I'm dealing with a tiny kitchen for a while. There are two cheesy electric burners, a microwave, full size fridge, a sink and about 6 inches of prep space on the counter. I don't even have the little two-person table to work on; all my computer stuff lives there. I went out and bought a few essentials. I picked up a crock pot and a rice cooker to expand my cooking opportunities. I also got a 12" Lodge cast iron skillet, a small sauce pot and a little non-stick skillet. I've got enough to make do with the limited kitchen facilities.
The limited cooking options have driven me to improvise and try new things. I've done a number of things that I have never tried before. My creativity has also been piqued by exposure to new foods and ingredients that I've found here. I'm learning to do lots of stuff with sausage. There are a lot of the tried and true Mexican ingredients to be found, but a lot of new stuff as well. Northgate had lots of interesting meats-things you'd never see in a big chain supermarket, but I've found some crazy things in the meat sections of my new favorite markets. Chopped pigs ears! Ain't never seen that before, but damn they were good. So here is a little photo history of my last two months of small kitchen cooking.
Oreja de puerco y chivo en adobo (Pig ears and goat adobo)
Cooked this tasty little dish in the crock pot.
I served the pigs ears and goat on tostadas
Keeping with the Mexican theme.....Costillas de puerco con chile y nopales (pork riblets with chile and cactus
I've tried a number of Asian dishes. I only have one pan for stir frying and just two burners total. Spicy mango chicken has been my best effort to date. Just so I don't get any crap from the peanut gallery, I have to use the chair because my tiny table is completely taken by the computer and monitor (small table).
I also did some spicy sweet and sour beef that turned out nicely
Crock pot jambalaya. I had never tried making jambalaya in a slow cooker before. Hell, it's been a number of years since I last made jambalaya. It turned out well. I used smoked andouille sausage, boneless chicken thighs, catfish chunks and shrimp. It was naturally thickened with a ton of okra and the starch from the rice.
I have been trying all sorts of different cuts of beef for pan searing. These are thin-sliced chuck steaks marinated in chimichurri sauce, served with avocado and salsa fresca. The sides are spicy ranch beans and nopales salad.
Last year for the 9th Annual LBJCB Drummer Reunion chili cook-off I made venison chili. It was so good I tied for last place. I think it was pretty good, but not everybody is fond of venison. Fortunately, I don't have any venison left in the freezer, so I had to try something new for this year's chili cook-off. This time I decided to go with a pork chili verde. I've made a lot of chili verde over the last few years and I've got a system down now that produces some pretty consistent results. The chili verde got some good feedback and I got several requests for the recipe. I'm not really good about exact measurements while cooking and I have a bad habit of not writing down any of my recipes. This won't be a perfect recreation of what I made yesterday, but it will get you in the ballpark. After all, that's really all you need, unless you're baking. Taste as you go and you'll get good results. So here goes..............
Ingredients: (amounts for 10 quart yield - scale as necessary)
Pork (butt/shoulder) 8-10 lbs (weight without bones)
Tomatillo 20-25 medium
Jalapeno chili 30-40
Poblano chili 5
Hatch chili 30-40 (Anaheim can be substituted for Hatch, but it won't be as good or as spicy)
Serano chili 10-15
Cilantro 3 medium bunches
Onions 2 large white and one large sweet yellow (Maui/Oso/Vidalia)
Garlic 1 large head
Stock 2 - 4 quarts chicken stock Maseca about 1/3 to 1/2 cup
Lard/bacon grease as needed for browning the pork
Chili powder 1-2 tablespoons
Black pepper 1-2 tablespoons
Marjoram 2-3 teaspoons
Mexican oregano 1-3 teaspoons
Cumin 1-2 teaspoon
Kosher salt to taste
Apple cider vinegar 1/2 cup + extra as required
Butter and flour Equal parts as needed to make a roux
Preparation:
Bone the pork butt/shoulder and cut into cubes. Meat should be cubed in 1/2" to 2" pieces, as desired. You need to adjust the size to your expected cooking time and the desired final consistency.
