Chiles In Nogadas Recipes

CHILES EN NOGADA

Steps:

• Make the picadillo: Heat olive oil in a large skillet over high. Spread pork in an even layer and cook, undisturbed, until lightly browned, about 3 minutes. Toss and continue to cook, breaking up meat with the back of a spoon and scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan, until meat is crumbled and lightly browned, 4 to 6 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the browned meat to a large bowl and set aside.
• Reduce heat to medium and cook onion, apple, pear, plantain, garlic and 1 1/2 tablespoons kosher salt, stirring occasionally, until tender but not browned, 10 to 12 minutes, adjusting the heat as necessary. Add 1 teaspoon pepper, the oregano, cinnamon and clove, and cook, stirring frequently, until very fragrant, 1 minute.
• Stir in sherry and cook, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid has evaporated and no longer smells of alcohol, 2 minutes. Stir in tomatoes and their juices, peach, raisins and almonds and cook, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid has evaporated, 5 minutes.
• Add the cooked pork, olives, lemon zest and 1 cup water, and cook, stirring occasionally, until all the liquid has evaporated, the vegetables and fruit are tender and the pork is cooked through, 10 to 15 minutes. Stir in the parsley and lemon juice, season with salt and pepper, and set aside until ready to use.
• Meanwhile, fry the poblanos: Heat vegetable oil in a large saucepan fitted with a deep-fry thermometer on high until thermometer registers 375 degrees. Working in four batches, fry the poblanos, turning once, until skin is opaque and blistered, 1 to 2 minutes per side. Transfer poblanos to a large, heatproof bowl, wrap tightly with plastic and let sit 15 minutes. When cool enough to handle, peel skin from chiles, leaving stem intact. Chiles should still be firm and bright green. Using a paring knife, make a 2-inch cut (about 1 inch from the top) lengthwise down the side of each poblano and carefully remove seeds and ribs.
• Place the poblanos cut-side up on a rimmed baking sheet and fill each with about 1/2 cup picadillo, gently pressing the filling into the poblanos with the back of a spoon, until full but not bursting or splitting. Set aside.
• Make the sauce: Purée the walnuts, almonds, crème fraîche and queso fresco with 1 1/4 cups water and 3/4 teaspoon salt in a blender until creamy. Season with salt and thin with more water, if necessary.
• Serve stuffed chiles at room temperature topped with nogada sauce, pomegranate seeds and parsley leaves.

CHILES EN NOGADA (CHILIES IN WALNUT SAUCE)

Steps:

• Remove the walnut skins: Remove the papery bitter skins from the walnut pieces. (This is the hard part.) Sometimes the skins easily rub off. I have found that usually, for us, the skins don't easily peel off and we need to blanch them for 1 minute in boiling water first, to loosen the skins. If you blanch the walnuts, let them cool to the touch and carefully peel off as much of the bitter skins as you can. This is painstaking work, but unless your walnuts are shed of their bitter skins, the sauce may be a bit bitter.
• Soak the walnuts overnight: Place the skinned walnuts in a bowl, cover them with milk to soak, and chill them overnight in the refrigerator.
• Char the chiles: Place the chiles directly over the flame of a gas stove, or place under a hot broiler, to char the outside tough skin. Turn the chiles to char them on all sides. Get as much of the outside skin blackened as possible, it will be easier to remove that way.
• Remove the skins: Place the blackened chiles in a bowl, cover with a plate or damp clean towel, and let sit for 20 minutes. The burned skin will then flake off very easily and the flesh will become a little more cooked in the steam so the skin will flake/peel off easily. Discard the skin.
• Remove the seeds: 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. Rinse the chiles and pat them dry.
• Blend sauce ingredients: Drain the walnuts. Place the soaked and drained walnuts, the queso fresco, sour cream, sugar, and cinnamon into a blender and purée until completely smooth.
• Brown the ground turkey: Heat one tablespoon of the oil in a large wide saucepan on medium high heat. Working in batches to prevent crowding the pan, brown the meat on at least one side, sprinkling the meat with a little kosher salt as it cooks. Add another tablespoon of oil if needed for the subsequent batches. Remove meat to a bowl and set aside.
• Sauté the onion and add the seasonings: Add a tablespoon of oil to the pan and heat on medium. Add the onion and cook until soft. Add the cinnamon, black pepper, cloves, and garlic and cook another minute.
• Add the butter, return the turkey, and add tomatoes, raisins, almonds, and apples: Melt butter in the pan and return the ground meat to the pan, using use wooden spoon to break up any clumps. Add the crushed tomatoes, golden raisins, and chopped slivered almonds. If the mixture seems a little dry, add a tablespoon or two of water. Add chopped apple to the picadillo mixture. Adjust spices, add more cinnamon, salt, ground cloves to taste (go easy on the cloves, they can overpower).
• Stuff the chiles: Stuff the chiles with the picadillo until they are well filled out. Place them on individual plates or on a serving platter.
• To serve, cover the stuffed chiles with the walnut sauce and sprinkle with pomegranate seeds and chopped fresh parsley or cilantro.

