Toasted Chile Sauce Recipes

ROASTED CHICKEN NACHOS WITH GREEN CHILI-CHEESE SAUCE

Steps:

• Bring a pot of water to a boil; add the tomatillos, jalapenos, onion, and garlic. Simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, until the tomatillos are soft. Drain and cool slightly, then put them in a blender. Add the cilantro, lime juice, and cumin. Puree for a few seconds to blend, and then pour in about a 1/4 cup of water and process to a coarse puree; taste and season with a generous pinch of salt. You should have about 2 cups of this salsa verde.
• Make a roux by melting the butter over medium-low heat in a thick-bottomed saucepan. Just as the foam subsides, sprinkle in the flour, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon or whisk to prevent lumps. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes to remove the starchy taste from the flour; don't allow it to brown. Gradually whisk in the chicken stock and simmer for 8 minutes to thicken. Once you have a good base, fold in 2 cups of the shredded Jack cheese; mix until completely melted into a sauce. Stir in the prepared salsa verde until incorporated; remove the green chili cheese sauce from the heat.
• Make a quick salsa by combining the cherry tomatoes, onions, jalapeno, cilantro, and lime juice in a bowl; season with salt and pepper, tossing to combine.
• To build these awesome nachos: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Get a very large oven-proof platter and cover it with a few handfuls of tortilla chips, follow with a portion of the shredded chicken, a coating of the cheese sauce, and a nice sprinkle of the remaining shredded jack. Make 3 or 4 layers of the nachos, depending on the size of the platter. Bake the nachos until they are all hot and gooey, about 5 to 10 minutes.
• Spoon the tomato salsa over the top of the nachos and serve with the sour cream on the side.

PAN ROASTED FILET MIGNON WITH RUM-RED CHILE SAUCE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
• Season tenderloin with salt and pepper on both sides. Place a large ovenproof skillet over high heat, melt the butter and sear tenderloin on all sides. Place in oven and cook to desired doneness or until an instant-read thermometer inserted registers 125 degrees F for medium rare, about 30 to 40 minutes depending on the thickness of the tenderloin. Let the meat rest for 10 minutes before slicing. Serve with the sauce.
• Melt the butter and olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium high heat. Add the shallots and garlic and cook until soft. Add the rum and reduce to 1/4 cup. Add the stock, bring to a boil and reduce the heat. Whisk in the remaining ingredients and simmer until reduced to 2 cups.

NEW MEXICO RED CHILE SAUCE

Steps:

• Coat the bottom of a heavy saucepan with oil; add chile pods. Toast over medium heat until aromatic, about 3 minutes.
• Stir in onion and garlic; cook and stir until fragrant, about 5 minutes. Add enough chicken stock to allow pods to float; simmer until they develop the texture of wet leather, 5 to 7 minutes.
• Fill blender halfway with chile-stock mixture. Cover and hold lid down with a potholder; pulse a few times before leaving on to blend. Pour into a bowl; repeat with remaining mixture. Strain sauce through a fine mesh strainer into a saucepan over medium heat. Discard solids.
• Stir cumin, coriander, and oregano into the saucepan; add honey. Cook until sauce is thick and evenly coats the back of a spoon, about 10 minutes.

PAN-ROASTED EGGPLANT WITH PEANUT-CHILE SAUCE

Steps:

• Prepare two heavy skillets: One large skillet and one medium skillet that fits inside the large one. Wrap the medium skillet in foil.
• Using a vegetable peeler, peel wide strips of skin off the eggplants lengthwise, so that they are striped. Cut them crosswise into 3/4-inch thick rounds, and sprinkle them with about 1 teaspoon salt.
• Make the sauce: In a bowl, combine the peanuts, cumin, garlic, 2 tablespoons chile paste, a pinch of salt and 3 tablespoons oil. Taste and adjust the seasonings with chile paste and salt.
• Heat the oven to 200 degrees and place a large baking sheet in it to warm.
• In the large skillet, heat 3 tablespoons oil over medium heat until just shimmering. Working in batches, add a single layer of eggplant slices and place the medium skillet on top to press the eggplant flat. Cook, adjusting the heat so you hear the sound of sizzling (not popping, which would indicate burning). Check the color after 3 minutes. When nicely browned all over, about 5 minutes, flip the rounds and place the medium skillet on top again. Cook the other side until lightly browned, about 4 minutes, and transfer to the hot sheet pan in the oven. Add more olive oil to the pan and repeat with remaining eggplant.
• When all the eggplant slices are cooked, lightly wipe out the large skillet and reheat over low heat. Add 1 tablespoon oil, swirl to heat through and add ginger. Let sizzle, stirring, until just beginning to brown, then scrape the cooked ginger and oil into the peanut sauce. Stir and taste again.
• To serve, arrange the eggplant slices on a platter. Use a spoon to drizzle sauce over the top (you might not use all the sauce). Scatter scallions and cilantro on top.

SANTA FE HATCH CHILE GREEN SAUCE

Steps:

• Set oven rack about 6 inches from the heat source and preheat the oven's broiler.
• Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Place chile peppers cut-side down on baking sheet.
• Broil in the preheated oven until skin is heavily blistered and turning black, about 4 minutes per side.
• Transfer chile peppers to a bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Allow peppers to steam as they cool, about 15 minutes. Peel and chop the chile peppers.
• Heat oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add onion; cook and stir until browned, about 5 minutes. Add garlic; cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Stir in flour until mixture thickens. Stir in chopped chile peppers, beef broth, and salt. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer until flavors combine, about 10 minutes.

TOASTED CHILE SAUCE

Steps:

• Put the chiles in a small dry skillet and turn the heat to medium. Cook, shaking the pan occasionally, until fragrant and lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Turn off the heat and remove. Stem the chiles and, if you like, remove their seeds (this will reduce the sauce's intensity, but it will still be plenty hot).
• Add the oil to the same skillet and turn the heat to medium. Add the garlic along with the chiles and cook, stirring occasionally, until the cloves have softened and turned golden, about 5 minutes.
• Transfer the oil, chiles, and garlic to a food processor and process until nearly pureed, stopping to scrape the sides of the machine as necessary. Add the nam pla and lime juice and serve. (You can prepare the sauce in advance, but it's best used within a few hours, and after a couple of days it will not be nearly as nice as when fresh. Do not store longer than that.)