Thoroughly salt and season the meat with chili powder, pepper, marjoram, oregano and cumin. Splash the meat cubes with about 1/2 cup of cider vinegar and toss to mix and completely coat. Let the meat marinate for 1-4 hours.
Roast the chilies and tomatillos over an open flame or on a charcoal grill. The skin should be charred black and the chili softened. Remove from heat and place in a plastic bag. When the chilies have cooled peel off the charred skin. The tomatillos should be roasted until soft all over.
Puree and reserve the tomatillos.
Seed the chilies and puree in a blender with salt and stock and reserve. I prefer to use chicken stock, as it is somewhat neutral in flavor. Beef stock can be mixed in to give a richer flavor.
Puree the cilantro with some stock and reserve.
Roughly chop the white onions, puree with some stock and reserve.
Dredge the pork with enough Maseca to lightly cover all the cubes.
Heat lard or bacon grease in a heavy-bottomed pot (an enameled cast iron Dutch oven or a stock pot with a very thick base works best). I like the flavor imparted from the bacon grease, but I only use the fat from lightly smoked bacon. If you don't want any of the rich, smokey flavor, use lard. When the fat is hot add the pork cubes in small batches. You want to brown all sides of the pork cubes. Too much pork in the pan will lower the temperature and the meat will boil, not sear. Reserve the browned pork cubes in a bowl.
Dice the yellow onion and add to the pot. More lard/drippings might be needed to saute the onion. Stir frequently until the onion starts to get some color. Add the onion puree to the pot and deglaze the bottom. When the onion puree starts to darken add the garlic puree. Stir the onion-garlic puree frequently to prevent it from burning. Stir in the chili and cilantro purees.
Add the meat cubes to the pot. Stir to thoroughly coat all the meat. Add stock to achieve the desired volume. The Maseca used to dredge the meat will thicken the sauce somewhat. For more thickening you can add a roux to get the desired consistency. Roux is equal measures of fat (butter) and flour whisked over medium-high heat until the raw flavor is cooked out of the flour. You can make anything from a blonde roux to one that is nearly brick red. Just remember that the longer the roux cooks the less thickening power it has. A light blonde roux is probably best for this application. You can add the roux directly to the pot, but you will have to really whisk it well to prevent clumps. It is easier to add stock to the roux to thin it somewhat before adding to the chili. If you don't want to use a roux you need to limit the amount of stock added. Only use enough stock to keep the meat covered for duration of the cooking time. It is better to add more stock occasionally while cooking than to add too much.
Taste and adjust for seasoning and salt. I add some cumin, oregano and marjoram at this point. You want to just get hints of smokiness from the cumin and the herbaceousness from the marjoram and oregano. Add fresh ground black pepper and salt to taste
Once the chili comes to a simmer, add the tomatillo puree. As the tomatillo is very acidic, I add it in small batches, mix well and then taste. You just want to get to the point where the acidity balances the fats. As the chili simmers for hours, more fat and connective tissue will render out. It might be necessary to adjust for acidity at the end of the cooking time. Adding small splashes of cider vinegar will let you bring up the brightness.
It will take a minimum of four hours simmering over a low flame to get the pork to the desired tenderness. Cooking time will depend on the size of the pork cubes. You have to stir the chili regularly, scraping the bottom as you do. The more roux in the mix, the more easily it will scorch and stick to the bottom of the pot. If it scorches it will cause the chili to be bitter. Stir regularly and use a flame tamer if you have one. Some of you might have noticed that I had a heavy cast iron skillet between the burner and the pot of chili. That probably works better than a flame tamer anyway. Keep an eye on you chili to avoid any disasters.
