Discover how to use whole dried chiles for more depth, flavor and nuance By IVY MANNING Photography by WENDI NORDECK You wouldn't be caught dead with a tin of preground pepper, and your nutmeg is always freshly ground from the source. But when a recipe calls for chile powder, you reach for a jar. What's wrong with that, you ask? Not only that, but store-bought chile powders limit you to whatever chiles the manufacturer has decided to use -- usually New Mexican or ancho. Chicken Enchiladas "Now, even when I make Texas-style chili, I use reconstituted chiles rather than chile powder," Zukin says. With that in mind, we're sharing our go-to recipe for a rich, warming chile sauce you can use to add instant depth and heat to a long list of recipes, from chicken enchiladas to chunky buffalo chili. The recipe makes a ton, so you'll have plenty of sauce to tuck into your freezer for later. Chile primer There are seemingly a million chile pepper varieties out there. Guajillo: These "little gourds" are dried mirasol chiles. Sources Mercado Don Pancho: 2000 N.E.
Behind the Bites: Homemade Mexican Hot Sauce This recipe starts with onion, garlic and four jalapenos. The peppers are kept whole with ribs and seeds for that extra fire that they provide. I simply chopped each jalapeno into five or six slices and tossed it in the pot. Once the base has cooked a few minutes and starts to soften up I add the tomatoes and chiles. I had never worked with the Pasilla de Oaxaca chile, it’s smoked and ads a meaty bacon or ham-type of flavor. After the chiles have toasted and the tomatoes start to surrender some of their liquid I add the chicken broth. Before transferring it to a blender, I took it off the heat for a while just to let it cool – I think it is a bit easier to work with when it’s not as hot. I actually made much more than what I thought I would be making for this batch - about 2 quarts - which is enough for about six thousand tacos. I decided to make this hot sauce to get rid of some dried chiles I had left in the pantry. Eat well, cook often ...
Mexican Red Chili Sauce Recipe Ingredients 3 dried Ancho (sometimes called pasilla in the US*) chiles OR 2 Ancho and 2 Guajillo chilesWater1 large clove garlic2 whole cloves, crushed2 black peppercorns, crushed1/2 teaspoon of salt, more to tasteOlive oil * According to Diana Kennedy, Pasilla chilies are a long and skinny variety of chile, while Ancho chilies (dried poblanos) are shorter and wider. However, in certain parts of Mexico, the Ancho chile is called Pasilla, and because of immigration, is commonly known as Pasilla in many parts of the US. Method 1 Working on one chile at a time, use a paring knife to cut a slit all the way down one side of a chile. 2 Heat a large skillet on medium heat. 3 Add the chilies to a small saucepan and add enough water so that they are just covered. 4 Reserving the soaking water, remove the chilies from the pan and place in a blender. 5 Pour the sauce through a sieve into a skillet. Makes a little more than 1 cup.
Restaurant Style Salsa & A Giveaway for The Pioneer Woman’s NEW Cookbook Restaurant Style Salsa & A Giveaway for The Pioneer Woman’s NEW Cookbook Today is an exciting day! Ree’s (The Pioneer Woman) NEW cookbook comes out today! I am so excited for Ree and her latest book, The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Food From My Frontier. What is the best part of going out to a Mexican restaurant? The recipe is super easy to make. You can find Ree’s Restaurant Style Salsa recipe in The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Food From My Frontier, along with lots and lots of other delicious recipes. The giveaway is now CLOSED! And now for the giveaway! To enter to win a signed copy of Ree’s new book, Food From My Frontier, leave a comment on this post telling us if you like your salsa mild, medium, or hot! The giveaway is open until Friday, March 16th at 11:59 p.m. A few of my food blogging friends are also celebrating Ree’s new book, make sure you check out their posts: And don’t forget to sign up for our cookbook, Cookie Cravings, email list!
