Green Chiles

I'm still on break from blogging bit the wedding planning has slowed down somewhat. I have most of my vendors booked. Now we just have to wait until it gets closer to finalize everything else. I'm still quite busy at work but last weekend I actually didn't work so I drove out to west Denver and bought some green chiles. (I made it just in time because green chile season is nearing an end.)

I bought two bushels. I usually buy a few at a time during green chile season and when they’re out of season, I usually cook with poblanos, jalapenos or anaheims. I bought a pork loin the other day and decided to cook it with chiles. I had a few anaheims in the fridge so I roasted them in a cast iron skillet.

I thought they tasted fine but not as flavorful as when I make it with green chiles. I even added a roasted jalapeno. (This last batch of jalapenos I roasted was extremely hot.) I then came across an ad for the chili guys. I live in Colorado. Green chile is roasted at Whole Food and about every farmers market. Why am I not buying it by the bushel? Folks from out of state have it mailed to them at outrageous prices. I decided it was time to make the trek and pick up some green chiles.

I guess I didn’t realize how much I was committing to when I said two bushels. I justified my purchase of two bushels for $25 with the fact that without the coupon, a bushel started at $23 for some of the varieties. With the coupon I could choose two bushels of any variety.

I had the chiles roasted for me. Some people prefer to take them home and do their own roasting but I didn't feel like watching over a barbecue grill. Plus chile vendors have a really cool roaster designed especially for roasting chiles. One the drive home, the chiles steam in the bag and are ready to peel shortly after you get home. Wait a little bit since they get pretty hot. Remember to invest in some plastic gloves. I never keep plastic gloves around the house but I remember seeing a few pairs in my cake decorating kit.

I asked for a mild chile. I said maybe Big Jims. (Honestly Big Jims are the only variety I am familiar with.) The nice man suggested the Hatch Mediums. I also saw Hatch Milds but they only had about half a bushel left so I went ahead with the Hatch Mediums. The varieties were arranged from mildest to hottest. The Hatch Mediums were only one variety away from the mildest. It looks like most people opt for the extra spicy varieties such as the Sandia.

I’m not sure what exact variety he sold me because I don’t believe Hatch Medium is a variety. Hatch is the name of the region most green chiles are grown in. The mediums are probably a mix of NuMex Joe E. Parker, NuMex 6-4, and NuMex Big Jims because I noticed the chiles in the batch were slightly different shapes and sizes. The shop also had the Dynamite variety that is locally grown in Brighton, Colorado. I’m not sure if the Dynamite variety is mild or hot.

I am a wimp when it comes to spiciness. I love the flavor but I hate the heat. That’s why I love poblanos so much. I know they are consistently mild without any surprises. As I was peeling and seeding the chiles, I noticed a few in the batch were extra spicy. You can tell when a chile is spicy when you cut into it and starts to burn your eyes and nostrils. As I cleaned those, I made sure I removed all seeds and membranes and rinsed out the capsaicin really well.

Some people prefer to simply freeze the peppers as is but I don’t like having to wait for my chiles to thaw so that I can peel and seed them. Plus leaving the seeds in, allows for the capsaicin to penetrate the flesh of the chiles, making them spicier. I don’t mind some skin so I peel as much off as possible but leave the stubborn pieces on. I don’t like the seeds mainly because of the heat so I remove as much as possible along with the membranes. I don’t go too crazy about removing everything because with two bushels, I could be working all day. I finished two bushels in about three hours. After processing, I lost about a third of the volume. I didn’t take the time to pre-chop the chiles. Chopping is pretty easy to do right before adding to a recipe.

I bagged them up and froze them flat. (I should have used smaller bags.) I just pulled out a bag today to add to the crock pot salsa chicken I'm making tomorrow. I also took a chile out and sliced it into thirds lengthwise to use in the three breakfast burritos I will be eating for breakfast this week.

The burritos were inspired by an Einstein Bros. breakfast wrap called the Spicy Elmo but I opted to use turkey sausage instead of bacon and I skipped the cream cheese. I cooked up three eggs, topped them with shredded cheese and then heated up some precooked turkey breakfast sausage, put them on top of the eggs and then heated the green chiles to remove the excess moisture and put that on top. The filling is in one glass snapware container. In the morning, all I have to do is grab a multi-grain wrap and fill it with a third of the filling and heat in the microwave at work. I made enough for three breakfasts this week. I really like doing make ahead breakfasts because sometimes I get tired of eating Greek yogurt all the time.

