Suzi's Blog
Poblano Chili con Carne from James Peterson
From James Peterson’s Meat comes a new level of heat. His interpretation of chili [not chile] uses meat along with beans, but it’s the poblanos that make the difference. This is a hot dish. A beer evoking, tongue singing recipe that will put sweat on your brow. Those are facts, not a complaint. This chili is definitely a meal unto itself.
You can make a full batch of this chili, enjoy what you wish, and then freeze for a rainy day. We ate this just straight from the pot, with none of the adornments you might want: sour cream, onion, or cheese. We wanted to enjoy the flavor of this recipe by itself, and we did just that. The first ingredient listed below is 8 poblano chiles, and Peterson does suggest you have sour cream on the table. You just might want the soothing sour cream ready on the side!
Poblano Chili con Carne
Yield: 8 servings
Ingredients:
- 8 poblano chiles
- 3 pounds boneless beef stew meat from the chuck, cut into 1-inch cubes
- Salt
- Pepper
- 5 tablespoons olive oil, or as needed 1 large onion, sliced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 10 tomatoes, about 5 pounds total weight, peeled, seeded and chopped
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 chipotle chile in adobo sauce, rinsed, seeded, and chopped
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
- Sour cream
Preparation:
If you have a gas stove, put the poblano chiles over the flame and turn as needed to blacken evenly. If you don’t have a gas stove, preheat the broiler,
Put the poblano chiles on a sheet pan, slip under the broiler, and broil, turning as needed to blacken evenly. Transfer the chiles to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let stand for about 15 minutes to steam to simplify peeling. Rinse the peppers under cold running water and peel away the skin with your fingertips. Scrape off any stubborn patches with a small knife. Seed the chiles and cut length-wise into ¼ inch-wide strips.
Season the meat all over with salt and pepper. In a heavy sauté pan, heat 3 tablespoons of the olive oil over high heat. When the oil begins to smoke, working in batches if needed to avoid crowding, add the beef and brown well on all sides. Transfer the beef to a plate. Pour the fat out of the pan.
In a pot just large enough to hold the meat, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and sweat them, stirring occasionally, for about 15 minutes, or until the onion and garlic have softened. Add the browned meat, tomatoes, oregano, and cumin to the pot and stir well. Cover, adjust the heat to maintain a gentle simmer, and cook for about 1½hours, or until the meat is just tender.
Add the poblanos, re-cover, and simmer for 30 minutes longer, or until the meat is easily penetrated with a fork. Add the chipotle chile and cilantro and stir well. Spoon the chili into warmed soup plates and serve. Pass the sour cream at the table.
Source: Meat: A Kitchen Education by James Peterson
Chile Fried Rice
I love Asian cuisines. The colors, the aromas, and the flavors are so bright, so intensely different, that I crave finding a new great Chinese, or Thai, or Japanese restaurant. And no matter what kind of restaurant I’m in, I want that rice. Ideally fried, filled with flavor, and steaming hot.
I also love being self-sufficient. I’d rather do things myself. I admit doing an Asian dish can often be a tad challenging. All those ingredients! It can seem overwhelming, but I suggest you take the gamble here. Remember those giant jigsaw puzzles with 500 pieces? Well, this recipe has less than 500 ingredients, actually only 26, but you can have just as much fun assembling this dish.
If you don’t have chopsticks, you ought to consider getting some. Actually, you’ll be in the store for a while anyway getting all this stuff. It’s worth the effort. And now you can start that Asian shelf in your pantry.
Chili Fried Rice with Thai Basil (Khoa Pad Bai Kraprow)
Yield: Serves 4 to 8 depending on your addiction to fried rice
Ingredients:
For the Fried Rice:
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 serrano chiles, seeded and chopped
- 4 cups cold cooked long-grain rice, gently breakup any clumps
- 1-2 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- ¼ teaspoon sugar
- 2 scallions, including white and green parts, chopped
- ½ cup Thai Basil leaves
- ¼ cup cilantro, coarsely chopped
- blanched vegetables of your choice
For the Vegetables:
- 1 medium-size carrot, sliced
- 1 red pepper, cut into bite-size pieces
- 5-6 shiitake mushrooms, sliced
- 1 small head broccoli, cut into bite-sized pieces
- 1 cup snow peas
- 1 cup long beans, cut into bite-size pieces
- 3 tablespoons white wine or sherry
For the Stir-Fry Sauce:
- ⅓ cup vegetable or chicken stock
- 2 tablespoon fish sauce
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 5-7 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch, dissolved in 4 tablespoons water
- 1 red chili, minced, or 1 teaspoon chili sauce or ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
Preparation of the Stir Fry Sauce:
Place all the ingredients in a bowl and whisk until blended. Rewhisk if necessary while using.
Preparation of the Vegetables:
Place all ingredients, except garlic and cornstarch in a sauce pan over medium-high heat. When sauce begins to bubble, reduce heat to medium-low. Now add the minced garlic and cornstarch (dissolved in water). Stir until the sauce thicken slightly, about 30 seconds to 1 minute. Taste to adjust flavor to suit your taste.
Place a little oil in a wok/frying pan over medium to high heat. Add the mushrooms. When the wok/pan becomes dry, add a little of the wine or sherry, 1 tablespoon at a time, to keep ingredients frying nicely. Stir-fry in this way, adding more wine or sherry as needed, for 2 to 3 minutes, or until mushrooms are cooked. Add the rest of the vegetables in batches plus ¼ of the stir-fry sauce at a time. Stir-fry 2 minutes, or until the vegetables softened but still crispy.
Preparation of the Rice:
Heat a wok or large wide skillet over medium-high heat. When hot add 1 tablespoon of the oil and tilt pan to coat the entire surface. Add the garlic, chilies and salt. Stir-fry until the garlic is golden, about 30 seconds.
Add the rice and stir-fry until heated through, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the soy sauce, fish sauce and sugar and stir-fry to combine thoroughly. Add the green onions and basil leaves and stir-fry until the leaves begin to wilt, 25 to 30 seconds. Add in cilantro and serve immediately. Top with the prepared vegetables.
Source: Savoring Southeast Asia by Joyce Jue
