Volume 12, Issue 035 - February 16, 2007

Hello Chef,

FONDA SAN MIGUEL:
Thirty Years of Food and Art
by Tom Gilliland and Miguel Ravago
Text by Virginia B. Wood

Authentic Mexican cuisine strives to create a complete sensory experience. It combines spicy and earthy flavors, intense aroma, and rich colors that inspire the spirit. It was a desire to create this ultimate sensory experience that motivated Tom Gilliland and Miguel Ravago to open Fonda San Miguel in Austin, Texas, in 1975.

Rather than follow the traditional Tex-Mex trend, Tom and Miguel chose to feature authentic Mexican cuisine in an atmosphere that truly reflects the hospitality and rich heritage of Mexico. Now, thirty years later, Fonda San Miguel has made Mexican food an art form. The restaurant is consistently ranked as one of the Southwest's top restaurants for both food and ambience and is widely recognized as one of the most successful Mexican restaurants in the country.

In celebration of their 30th anniversary, Tom and Miguel published FONDA SAN MIGUEL: Thirty Years of Food and Art (Shearer Publishing; June 2005; $34.95/hardcover; ISBN: 094067277-4).

I would like to thank my good friends Trina Kaye and Lisa Ekus for all they do for me in preparing these great book reviews. I have enjoyed their professionalism for many years and look forward to many more. I hope you found some "Keeper" recipes this week and do stop by the restaurant the next time you visit Austin, Texas. Next month we will feature this restaurant and chef on the site and we will offer to give away two of these beautiful books. If you can't wait that long for a chance to see it, click the book jacket or link above and buy it online from our friends at Amazon.

Have a great weekend...You deserve it!

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Borrego
Lamb Loin Chops in Chipotle Rub

An ardent supporter of the Slow Food movement, Tom is a stickler for serving customers only the best-quality ingredients available. The meat for these delicious lamb chops comes from Jamison Farms in Latrobe, Pennsylvania. The lamb is grass-fed as well as hormone, pesticide, and antibiotic free. Miguel serves this dish with Chipotle Potato Gratin and a mixed green salad. The spicy salt rub is good for lamb chops, pork chops, or steak, and it is also great on corn on the cob! Any unused rub can be stored at room temperature in a sealed container and reground before using it again.

Makes 6 servings

Ingredients:

24 each 2 1/2-ounce loin lamb chops
olive oil to coat

Chipotle Rub:

1/4 cup corn oil
7 dried chipotle chiles, seeds and veins removed
2 ancho chiles, seeds and veins removed
12 garlic cloves, peeled
3/4 cup coarse sea salt
1/4 cup dried Mexican oregano, toasted

Preparation:

Prepare the Chipotle Rub:

Heat corn oil in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking. Fry the chiles, 1 or 2 at a time, turning once, until they puff up and brown, about 10 to 15 seconds each. Do not allow them to burn, or the rub will be bitter. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Set aside until chiles are cool and crisp. (You can either discard the oil or save it in a jar to flavor soups, stews, and sauces.) Once the chiles have cooled, grind them in batches in a spice grinder until they are a fine powder. Combine the ground chiles, garlic, salt, and toasted oregano in a food processor and process until the mixture is coarse and salt-like. If the rub seems wet, spread it in an even layer on a baking sheet and allow it to dry in a cool (150-degree) oven until it is no longer moist, about 1 hour. Break up any lumps with your fingers.

Preheat a gas grill to 350 degrees. Rub the meat with olive oil and a generous portion of the Chipotle Rub. Place chops on the grill and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, or until browned on one side. Turn and cook an additional 2 to 3 minutes for medium.

Variation:

Substitute 1 1/2-inch-thick pork chops and proceed as directed.

FONDA SAN MIGUEL: Thirty Years of Food and Art (continued... )

"The title captures the dual focus of Fonda San Miguel — food and art," said Tom Gilliland. "Our desire has always been to present intriguing Mexico at its best".

Honored by the International Association of Culinary Professionals (IACP) and The Independent Book Publishers Association, the 240-page, full-color cookbook features more than 100 of the restaurant's most popular recipes and celebrates diverse culinary regions of Mexico, such as Mexico City, The Yucatan, Chihuahua, and Tampico.

A sampling of the recipes includes:

• Ceviche Veracruzano
• Pescado Tikin Xik
• Enchiladas Suizas
• Carne Asada
• Cochinita Pibil

The book also contains stunning photographs that showcase the beauty of the food and the romance of the restaurant, which is filled with art work collected by Tom and Miguel over the years.

"It's rewarding to know our customers enjoy the art work," said Tom. "I want people to be stimulated by what they see, as well as what they eat."

For those new to preparing Mexican food, FONDA SAN MIGUEL: Thirty Years of Food and Art features tips on buying and cooking with various native ingredients — such as chiles, huitlacoche, and the nopal cactus — and secrets about basic Mexican food preparation techniques, equipment, and mail-order sources.

Bring the flavor and beauty of Fonda San Miguel home with this award-winning cookbook.

Pollo en Mole Poblano
Chicken in Mole, Puebla Style

If there is one dish that could be considered Mexican haute cuisine, then Mole Poblano is surely it. Legend has it that the voluptuous sauce—a blend of chiles, spices, and chocolate—was created by the European Catholic nuns of Puebla to honor a visiting bishop. There are no shortcuts to making a true Mole Poblano: it takes time and patience to develop the layers of flavor that make this sauce fit for royalty. Miguel adapted the restaurant's recipe from one he learned from Diana Kennedy. At Fonda San Miguel, this mole is served with chicken and rice and as a sauce for enchiladas. It is also wonderful on roast turkey and pork.