Yes, that's a crock pot int he picture. I told the bf that I will probably be working late the next few months so either he does the cooking or we get a crock pot.

The roasted chiles were placed in this bag. It started leaking in the trunk.

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Chicken Stew with Butternut Squash and Roasted Poblanos

The inspiration from this stew came from one of my coworkers. She loves roasted poblanos and uses them in many recipes. She makes a stew with lean ground chicken, acorn squash, and roasted poblanos. I texted her one day and asked her what sesasoning she used for her stew. She texted back and said she varied the spices depending on her mood. Some days it's herbs de provence and other days it's jerk seasoning and rosemary. Sometimes she adds parmesan cheese and other days she uses white wine vinegar and tobasco.

I went ahead and I used whatever I found in my spice drawer. I didn't have ground chicken so I just chopped up some chicken breast.


Chicken Stew with Butternut Squash and Roasted Poblanos

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pound chicken breast (fine-medium dice) or 1 pound ground chicken
1 clove garlic
1 shallot, diced
1 tablespoon Jerk Seasoning
1 tablespoon Essence of Emeril
black pepper, to taste
sea salt, to taste
1 butternut squash, peeled and cubed
water, to cover
1 teaspoon Better Than Buillion
1 to 2 poblanos, roasted and diced

1. Heat olive oil in a medium dutch oven over medium heat. Saute chicken breast, garlic, and shallots. Cook until chicken is lightly golden.
2. Add jerk seasoning, Essence of Emeril, black pepper and salt.
3. Add butternut squash, water and Better Than Buillion. Bring to a boil and cook until squash is soft.
4. Add poblanos and return to a boil.

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Stir-Fried Water Spinach

I learned how to make this dish from my friend Kellie. Her secret (or her mom's secret) is the lime juice.

Stir-Fried Water Spinach

1 bunch water spinach (about 1.5 pounds)
2 tablespoons oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound chicken breast, thinly sliced
2 Thai chilies, sliced
MSG, to taste
2 tablespoons fish sauce
2 tablespoons oyster sauce
Juice from ½ lime

1. Prep the water spinach by cutting into 4 inch segments. Split the stalkier stems into halves or quarters. Wash and set aside.

2. Heat a large wok or saute pan over high heat. Add oil, minced garlic and chicken breast. Saute until chicken is cooked.

3. Add water spinach, chilies, MSG, fish sauce and oyster sauce. Quickly stir-fry until water spinach is wilted. Remove from heat and finish with lime juice. Serve with steamed rice.

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Cucumber Kimchi (Oi Sobagi)

I've been tinkering with a couple different pickling and fermenting recipes lately. One of my coworkers loves pickles so he has been testing out a few batches of my refrigerator pickles and pickling brines. He said the last batch was perfect. (I'm hoping to have a recipe perfected by summer. My spice drawer is currently filled with juniper berries and mustard seeds.) We even tested a few different types of cucumbers. As a joke, I pickled a few whole English hothouse cucumbers and mixed in a few Kirby cucumbers. Since Kirby cucumbers are still a little difficult to find, we've been mostly using English cucumbers.

I had a few English hothouse cucumbers in the fridge so I decided to try a cucumber kimchi. Cucumber kimchi is one of my favorite types of kimchi. I cannot decide whether I like cucumber or cabbage kimchi more.

Cucumber Kimchi

2 English hot house cucumbers
5 cups water
½ cup pickling salt

Stuffing:
½ cup shallot greens or garlic chives (I used shallot greens.)
¼ cup green onions
2 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons fish sauce
1 tablespoon sugar or honey
1 carrot, shredded
2 tablespoons water
½ cup to 1 cup Korean red chili powder (I used the medium-fine ground)

1. Prep cucumber by cutting into 2 inch pieces and then cutting the pieces into quarters, without cutting them all the way through.
2. Heat water in a large stockpot. Add the salt and stir to dissolve. (You want the water to be pretty hot without boiling.) Add the prepped cucumbers and soak about an hour.
3. Combine the ingredients for the stuffing and set aside.
4. Rinse cucumbers with ice cold water and soak about 15 minutes. Drain.
5. Stuff the cucumbers with the chili mixture, rubbing the stuffing around the entire cucumber piece.
6. Transfer to a storage container, leave cucumber on the counter overnight and then refrigerate.