Notes:
There are two components that will affect the final consistency of your chili; the meat and the sauce. The tenderness and mouth feel of the meat will depend on cooking time. Small cubes will cook faster, larger cubes, slower. As it cooks, the meat will go through several phases. After the initial sear it will be soft but chewy. As it simmers it will tighten up and get almost hard. After several hours of simmering it will start to break down and get tender. This is the sweet spot. You want soft, unctuous chunks of meat that still have a little bite. With continued simmering the meat will break down further into smaller pieces. While this is very good in chilaquiles, it is not ideal for chili. The thickness of the sauce will depend on the volume of cooking liquid used, how much it reduces and amount of thickening agent. A roux can be used to thicken the sauce. More roux makes a thicker, heavier sauce. If you do not want to use as much roux you can reduce the cooking liquid longer. You will get a more intense meat/chili flavor, but the sauce will not be as thick. To get a really thick, intense sauce without a roux you might need to reduce the sauce for 8-12 hours. If you are going to reduce the sauce for that long you should not put the meat in the pot for the first several hours, otherwise it will break down too much.
Serving suggestions:
I always like a little finely-shredded, sharp cheddar cheese on my chili. A little cotija sprinkled over the top is also good. If you want a creamier taste and not so much heat you can add a dollop of sour cream. You can eat the chili on its own or over tortilla chips. For a twist on the San Francisco classic, you can serve the chili in a hollowed-out sourdough boule.
Sorry for the overly wordy post. I could never write a cookbook. If you have any questions, just submit a comment or send me a message. Thanks to all who participated in the chili cook-off.
I would be remiss if I didn't add a video from the reunion.
It's either ADD or laziness, but I keep going through long stretches where I ignore the ol' Hollow Leg Diner (the blog, not the kitchen). So here it's been six months since I posted anything. Now it's time to go through a quick flashback to see what's been happening in the Gaxiola kitchen.
BBQ-fest
We gathered La Familia Lopez at the house for a big ol' BBQ dinner. Ribs, two types of mac n' cheese, corn bread, potato salad and mixed veggies.
I have been making a lot of sourdough bread of late, so I'm constantly trying to find ways to incorporate it into the dinner menu. This was shrimp diablo en croute with braised asparagus. The toasted sourdough soaks up the sauce from the shrimp diablo like a big flavor sponge. Ain't nuthin' wrong with that.....
A Basque classic. Bacalao (salt cod) poached in olive oil with garlic. The bacalao is mixed with mashed potato, cream and garlic-infused olive oil. I also added a little asiago and Parmesan cheese as well. I got this recipe from Cocina Para Los Amigos my go-to source for all sorts of Spanish/Basque good eats.
No fresh dungeness crab or mussels, but I still made a passable cioppino from stuff I had around the house. I had a killer tomato sauce left over from an earlier dinner, so I started looking through the fridge to see what I could make with it. I had celery, carrots, Italian parsley, basil and a package of imitation crab meat (that's like opening the mystery basket on Chopped. Luckily, I had some fish stock and frozen cubes of shrimp and white seabass base in the freezer. I also had a couple of pounds of frozen shrimp and scallops that I bought on sale at Von's. I whipped up the ersatz cioppino in no time. To top it off, I made garlic bread from a loaf of sourdough that I had just baked. I split the loaf, rubbed it all over with fresh garlic and brushed the top with a mixture of melted butter, olive oil and Italian seasoning. For less than fifteen bucks we had a big old pot of tasty cioppino and sopped it up with killer homemade garlic bread. Can't beat that with a stick.
My Triple D inspiration for the cioppino - the Putah Creek Cafe
Trying New Stuff
Every couple of months I get bored with what I'm cooking and I try out new stuff. Over the last few months I have tried my hand at Sichuan and Indian cuisine. The Sichuan period started innocently enough. I went to the 99 Ranch Market to get some soy sauce and mirin and I walked out with a cart full of all sorts of cool stuff.
In addition to about a dozen different sauces, various types vinegar and spices, I also got Sichuan pepper (prickly ash) and a couple of fermented Sichuan chili pastes. I tried out a couple of different dishes using the Sichuan-style seasonings. It definitely is hot and very flavorful. I really like the numbing effect of the Sichuan pepper and the heat of the chili paste. I made some awesome noodles and mushroom-veggie stir fry with this stuff. I haven't summoned the courage to make an honest to goodness Sichuan hot pot yet. That's coming eventually. You have to work your way up to it. You need to get used to the burning mouth, violent heartburn and hot poo before you go the full Monty.
