Showing posts with label Mexican Cuisine. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mexican Cuisine. Show all posts
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Ode To The Whole Chicken
One of my favorite, versitile foods is the whole chicken. You can roast, bbq, cook it in the crock pot or boil for a multitude of uses. This week, one sad little chicken became 3 meals to feed a family of 6 (counting the babe). Day 1, boil the chicken in a pot of water with sea salt, pepper, celery, onion, garlic and carrots. Use half the shreaded chicken for my Mexican Chicken and Rice Soup garnished with avocado and sides of warm corn tortillas. Day 3, use the other half of the shreaded chicken to make chicken salad sandwhiches using more celery, onion and apple. Day 4, use the frozen chicken broth to make a pot of lentils with yes, carrots, celery and onion. This time I added some some Indian Spices and served with flat bread.
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Ceviche on the Fourth of July
This was my first experience making ceviche. I have always loved the flavors of Mexican cuisine as does the entire family. Mix that with seafood and I have very happy campers. This recipe was partly inspired by my favorite Mexican Chef, Rick Bayless as I loved watching him tour and cook regional Mexican dishes.
For the ceviche:
I jumbo bag of shrimp (40 or so, defrosted...tails on or off, you decide)
Roma tomatoes
1-2 fresh jalapanos seeded and diced very small
1/2 a large white onion
1 bunch of cilantro minced
1/2 of an English cucumber, seeded
4-6 limes, juiced
2 avocados (sliced, add a little lime to prevent browning and a sprinke of salt)
Bottle of your favorite Mexican hot sauce such as Tapatio or Cholula
Dice all fresh ingredients small so they are about 1/4 inch and set aside in a bowl
Juice limes and pour over bag of shrimp to marinade for 20-30 minutes.
Mix all ingredients together, serve with sliced avocado and eat with chips or on a tostada shell.
Maravilloso!
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Green Tomatillo Enchilladas
This is my first great find, Tomatillo Enchilladas from Williams-Sonoma Website. I am bored with the old Las Palmas Enchillada Sauce packed with sodium, oil and crap. My search began with finding a good basic enchillada sauce recipe. Still looking for a great red sauce.
Salud! Thanks W-S!
2 lb. chicken breasts (I cooked a whole chicken in the crock pot with S&P)
1/4 white onion
1 garlic head, halved crosswise
1 Tbs. sea salt
For the sauce:
3 lb. tomatillos, husked and rinsed
9 serrano chilies (I used 4)
3 garlic cloves, chopped
1/4 cup safflower or canola oil
1 Tbs. sea salt, or to taste
For the enchiladas:
1/3 cup safflower or canola oil
18 thin corn tortillas (mine made 20)
1 cup crema or crème fraîche (I used sour cream)
1 white onion, thinly sliced (I marinated these in apple cider vinegar thanks to Rick Bayless's tip)
1 cup crumbled queso fresco
Directions:
To prepare the chicken, place in a saucepan with the onion, garlic and salt and add water to cover. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce the heat to medium, cover and simmer until the chicken is cooked through, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool and lift out the chicken, saving the broth for another use. (The chicken can be wrapped and refrigerated for up to 1 day before continuing.) Discard the skin and bones and shred the meat with your fingers. You should have 4 cups chicken. To make the sauce, in a saucepan, combine the tomatillos and chilies with water to cover. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and cook until tender, 10 to 15 minutes. If some of the tomatillos remain firm, the pan should still be removed from the heat. Drain and, working in batches, place the tomatillos and chilies in a blender along with the garlic. Process until a smooth sauce forms. In a fry pan over medium-high heat, warm the oil until it is smoking. Quickly add the tomatillo sauce and fry, stirring constantly, until the sauce begins to bubble. Reduce the heat to low and cook until the sauce starts to thicken, 5 minutes more. Add the 1 Tbs. salt; taste and add more salt, if needed. Keep warm. When the sauce is combined with the tortillas and chicken, the taste of salt will be quite diminished; it should be highly seasoned at this point. You should have 3 cups of sauce. If needed, add some of the chicken broth. Preheat an oven to 350°F. To make the enchiladas, in a fry pan, heat the oil over medium-high heat until sizzling hot. Using tongs, quickly pass each tortilla through the oil to soften, then drain on paper towels. Using your fingers, dip each tortilla briefly in the warm sauce, place on a plate, put a large spoonful of shredded chicken near one edge and roll up the tortilla. Place, seam side down, in a baking dish. Cover with the remaining sauce. Bake until thoroughly heated, about 10 minutes. Remove the enchiladas from the oven and top with the crema, onion slices and crumbled cheese. Alternately, arrange the enchiladas on individual warmed plates and garnish before serving. Serve immediatelyenchiladas become soggy quickly.
Serves 6.
Salud! Thanks W-S!
2 lb. chicken breasts (I cooked a whole chicken in the crock pot with S&P)
1/4 white onion
1 garlic head, halved crosswise
1 Tbs. sea salt
For the sauce:
3 lb. tomatillos, husked and rinsed
9 serrano chilies (I used 4)
3 garlic cloves, chopped
1/4 cup safflower or canola oil
1 Tbs. sea salt, or to taste
For the enchiladas:
1/3 cup safflower or canola oil
18 thin corn tortillas (mine made 20)
1 cup crema or crème fraîche (I used sour cream)
1 white onion, thinly sliced (I marinated these in apple cider vinegar thanks to Rick Bayless's tip)
1 cup crumbled queso fresco
Directions:
To prepare the chicken, place in a saucepan with the onion, garlic and salt and add water to cover. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce the heat to medium, cover and simmer until the chicken is cooked through, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool and lift out the chicken, saving the broth for another use. (The chicken can be wrapped and refrigerated for up to 1 day before continuing.) Discard the skin and bones and shred the meat with your fingers. You should have 4 cups chicken. To make the sauce, in a saucepan, combine the tomatillos and chilies with water to cover. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and cook until tender, 10 to 15 minutes. If some of the tomatillos remain firm, the pan should still be removed from the heat. Drain and, working in batches, place the tomatillos and chilies in a blender along with the garlic. Process until a smooth sauce forms. In a fry pan over medium-high heat, warm the oil until it is smoking. Quickly add the tomatillo sauce and fry, stirring constantly, until the sauce begins to bubble. Reduce the heat to low and cook until the sauce starts to thicken, 5 minutes more. Add the 1 Tbs. salt; taste and add more salt, if needed. Keep warm. When the sauce is combined with the tortillas and chicken, the taste of salt will be quite diminished; it should be highly seasoned at this point. You should have 3 cups of sauce. If needed, add some of the chicken broth. Preheat an oven to 350°F. To make the enchiladas, in a fry pan, heat the oil over medium-high heat until sizzling hot. Using tongs, quickly pass each tortilla through the oil to soften, then drain on paper towels. Using your fingers, dip each tortilla briefly in the warm sauce, place on a plate, put a large spoonful of shredded chicken near one edge and roll up the tortilla. Place, seam side down, in a baking dish. Cover with the remaining sauce. Bake until thoroughly heated, about 10 minutes. Remove the enchiladas from the oven and top with the crema, onion slices and crumbled cheese. Alternately, arrange the enchiladas on individual warmed plates and garnish before serving. Serve immediatelyenchiladas become soggy quickly.
Serves 6.
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