[CH] Mex -2- Chiles En Nogada

Jim Weller (arcticchef@theedge.ca)
Sat, 01 May 2004 22:01:27 -0600 

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      Title: Chiles En Nogada (Chiles in Walnut Sauce)
 Categories: Mexican, Pork, Chilies, Stuffing, Sauces
      Yield: 6 Servings

      6    Chiles poblanos
      1 sm Bunch Italian parsley
           Seeds of 1 small pomegranate
           PICADILLO:
      3 lb Boneless pork
    1/2    Onion; sliced
      2 cl Garlic; peeled
      1 tb Salt
      6 tb Lard or the fat from the
           -broth
    1/2 md Onion; finely chopped
      3 cl Garlic; peeled and chopped
      8    Peppercorns
      5    Whole cloves
  1 1/2    inch stick cinnamon
      3 tb Raisins
      2 tb Almonds; blanched & slivered
      2 tb Acitron or candied fruit;
           -chopped
      2 ts Salt
  1 1/4 lb Tomatoes; peeled and seeded
      1    Pear; peeled and chopped
      1    Peach; peeled and chopped
           NOGADA (WALNUT SAUCE):
     25    Fresh walnuts; shelled
      1 sm Piece white bread; without
           -crust
    1/4 lb Farmer cheese
  1 1/2 c  Thick Sour Cream
    1/2 ts Salt -- *
      1 lg Pinch powdered cinnamon

  You really have to use chiles poblanos for this dish. Bell peppers or
  the canned, peeled green chiles are no substitutes. The walnuts should
  be very fresh, but in a pinch you could use the commercially packed
  walnuts, which soften and swell when soaked in water overnight.

  Prepare the picadillo:

  Cut the meat into large cubes. Put them into the pan with the onion,
  garlic, and salt and cover with cold water. Bring the meat to a boil,
  lower the flame and let it simmer until just tender--about 40 to 45
  minutes. Do not overcook. Leave the meat to cool off in the broth.

  Strain the meat, reserving the broth, then shred or chop it finely and
  set it aside. Let the broth get completely cold and skim off the fat.
  Reserve the fat.  Melt the lard and cook the onion and garlic, without
  browning, until they are soft.  Add the meat and let it cook until it
  begins to brown.

  Crush the spices roughly and add them, with the rest of the
  ingredients to the meat mixture. Cook the mixture a few moments
  longer.

  Mash the tomatoes a little and add them to the mixture in the pan.
  Continue cooking the mixture over a high flame for about 10 minutes,
  stirring it from time to time so that it does not stick. It should be
  almost dry.

  Prepare the walnut sauce:

  Cover the nuts with boiling water and leave them to soak for 5
  minutes. (If you leave them soaking too long the skin will become too
  soft and will be more difficult to remove.) Remove the papery brown
  skin--it should come off quite easily. Cover the walnuts with cold
  water and leave them to soak overnight. Blend all the ingredients
  until they are smooth.

  Prepare the chiles:

  Put the chiles straight onto a fairly high flame or under the
  broiler--not into the oven--and let the skin blister and burn. Turn
  the chiles from time to time so they do not get overcooked or burn
  right through.

  Wrap the chiles in a damp cloth or plastic bag and leave them for 20
  minutes. The burned skin will then flake off very easily and the flesh
  will become a little more cooked in the steam.

  Make a slit in the side of each chile and carefully remove the seeds
  and veins. Be careful to leave the top of the chile, the part around
  the base of the stem, intact. (If the chiles are too picante, let them
  soak in a mild vinegar and water solution for about 30 minutes.) Rinse
  the chiles and pat them dry.

  Stuff the chiles until they are well filled out. Cover the chiles with
  the sauce and garnish with parsley leaves and pomegranate seeds.

  Recipe By: The Cuisines of Mexico by Diana Kennedy
  POSTED BY: Garry Howard, Cambridge, MA to the CHILE-HEADS mail list
  Fwd: By Jeff Pruett to FIDO National Cooking Echo Ä

  Some notes from Patricia Wriedt:

  The picadillo:

  You can use half pork grounded and beef grounded for the meats. And
  half almonds, half pine nuts. You can use apple and apricots in the
  fruits; in little cubes.

  Acitron is a citron dried and made into sweetmeat. If you cannot get
  it do not worried, make the recipe with candied lemon. This is what my
  dictionary says.

  Patricia's white sauce:

      2 c  Walnuts peeled, whites;
           Without paper peel
  1 1/2 c  Cream (the best cream)
    1/4    Piece cream cheese, just for
           To add flavor; and
           Consistency
    2/3 c  Milk
           Sugar
           Cinamon powder
           Salt

  The walnuts need to be peeled before, you can let them in some water
  on the refrigerator.

  Mix all in the blender until be soft and have a sauce consistency, try
  and season with salt and cinamon, this sauce will be cold over the
  stuffing chiles. Adorn with the pomegranate and some little parsley
  leaves.

  Patricia Wriedt - Mexico City

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