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Cashew Chicken

This is my version of a dish served at many of the "Thai" restaurants in Denver. They call it Royal Chicken but it is simply Cashew Chicken.

Cashew Chicken:
2 tablespoons canola oil
2 cloves garlic
1 pound chicken breast, sliced
1 onion, diced
2 bell peppers (mix or red, yellow, orange and green), diced
1 zucchini, diced
2 tablespoons fish sauce
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
2 tablespoon Maggi sauce
2 tablespoons sugar
MSG
2 tablespoon tapioca starch
1/2 cup chicken stock
black pepper
one bunch green onions, sliced
2 cups cashews

1. Heat a wok or stir-fry pan, add oil. When oil is hot, add garlic and saute until fragrant. Add chicken and saute until cooked through.

2. Add onions, bell peppers, zucchini, fish sauce, oyster sauce, Maggi sauce, sugar, MSG and sugar. Toss everything together. Cover and allow to cook about a minute. Meanwhile, make a slurry by combining tapioca starch and chicken stock. Add the slurry to the pan, stir everything together and allow to cook a few minutes until the sauce thickens.

3. Remove from heat, add black pepper, green onions and cashews. Stir to combine and serve with hot jasmine rice.

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Goi Cuon (Vietnamese Spring Rolls) with Peanut Hoisin Sauce

My friend made Goi Cuon (or Vietnamese Spring Rolls) for the baby shower the other weekend. I was amazed by the way she rolled them. She is a master goi cuon roller. They looked so professional. It is not surprising because her family owned/owns several restaurants and they make some of the best goi cuons in San Diego.

I watched her roll them the morning of the shower. She used 1½ skins for each roll. She had a stack of very large round skins and a stack skins that were cut in half. I asked her why she had the half circles. She told me that it is trick used to help the rolls stay fresh for several hours. The trick worked.

There is quite a bit of prep work that goes into making these rolls. It is an exercise in mise en place. Once everything is prepped, you can either roll them all or wait for your friends to come and everyone can roll their own. Rolling spring rolls is another exercise of self-control and moderation. One must possess enough self control to not over-stuff the rolls. It is tempting to want to jam-pack all the yummy ingredients in the roll but one must remember that we are making spring rolls and not burritos.

Ingredients for 20 large rolls:
30 extra large shrimp
1 pork loin, poached, and cut into thin slices (I don’t like pork in mine.)
1 head Green leaf lettuce, washed and torn into pieces
1 bunch cilantro
1 bunch mint, leaves only
2-3 cups bean sprouts
1/2 package vermicelli rice noodles
green onions or chives (I think this is optional. It makes the rolls pretty but I always pull it out before eating.
30 large rice paper wrappers

Mise en Place:

1. Shrimp – Put shrimp (with shells on) in a medium saucepan and cover with water. Add about 1 teaspoon sugar, 1 teaspoons vinegar and 2 teaspoons salt. Boil until pink. Drain and allow to cool. Once shrimp is cool, carefully remove the shells. (Also devein them. I buy already deveined shrimp.)
2. Poach pork loin, cool and then slice.
3. Mix lettuce, cilantro, mint and bean sprout. Wash and drain.
4. Boil vermicelli noodles.

Vermicelli Rice Noodles:

After cutting the shrimp, I arrange them to make it easier to use the same side shrimp for each roll.

I watched my friend roll them but I couldn’t remember so I emailed her. She responded using her phone. Her response is below.

"I cut the wrapper in half dry with scissors

place half sheet in middle of whole sheet, hold together and then wet

I always use the larger wrappers with the three girls on it (my fav wrapper it's hole proof lol)

I like all my veggie and meat on the edge close to me like 1/4 the ways up then line shrimp in front of veggie pile

roll bottom wrapper over pile just enough to enclose stuffing then sides one by one and finish rolling up

if it's unclear call me"

I'll do the assembly instructions using photos. (This is my interpretation of my friend's method. It is not her method.)

1. Count 10 wrappers and cut them in half. (You will need a total of 30 wrappers to make 20 rolls.)

2. Hold the half skin in front of the whole skin and dunk in warm water.

3. Place on large plate.


4. Arrange veggies and noodles centered on lower edge of skin. (This is also the time to add the sliced pork loin, if using.)

