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Pozole #2

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp paprika
  • 1 tsp black pepper
  • 2 lbs boneless Boston butt pork roast (or tenderloin)
  • 2 cups chopped onion
  • 3 carrots, chopped
  • 1 bell pepper, chopped
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 1/2 cups water
  • 1 (14-ounce) can low-salt beef broth
  • 1 (14-ounce) can fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
  • 1/2 cup raisins
  • 1 tsp ground coriander
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • 1 (14.5-ounce) can no salt-added stewed tomatoes, undrained
  • 1 (7-ounce) can chipotle chiles in adobo sauce
  • 2 (15.5-ounce) cans golden hominy, drained
  • 1 1/4 cups shredded Boston lettuce
  • 2/3 cup unsalted baked tortilla chips
  • 2/3 cup minced fresh cilantro
  • 2/3 cup thinly sliced radishes

Preparation

  1. Combine 1 tsp salt, paprika, and pepper. Trim fat from pork. Cut pork into 2-inch pieces; trim any additional fat. Combine pork and paprika mixture, tossing well to coat.
  2. Heat a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add pork; cook 5 minutes, browning on all sides. Remove pork from pan. Add onion, carrot, bell pepper and garlic to pan; sauté 3 minutes. Return pork to pan; stir in water and next 7 ingredients (water through tomatoes).
  3. Remove 2 large chile and 2 1/2 tablespoons adobo sauce from can; reserve remaining chiles and sauce for another use. Remove seeds from chile; finely chop. Stir chile and adobo sauce into pork mixture. Bring to a boil; cover, reduce heat, and simmer 2 hours or until pork is tender. Remove pork from pan using a slotted spoon; place pork in a large bowl. Shred pork using 2 forks. Add tomato mixture to pork in bowl. Let cool to room temperature; cover and chill overnight.
  4. Skim solidified fat from surface of stew. Combine the stew, remaining 1/2 tsp salt, and hominy in a large Dutch oven, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat; simmer 5 minutes.
  5. Ladle stew into bowls. Top each with lettuce, chips, cilantro, and radishes.

From Chris and Britta and adapted from myrecipes.com/recipe/posole-0

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Thai Sticks

1st place Winner! – Olympique 2013

Team Thai-Juan, representing Thailand and Mexico, took home Best Dish honors with this simple Thai street food staple. Basically, we wrapped some ground chicken and pork around lemongrass spears, threw em on the grill, and slapped on some peanut sauce before serving. Fire!

Ingredients

  • 1 ½ cups sliced shallots (about 10)
  • ½ cup shredded dried unsweetened coconut (can be toasted coconut found in supermarkets)
  • ½ cup chopped fresh cilantro
  • 6 garlic cloves, peeled
  • 6 kaffir lime leaves, thinly sliced
  • 2 fresh Thai chiles, stemmed
  • 1 1-inch chunk fresh galangal,
  • sliced 2 Tbsps vegetable oil
  • 1 lb boneless chicken thighs with skin, cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 1 lb ground pork
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 16 whole fresh lemongrass stalks
  • 1 package Lobo Satay Mix (peanut sauce!)

Preparation

  1. Grind first 7 ingredients in processor to coarse paste. Do not clean processor.
  2. Heat oil in medium skillet over medium heat. Add paste to skillet; Saute paste about 5 minutes; transfer to large bowl and cool.
  3. Add chicken and salt to processor; grind coarsely. Add ground chicken and pork into paste in bowl.
  4. Clean lemongrass by removing outer layer(s), wash and remove the tips. Press ¼ cupful of meat mixture around thick portion of 1 lemongrass stalk in 4-inch-long sausage shape, leaving 1 inch of stalk end exposed. Repeat with remaining chicken mixture and stalks.
  5. Prepare barbecue (medium-high heat). Grill until chicken is cooked through, turning often, about 8 minutes. Serve with warm peanut sauce.

