Mexican/Tex Mex Food.

[Worth1]

Well I looked and I cant see anything so I will start one out with enchiladas.

I am a purist when it come to them and as far as I am concerned nothing but corn tortillas will do.

It is easy.
Grow some corn let it dry treat it with lime or lye-----------.
How about just going to the store and buy some.
I like to flip the tortillas in a little hot oil fill them with one pound ground chuck, 1/2 big chopped onion, fresh chopped jalapenos seeds removed and cheese.
Fold over.
Get some good enchilada sauce 16 ounces or more with more ground beef and mix it up and heat for a bit.
Pour meat sauce over this disaster in a big skillet and heat for 20 minutes at 400 in the oven.

Take out of oven and put another cup of onions and a pile of cheese on top.
Spoon the sauce in the pan back over this mess and heat for about 10 minutes or until everything is nice and melted.
I think I have about 9 or ten of the critters.
Serve eat and take a nap.
IMG_2014090643620.jpg



worth

[Worth1]

Don't make this stuff and drive it is like an overdose of sleeping pills.
It is all I can do to post this as I feel my body slowly slipping away to dream land.
I only had two of them.

At least I no what I will be eating for the next two days.

Worth

[matereater]

That looks awesome. I love a good home made enchilada and a nap !

[feldon30]

I can't tell the difference between high-quality store-bought corn tortillas (El Milagro is a good brand) vs. homemade. I can absolutely tell the difference between store-bought flour tortillas and homemade and so I always make flour tortillas from scratch.


This is my Beef & Cheese Enchilada recipe I have been developing over the last year. Makes enough for 2-3 people.

Enchilada Sauce

Combine in a skillet and bring to a simmer:

• 3 tbsp vegetable oil
• 3 tbsp flour
• 2 tbsp sweet/non-hot chili powder
• 1 tbsp chipotle/smoked chili powder
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp garlic powder (finely ground, no salt)
• ½ tsp oregano
• ¾ tsp salt
• 1/8 tsp cinnamon
• ½ tsp brown sugar

Cook for 1-2 minutes until fragrant, stirring frequently.

Add and simmer for 10 minutes or until thickened, stirring frequently to break up clumps:

• 2 1/2 cups low sodium chicken stock

Heat Tortillas
Heat 1/2 cup vegetable oil in a skillet to 350°F and then dip corn tortillas, one at a time into the oil for 3-5 seconds each side, then transfer to a paper-towel lined plate.


Beef Filling
In a medium saucepan sauté until softened (5 minutes):

• ½ cup finely diced yellow onion

Add, breaking up with spoon until most of the pink is gone:

• ½ lb ground beef (chuck or 85%)

Drain off most of the fat and stir in:

• 1 tbsp chili powder
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp oregano

Fill the Tortillas
Prepare each warmed tortilla by spreading a large spoonful of enchilada sauce over one surface and then fill with:

• ¼ cup cheese
• 2 tbsp beef mixture
• fresh cilantro
• splash of lime juice

Bake
Arrange tortillas in 11x7 baking dish, and then top tortillas with more sauce and then scatter Mexican cheese blend over the top. Bake in oven at 325°F for 15-20 minutes on middle rack until cheese is melted and enchiladas are warmed through.

Plate 2-3 enchiladas per person and then drizzle with extra sauce. Serve with prepared Goya Mexican Yellow Rice and warmed Refried Beans.

[Tracydr]

Hatch Green Chile stew:
I never measure the ingredients for this.
Brown about 1 pound lean pork, such as tenderloin. Throw in a crockpot along with an onion, few cloves minced garlic, 1tsp cumin seeds. Add about 1-2 pounds of Hatch Green chiles, roasted and peeled. If chiles are mild, consider adding something spicy, such as habaneros or Thai chiles to taste. ( I used my very hot fermented pepper sauce, which also adds layers of flavor). Let simmer with 1 quart chicken broth all day. Add water if needed.About 1-2 hours before serving, add 2-3 large potatoes, cut in bite sized pieces. Taste and add salt. Adjust heat according to taste with hotter peppers or even some roasted and peeled green bell pepper if too hot for your taste.
Shortly before serving add about 1/4 cup flour mixed into a slurry with water, let simmer until thickened. ( I've also used mass as thickener and probably prefer the taste of masa).
Optional-one can of rotel tomatoes. I prefer without, which is more authentic. Hubby likes the tomatoes.
Serve with hot corn tortillas, chopped fresh cilantro and some chopped sweet or green onion. I also like grated cheddar as a topping.
With the leftovers you can make huevos rancheros. I put tortilla on bottom of plate, add a fried or poached egg, cheddar or Mexican cheese and, if desired, serve with cooked black or pinto beans. This is one of our favorite breakfasts.
My mother used to make smothered bean and hamburger burritos using Stokes Green Chile. It's my benchmark for green chile and I try to replicate as closely as I can the flavor.
I recently purchased a bunch of Hatch chiles. I may go back for more to roast and freeze. Not as hot as the chiles I grew in AZ but still with that great green chile flavor.
Had a hard time finding corn tortillas and only one brand of flour tortillas here in my new small town. I ordered masa and a tortilla press and will start making my own. Flour tortillas are amazing fresh off the skillet!