5. Roll up and arrange the shrimp pieces.

6. Fold the edges.

7. Tightly roll.

Peanut Hoisin Dipping Sauce

This is not my friend's recipe for peanut hoisin sauce. I got this recipe from an old coworker named Daisy. It is so yummy. I think some of my friends use the spring rolls as a peanut hoisin sauce delivery device.

I like to make the sauce (and prep the shrimp and vegetables) the night before.

Ingredients:
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon oil
1/2 cup hoisin sauce
1/2 cup peanut butter
MSG
1/2 cup water
Huy Fong Foods Chili Garlic Sauce (aka cock brand chili garlic sauce) - to taste

Method:
Heat a small saucepan over medium heat. Add oil and garlic. Cook until garlic is golden. Add the rest of the ingredients and allow to slowly melt together.

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Asparagus Stir-Fry

I had a bunch of asparagus leftover from Thanksgiving so I decided to do a simple stir-fry. I also found a red bell pepper in the crisper. Stir-fries are really simple and you can use pretty much any meat and vegetable combination on hand. I used chicken breast because I love chicken but I've made this in the past with seitan, tofu, pork and beef.


1 chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Thai chili, chopped
MSG, to taste
Salt, to taste
Black pepper, to taste
2 teaspoons sugar
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 bunch asparagus, cut into 2 inch pieces
1 red bell pepper, cut into bite-sized pieces
fish sauce, to taste (about 1 tablespoon)
maggi sauce, to taste (about 1 tablespoon)

1. Mix chicken breast, garlic, chili, msg, salt, pepper and sugar in a small bowl and allow to marinate while prepping the veggies. Cut the asparagus into 2 inch pieces. (I am using thin asparagus so I do a straight cut. When I used the thicker asparagus, I usually cut on a bias.)
2. Heat a wok or sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add oil. When oil is hot, add chicken mixture and sauté until chicken is cooked through and slightly browned.
3. Add the rest of the ingredients, toss everything together and cover with a lid. Cook about a minute or two until asparagus is cooked. Do not overcook the asparagus.

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Coleslaw

I'm posting a recipe for coleslaw that I made last week. I won't be posting for at least the next week. I'm on my way to California for the funeral of a loved one whose life was cut way too short.

½ cup mayonnaise
¼ cup milk
¼ cup buttermilk
juice of 1 lemon juice
1 ½ tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
½ teaspoon salt
freshly ground black pepper
½ head cabbage, finely sliced
1 carrot, shredded
2 tablespoons onion, minced

1. Mix together mayo, milk, buttermilk, lemon juice, vinegar, sugar, salt and pepper.
2. Add cabbage, carrots and onions and toss. Cover and refrigerate at least three hours.

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Chicken Fajitas

Okay this is not a real recipe because I never measure any of this stuff when marinating. I just eyeball it.

Ingredients A:
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
juice from 1 lime
2 cloves garlic, crushed
cumin
ancho chili powder
salt
black pepper
olive oil
Mexican cut oregano

Ingredients B:
1 red onion, sliced
1 red bell pepper, sliced into strips
1 green bell pepper, sliced into strips
olive oil (I used extra light tasting because I didn’t want too much olive flavor)

To serve:
tortillas
cheese



1. Combine all ingredients from list A and let marinate at least 6 hours or overnight. Grill chicken breast until cooked. Let chicken rest before slicing.


2. Meanwhile, heat a large pan with a little oil and saute peppers and onions until cooked.

3. Serve with tortillas, cheese and any other side dishes.

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Stir-Fried Butternut Squash with Lemon Basil: My Version of Pad Fuk Thong

I really don’t make stir-fries with exact proportions. I just throw everything together. The ingredients vary depending on my mood. This time I started with just butternut squash but found a bag of sugar snap peas in the fridge and decided to throw in some color.

This stir-fry is very similar to a Thai dish called Pad Fuk Thong. Fuk Thong is a Thai pumpkin. It looks very much like Kabocha or Japanese pumpkin (maybe they're the same thing but I'm not 100% sure so don't quote me). I think Buttercup squash also looks very similar to Kabocha and I've been known to use them interchangeably. I usually make this dish with Kabocha but I happen to have leftover butternut squash in the fridge so I decided to try this stir-fry with the butternut squash. It turned out really well. I also usually use chicken breasts in my stir-fries but I had a package of ground chicken that I had defrosted.