Keeping with the hot poo theme, I also have been doing quite a bit of Indian food. I am totally in love with India cuisine. Indian food is spicy, hearty, colorful and just damned good. Because I'm an unrepentant carnivore, I am partial to Punjabi-style dishes. I mean, what could be better than mutton or lamb in thick, rich, spicy gravy?
One of my favorite Indian recipes is murgh makhani (butter chicken). It takes some work, but it is just incredible. Basically it is tandoori chicken in a spicy, buttery tomato gravy.
It is hard to make a BAD burger. You really have to work at it to screw up something so basic, so fundamentally and inherently great as a burger. There are, however, lots of mediocre burgers out there. Now don't get me wrong. Even a mediocre burger is better than most things you could be eating. I mean, seriously.....a salad? No way any salad can compare to a burger. Even a mediocre burger tops a salad. If I go to McDonald's (like that's going to happen if I have a choice) I am getting a Quarter Pounder; not a McVeggie salad or cup of apples and nuts. Give me a break. Yeah, even a so-so burger is better than that junk.
What is so disappointing is that there are a lot of mediocre burgers out there. It is disheartening to see a burger, already superior to most food, just by the virtue of it being a burger, that isn't great. Eating a burger should make you happy. It doesn't take that much effort to make a really tasty burger. So why are there so many mediocre burgers? Laziness? Indifference? Contempt for the glory that is the burger? I don't know. I do know that I rate most restaurants by their ability to make a good burger. They might screw up the fries, the onion rings, the pan-seared squab served on a sunchoke puree, topped with bitter micro-greens and a persimmon puree, but if they mess up a burger they aren't going to get anymore of my business. No sir.
So, when I find a good burger place I know I'm going to be a repeat customer. A couple of large chains do it right: In-N-Out: Tasty, drip-down-your-chin goodness Five Guys: Pure, simple classic burger
More often than not, the best restaurant burgers come from small independent places. Watch Diners, Drive-ins and Dives and you'll see some awesome burgers. One of my favorites..... Hodads: Beach burger Nirvana. For my money, best on the Left Coast
I watch Diners, Drive-ins and Dives every chance I get. I am guaranteed to see at least a couple of recipes that will be downright awesome. I have seen some great looking burgers that have either validated what I've been doing or given me new ideas. After watching a recent 'Triple D' marathon I found myself with a hankerin' for burgers. Not one to deny a hankerin' I went out and bought some ground beef and pork. Normally I would add some ground lamb to the mix, but I just couldn't find any at a decent price. Still, beef and pork makes for a nice combo. I actually toyed with the idea of adding ground bacon to the mix, but chickened out at the last minute.
Now I've been making cheese-stuffed burgers since I was a kid. It started with finely diced bits of sharp cheddar mixed in with the meat. Later I found that I preferred making a thick patty with a slice of cheese inside. I usually want a sharp cheese inside; something like cheddar, bleu or gorganzola. The sharp flavor nicely balances the rich fattiness of the meat. While I love American cheese on top of burgers (just about as classic a flavor as you can get), I have never tried it inside of one. After seeing a couple of places up in Milwaukee that make American-stuffed burgers, I decided to try it.
There was about half a slice of cheese in each burger. The cheese melts while cooking and lubricates the inside of the burger. The burgers weighed in at about 1/2 lb. I season the meat when it is mixed. I like to get a lot of flavor into the burger, and I don't think just seasoning the outside does enough. Seasoning varies every time I make burgers, but will usually include salt, black pepper, garlic powder, Cayenne pepper and paprika.
I prefer my burgers cooked on the grill. I really like the smokiness from cooking over charcoal. If I want a pan seared burger, I'll cook it in a really hot cast iron pan and then finish in the oven. My burgers are thick so just pan-searing is not an option.