Makes 8 servings

Ingredients:

4 pounds chicken pieces, skin on
sea salt and ground black pepper to taste
2 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted, for garnish
Arroz Blanco (recipe follows)

Mole Poblano
Makes 9 cups

9 mulato chiles
7 pasilla chiles
6 ancho chiles
1 cup plus 9 tablespoons vegetable oil or lard plus additional as needed
4 or 5 tomatillos, husked and cooked until soft
5 whole cloves
20 whole black peppercorns
1-inch piece of a Mexican cinnamon stick
1 tablespoon seeds from the chiles, toasted
1/2 teaspoon anise seeds, toasted
1/4 teaspoon coriander seeds, toasted
8 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted
4 garlic cloves, roasted
3 tablespoons raisins
20 whole almonds, blanched
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
2 corn tortillas, torn into pieces
3 stale French rolls, cut into 1-inch slices
6 to 7 cups reserved chicken broth as needed
1 1/2 ounces Mexican chocolate, chopped

Preparation:

In a large stock pot, parboil the chicken in water seasoned with salt and pepper to taste. Drain, reserving cooking broth, and refrigerate until ready to assemble the dish.

Prepare the Mole Poblano:

Clean the chiles by removing stems, veins, and seeds; reserve 1 tablespoon of the seeds. Heat 1/2 cup of the oil in a heavy skillet until it shimmers. Fry the chiles until crisp, about 10 to 15 seconds, turning once; make sure they do not burn. Drain on paper towels. Put the chiles in a nonreactive bowl, cover with hot water, and set aside for 30 minutes. Drain the chiles, reserving the soaking water. Purée the chiles in a blender with enough of the soaking water to make a smooth paste. It may be necessary to scrape down the sides and blend several times to obtain a smooth paste. In a heavy Dutch oven heat an additional 1/2 cup oil over medium heat and add the chile purée (be careful—it will splatter). Cook for about 15 minutes, stirring often. Remove from heat and set aside.

Purée the tomatillos in a blender. In a coffee or spice grinder, grind the cloves, peppercorns, cinnamon, and toasted seeds. Add the seed mixture and the garlic to the puréed tomatillos and blend until smooth. Set aside.

Heat 6 tablespoons of the oil in a heavy frying pan. Fry each of the following ingredients and then remove with a slotted spoon: the raisins until they puff up; the almonds to a golden brown; the pumpkin seeds until they pop. If necessary, add enough oil to make 4 tablespoons and fry the tortilla pieces and bread slices until golden brown, about 15 seconds per side; remove from the skillet with a slotted spoon. Add raisins, almonds, pumpkins seeds, tortillas, and bread to the tomatillo purée and blend, using 1 to 2 cups of the reserved chicken broth, as needed, to make a smooth sauce. This may have to be done in batches. In a heavy Dutch oven, heat 3 tablespoons of the oil over medium heat. Add the chile purée, the tomatillo purée, and the Mexican chocolate (be careful—it will splatter). Cook over medium heat for about 15 minutes, stirring often. Add the remaining 5 cups of chicken broth, cook over low heat for an additional 45 minutes, stirring often enough to prevent the mixture from scorching on the bottom. During the last 15 minutes of cooking time, add the parboiled chicken and heat through. Garnish with toasted sesame seeds and serve with Arroz Blanco.

Note:

For easier serving, chunks of boneless, skinless chicken can be used.

Recipe inspired by Diana Kennedy

Arroz Blanco
Basic White Rice

Although most people think all Mexican dishes are served with Arroz Mexicano—red or Spanish rice, many coastal seafood dishes are served with white rice. Miguel likes to garnish white rice with green peas for a splash of color.

Makes 8 servings

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons safflower oil
2 cups long-grain white rice
4 cups Basic Chicken Broth (recipe follows)
1 teaspoon sea salt or to taste
1 cup frozen green peas, thawed

Preparation:

Heat oil in a heavy, 3-quart saucepan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add rice. Stirring often with a wooden spoon, cook 8 to 10 minutes, or until rice is golden. Add chicken broth, reduce heat to medium, cover, and cook an additional 20 minutes, or until all liquid has been absorbed. Fluff with a fork and add salt, if necessary. Sprinkle with green peas and serve hot.

Basic Chicken Broth

This is Miguel's all-purpose chicken stock recipe. It is a rich, flavorful foundation on which many other recipes are built. Although it is time-consuming to make, it will add depth of flavor to any recipe that calls for chicken broth or stock. The smart thing to do is make it in very large batches and freeze it in quart portions for future use.

Makes 2 quarts

Ingredients:

1 whole frying chicken, cut up
1 medium white onion, sliced
1 carrot, sliced
3 garlic cloves, mashed
8 whole black peppercorns
1 teaspoon sea salt

Preparation:

Combine all ingredients in an 8-quart stock pot, add cold water to cover, and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cook 35 to 45 minutes, or until chicken is tender. With a slotted spoon, remove chicken pieces and allow to cool. When cool enough to handle, remove the meat from the bones and refrigerate meat for another use. Return the bones to the broth and cook an additional 1 hour. Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature. Refrigerate the stock until fat solidifies on the surface, about 6 to 8 hours. Using a slotted spoon or skimmer, skim off fat from the surface of the stock. Strain before using.