh tomatillos for the enchiladas (if using canned tomatillos, skip the broiler) AND the poblanos for the rice - 5 minutes per side or until blackened. Put hot poblanos in a plastic bag, seal, and allow to steam for 20 minutes.
Melt the butter on med-low heat, add serranos and cook until soft, about 3 minutes. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute. Whisk in flour and cook for 1 minute. Pour in chicken broth, whisking, and allow to cook until thickened. Stir in sour cream, cumin, cayenne, and cilantro. Remove from heat. Pour into blender with the tomatillos and blend until smooth.
Grease a large baking dish.
Heat 1 TB vegetable oil in a skillet and cook the corn tortillas on each side until soft. Wrap in a cloth to keep warm as you cook all 12.
To assemble, pour 1 cup of the sour cream sauce at the bottom of a casserole pan. Take each corn tortilla and place 1/4 cup shredded chicken, 1 tsp of diced onions, and 1 TB of cheese in the middle. Roll the tortillas around the filling and place, seam side down, in the casserole pan. Cover with remaining sauce and cheese and bake for 25 minutes, or until top is brown and bubbling. Serve with chopped cilantro.
For the rice, take your poblano chiles out of the bag, rub the blackened skin off and remove stem and seeds. Add to blender with jalapeño, garlic, cumin, cilantro, lime juice, and 1 TB water. Puree until forms a thick paste.
Heat lard or vegetable oil in a heavy bottomed pot (a heavy bottom is key to not burning the rice - good thing I've got junk in the trunk!) on medium low heat. Add the rice and saute for 30 seconds. Add the poblano puree and cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Pour in the chicken broth, bring to a boil, and then cover pot. Turn the heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes. Turn off the heat and let sit for 10 more minutes. Stir the rice to incorporate any puree that's accumulated on top, then salt to taste.
The salsas are amazing. The smoky Salsa Fuego is my favorite, but the red (not so) Hot Sauce was a kid favorite at the barbecue. You can't go wrong with either [or both!]. The enchiladas and rice were restaurant quality and the ultimate comfort food. We will definitely be making these again [and trying the myriad other recipes that I was torn between - biscuits and gravy, cheese enchiladas with meat sauce, and another rendition of my beloved queso (yep, same author). What I'm really trying to say here is get this book, give it as gifts to your friends, and bathe in salsa and queso!
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