CHILES EN NOGADA (MEXICAN STUFFED POBLANO PEPPERS IN WALNUT SAUCE)

Steps:

• Roast poblano chiles over an open flame on a gas stove or grill until the skin is black and charred on all sides, turning often, 10 to 15 minutes.
• Place the charred chiles in a plastic bag or in a large bowl covered with plastic wrap. Allow to sit for 5 to 10 minutes, then open and peel off the skin. Cut a slit in each chile lengthwise and remove the seeds.
• Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and cook until soft and translucent, 3 to 4 minutes. Add ground pork and cook until browned, breaking up with a spoon while cooking, about 7 minutes. Mix in tomatoes, plantain, apple, peach, parsley, candied orange peel, pine nuts, raisins, almonds, cloves, salt, and pepper. Simmer until filling is cooked through and flavors are well combined, about 10 minutes.
• Combine walnuts, milk, goat cheese, sugar, and cinnamon stick in a blender; blend until walnut sauce is smooth and creamy.
• Fill each poblano chile with the pork filling and place on a plate. Spoon walnut sauce over chile and sprinkle with pomegranate seeds and parsley.

CHILES EN NOGADA

Steps:

• Make a vertical slit down the side of each chile and carefully remove the seeds, leaving the stem intact.
• Mix the veal and pork in a bowl. Add the salt and pepper.
• In a large heavy skillet, over a medium heat, cook the oil with the onion until translucent. Add the ground meat and cook, breaking up any clumps, about 5 to 7 minutes. Add the almonds, pine nuts, cactus, raisins, and epazote. Cook and stir constantly, until the meat is done.
• Remove the meat mixture from the heat and let cool.
• Stuff the chiles with the meat mixture and put them on an ovenproof platter, covered with loosely tented foil. Place the platter in a warm oven while finishing the sauce.
• Place the walnuts in a blender. With the motor running, add the milk slowly, until smooth and thick. Add the cream and blend well.
• Cover the chiles with the walnut sauce and garnish with the pomegranate seeds and parsley.

CHILES EN NOGADA

Steps:

• For the chiles: In a medium saute pan over medium heat, heat the vegetable oil. Add the chicken and cook until it starts to turn white, about 5 minutes. Add the onions and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the apples, apricots, cranberries, pears, raisins and garlic and cook for 2 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste and cook for 2 more minutes. Add the wine and simmer until the chicken is tender, about 5 minutes. Season with sugar, salt and pepper, and then remove from the heat.
• Stuff each roasted poblano pepper with one-quarter of the chicken mixture and set aside.
• For the sauce: In a medium saute pan over medium-low heat, cook the shallots in the vegetable oil until translucent, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until it turns a light caramel color, about 5 minutes. Add the wine and simmer until it is almost completely evaporated, about 15 minutes. Add the heavy cream and simmer until reduced by half, about 15 more minutes. Stir in the almonds and season with salt and pepper.
• To serve, place each stuffed poblano pepper on a plate and top with 2 tablespoons sauce. Garnish with the cilantro and pomegranate seeds.