There's just nothing like the taste of smoky, melted cheese on top of a burger. In this case the burgers were topped with a mix of sharp cheddar and Swiss or American and Swiss.
I am really growing very fond of Indian cuisine. It has some bold, hearty flavors that really appeal to me. The only thing that I don't like is the prep. As with stir fry, Indian cooking requires lots of prep. Mise en place is crucial. You need to have your crap in one sock (as we would say in the Navy.....well we didn't quite say it that way).
This is just some of the prep for 3 Indian dishes.
Lamb meatballs are simmering and the vegetable korma is just about done. You can tell by the clock on the stove that we are eating a little late. All that prep takes time.
WARNING: As required by the Food and Drug Administration, Center for Disease Control, American Medical Association, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Occupational Safety and Health Administration, Department of Health and Human Services, Los Angeles County Health Department, Michelle Obama, Mayor Bloomberg and all other nanny-state food police agencies and individuals, I am required to inform you that this recipe is not healthy, nor does it meet federal guidelines for nutritional content.*
Well that's out of the way so now we can get on with the food.
Step 1
Make yourself some good chili. I know, I know; you don't have time to make chili, it's cheaper to just buy a can of chili from the store, or you suck in the kitchen and couldn't make a PB&J. Whatever. It ain't hard. Make it yourself. No pressure. You can do it.
Step 2
Make some tater tots. OK, you don't have to make the tater tots. Just open the package and heat them up. Got a deep fat fryer? Use it. If you don't want to fry the tots, you can just bake them in a hot oven. Just put some oil on the sheet pan to keep them from sticking. Get them nice and crispy.
Step 4
Cheese, and lots of it. Good, sharp cheddar cheese is best. If you happen to have a salamander, use it now. If not, put the plate under the broiler for a few seconds to get it all gooey and nom-nom-nommy.
Step 5
Toppings! Whatchya want on chili-cheese fries? I don't know about you, but I want onion and bacon bits. White or red onion would be best. I only had green onions, so that's what I went with.
I apologize for the salad that appeared in that photo. That was a terrible oversight on my part. I assure you that no healthy food was consumed with the chili-cheese tots. That just wouldn't be right.
* In the inimitable words of Eazy E: "F**k da food police"
This recipe makes the basic fermented chili mash that is
used as a base for the following chili sauces.
Pepper to salt ratio is 32:1 (1.5 Tsp salt for every cup of
mash)
Wash peppers
Remove stems but leave the ‘crown’
Cut peppers into chunks and then purée in a food processor
Add salt and mix thoroughly in a crock (Water can be added
to keep all mash submerged, but this will result in a thinner sauce.)
Leave crock uncovered for a day to gather bacteria
Cover crock with cheese cloth or towel
Ferment for 12 weeks (Fermentation time can be anywhere from
1 week up to 6 months. Longer
fermentation will make sauce more pungent)
Skim off mold at the end of the fermentation period
Add enough vinegar to mash to lower pH to less than 4.6. I use white wine vinegar for the base acidity
level.
Mix mash
Cover crock with cheese cloth or towel
Let mash blend with vinegar for another two weeks
Skim mold
Run mash through a food mill or blend and then run through
food mill-depending on final use.
Save seeds and skins from food mill to make chili powder
Hot Chili Sauces -
Basics
In all chili sauce recipes, the consistency of the final
product is regulated by adjusting the amount of vinegar added and method of
processing. I use cane or palm vinegar
for setting the acidity level and then fine tune with rice wine vinegar. Rice vinegar is not as acidic or harsh as the
other types. The mash can be left as is
for Sambals or the Chili-Garlic sauce.
The whole seeds and minced garlic and ginger pieces produce the
traditional chunky texture desired. The
mash can also be puréed in a blender for smother sauces. The purée is left as is, or run through a
food mill for thinner sauces. Thin,
Tabasco-style hot sauces are pressed through a sieve. Jaggery, an unrefined cane or palm sugar, is
preferred for its mellow flavor.
