Poblano chile stuffed with fruit picadillo (Chiles rellenos de picadillo con frutas)

POBLANOS RELLENOS

(Stuffed Poblano Chiles)

One of the crowning glories of Mexican cuisine is chiles en nogada, which hail from the state of Puebla. To make this famous dish, poblano chiles are stuffed with a mixture of braised meat (usually pork) and assorted dried and fresh fruits, then dipped in beaten egg and deep-fried. The chiles are then covered with a sauce made with a variety of cream cheese and ground unripe pecans or walnuts and garnished with pomegranate seeds. The dish has the most patriotic associations because the red, white, and green of the pomegranate seeds, sauce, and poblanos are also the colors of the Mexican flag. People always serve chiles en nogada on the national holidays of May 5, September l6, and St. Augustine’s Day (August 28).

Patriotic or not, I do not try to serve the real chiles en nogada at the restaurant because you cannot get all the crucial ingredients here at the same time — pomegranates are not ripe at the time when young walnuts are on the tree, even supposing you could buy the walnuts here at the right stage. It was partly to compensate for the absence of this dish that I developed another version of stuffed poblanos, baked instead of batter-fried, that is filled with a mixture of cooked chicken and dried fruits and is one of our most beloved dishes at Zarela. The sauce is a cream-enriched variation on the basic combination of roasted tomato, onion, and garlic that underlies so many Mexican sauces.

The first time rock star Robert Palmer came to the restaurant he ordered this dish and loved it.  On his second visit he ordered it again and when he got it he seemed to be praying. I asked what was going on and he replied that he was praying that it would taste the same.  He was thrilled that it did.

This recipe is from my book Food from my Heart, a culinary autobiography that traces not only the food of different times of my life and the customs and the traditions of our way of life. I had it reprinted through amazon.com who will  also soon have a kindle edition. The book is great for beginning Mexican cooks because it has a section on basic recipes and building blocks.
I recently did a reading from it and will write a separate post.

l/2                    cup pimiento-stuffed green olives

l/2                    cup each pitted prunes, dried apricots, and dried peaches

6                      large poblano chiles

Vegetable oil for frying

l                       stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter

l                       medium onion, chopped

2                      medium garlic cloves, minced

l  l/2                teaspoons ground cuminseed

l  l/2                teaspoons ground true (Ceylon) cinnamon (see p. 000),                               preferably fresh-ground in spice grinder, or substitute l/2

teaspoon U.S. “cinnamon”

l/4                    teaspoon ground cloves

2                      cups shredded cooked chicken

Salt to taste

Salsa de Tomate Asado (recipe follows)

Cut olives in slices and coarsely dice the dried fruits. Set aside. Preheat oven to 500 .

Make a small (l to l  l/2 inches long) lengthwise slit in each chile. Pour oil into large heavy skillet to a depth of about l/2 inch and heat over high heat until very hot but not quite smoking. Fry the chiles, 3 at a time, turning once or twice, until they puff up and take on an olive-beige color. Remove from pan as they are done. Carefully peel chiles under cold running water. Very gently pull out seeds through the slit in each chile, being sure not to tear the flesh. Set aside.

In large skillet, melt butter over medium heat until very hot and fragrant. Add onion and garlic and saute for 3 minutes. Add olives and dried fruit and saute for 3 minutes. Add spices and chicken and cook, stirring to combine, for 2 minutes more. Season with salt to taste.

Carefully fill the mixture into the chiles through the slit in each. Bake on greased baking sheet or shallow pan for 7 minutes.

Spoon tomato sauce onto individual plates or a large serving platter and arrange chiles on top.

Serves 6.

SALSA DE TOMATE ASADO

(Roasted Tomato Sauce)

l  l/2                cups heavy cream

8                      large garlic cloves, unpeeled

l                       medium onion, unpeeled, halved crosswise

3 – 4                 large tomatoes (about 2  3/4 pounds total)

Salt

In small heavy saucepan, simmer cream until reduced by about a third.

Heat heavy cast-iron skillet or griddle over high heat until a drop of water sizzles on contact. Roast unpeeled garlic cloves and onion, turning several times, until garlic is dark on all sides and somewhat softened, onion partly blackened and fragrant. Set aside. Roast tomatoes, turning several times, until blistered on all sides.  Let cool until just cool enough to handle. Peel garlic cloves and place in blender. Peel onion, rubbing away charred bits, and add to garlic. Peel tomatoes directly over blender so as not to lose any juice and add to garlic and onion. Puree on medium speed until smooth. Add cream and process until blended. Season with salt to taste.