Chile Relleno With Vegetable Picadillo And Black Bean Sauce Food

ROASTED CHILES RELLENOS WITH BLACK BEANS

Steps:

• READ DIRECTIONS ALL THE WAY THROUGH
• Cut the tomatoes in half and arrange them on the sheet pan. Add the sliced onions to the sheet pan, along with the whole garlic cloves, halved jalapeños and whole poblano peppers, ensuring they are not overcrowded. You may need to use two sheet pans. (You can also char the peppers on a gas burner, see notes) Drizzle all with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper and place on the middle rack and check after 15 minutes. (If your oven runs hot, you could turn it down to 425 if needed.) If the peppers are tender remove them (pasilla peppers will cook much faster than poblanos- please see notes) and check the garlic, removing it if tender. Otherwise, continue roasting with the tomatoes and onions for another 15-20 minutes until the peppers and onions are tender and tomatoes are juicy.
• Mix the canned beans (drained, rinsed) with the cheese. OR If going vegan, mix the beans with 1 cup of vegan herbed tofu ricotta. Season the mixture with salt and pepper. If using plain black beans, add a teaspoon of cumin and chili powder.
• When the poblanos are just tender, take the sheet pan out of the oven (leave the oven on) and let it cool.
• Take ⅓ of the onions, chop them up, and add them to the bean filling mixture and stir.
• Place the remaining onions into a blender along with the tomatoes, pan juices, jalapeño, garlic, cumin, coriander, chili powder, oregano, salt, tomato paste and fresh cilantro, adding a little water (or broth if needed) to thin it out, and blend until smooth. Set aside.
• Carefully cut a slit in the poblano peppers from stem to pointy end and using your fingers, gently remove seeds while rinsing them under cold running water. If the thin skins slip off, let them, but don't worry about actively peeling them, especially poblanos - their skins are quite thin -leaving some of the skin on is perfectly fine. Pasillo peppers have thick skin and should be peeled.
• In a large greased baking dish (or oven-proof skillet) pour a little of the roasted tomato ranchero sauce to coat the bottom (use about half the sauce). Place the peppers over top of the sauce, slit side up, then spoon the black bean filling into each one. Pour the rest of the flavorful ranchero sauce over top. At this point, you could add more shredded cheese to the top, or leave it off.
• Cover with foil and bake 20-25 minutes in a 425F oven- or until the filling is warm and melty, uncover and bake 5 more minutes.
• Garnish with cilantro leaves, toasted pumpkin seeds and sour cream if you like.

CHILES RELLENOS WITH PICADILLO

Steps:

• To prepare Picadillo: In a large skillet, saute the onion, garlic and bay leaves in oil over moderate heat, stirring, until the onion is softened. Add the beef, and continue to cook until the beef is no longer pink; breaking up any lumps with a wooden spoon. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in oregano, cloves, and cinnamon. Pour out any excess fat and stir in the tomato paste until thoroughly incorporated. Add chipotles, raisins, almonds, and olives; salt to taste. Remove from heat. When mixture is cool, add cheese and mix well.
• Char the flesh of the peppers over a gas flame, under a broiler or on a grill. Alternatively, set a rack over an electric burner or use a very hot heavy frying pan. Cook, turning frequently, until the skins are blistered all over. Take care not to overcook and burn right through the pepper. Put peppers in a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let sweat for about 10 minutes to loosen the skins. Rub off as much skin as possible and cut a slit along the side of each pepper, keeping the stems and tip intact. Carefully remove the seeds and inner membranes, but do not rinse with water.
• Heat 1-inch of oil in a heavy skillet over medium heat until very hot. Place flour in a shallow platter and season with salt and pepper. Beat egg whites until foamy, add a pinch of salt, and whip to stiff peaks. Lightly beat the egg yolks and fold into the whites. Stuff the chiles with picadillo, leaving enough room to close the opening. Overlap the seam slightly and gently squeeze closed. Secure with wooden toothpicks if desired. Pat the peppers dry and lightly coat in the seasoned flour. Pick the chile up by its stem and dip into the egg batter, making sure they are well covered, tap off excess. Fry until evenly browned, about 3 minutes each side. The egg burns easily so take care not to cook too long. Drain on paper towels. To serve, ladle a pool of Tomato Ranchero sauce on plates and set chiles rellenos on top, serve immediately.
• Combine and puree the tomatoes, onion, cilantro, cumin, and garlic in a food processor.
• Heat the oil in a saucepan or skillet and fry the tomato puree over high flame. Add broth, and salt. Simmer for 10 minutes until the sauce thickens slightly and is heated through. If sauce tastes somewhat bitter, add a pinch of sugar. Sprinkle with a dash of hot red pepper sauce. Sauce may be served hot or cold.
• Yield: about 2 cups

PICADILLO CHILE RELLENO

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Place the serrano chiles and tomatoes on a very hot grill and cook until charred, 12 to 15 minutes. Stem the chiles an add to a blender with the whole garlic clove and blend until smooth.
• Saute the remaining 2 garlic cloves and the onions in a skillet until browned, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the pork and cook until no longer pink, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the tomato/chile sauce to the pork mixture and heat through.
• Meanwhile, place the poblano chile on the grill until its skin is blackened, 5 to 8 minutes. Remove the skin and seeds, keeping the pepper whole.
• Saute half the plantains in a skillet until golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes and then add the pork mixture. Mix in the almonds, raisins and season with salt. Spoon the pork mixture into the poblano chile.
• Put the chile in the oven and bake until heated through, 15 to 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, blend the remaining plantains with the heavy cream. Spoon the plantain sauce on the bottom of a plate and top with the chile relleno. Sprinkle with the cilantro over the top and serve.

CHILE RELLENO

Steps:

• Rice and beans, for serving, if desired
• Heat grill to medium.
• Grill and char the chiles on both sides. Once blackened put in a plastic bag for 10 minutes to sweat out any moisture. Remove from the bag, slit them down the middle and remove the seeds. Stuff the peppers with the queso fresco and use toothpicks to hold them together.
• Separate the egg yolks from the whites. Add the egg whites to a large bowl. Reserve the egg yolks. Beat the egg whites with an electric beater until the whites fluff up. Add in the flour and the egg yolks and mix until completely incorporated.
• Add the oil to a frying pan over medium heat. Dip the stuffed peppers into the batter and fry until golden brown on both sides. Remove from the oil to a serving platter.
• Add the tomatoes and water to a small pot over medium heat. Simmer the tomatoes until soft and stir in the garlic and chicken broth powder.
• Add the 1/4 cup of oil to a frying pan, over low heat, and stir in the flour to make a roux mixture. Cook the flour until browned, then add the tomato sauce. Simmer for 5 minutes and then add the oregano.
• Pour the tomato sauce over the cooked chile rellenos on the serving platter and serve.
• If desired, serve with rice and beans.