Sambal Oelek
2 cups Fermented
chili mash
½ cup Cane
or palm vinegar
2 heads Garlic-crushed
or minced
2” Ginger-fresh
minced
4 Tbls Fish
sauce
3oz. Jaggery-shaved
2oz. Lemon
grass- white part only-minced and ground in a mortar and pestle
1 Tbls Lime
zest
To taste Salt
For a really chunky Sambal use the chili mash as is. For a smother sauce, purée some or all the
mash before mixing with other ingredients.
Mix all ingredients, except lime zest and salt. Place mixture in a sauce pan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 5-10 minutes. Remove from heat and add lime zest. Saltiness is mostly controlled with fish
sauce. If the sauce is too ‘fishy’ for
your taste, but still needs salt, you can add kosher salt to taste.
Pineapple-Garlic
Chili Hot Sauce
3 cups Fermented
chili mash
¾ cup Pineapple-
puréed with juice
½ cup Cane
or palm vinegar
½ cup Rice
wine vinegar
1 Tbls Marjoram-ground
1 Tsp Mexican
oregano-ground
1 Tsp Cumin-ground
¼ Tsp Clove-ground
¼ Tsp Cinnamon-ground
1 Tsp Black pepper-ground
1-2 heads Garlic-pureed
¼ - ½ Brown
or White onion- puréed
To taste Salt
Use a spice grinder to grind all spices into a very fine
powder. Purée garlic, onion and
pineapple in a blender. Add chili mash
and purée. Add vinegar to adjust for
taste and consistency. Salt to taste.
Chili-Garlic Sauce
3 cups Fermented
chili mash
½ cup Cane
or palm vinegar
¼ cup Rice
wine vinegar
1-2 heads Garlic-minced
To taste Salt
Mix chili mash and garlic.
Add cane/palm vinegar for desired acidity and consistency. Use rice wine, if needed, to adjust
consistency. Salt to taste.
Sriracha (Tuong Ot Sriracha)
3 cups Fermented
chili mash
½ - ¾ cup Cane
or palm vinegar
3-4oz. Jaggery-shaved
1-2 heads Garlic-puréed
To taste Salt
Purée garlic and chili mash in a blender. Purée the garlic with a little vinegar first
to ensure it is processed into a smooth paste before adding the chili mash. Add vinegar to set acidity and
consistency. Mix in jaggery to
taste. Salt to taste. Sauce can be used raw or cooked. For cooked: Place in a sauce pan and bring to
a boil. Reduce heat and simmer to
reduce.
2 cups Chili
mash remnants (seeds and skins) after processing through food mill
If using a dehydrator, spread mash over screen and dehydrate
until all moisture is removed.
If using the oven, spread mash in a thin layer over a ¼
sheet pan. Dehydrate in low oven (150° - 180°), stirring occasionally to dry
evenly
When the chili is completely dried use a fork or mortar and
pestle to break up chunks
Place dried chili on a sheet pan and smoke in a BBQ or
smoker for 1-2 hours. Time in smoker
depends on level of smokiness desired.
Use hickory or mesquite, depending on taste.
Grind chili in a spice grinder and store in an air tight container.
Every year as the Christmas season rolls around we start thinking about making tamales. Like carols, presents and the tree in the living room, the tamale has become an absolute Christmas essential. It just wouldn't be Christmas with a massive tamale-making session. So sit back as I walk us through the tamale ritual.
Day 1
Protein prep
Oven roasted pork shoulder is my meat of choice for tamales. The meat is heavily spiced and salted and roasted in the oven for several hours at 300 -325 degrees. One or two chopped onions, a few jalapenos, some tomatillo and garlic cloves go into the pan. Some of the veg goes under the meat to insulate it and some goes on top so the foil won't stick to the meat. I usually put a cup or two of chicken stock in the bottom of the roasting pan and loosely cover the pan with tin foil. This keeps the meat moist and prevents burning before the fat starts to render out. I'll turn the meat a couple of times during cooking. The last hour or so the meat is uncovered to allow the exterior to crisp up a little.
