Grady Spears Red Chile Paste Recipes

RED CHILE PASTE

Steps:

• Make a slit in each of the ancho chiles and New Mexico chiles with a sharp knife, and remove the seeds and stem. Place the chiles in a large saucepan, and add the chicken stock, onion, and garlic. Bring the mixture to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat to medium, and simmer until the chiles have softened, about 15 minutes.
• Pour the chile mixture into a blender, filling the pitcher no more than halfway full. Hold down the lid of the blender with a folded kitchen towel, and carefully start the blender, using a few quick pulses to get the mixture moving before leaving it on to puree. Puree in batches until smooth and pour into a clean pot. Alternately, you can use a stick blender and puree the chile mixture right in the cooking pot.

CHAR-GRILLED TEXAS T-BONE WITH CACIOTTA CHEESE ENCHILADAS

Steps:

• Prepare the enchiladas and heat the grill. Rub the steaks with the oil and seasonings and set aside at room temperature while grill heats. When the grill feels medium-hot when you hold your hand 5 inches over the fire, it is ready to use. Place the steaks on the grill and cook them for 5 minutes on each side for medium.
• For the chile sauce: Place the chile paste, tomato, cumin, and honey in a blender and puree until smooth. Adjust seasonings with salt. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Pour in the puree and cook for 3 minutes, until the flavors are well combined. Use the sauce immediately on enchiladas, or store in a glass container in the refrigerator until ready to use. Keeps for a week.
• At serving time, place the steaks on 4 plates and top each steak with 2 hot Caciotta Cheese Enchiladas. Serve immediately.
• Lightly grease an 11 3/4 by 7 1/2-inch glass baking pan. Set aside. Heat the oil in a small skillet over low heat, until it's hot enough to sizzle when a tiny piece of tortillas is dropped in. Using tongs, dip a tortilla into the hot oil, removing it quickly and letting excess oil drip off. Dip tortilla into chile sauce and lay it on a flat surface. Sprinkle 1/2 cup of the cheese down the center of the tortilla and roll the tortilla from 1 end to the other. Lay the enchilada in the prepared pan with the seam down. Repeat the steps with each tortilla, fitting them tightly into the pan. Pour the remaining chile sauce over the top of the enchiladas and sprinkle them with the remaining cheese. Prepare these as close to serving time as possible. To finish the enchiladas, preheat the oven to 400 degrees and bake them for 12 minutes. Serve at once.
• Combine all of the ingredients in a small bowl, blending well to evenly distribute the spices. Be sure to break up any chunks that appear. Store the blend in an airtight container. Shake or stir it again before each use.