The Country Weekend - Enchiladas!
Let's take a break from politics and try a new recipe this weekend!
Here at #TheCountry, even though it may seem we live, eat and breathe politics, we enjoy lots of other activities. And we thought it might be nice every so often to take a break and share thoughts and ideas from other parts of this journey we call life.
So let’s talk Enchiladas. I’ve been trying to perfect a recipe for these delicious, tortilla-wrapped treats for more than a decade. It all started when I stumbled upon Rick Bayless, whom I had never heard of until he was on Top Chef Masters and won in its first season. Soon after, I bought my first Rick Bayless cookbook called “Authentic Mexican: Regional Cooking From the Heart of Mexico.” And boy is it is a doozy!
As a sidebar, one may wonder what a white guy from Oklahoma knows about Mexican cuisine? Well Mr. Bayless is an outlier - he spent 6 years touring Mexico and learning all of the various cuisines around the country, hosted 2 shows on PBS about Mexican cooking and has 2 of the highest regarded Mexican restaurants in the country. The proof is in the pudding!
Bayless made a dish in the final of Top Chef Masters that sealed his victory. It was a traditionally-inspired mole, and so I of course went for that recipe first. I remember the judges on the show being astonished at the complexity of the sauce and talking about how he had personally elevated Mexican cuisine into something they did not think possible. I wondered at the time if that wasn’t his best advantage - that Americans generally have pigeon-holed Mexican food into tacos and nachos. But regardless it looked amazing and he won.
That mole sounded pretty legit to me so off I went into the unknown. There is nothing quite like the adventure of trying something brand new for the first time, and for me new recipes and new cuisines fit that bill perfectly. So, I went out to obtain all of the ingredients Mr. Bayless’ recipe for Rich Red Mole with Chicken, or Mole Rojo con Pollo - and that was a challenge in and of itself.
The first shock was the ingredient list: dried ancho chiles, dried mulato chiles, dried papilla chiles, sesame seeds, lard or vegetable oil, peanuts with skin, raisins, onions, garlic, plantains, corn tortillas, stale white bread, tomato, tomatillos, Mexican chocolate, oregano, thyme, bay leaf, peppercorns, cloves, cinnamon, chicken, chicken broth, salt and sugar. Whew!
Three and a half hours later, my mole was underwhelming. The techniques involved to make this dish truly sublime were beyond me. Later, when I had the opportunity to visit Mr. Bayless’ Frontera Grill in Chicago, of course I had to order the red mole with chicken. I will never forget it. Obviously (with that ingredient list) the flavors are deep, varied and complex. But the most amazing part of the sauce was its consistency - it most closely resembled in look and texture an icing for a cake. But the flavors were spicy, savory and had tons of umami. What a dish! One of the best things I’ve ever had. I often wonder if using lard rather than vegetable oil (like I did) could be the key to the consistency. Maybe we can ask Mr. Bayless one day.
Until then, and once I realized that moles are to be made by the Frontera team and not me, I turned to Enchiladas. And another of his books that is more my speed - “Mexican Everyday.” His recipe there for “Red Chile Enchiladas with Chicken and Melted Cheese” is the basis upon which I’ve developed the recipe below. I hope you enjoy!
Protein
If we’re being honest, an enchilada is one of those peasant food dishes that is meant to stretch leftover proteins (like jambalaya, cassoulet or meat sauce). So, ideally you’ll have some leftover roasted chicken, a roast of beef or pork or something along those lines. If you do, more power to you - use those leftovers as your protein and skip to the sauce. Here at the Weller household, we’re seldom that efficient in our meal planning, so we often will make these dishes from scratch. And for us, it is always chicken, as my wife does not eat beef or pork. For enchiladas and other saucy dishes, I always select boneless skinless chicken thighs. They are higher in fat content which adds to the savory-ness of the dish. But go with whatever you like.
Rule #1 - you must brine or marinade chicken. It adds a depth of flavor and tenderness that you can never produce without it. My go-to brine is simply 4 quarts of water, 1 cup of sugar and 1 cup of salt. You can add any spice you like (depending on your dish). I brine wings, thighs, breasts, even whole chickens every time. Don’t skip this step. While I prefer brine, marinades can be just as good. It’s best if you make your own, but store bought can work too. The last time I made this dish I used a cilantro-lime store marinade and it turned out great. A brine or marinade of 2-3 hours is sufficient, but the longer the better, with 24 hours being the maximum time I’ve ever brined a whole chicken. But chicken pieces are usually good in a few hours.
Rule #2 - Once you’ve brined or marinaded your protein, it must dry. Pat your thighs dry with paper towels and put them on a rack with a rub or spice combination of your choice. Last time I made these I just used salt and Everglades Heat (a store-bought spice rub). Throw that drying rack in the refrigerator for at least an hour, preferably 2 or 3. This will help with the next step.