Pulling the pork
When the meat is tender it is taken out of the oven and allowed to rest and cool a little. When cool enough to handle I will start shredding up the meat. As it is shredded, I'll squeeze some lemon juice over it. I also separate most of the fat from the pan juices and strain out the veggies. If the veggies are crispy they'll get tossed. If the are still soft, they get mixed into the meat along with the pan juices. This keeps the meat moist and adds an incredible flavor. By the way; this is also how we make our carnitas. I'm not big on doing traditional carnitas anymore. I think I get more flavor and the meat is more tender when oven roasting.
In addition to the pork that I roasted I also had Lupe pick up a couple of roasted chickens from Costco. This is a cheap and easy way of making chicken tamales. The Costco chicken is super tender and well brined. all you need to do is mix it with a good chile sauce and you are ready to stuff some tamales.
Chili sauce
I start the sauce with a variety of chiles. This time I used a lot of Japones chile. In the past I used equal parts of California, New Mexico and guajillo along with some ancho, morita and d'arbol. The first three are sort of the base flavor. The ancho gives a sort of mellow heat, the morita adds smokiness and the d'arbol really gives it a kick. My wife and her family use d'arbol in everything and, up until recently, so did I. I've always thought that d'arbol had a somewhat harsh flavor. Lately I have used Japones instead of the d'arbol. If anything, the Japones are hotter, but it is a much smoother flavor. In this batch of chile sauce it was the japones as the dominant flavor. An added benefit is that the sauce was a much more vibrant red color than what I am used to.
I start by simmering the chiles in chicken stock. After an hour or two the chiles are strained out of the stock and pureed in the blender with salt, onion, garlic and spices (oregano, marjoram, black pepper, clove and cinnamon). A variation on this would be to add the onion, garlic and spices to the stock. I would do this if I had to cook the chicken in the stock. Simmering the chicken in the chile-infused stock adds a lot of flavor. Since I had roasted chicken this time I omitted that step.
Running the chili sauce through the food mill
The chile puree is passed through the food mill to remove all the seeds. After that I heated lard in a heavy pot and then added the garlic-onion puree. When the puree started getting a little color the chile puree was added to the pot. Some of the chile-infused stock was added to the sauce to adjust for consistency. The sauce is simmered for at least 5 to 6 hours or until it starts to mellow. The long, slow simmer takes the harsh edge off the chiles and onion.
Chili verde
Since I am incapable of making just one type of tamale, I found myself making a chili verde sauce as well. I roasted a ton of jalapenos and tomatillos and then pureed them separately. I also pureed a couple of onions and a bunch of garlic with salt, pepper and spices (Cayenne pepper, oregano and marjoram). The onion-garlic mixture is cooked in some lard until it starts to brown. Then the pureed jalapenos are mixed in along with a bunch of cilantro. I then add the tomatillo puree until I get the right level of acidity. This sauce is also simmered for several hours.
Day 2
Assembly
Step 1 - Have your wife enlist the aid of all her sisters and nieces. It is important to have several family members willing to perform several hours of labor for free (we might pay them in tamales if they're really industrious ;-)
After soaking the corn husks in hot water for a while, it's time for assembly. The best method is to set up some sort of assembly order and assign tasks to each person (Tamale-Bot? A-tamal-aton?).
After much trial and error, we have found that larger tamales are better. For me, the tamale is as much about the filling as it is the masa. The tamale has to be large enough to get a good-sized scoop of filling. We used to make smaller tamales with a single hoja as a wrapper. With the larger tamales that we are making, it is best to use two hojas head-to-head and overlapping slightly. Using this method you can't just stack the tamales upright in the steamer. It is necessary to use string to tie up the tamales.
In the Allgrim family a good eater is somebody who can be counted on to clean his plate. There is nothing quite so important to a cook as seeing empty plates after dinner. And the good eater equally appreciates a cook who puts his heart and soul into creating a tasty meal.
Bucket List - Restaurants I love and those I want to try (* = ate there)
