Monday, January 12, 2009

Main Street's Bailout: Pasilla Chilequiles




When the financial crisis first hit the fan in October, I asked my dad, a retired banker, how bad the economy might get. His answer: "It's a good thing you know how to grow potatoes." To that I would now add, "and make chilequiles". Like a saucy quesadilla that you dice, mix and bake into a casserole, my chilequiles are a cheap, delicious and welcome deviation from the taco, burrito, enchilada, etc., etc.

This recipe uses a dark tomato and Pasilla Chile sauce that my family and friends love. I use the best fresh salsa I can find for its base instead of a canned tomato sauce. It also two-fers as the perfect huevos ranchero sauce, so if you make a little extra, you can have some for breakfast tomorrow. Traditional chilequile recipes fry the tortillas first. Aqui, we toast them because it's better for us. If you were industrious (and I'm not saying you aren't) you could also add vegetables like squash or zucchini.

You'll need:

15 Corn Tortillas $2
1 Jar canned or fresh organic Red Salsa $3
1/2 cup broth $.25 @ $2/quart
1-2 Dried Pasilla Chiles $1 - @$2/package of 5 or 6
1/2 cup shredded jack cheese $1
Olive Oil

Total Cost: $8.25

Preheat Oven to 350. In a saucepan, heat the salsa and broth to simmering.

Remove the seeds and stems from your chiles (the seeds and inner membranes are where the heat lives). Heat a few tablespoons of olive oil in a frying pan. Drop your chiles into the oil and toast them until you can smell the chile oil (30 seconds to 1 minute depending on how hot your pan is - you will know when this is, trust me).



Be very careful not to burn the flesh of the chiles. The smoke from burning chiles can burn your eyes and make it difficult to breathe if inhaled.

Transfer the toasted chiles to the simmering salsa and continue to cook until the dried chiles are soft - usually about twenty minutes.




In the meantime, cut your corn tortillas into 1-inch slices. Using the same frying pan you used to toast the chiles, toast the tortilla pieces until they look like this:



Drizzle a little olive oil in the bottom of casserole dish and arrange the toasted tortillas on the bottom. Grate your Monterrey Jack and sprinkle it into the tortillas. By this time your sauce should be almost done.

Check your sauce first to make sure your chiles are soft. Then, using a hand held blender (or your regular one), blend the sauce until smooth. This is when the sauce will take on its beautiful dark color. Put the sauce back on the stove for about five minutes, just simmering. When it's done, pour the sauce over the tortillas. I like to create little pockets of extra sauce here and there.

As it bakes, the tortillas will absorb the excess liquid, making them delicious, delicious, delicious. I had a little extra cheese this time so I threw it on top and baked for about twenty minutes until the tortilla pieces poking up were almost dry and toasted. Here is the final product, served with organic black beans and leftover cotija:

2 comments:

  1. I forgot to give photo credit to Minicrat for the picture of the tortillas. I think someone will be getting a camera for her sixth birthday!

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  2. So how come when you come here, you don't make these for us?
    Hugs, the Clark County Diva

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