Ingredients:
2 teaspoons canola or olive oil
1 pound ground chicken or sliced chicken breast
2 cloves garlic
salt
pepper
MSG
1 medium onion, sliced
3 cups butternut squash, sliced (or kabocha or buttercup squash)
two handfuls of sugar snap peas
basil (lemon, sweet and/or thai)
2 green onions, sliced
Fish sauce, to taste
Maggi sauce, to taste
1 tablespoon sugar

Method (this time in pictures):

Heat a saute pan or wok, add oil, allow oil to heat and then add chicken, garlic, salt, pepper and MSG. Allow chicken to brown.

Add squash and onions.
Cover with a lid and allow the squash to steam until slightly tender. (I suppose I should have specified a pan with a lid. I'm using a 4 quart/12" inch saute/simmer pan. I didn't feel like fetching the wok and this pan was a compromise. It has the rounded sides of a skillet but the depth of the a saute pan.)

The squash and onions will look like this after cooking for several minutes.
Toss in a couple handfuls of sugar snap peas. (Another of my favorite items from Costco.)

Toss in large handfuls of basil and sliced green onions. (Preferably lemon basil but you can use sweet or thai basil. I used a combination of the three.)
Add fish sauce, Maggi sauce and sugar. Stir everything together and cook just until the green onions and basil wilts a bit.

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Chicken Red Curry

I have no recipe to share today.

The above picture is of my latest batch of curry. I make a pretty darn good red curry. I really do. It is so good that I've actually had people grab the bowl and drink the leftover sauce. I make red curry at least once a month and it is never the same each time. I vary the ingredients based on what I find in the store and what I am in the mood for. This time I used chicken, butternut squash, potatoes, red bell peppers, bamboo and fresh Thai basil from my little balcony garden.

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Chicken Recuerdos de Tucson

This recipe is part of Barbara Kingsolver’s book “Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life.” I remember reading Barbara Kingsolver’s books in AP English. She was Mrs. Philips’ favorite author. This book chronicles the year that Kingsolver and her family decided to move away from Tucson, to a small farm, and ate only the food they grew. The book is pretty long and it is all about food! Barbara Kingsolver describes her book as, “part memoir, part journalistic investigation.”

Barbara Kingsolver’s daughter developed (or at least wrote down) the recipes in the book. I decided to make a dish called “Chicken Recuerdos de Tucson.” I’m not sure what it means but if I had to guess it probably means something along the lines of Memories of Tucson Chicken. The dish does have many southwest influences. The family was probably trying to recreate the dishes they were used to eating in Tucson while they lived on the small farm in Virginia's Applachian mountains.

The dish is very delicious even though I did not make it with the food I raised or grew on my own. The only ingredient from my garden was the basil. This recipe makes a large pot (about 4 quarts). I wanted to try this recipe for a while now but have always put it on hold because the bf has an aversion to zucchini and squash.

So when I was trying to decide on a dish to make for some friends who just had a baby. I decided this was a great dish to make. I kept a small container for myself and packed the rest of for my friends. Below is a link to the recipe (and the other recipes in the book) but of course I diverted from it a bit.

Chicken Recuerdos de Tucson: http://www.animalvegetablemiracle.com/Recipes.html


I'm just outlining the steps in the recipe (the way I did it). You'll have to go to Barbara Kingsolver's website (or book) for the actual recipe. I didn't completely follow the recipe but I think the recipe is pretty forgiving and you can use what is in season or what you have on hand.

1. Brown chicken in batches. (I used 3.5 pounds of chicken thighs because I feel they do better than breasts in a dish like this one. The recipe said to use a whole chicken, thighs, or drumsticks.) Remove chicken and set aside. I didn't add olive oil because there was enough fat left in the pot. Add the onions and garlic and saute. (Okay I forgot to take a picture.)

2. Add the tomatoes, spices and the broth (or water). Return the chicken to the pot and bring to a low simmer. Cover with a lid and let simmer about 20 minutes or so until chicken is almost cooked through.


3. Add the rest of the ingredients, cover and simmer until chicken and veggies are cooked. I seasoned with salt and pepper even though the recipe didn't list salt or pepper. I also skimmed a lot of the fat out because I used skin-on chicken thighs.

Ingredient Note: The recipe lists green chiles. I used one roasted and diced poblano. The recipe also list one red or green bell peppers. I think I the next time I make this I will omit the bell peppers and used more roasted green chiles or poblanos instead.

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