Nana Poblano Chilaquiles Recipes

TEN-MINUTE CHILAQUILES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Combine all the sauce ingredients in a large bowl. Pour half the sauce into a shallow 2 1/2-quart (12 by 7 by 2-inch) baking dish, and top with half the corn chips. You can crumble the chips slightly to make an even layer. Drop little spoonfuls of half the sour cream all over the chips, then sprinkle on half the cheese. Top with the remaining chips, sauce, sour cream, and cheese.
• Bake 35 minutes, or until hot and bubbly around the edges. Sprinkle the top of the casserole with the cilantro and serve. You can cut it into squares and serve using a spatula, or use a large spoon to scoop out the chilaquiles.
• For advance preparation: Make the sauce up to a few hours ahead and lay out all the other ingredients. Don't assemble chilaquiles, however, until the last minute so the corn chips retain a tiny bit of texture when baked.

POBLANO CHILE ENCHILADAS A LA GRINGA

Steps:

• Place the chicken breasts, garlic, onion, water, and chicken bouillon into a saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 40 minutes. When finished, remove the chicken to a plate to cool. Measure out 1 cup of the chicken broth and discard the rest.
• Roast the poblano chiles over an open flame, or underneath a broiler until the skin has blackened on all sides. Place the chiles into a plastic bag, or a bowl covered with plastic wrap, and allow to steam as they cool, about 30 minutes. When cool, peel the blackened skin off of the pepper, and remove the seeds and membrane.
• Place the reserved chicken broth into a blender along with the roasted poblanos and sour cream. Puree until smooth and set aside.
• Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Fry the tortillas one at a time until softened and beginning to crisp. Place onto a plate and set aside. Pour the pureed poblano mixture into the skillet and simmer for 10 minutes. While the sauce is cooking, slice the cooled chicken breasts into 1/4 inch strips.
• Using tongs, dip a tortilla into the sauce, coating both sides. Place some of the chicken in the center of the tortilla, roll tightly, then place on a serving dish with the seam side down. Repeat with remaining tortillas. Spoon any remaining sauce over top of the enchiladas, then sprinkle with the shredded mozzarella cheese.

TRADITIONAL CHILAQUILES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• Blend tomatillos, onion, poblano pepper, jalapeno pepper, cilantro, garlic, mint, and salt in a blender until smooth. Transfer mixture to a saucepan and bring to a gentle boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until thickened, stirring often, about 10 minutes. Add chicken to tomatillo sauce and continue to simmer until chicken is heated through, about 5 minutes more.
• Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Fry tortilla strips in batches until crisp and lightly browned, 5 to 7 minutes. Drain on a paper towel-lined plate.
• Layer about half the fried tortillas in a 2-quart baking dish; spread half the tomatillo sauce over tortillas. Mix pepperjack cheese and Monterey Jack cheese in a bowl; sprinkle half over tomatillo sauce. Repeat layers.
• Bake in preheated oven until cheese is golden and bubbly, 30 to 35 minutes. Allow to cool 5 minutes before serving.

CHICKEN CHILAQUILES CASSEROLE

Steps:

• Adjust the oven racks to the upper-middle and lower-middle positions and heat the oven to 350 degrees. Spread the tortilla wedges on 2 rimmed baking sheets. Lightly coat both sides of the tortilla with vegetable oil spray.
• Bake the tortilla wedges until they are lightly browned and begin to crisp, 8 to 12 minutes. Flip the tortilla wedges and continue to bake until the chips are fully toasted, 8 to 12 minutes longer. Set the tortilla wedges aside and turn the oven to 500 degrees.
• Combine the poblano chiles, 1 cup of the onions, Melt®, and 1/8 teaspoon salt in a 12-inch skillet. Cover and cook over medium-low heat until the vegetables are softened, 8 to 10 minutes. Uncover, increase the heat to medium-high, and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are lightly browned, 4 to 6 minutes longer.
• Stir in 2 tablespoons of the cilantro, garlic, and chipotles and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in the tomatoes with their juice and the broth. Pat the chicken breasts dry with paper towels and season with 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Nestle the chicken breasts into the sauce and bring to a simmer over medium-low heat, about 5 minutes. When the sauce simmers, flip the chicken, cover, and continue to cook until the chicken registers 160 to 165 degrees on an instant-read thermometer, 10 to 12 minutes longer.
• Transfer the chicken to a plate. When cool enough to handle, shred the meat into bite-sized pieces. Process the sauce in a blender until completely smooth, about 1 minute. Return the sauce to the skillet, season with salt and pepper to taste, bring to a simmer over medium heat.
• Stir in the tortillas and cook until they begin to soften, about 2 minutes. Stir in the shredded chicken, then transfer the mixture to an 8-inch square baking dish. Sprinkle with the cheese and bake on the lower-middle rack until hot throughout, 5 to 10 minutes.

