9


New Mexico Style Green Chile Stew
 
Tom Woteki, August 2002
It’s summertime and the marvelous scent of roasting green chiles is in the air. You are in New Mexico somewhere between Santa Fe and Las Cruces. Actually, if you undertake this recipe, you could be in your backyard daydreaming abiut NM on your way to this richly flavored green chile stew.
The green chiles referred to herein are commonly known as Anaheim chiles. I don’t know the origin of this name for this great chile, but it’s a perversion because these are definitely associated with New Mexico and not some Mickey Mouse town in CA. In the Fall in New Mexico these chiles are roasted and canned, or frozen, or left to ripen to produce colorful ristras. They are also dried and ground to produce real chile powder not that false stuff we get at the Safeway. Some powdered chiles are designated by place, like great wine. (See http://www.hatch-chile.com)
And in NM, having the answer to the standard question: “Green or Red?” distinguishes a knowing diner from a gringo. The question refers, of course, to the color of the chile that you would like to have on the dish you are about to consume. Speaking of which, one of the truly great breakfasts to be had is at Tecolote Café in Santa Fe where you have your choice of chile on your huevos rancheros. (See http://www.eltecolote.com/)
I use 2 different chiles in this recipe, green and poblano, which may be a little untraditional. But since it’s my recipe, hey. All measurements are approximate. I don’t actually measure any of this; I just put it together. Make it once and you’ll have your own approach.
The chile are very flavorful and not overly hot. Heat is part of this dish but definitely not the only thing going for it. Flavor is paramount.
Please, please, please do not use canned chiles. If you’re going to make this dish, go for the real thing. See notes below on preparing the chiles
Obtain:
• 1 - 2 lbs. Pork shoulder cut into bite size pieces
• 1 medium onion
• 2-3 cloves garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
• 8-12 fresh green chiles, roasted, peeled and deveined and deseeded then roughly chopped
• 8-12 fresh poblano chiles, similarly prepared
• 6 – 8 Yukon potatoes (for a little color and their texture, smaller than a tennis ball)
• 2 bay leaves
• Fresh thyme or marjoram or other herb to suit
• Chicken stock, about 2 qts. Can be diluted
• Salt and pepper
Proceed:
• Brown the pork well in oil in batches as needed in a pot, set aside
• Sauté the onion and garlic until soft. (Use the same pot throughout)
• Add all the solid ingredients to the pot including the pork
• Add enough stock to at least cover the stew. The more stock, the thinner the stew.
• Simmer gently until the potatoes are just tender to the bite. Season with salt and pepper to taste along the way
• Serve piping hot with a robust red wine (Zinfandel) or good cold beer
The chiles will fall apart as they cook. This stew keeps well for a week or 2 and improves with reheating.
Variations:
• You can scale this dish up or down in volume depending on how much ingredients you have on hand
• Meatless variations are obvious here. The chiles are very flavorful on their own.
• Substitute chick peas for potatoes, or use chick peas and potatoes instead of meat.
On preparing the chiles:
• This recipe is very easy as laid out above. The real work is in preparing the chiles. It is somewhat tedious, but the resulting dish is well worth the effort.
• Heat a grill to very hot. Roast the chiles (in batches if necessary) on all sides until the skins blacken thoroughly and start to come away from the flesh. Remove the chiles to a paper or plastic bag to steam in their skins. Set aside until the chiles are cool enough to handle. If well roasted, the chiles should be easy to peel, almost like pulling a sock off your foot. After peeling, chop off the stem ends at the top, split the chiles open and scrape out the seeds. Discard the skins and seeds. Roughly chop the chiles for use.
Need a great salsa? Use the roasted chiles as a base for your salsa picante.
Dr. Wo