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Chef2Chef Recipe Club - Volume 5 Issue 72 - October 7, 2003 Chef2Chef Recipe Club Member Forum: http://forums.chef2chef.net -------------------------------------------------- Hello Recipe Club, Today's installment of "Mike Rodman's Strange Food Adventures" focuses on the Legend of Chili Verde. Well, I guess "legend" is probably going a little far. But heck, these are my stories and I get to call ‘em what I want ... so sue me. Raised in 1960s New Jersey (state motto: "I¹ve got your state motto right here, pal"), I never had Mexican food. And since my parents were Jewish, I had little or no experience in eating spicy foods -- unless you count the symbolic horseradish on Passover. (Sidenote: My mother used to cook corn-on-the-cob a lot and every time she would sit down to prepare her own cob with butter and seasoning, she would say, "Oy, I used too much pepper." She would say this EVERY SINGLE TIME SHE MADE CORN. Over and over-again, year-in and year-out. When she died, I wanted to write on her headstone: "Here lies Evelyn Rodman -- She used too much pepper.") Anyway, back to our story. In 1977, I was working as a sportswriter for a New York paper when I was all of 21 years old, having accomplished my childhood dream 10 years faster than I thought I would. As I pondered my success (if you can call $200 a week "success"), I realized I had missed all the adventures of kids my age, having been too focused on career goals. So, I loaded up my Fiat 128 and made the trek west. After a few weeks, I was running out of money and needed a job, but newspapers take their sweet time in hiring, so I checked the classifieds. I saw an ad that said, "You too can sell stereos." I said, "Yeah, I can probably do that," and I was hired by the now-defunct Stereo West chain of stores and assigned to their Santa Clara outlet. Being a voracious and curious eater (something I inherited from my father; don't worry, I'll get to him later in the week because I can't write stories about food without describing his love of the unusual) I was anxious to try Mexican food. So one of my fellow salesman took me to east San Jose. I walked into this dingy place and saw the chef, working a few feet from the counter. He had a five-day beard, wore an old, ratty T-shirt and had a look of contempt I haven't seen on a person of Hispanic descent since watching Pancho Villa movies as a kid. Wanting to appear unfazed, I said, "Give me the hottest thing you've got and make it extra spicy." The cook smiled and sneared (a tough thing to do at the same time, but he managed). I don‘t recall what dish I had, but I was tempted to drive to the closest fire department, unfurl one of their water hoses and stick it down my throat. After the pain subsided (about two weeks), I decided that maybe I should be a bit more selective in what I ordered. I tried just about everything during the next couple of years and I liked most of it, but didn't really go crazy over one single dish. Then, I changed jobs and moved to Palo Alto, to work for an independent stereo shop that carried high-end gear suitable for their well-to-do, Silicon Valley clientele. On about my third day (actually, I have no idea what day it was, but I've always been taught to write with specificity), it was time for lunch and the owner at my new place of employment suggested a Mexican place in downtown Palo Alto. After we sat down, he said, "You've got to try the Chili Verde burritos." I took his advice and 20 minutes later I was in culinary heaven. I don't know how many Chili Verde burritos I ate during the next few years, but I'm sure it was a record. I even became friendly with the owner, Miguel, who always slipped me a third burrito and only charged me for two. After a few years, I moved back to New Jersey, but couldn't find anything like those Palo Alto burritos. During the following seven years, I lived in four different states, but yet, no Chili Verde worth a damn. When I moved to Arkansas in 1991 (to resurrect my newspaper career), I started to cook. And one of the first things I wanted to re-create was Chili Verde. I read about Mexican cooking, tried a dozen or so recipes and started tweaking them to my own liking. About six years later, I had something that, modesty aside, is as good as any Chili Verde I've ever had -- including the Palo Alto burritos I ate twice a week years before. And here's the best part: Nearly anyone can make them (although it does help to have a mini food processor). So, I hope you'll try these Chili Verde burritos because my stomach lining went through hell in trying to perfect them. -------------------------------------------------- Got a Passion for Cooking or know someone who does? Make it your Career! Shop and compare TOP US Culinary Institutes that offer Financial Aid and Job Placement. Request Information today and get your Career cooking in just 15 months! Chef2Chef.Net/Culinary-Institute -------------------------------------------------- Chili Verde Burritos Ingredients: 3 lbs. lean pork, cut into 1/2-inch cubes 1-2/3 cup chicken stock 1/3 cup liquid from coarse purée (see directions) Coarse purée: 1 lb. tomatillos 2 medium onions 3 jalapenos, stems removed 8 cloves garlic 2 4.5-oz. cans of chopped green chiles 1 small bunch of cilantro, chopped 1 tsp. ground cumin 10 large tortillas Procedure: After cutting the pork, you'll need to soften the tomatillos, so they'll purée easier. Peel off the outer leaf and discard; put in boiling water for 3 minutes; drain in colander; then put tomatillos in a bowl of cold water (to keep them from continuing to cook). Separately pulse in a mini-food processor: the softened tomatillos, onion, jalapenos and garlic. (I never used a blender for this and I'm afraid it would nearly liquefy the contents. So if you don't have a food processor, mince by hand.) Don't liquefy any of the items -- just pulse it enough to be finely chopped. As you finish with each ingredient, put it in a mixing bowl. After all four items have been chopped, add the canned chiles and cilantro. Mix well and drain through a colander, catching the juices in another bowl. Save 1/3 cup of the juices that drain out and discard the rest. Return coarse purée to its own mixing bowl and stir-in the cumin. Brown pork in Dutch oven or stockpot (I use a 5-qt. cast-iron Dutch oven that works great). Drain; return to pot and add chicken stock and 1/3 cup of the purée liquid. Simmer pork in liquid for 1 hour. (Can be made ahead, to this point.) Add coarse purée and simmer for another 20 minutes. Serve in large tortillas, using slotted spoon for filling and a regular spoon to spread liquid on top. As a side dish, I recommend either Mexican rice or refried beans. Our moderator, Dave, will now supply a recipe, if you don't want to use store-bought versions. Mike Rodman is a free-lance writer who lives on Beaver Lake in Northwest Arkansas, where he also fishes, cooks and listens to his stereo. -------------------------------------------------- Smart Chicken.com We would like to introduce you to Smart Chicken, this country's only air-chilled fresh chicken. Smart Chicken is truly the most natural chicken in the United States. All birds are raised on a 100% natural diet and processed using purified cold air instead of adding non-potable water - that's the air-chilled difference. Succulent flavor, Twice as tender, Always fresh and never frozen, Cooks 17-20% faster. We invite you to graduate your tastes with Smart Chicken. Visit the Smart Chicken http://html.chef2chef.net/goto.php?id=360 -------------------------------------------------- Refried Beans (Frijoles Refritos) Yield: 6 Servings Ingredients: 2 cups dried pinto 2 med. onions, finely chopped 2 cloves garlic; chopped 1 bay leaf 2 or more serrano peppers, chopped (optional) 3 tbsp. lard Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste extra lard; (optional) Instructions: Cover beans with water and soak overnight. Drain beans. Add fresh water to cover, the onions, garlic, bay leaf and peppers. Cover, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer gently, adding more boiling water as necessary. Continue cooking until beans are soft. Add salt and pepper to taste. There should not be much liquid when beans are cooked. In a food processor, purée the beans. Heat remaining lard in a skillet and sauté purée until it becomes a smooth, somewhat dry paste. -------------------------------------------------- QUESTIONS, Comments, Technical Support: http://forums.chef2chef.net |