CHILES EN NOGADA

Steps:

• For the chiles: Heat a large skillet over high heat. Add the canola oil when hot. Add the chicken and saute until the chicken starts to turn white, 7 to 8 minutes. Add the onions and continue to saute until the onions are translucent, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the apple, apricot, pear, raisins and garlic and saute until they begin to soften, about 1 minute. Add the tomato paste and stir so the paste coats all of the ingredients. Add the red wine and cook until the chicken is tender, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and let cool slightly. Remove the seeds from the peppers by making one long slice down the sides, stuff them with the chicken-fruit mixture and keep warm until ready to serve.
• For the nogada sauce: Heat the oil in a saute pan over medium-high heat, add the shallots and saute until translucent, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and continue to saute until the garlic has turned a light caramel color, about 1 minute. Add the white wine and reduce until almost gone, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the cream and simmer until reduced by half, 5 to 7 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and finish with the almonds.
• For serving: Place each stuffed pepper on a plate and spoon some of the nogada sauce over top. Garnish with the cilantro and pomegranate seeds.

CHILES IN NOGADAS

Steps:

• 1. To prepare the sauce, place shelled walnuts in a heatproof bowl, cover with boiling water and let soak 5 minutes. 2. Place in a bowl and cover with milk and let soak for 12 hours (less time works if you are in a hurry.) 3. Drain the walnuts, discarding all but ½ cup of the milk for use in pureeing the nuts. Transfer the nuts to a blender and puree with the cream, ½ cup milk and the queso fresco, salt and sugar. Refrigerate. 4. To prepare the filling, put the meat in a saucepan with enough water to cover, and cook over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic and salt. Cook for 40 to 60 minutes or until the meat is tender, skimming and discarding any foam from the surface with a large spoon. Drain the meat, reserving 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid. 5. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat and add the onion and garlic, sautéing until transparent. Add the tomatoes and minced parsley and cook for 5 minutes stirring constantly. 6. Mix in the remaining cinnamon, cloves, plantain, other fruit, raisins, almonds, pine nuts and salt, along with the pork. Cook over medium heat for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking-the meat should begin to fall apart and be slightly moist. If it becomes too dry, add some of the reserved cooking liquid. 7. Stuff each Chile with the pork mixture and place them on serving plates. Pour the sauce over the chiles, avoiding the bases and stems, if possible. Garnish with pomegranate seeds and fresh parsley. (I like to process the pork in processor until it is slightly broken up, but not at all pureed. I place it in skillet with additional ingredients and let all simmer until well combined and slightly mushy. It seems to adhere better and become a mix that will blend well within the Chile.)

CHILES EN NOGADA (STUFFED POBLANO CHILE PEPPERS)

Steps:

• Place chicken in a large pot with the halved onion, two carrots, one stalk celery, and 1 clove garlic, and cover with water. Boil until done. Slice meat into bite-sized pieces.
• In a large skillet over medium heat, saute onion and garlic until soft, then add chicken, raisins, brown sugar, 4 ounces walnuts, pepper and bay leaves. Mix together and saute for 3 to 5 minutes, then stir in vinegar, cilantro and tomato paste; reduce heat to low and let all simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool.
• Preheat oven to 250 degrees F (120 degrees C). Cut a slit in each chile pepper along one side, lengthwise, so that they can be reconstructed after they are stuffed. Stuff each chile pepper with cooled chicken mixture and place in preheated oven to keep warm.
• To Make Sauce: In a large saucepan over medium heat, combine the cream cheese, goat cheese, sour cream, 8 ounces walnuts, nutmeg and granulated sugar. Heat, stirring, for 5 to 7 minutes. When blended together, pour sauce over warm chile peppers and garnish with fresh chopped cilantro.