Rule #3 - smoke that meat. The only words better in the English language than “smoked meat” are the words “smoked encased meats.” But that’s a recipe for another day.
I use a Traeger grill (which I know some traditional smokers scoff at, but it’s a great tool). Set it to 500 degrees, and after it gets there, sear the chicken thighs for 2 minutes a side as you turn down the grill to 250 degrees. Depending on the temperature of your thighs when you put them on, they should be done in about an hour. Keep in mind you’re going to warm them again so slightly less than the recommended temperature here is a good step. Just make sure they get there at some point in your process. ;)
Then of course, take the thighs off and let them cool for pulling while you make the sauce.
Red Enchilada Sauce
Remember that mole recipe had 3 different types of chiles in it? I think this is a really important step to provide depth of flavor. Every chile (and every preparation of it) has a different taste profile. Some are fruity, some are more nutty and they each produce a slightly different heat experience in your mouth. Some of them pop with heat immediately, while others have an aftertaste of spiciness. My theory is the more the merrier, which is the next rule:
Rule #4: use a few different chiles with a few different preparations. The last time I made this, I used 2 dried ancho chiles and 3 dried California chiles. Mr. Bayless recommends reheating them on a flattop or skillet but I like to pour hot water over them and let them soak for 20-25 minutes. Chop off the ends and get rid of the seeds.
I also usually add some sort of fresh chile, usually jalapeño or poblano. This last time, since I already had the smoker going, I smoked 2 poblanos to add to the sauce and that worked out great. Often, I will add 1 or 2 chipotles in adobo sauce (from the can). And as I am developing the sauce, I may add dried cayenne or some Mexican hot sauce (Bufalo or Cholula are my favorites). Just be thoughtful about this - you can make the sauce too hot if you’re not careful. Everyone has their own spice level preference, so you’ll have to experiment as I have to find the right combination for you and your pack of eaters.
So now we really start to follow the recipe from Bayless. Add all of the chiles you have selected into a blender (we have a Ninja that will pulverize all of the skins, etc. but if your blender isn’t up to snuff, you may need to run the sauce through a mesh strainer to remove unwanted skin bits). Add in garlic (3-4 cloves), a 28 oz can of fire-roasted tomatoes, some cumin and black pepper. I eyeball these, but probably about 2 teaspoons each. Blend all of that until it’s as smooth as you can possibly get it. I skip the strainer, but you should consider it.
Next, add a tablespoon of your preferred cooking oil to a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Pour in the blended chile-tomato mixture and cook it down until it looks thick like tomato paste, usually about 7-10 minutes. Then add 2 cups of chicken stock to your saucepan, reduce to a simmer (medium-low) and let that all get happy for about 10-15 minutes.
While you are letting the sauce get happy, grab 12 tortillas, brush them lightly with oil and slide them on a baking sheet into a 350 degree over for about 3 minutes. You can stack them in twos or threes if you need, they just need to warm up slightly. And you can use whichever type you like. Mr. Bayless calls for corn; many people like flour. I like corn for this dish (it marries with the flavors well) but please do it your way. You’ll get no judgement from me.
Once the sauce is done, we need to season it. This may be where you add some of that cayenne pepper or hot sauce we talked about if you’re game, but you’ll definitely need to add a little sugar (1 teaspoon is plenty) and salt to taste. Again, this is all about what you like so make it your own.
Now Throw It All Together
Once you have your delicious smoked chicken thighs and your amazing red sauce ready, this is the easy part. Grab yourself a 13 x 9 baking dish and drop about 1/2 cup of the sauce on the bottom and spread to coat. Then dip each tortilla into the sauce to cover competely, add in your chicken and roll it up. Here, you can also add ingredients. We usually drop in some black beans, but last time I caramelized a sweet onion with some chopped mushrooms and this was amazing. Just cook those up in some oil over medium to medium-low heat for 15 minutes. Suffice it to say, experiment with other ingredients and do what you like. Sensing a theme?
Once you’ve got all 12 tortillas rolled up and looking delish in your baking dish, scoop all of the rest of the sauce over top. At this point, cover it all with quesadilla melting cheese, the more the merrier.
Rule #5 - there is no such thing as too much cheese or too much garlic. You add those with love.
You’re ready. Hopefully you kept that oven going at 350, and now you just throw that baking dish into the center without covering it. It’s done in about 15 minutes when the cheese is just starting to brown and the sauce is a bubbling. You’ll know.
To finish this off, slice a white onion into rounds as thin as possible and toss them over the top of the dish. I also like to sprinkle some cilantro and some finishing spice over top, usually salt and some more of the spice rub I used with the thighs. Any mexican or even southwest style seasoning will do wonders.
Time to eat!
If you enjoyed this post, please let us know in the comments and we’ll do more of this in the future.
jw