Chunky Pico De Gallo | VIKALINKA <div class="greet_block wpgb_cornered"><div class="greet_text"><div class="greet_image"><a href=" rel="nofollow"><img src=" alt="WP Greet Box icon"/></a></div>Hello there! If you are new here, you might want to <a href=" rel="nofollow"><strong>subscribe to the RSS feed</strong></a> for updates on this topic.<div style="clear:both"></div></div></div> I can’t believe it took me so long to share one of my favourite things to eat with you friends! However, summer is upon us, and since even England is reluctantly warming up, it calls for colourfully fresh outdoor dining. This salad is something that appears on our table any season of the year but tastes best in the summer when the tomatoes are ripe and flavourful. Ingredients: Method:
Restaurant Style Salsa Okay. Here’s the situation: I am completely high maintenance when it comes to salsa. Now, I’m not talking about Pico de Gallo. What I’m making today is salsa. As ubiquitous as it is, you’d think salsa would be a pretty straightforward thing. No vinegar, dude! Must have cilantro, holmes! Who knew I had such deeply felt principles? Salsa…it just brings it out in me. My whole point is, if you have a good blender or food processor, making salsa at home is a total snap. The Cast of Characters: Whole canned tomatoes, Rotel (tomatoes and chilies), onion, fresh jalapeno, salt, sugar, garlic, and cilantro. Dice up a little onion. Throw the canned tomatoes, juice and all, into the bowl of a food processor. Next, dump in the two cans of Rotel. That I used one can of Mild and one can of Original was purely an accident…but strangely, the balance of spice turned out to be just right. Add just 1/4 cup chopped onion to the bowl. Now, chop up one clove of garlic and add it to the bowl. Again: moderation, baby.
Warm Mexico Salsa {Mexico} Warm Mexico Salsa {Mexico} Even though I’m craving the brightness of fresh salads and striving to get my meals and sweet tooth back in shape after the holidays, it’s the warm and comforting eats that I can’t stay away from. It’s been COLD here in the Midwest! I think I can speak for the majority of the country when I say I’m done with this winter already. Factoring in wind chills, much of the state was experiencing temperatures that felt more like negative 40 to 50. In an attempt to thaw more than my toes by the fireplace, I keep opening up a folder on my computer, brimming with warmth for my soul… Good morning, Mexico. And the colors…lush greens against stunning blue sky and sea. I’m so glad I decided to take a chance in transporting a few pieces of Mexico’s vibrant pottery back home in my suitcase. Of all the places we ate at while vacationing in Mexico, the El Patio restaurant at our resort was my favorite. The salsa itself was extremely mild, which I was not expecting. Print Save
Best Fresh Salsa EVER…and easiest! This is my go-to potluck recipe! I make this salsa for every event, but I also make a big bowl of it for myself every now and then. I love that it’s healthy and is heavy on the cilantro. Ingredients: 1 can of peeled whole tomatoes 1 can of mild or medium diced tomatoes and green chilies (RO-TEL) 3 cloves of garlic (peeled) 1 bunch of cilantro leaves 1/2 tsp. ground cumin juice from 1 lime salt and pepper to taste 1 ripe avocado Instructions: 1. 2. 3. 4. If you want to get nice and fancy hollow out some avocado skins and serve the salsa in them. You can easily half the cilantro or omit the avocado and this salsa is still devoured at every party! Post By…
Restaurant Style Salsa This chunky, restaurant-style salsa comes together in just 5 minutes with the help of a blender! Do you have a favorite kitchen item? Something you can’t live without? Something that you use all the time and if you part just a couple days without it, you’ll just die? Okay, maybe that was a bit dramatic but with this move to San Francisco, my new, glorious, fabulous Blendtec named Ladybird, has been packed away for the last couple of days and I’m having some major separation issues. No, but really, isn’t Ladybird just the prettiest thing you’ve ever laid eyes on? And have you seen the illuminated touch area? I’m not going to lie – purchasing a Blendtec Blender is quite an investment, but it’s worth every single penny. Ladybird can also make a mean salsa. This chunky, restaurant-style salsa comes together in just 5 minutes with the help of a blender! Ingredients Instructions Notes
Restaurant Style Salsa Mmmm fresh salsa! I LOVE fresh salsa! I have been making it since I was probably 10 years old, so I have had some time to perfect this recipe. Ingredients 6 ripe Roma tomatoes (about 1 1/4 lbs), halved 1 (14.5 oz) can petite diced tomatoes with green chilis, undrained 2 green onions 1/3 cup chopped red onion 1 jalapeno pepper, sliced into 5 pieces, stem removed* 1/3 cup fresh cilantro (about a handful) 1 large clove garlic, sliced 2 Tbsp fresh lime juice (from 1 large lime) 1/2 tsp chili powder 1/4 tsp ground cumin 1/2 tsp granulated sugar Salt and pepper to taste Optional: for a thinner salsa you can add in a bit of tomato juice Directions Combine all ingredients in a food processor and chop until all ingredients are finely chopped.