[Worth1]

Originally Posted by Tracydr

Had a hard time finding corn tortillas and only one brand of flour tortillas here in my new small town. I ordered masa and a tortilla press and will start making my own. Flour tortillas are amazing fresh off the skillet!

Good lord they line the streets with tortillas where I live.
I would have thought they would be everywhere by now.
Where are you going to get the masa flour?

Is it chili or chile?

Keep the recipes coming.

Worth

[Tracydr]

Originally Posted by Worth1

Good lord they line the streets with tortillas where I live.
I would have thought they would be everywhere by now.
Where are you going to get the masa flour?

Is it chili or chile?

Keep the recipes coming.

Worth

Yeah. I can't find anything Hispanic here. Coming from AZ, we were in Mexican food starvation mode.
We ate at a restaurant in town and hubby has eaten at two others in Pembroke. Let's just say they were all the same. Literally, every item on the menu contained the same greasy, bland ground beef. Everything had flour tortillas. The sauce slathered on everything tasted like Cambell's tomato soup. The salsa, I'm sure was a can of Rotel tomatoes/green chiles. Everything slathered with processed cheese.
It made cheap, frozen Mexican TV dinners seem delicious and Taco Bell seems like gourmet Mexican food!
I was just thrilled to find habaneros, serranos and Hatch green chiles ( albeit all were extremely mild).
The guy at the biggest grocery store didn't know what tortillas were. I found them in the dairy section!
Ordered a tortilla press the next day. Hoping it arrives tomorrow, along with the masa.
Thank god for Amazon!
I'm also hoping that the Fort Bragg commissary has more selection. They probably will.

[Tracydr]

I never measure things when making recipes that my mother taught me. If that doesn't bother people I'll be happy to post more.
I love making fresh salsas, pico de gallo and especially ceviche.
I never thought salmon ceviche would be all that good but I made it this summer. The salmon just melts in your mouth, like good sashimi salmon should.

[Worth1]

Authentic Soft Corn Taco.
IMG_2014090839802.jpg

About 1/4 pound of iguana, armadillo, peccary sausage or substitute store bought hot breakfast sausage.
About 2 tbl spoons chili powder.
1/2 large chopped onion taken from Spaniards.
3 large duck eggs.
On hot rock or skillet cook chopped up sausage about half way.
The add the chopped onion and chili powder and mix up.
After about cooked put in the eggs and scramble.

Put corn tortilla on another hot rock or skillet and heat up on both sides.
Spoon the sausage into the tortillas fold over and serve to hungry warriors with a side of chilli sauce.

I like to use the Valentina brand made by some folks down south.

Worth

[Worth1]

It doesn't bother me for you to post stuff without precise measurements.
My god it isn't the atomic bomb it is food.
Food is dynamic.

I never could make bread or pasta until I tossed the recipes.

Worth

[Zana]

Tracy,
I don't measure when cooking unless following somebody else's recipe for the first time....or baking. So go for it...I don't mind at all.

[Father'sDaughter]

This has become a regular dish since my SCA started offering Tomatillos for a lot less than what the supermarket typically charges for them --

Chicken Enchiladas

9 tomatillos, husked and rinsed
1/2 medium white onion
1 serrano chile
1 yellow chile (guero)
(I've been using a golden cayenne from the garden in place of both )
2 cloves garlic
1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves, loosely packed
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup vegetable oil
6 (6-inch) corn tortillas
2 store-bought rotisserie chicken breasts, skinned and shredded (to yield 1 1/2 cups)
1/2 cup Mexican crema or sour cream
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Put the tomatillos, onion, serrano, yellow chile and 3/4 cup water in a medium, heavy saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cover and boil until the tomatillos turn olive-green color, about 10 minutes. Transfer the tomatillos, onion and chiles to a blender. Add the garlic and cilantro and blend until smooth. Season with salt and pepper.

Heat the oil in a small skillet over medium-high heat. Fry the tortillas until golden but still pliable, about 10 seconds per side. Transfer to paper towels to drain.

Put the tortillas on a work surface. Divide the shredded chicken evenly among the tortillas and roll up each like a cigar. Spread 1/3 cup sauce in a 9 by 13-inch glass baking dish. Arrange the enchiladas, seam-side down, in one layer snugly inside the dish. Pour the remaining sauce over the enchiladas.

Drizzle with the Mexican crema (or sour cream) and sprinkle the cheese all over. Bake until the cheese melts and starts to brown in spots, about 30 minutes. Serve immediately.

[feldon30]

Concur with Tracydr about the Carolinas. They seem to think that tomato juice should be a primary ingredient in enchilada sauce. Some of this stuff borders on ketchup. There aren't enough facepalms in the world for that. I have found only one half-decent Mexican place in Charlotte -- in a little shopping center off of 51 just north of 485.

[Tracydr]

Father's Daughter, sounds yummy. I've never used or heard of guero chile.

[Father'sDaughter]

Originally Posted by Tracydr

Father's Daughter, sounds yummy. I've never used or heard of guero chile.

From what I found online, guero means blonde and the type of pepper referred to as a guero chile varies by location. My golden cayennes have a fair amount of heat and they're yellow, so I decided on one golden cayenne in place of both the chiles called for.