Green Chili Stew

 (not my picture)

While in New Mexico I would, like most people, eat green chili at least once a day, often twice, sometimes every meal. The stuff is addictive; one of the hardest things to leave behind, and is simply not available in England. So I'm especially proud of this recipe because it took a lot of trial and error, and though it's put together necessarily quite unlike the traditional green chili, the final result is very reminiscent and extremely delicious.

INGREDIENTS

• 4 or more long sweet red peppers 
• 500g minced pork - try to dry some of the excess moisture
• 1x 200g jar green chili condiment  
• 1 tin pinto beans (you could use red kidney beans.) (To stretch further, use 2 tins)
• 1 litre chicken stock 
• Corn oil or any vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon honey
• 1 chili fine chopped (optional)
• 3 cloves garlic or a tablespoon of puree
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch dissolved into a little cold water (slurry)
• Dried oregano
• Salt & pepper
• Fresh coriander

METHOD

1. Start by searing the whole peppers on a high gas flame until mostly black or charred.
2. Set aside in an airtight container/ziplock bag, seal the top to sweat the skins loose for 15 minutes or more.
3. Remove from the bag, scrape-off most of the skin and discard with the tops and seeds, leaving only the roasted flesh of the peppers. Don't rinse under tap, keep as much of the liquid as possible, that's flavour.
4. Cut into strips.  Set aside.
5. Gently fry chili, garlic in oil for 1 minute
6. Add the pork with black pepper and plenty of oregano - turn up the heat and quickly brown the meat
7. Add chicken stock, beans, the whole jar of chili, honey, red peppers, corn starch, and salt
8. Crank the heat for 10 mins or so, stirring frequently. Taste for seasoning – see if it needs more salt, honey, oregano...?
9. Simmer with a loose lid for about 30mins or put in moderate oven for an hour or so (oven is best) It can stay on a super low hob or in a low oven for hours.
10. Stir, taste again for seasoning. Add plenty of chopped coriander and serve with warmed tortillas

VARIATIONS

There are as many variations to this as there are to "Mama's spaghetti sauce." What I've tried to do here is keep the focus on the green chili and roasted pepper flavours. This recipe works much better by leaving out onion.

Often, a proper New Mexican green chili stew will include any of: carrot, potato, onion, posole (corn kernels) grated cheese, sour cream.

Some like to put extra honey on the tortillas, but I don’t. 

AND FINALLY
As an added bonus, save some for reheating the next morning. Stick an egg on it and call it breakfast. 

Green Chili Sauce

(not my picture)

This is as close as I can get using ingredients available in the UK. It has the right vibe though, and is easy enough to make reasonably often for Southwestern and Mexican dishes such as burritos and enchiladas.

INGREDIENTS

• Half an onion, very finely chopped
• Garlic puree - 1 heaped dessert spoon
• Green chili paste - at least 100g (half a jar)
• Chicken stock - 100ml plus as much as required
• Tomato juice/pasata 100ml
• Cornstarch - heaped teaspoon disolved in a little cold water
• Honey - half a teaspoon (or more, to taste. Careful!)
• Salt

METHOD

1. Slowly soften the onion and salt in oil, then add the garlic paste for a few more minutes
2. Add chili paste, chicken stock, tomato juice, honey and finally the cornstarch. 
3. Simmer for 10 mins, stirring frequently.
4. Taste the sauce, adjusting garlic/chili/salt/ to taste, and stock or cornstarch for consistency. 
5. Simmer very low for at least 15 minutes. Don't make it too thick!

Goulash with Pappardelle and Sour Cream

(not my picture)

I had goulash in Budapest once. Terrific. The one I always remember though was late one night with friends on a road trip at a little restaurant just over the Austria/Hungary border, accompanied by glasses of schnapps and gypsy violins. When buying the meat, be sure to get beef skirt, or if not, beef shin and this rich robust dish will melt in your mouth. Use a full bodied red wine too, like Hungarian Bull's Blood. Here's how I do it:

INGREDIENTS

• Beef skirt, 500g cubed
• Onion 1 large, chopped
• Garlic 1 tbs puree or about 4 cloves minced
• Caraway seeds, 2 tsp ground
• Flour
• Red wine – 1/3 bottle
• Tomato puree
• Olive oil
• Paprika
• Dried herbs
• Salt & Pepper
• Parsley to garnish
• PLUS: Pappardelle pasta (or tagliatelle) and sour cream

METHOD

1. Dust the beef in seasoned flour, caraway, and paprika.
2. Brown the onions in the oil – add the garlic, 2 mins and remove.
3. Brown the beef 3 mins and remove.
4. De-glaze the pan with the wine. Boil for 5 mins.
5. Return onions and beef to the pan with tom puree, more paprika, salt and dried herbs. 
6. Top up to cover with water. Bring back to the boil and adjust seasoning.
7. Cover with a lid, and place in a 160 C oven for 3 hours. 
8. Check each hour and adjust flavour. 
9. Leave off the lid for a while at the end if significant reduction is needed.
10. Cook the pasta in lots of salted water
11. Pile up pasta, then goulash, sour cream, chopped parsley on top

Gado Gado

(not my picture)

Whenever I boil potatoes I tend to do extra to keep in the fridge, ready to put something quick together the next day. This traditional Indonesian salad is a good option. It's not often seen in the UK, but it's really delicious and makes  a good dinner or quite a substantial lunch. If you make the sauce ahead of time and keep it sealed in the fridge, you can put this together in no time when you're ready to eat. 

SAUCE INGREDIENTS

• 200g peanut butter
• 1 small red onion
• 3 or 4 cloves of garlic, or a dessert spoon of puree
• 200 ml coconut milk
• 2 chilis - or Sriracha sauce works well
• Lime juice
• Fish sauce - teaspoon
• 1 dessert spoon brown sugar
• Peanut oil or other veg oil
• Salt if needed

METHOD

1. Gently soften the chopped onion in oil in a non-stick saucepan
2. Add the garlic for 2 minutes
3. Add the chili for a minute
4. Add the coconut milk, peanut butter, sugar, and a teaspoon or so of fish sauce
5. Bring to boil and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring frequently
6. Cool, add the lime juice, and adjust sugar/fish sauce/salt.

SALAD INGREDIENTS

• Hard boiled eggs
• Green beans - blanched/par boiled
• Boiled potatoes
• Beansprouts - apparently you shouldn't eat them raw, so blanch and cool
• Radishes
• Something for a crisp texture, such as prawn crackers (easiest) or pork crackling (optional)

METHOD

1. Chop it up
2. Mix it up
3. Pour-on the sauce and mix-in
4. Put crackers on top
5. Eat it

You can vary the salad ingredients to suit your liking, to include for example lettuce, tomato, cucumber, whatever you have. When all is said and done, Gado Gado is largely about the peanut sauce. I'd definitely always include the eggs, potatoes and beansprouts though.

An alternate presentation is to arrange on a platter with a bowl of the sauce and dip into it buffet style.