tomatillos

Huevos Rancheros, Salsa de Aji Mirasol Asado

/ Ren

If you’ve never made roasted salsa from scratch before, you owe it to yourself to try it – you just can’t buy anything this good in a store at any price.  This dish is easy and inexpensive enough to feed the whole gang.

Fresh, pastured eggs poached in roasted tomato salsa with fresh tortillas.  Garlic, cumin, Aji Mirasol (this Peruvian chile’s name means looking at the sun), onions and cilantro..

Huevos Rancheros, Salsa de Aji Mirasol Asado

Huevos Rancheros, Salsa de Aji Mirasol Asado

Coarsely chop tomatoes, tomatillos, red & green onions, garlic, jalapeño peppers, cumin and Aji Mirasol chiles.  Season lightly with sea salt and smoked pepper and roast in a 450 degree oven until blistered, about 15 minutes.

Working in batches if necessary, transfer the roasted vegetables to the bowl of a food processor and pulse to a semi-coarse texture.

Pour the salsa into a skillet and simmer over moderate heat until thickened, about 15-20 minutes.

With the back of a large spoon, form a well in the just-bubbling salsa then crack an egg into the well.  You can prepare as many as a dozen eggs at once, depending on the size of your pan and the quantity of salsa that you’ve made.

Cover the pan and cook eggs to your liking, about 3-4 minutes for runny yolks.

Meanwhile, heat fresh tortillas (corn tortillas are traditional for this dish) in a lightly greased comal or skillet.

To serve, nestle an egg inside a tortilla and spoon some of the salsa around the edges.  Dress with a squeeze of lime.

This post is part of the Pennywise Platter Thursday at The Nourishing Gourmet

Chili

/ Ren

“…During the 1880s, brightly-dressed Hispanic women known as “Chili Queens” began to operate around Military Plaza and other public gathering places in downtown San Antonio. They would appear at dusk, building charcoal or wood fires to reheat cauldrons of pre-cooked chili, selling it by the bowl to passers-by. The aroma was a potent sales pitch…” (Wikipedia)  Visit npr.org for more information about The Chili Queens of San Antonio.

Chili con carne, Texas-style chili, Pedernales River chili, white chili, Cincinnati-style chili, Louisville style chili, chile verde.  All very different. All very good.

This unique chile selectively borrows from many of these traditions.  It would, of course be immediately disqualified from any self-respecting Texas chili cook-off.

Tomatillos, cilantro, masa flour, tomato paste, crushed tomatoes, 3-bean chili beans, onion, queso Oaxaca bola (string cheese), Mexican oregano (related to lemon verbena, Mexican oregano is stronger than the Greek and Italian varieties), celery, Mexican dark beer, annatto oil, chipotles en adobo, 90% lean coarse-ground chili meat, dried ancho with cumin, pepper and cloves, red Frisco peppers, garlic, dark chocolate with cocoa nibs, cinnamon and chipotle and sweet white corn. Not shown: beef stock

In a Dutch oven, brown the meat in a little annatto oil. Drain any excess fat.

Chop the peppers, celery, onion, tomatillos and garlic and add to the meat.  Cook about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally until vegetables are soft.

Add tomatoes, crushed ancho blend and chipotles en adobo. Allow the chili to come to a boil, then immediately reduce to a simmer.

Add beer and beef stock. Chili should be thin (lots of liquid) at this point. Simmer 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Cut the corn from the cob and toast in a skillet to intensify color, flavor and sweetness (this makes a nice contrast to the heat of the peppers).

Add the corn, cilantro, chocolate, drained beans and oregano to the pot, stirring until the chocolate is incorporated, about 5 minutes.

Add masa and tomato paste to thicken, simmer another 5 -10 minutes.

Serve with tortilla chips and shredded cheese.

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