CHILAQUILES

Steps:

• Mix together the tomatoes, onions, jalapeños, and lime juice.
• In a saute pan, heat the butter. Add the tomato mixture, and then the eggs to the pan. Cook and scramble the eggs, then add the fried chips, mixing and folding all the ingredients slowly. You want the egg cooked and the chips still crispy, and the whole thing should be light and fluffy. Top with the shredded cheese and serve.

GREEN CHILAQUILES

Steps:

• For the tomatillo salsa: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Roast the tomatillos, chiles and garlic on a baking sheet until evenly charred, about 15 minutes. Combine the tomatillos, chiles, garlic, cilantro, cumin and half the onion in a blender and blend. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. With the blender running, slowly add the chicken stock until the salsa has a smooth, sauce-like consistency. Heat the oil in a medium saucepan, add the remaining onions and fry until translucent, approximately 3 minutes. Add the tomatillo salsa to the saucepan and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat and set aside.
• For the totopos: Add enough vegetable oil to a deep frying pan to fry the tortilla chips. Heat to at least 350 degrees F. Fry the chips in batches until crispy, being careful not to overcrowd the pan. Remove the chips from the oil and place them on paper towels to drain. Alternatively, you can skip this step and purchase your favorite brand of tortilla chips; use two 5-ounce bags for this recipe.
• Add the chips to the salsa and stir well, fully submerging the chips in the sauce. Cover and let soak for at least 3 minutes.
• Prepare the eggs to your liking; we prefer them fried over-easy.
• To assemble: Pour the salsa and chips into a large, deep serving platter. Put the fried eggs on top and sprinkle to taste with queso fresco, cilantro and crema.

CHILAQUILES

Steps:

• Turn on the broiler. Line a broiler pan with foil. Arrange the chilies in a single layer on the pan. Place under the flame and roast, turning frequently, until the peppers are charred and blistered on all sides. Transfer to a brown paper bag, seal and let stand until cooled. Slide off the skins and remove the seeds. Dice the pulp.
• Lower the oven temperature to 200 degrees.
• Place the tomatillos in a heavy skillet large enough to hold them all in a single layer. Toast over medium heat, turning often, until they start to soften and turn brown. Cool, then remove the husks and chop the pulp. (For esthetic reasons, you may want to scrape off the black parts of both the chilies and the tomatillos, although they won't affect the taste.)
• Heat the olive oil in a large heavy skillet over a medium-low flame. Add the onions and garlic and saute, stirring occasionally, until very tender, about 10 minutes.
• Stir in the tomatillos, chilies, broth, cumin and oregano. Blend well and simmer for 20 to 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season with salt and pepper to taste and keep warm.
• Meanwhile, heat the corn oil in a small heavy skillet or saucepan until a thermometer registers 165 degrees. Cut the tortillas in half, then into strips about 1-inch across. Add the strips to the hot oil in batches and fry until crisp. Drain well on paper towels and hold in the oven.
• Break the eggs into a mixing bowl and add the Tabasco, salt and pepper and the 2 tablespoons of sour cream. Beat until completely blended. Melt the butter in a skillet and pour in the eggs. Cook, stirring, until the eggs are fluffy but set.
• To serve, lay a handful of tortilla strips on each of 4 serving plates. Top with a generous spoonful of chili sauce, then another layer of strips and another spoonful of sauce (you should have more sauce than tortillas). Arrange a portion of scrambled eggs either alongside or on top. Garnish with a little sour cream and a sprinkling of cilantro and serve at once, with refried beans if you like.