Adapted from importfood.com/recipes/chicken_lgrass_skewers.html

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Pasta, Peppers and Sausage

Ingredients

  • 1 package fettuccine
  • 1 large red bell pepper
  • 1 large green bell pepper
  • 1 large onion, thinly sliced
  • 3 Tbsps olive oil
  • 1 tsp. dried basil
  • 1 lb. Italian sausage, sliced into 4 pieces
  • 1 3/4 cups (14 1/2 oz can) diced tomatoes in juice
  • grated parmesan cheese

Preparation

  1. Preheat oven to 450˚. In 13 x 9 x 2 baking dish, toss peppers, onion and basil in olive oil and spread in even layer. Add sausage pieces.
  2. Bake 25 minutes, uncovered, stirring once or twice.
  3. Stir in tomatoes and juice and bake 10 more minutes.
  4. Cook pasta. Drain.
  5. Remove sausage, cut into thin slices, and return to pepper mixture.
  6. Combine pasta and pepper mixture, toss, and sprinkle with parmesan cheese.
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Tacos Al Pastor

A popular taco filling in Mexico, pork al pastor is usually cooked in a huge slab on a vertical rotisserie (like Middle Eastern shawarma) and sliced off to order, so that the outside bits are crisp and golden and the inside is juicy and tender.  Since most of us don’t have a vertical rotisserie hanging around, here’s an “at home” method that replicates the flavors of an authentic al pastor taco.

Chili Marinade

Ingredients

  • 2 dried ancho chiles
  • 2 dried guajillo chiles
  • 2 dried chipotle chiles or 2 canned in adobo
  • 1/2 of a large onion
  • 3 garlic cloves, unpeeled
  • 1/4 c white vinegar
  • 1/4 c orange juice (or lemonade or limeade)
  • 2 tsp kosher salt
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • 1 tsp ground cumin

Preparation

  1. Pour boiling water over dried chiles, soak for 30 minutes to reconstitute. Remove chiles from water, do not dispose of the water yet. Remove stems, slice open and remove seeds. Place in immersion blender jar.
  2. Broil onion and garlic cloves in toaster oven for about 5-10 minutes or until slightly soft and brown in spots, place in blender jar.
  3. Add about 1/2 c of the chile water to blender jar, purée until smooth, adding more chile water if needed to make a chili paste.
  4. Strain chili puree through mesh strainer using a rubber spatula to push through.
  5. Add salt, oregano, cumin, vinegar, and juice to strained chili paste. It should be the consistency of a thick tomato sauce.

Tacos al pastor

Ingredients

  • 3-4 lb piece of pork butt or shoulder (I used Boston butt), sliced in thin slabs removing the excess fat
  • 1 recipe marinade
  • 1/2 fresh pineapple, peeled and cut into semi-circles
  • 1/2 c fresh cilantro
  • 1/2 c diced red onion
  • Tomatillo sauce (1/2 c jarred tomatillo salsa mixed with 1/2 of a mashed avocado)
  • lime wedges
  • corn tortillas

Preparation

  1. Pound slabs of pork with flat side of mallet until very thin. Place in dish or resealable bag, and marinate in chili sauce for 24 hours.
  2. Heat cast iron skillet over medium heat. Fry pieces of pork and pineapple slices for a few minutes on each side or until browned.
  3. Remove from pan and let rest for a few minutes, then dice into small pieces.
  4. Fill warmed corn tortillas with pork and garnish with pineapple, cilantro, red onion, tomatillo sauce, and a squeeze of lime.
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Red Beans and Rice

Finally documented my go-to read beans recipe today in the kitchen. It’s cooking now, so we’ll see if there’s any need for adjustment to the below in a few hours. I usually get the beans going to a boil as I’m prepping the rest of the veggies.

Ingredients

 

  • 1 lb dark red kidney beans
  • 6 cups water
  • 1/2 bottle red wine
  • 1 large onion, chopped (3 cups)
  • 1 large bell pepper, chopped (2 cups)
  • 4-5 ribs celery, chopped (1 1/2 cups)
  • 1 1/2 Tbsp. garlic, minced
  • 4 bay leaves
  • 1/2 Tbsp. fresh thyme
  • 1 tsp. ground black pepper
  • 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
  • 2/3 lb. andouille sausage, chopped into 1/2 inch pieces
  • 1/2 lb. ham, cubed into 1/4 pieces (ham hock, ham steak, something smoked and w/ a bone is best)
  • Gumbo filé
  • 1/4 cup parsley, chopped

Optional Extras

  • 1 carrot, diced
  • 1 jalapeno, chopped
  • 2-3 slices bacon, raw

Preparation

  1. Soak beans in water overnight. Drain, rinse and place in stock pot with water. Bring to a boil.
  2. Add everything except parsley.
  3. Simmer uncovered for 4-6 hours, stirring occasionally.
  4. Add parsley just before serving in a bowl under white rice. Add filé to taste. Cornbread and hot sauce is also encouraged.

Makes 12 servings.