Pork In Pipian Sauce Food

PORK CHOPS IN PIPIAN

Steps:

• Make the sauce: Remove the stems from the chiles de árbol, and gently roll the chiles between your fingers to remove the seeds. Discard seeds. Set a bare skillet over high heat for 5 minutes, then add the chiles. Toast until they are darkened and fragrant, approximately 4 to 5 minutes. Place them in a bowl, cover with 2 cups boiling or very hot water, and set aside to soak.
• Return the skillet to high heat. Add the tomatoes, onion and garlic, and cook, turning occasionally, until charred, approximately 10 minutes. Put the vegetables on a plate, and set aside to cool, then slip the skins off the cloves of garlic.
• Return the skillet to medium-low heat. Place the pumpkin seeds, peanuts and sesame seeds in the skillet, and cook, stirring and shaking the pan continuously, until they are toasted and fragrant, approximately 2 to 4 minutes. Put the seeds and nuts in a bowl, and stir in the cinnamon, cloves and allspice.
• Put the chiles and soaking liquid in a blender with the tomatoes, onion, garlic, the nut-seed mixture and the chipotle. Purée until smooth.
• Add the oil, lard or chicken fat to a large, heavy-bottomed pot, and heat over medium heat until it is nearly smoking. Add the purée. It will sputter a lot. Lower the heat, and stir, cooking the mixture down to a thick paste. It will continue to sputter and pop. Add the broth to the paste, and stir, then season with the salt, sugar and vinegar, and cook for another 15 minutes or so, until it resembles a thick, creamy soup. Lower heat to a bare simmer.
• Make the pork chops: Season the pork chops aggressively with salt and pepper, and dust them with the flour. Add the oil to the skillet, and heat over medium-high heat until nearly smoking. Add the chops, and let them cook undisturbed, in batches if necessary, until crisp and well browned, about 5 minutes per side. Set them aside to rest for 5 minutes or so. Serve a chop per person on a generous amount of sauce, with tortillas to mop it up. Extra sauce can be used to braise chicken, lamb or more pork, or as a topping for enchiladas.

CHICKEN IN PIPIAN SAUCE (A TRADITIONAL MEXICAN RECIPE)

Steps:

• Cook the chicken with the water, vegetables and seasonings in a large saucepan until tender.
• Strain, reserving the broth.
• Skin and bone the chicken, and set aside.
• To make the sauce, toast the sesame seeds lightly in a skillet, stirring constantly, until they are fragrant.
• Puree the sesame seeds with the almonds and 2 cups of the chicken broth.
• Heat oil or lard in a skillet, add the blended sesame-seed-almond mixture, and cook for 5 to 8 min., until thickened.
• Add 2 to 3 more cups of the broth and chicken bouillon and simmer for 5 more minutes.
• Add the chiles, olives, capers and chicken.
• Simmer for 10 minutes, and serve hot.

RECADO DE PEPIAN INDIO (GUATEMALAN PEPIAN INDIO SAUCE)

Steps:

• Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat; place tomatoes, tomatillos, onion, and garlic into the hot skillet and stir until vegetables are lightly charred, about 20 minutes. Remove vegetables from skillet; stir sesame and pumpkin seeds into the hot skillet, stirring until seeds are lightly toasted, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from heat.
• Toast baguette slice in a toaster. Place baguette slice, tomatoes, onion, garlic, sesame seeds, cilantro, salt, and black peppercorns into a blender; pulse several times to chop, then blend the mixture until smooth. Pour 3 cups chicken broth into blender and puree again.
• Strain blended sauce through a sieve and pour into a large saucepan; stir olive oil into sauce. Place over medium-high heat, bring to a boil, and cook for 3 minutes. Stir chayote, potatoes, and corn into sauce; stir in 3 cups chicken broth. Bring back to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer until chayote and potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes.