Green chile revisited

Ahhhh, the aroma of roasting chile.  Those of you lucky enough to live in the Colorado, Arizona, or New Mexico know this smell - a sure sign of Fall, the chile vendor set up in a parking lot with the roaster going.  The rest of us just have to imagine the Bingo basket full of green chiles rotating over a hot fire, sending forth an aroma not to be forgotten.  While our climate does not make it easy for us to grown an abundance of peppers, our farmers' market does support a chile vendor, complete with roaster.  Most often, however, I end up roasting my own chiles when needed.  This I usually do while standing in the back yard, keeping watch over the gas barbecue - sometimes in the rain.

If you want an overview and recipe for a great green chile refer back to my blog entry for 8/3/10.  I'm revisiting it now to pass on one of my favorite side dishes to go with the chile, and to pass on a quick tip I just learned for roasting chiles at home.

First - the roasting tip:  I have found an alternative to roasting whole chiles on the grill.  It is much quicker, and easier,and results in nicely charred chiles.  I usually use a combination of Poblano and Anaheim chiles.  For either, simply remove the stem, quarter the fresh chile lengthwise, remove the seeds and membrane, then place the chile portions skin side up on a large baking sheet.  Place in the oven, under the broiler, and broil until completely charred, which only takes a few minutes.  I then place the chiles in a bowl and cover the bowl with a plate to allow them to steam for a few minutes.  The skins are then easily removed.  Chop the chiles and you are ready to go.

Now, for an unusual and very satisfying side dish:

Potatoes and Rice with Cumin
(this is one I really love)

2 waxy potatoes
1 cup white rice
2 cups chicken stock
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp. turmeric
2 tsp cumin seed
salt to taste

Peel and cut potatoes into 1/2" cubes.  In medium sauce pan, heat olive oil.  Add cumin seed and turmeric.  Stir and toast briefly until quite fragrant.  Add the potato cubes and stir to coat with the oil and seasonings.  Stir in the rice and salt.  Add chicken stock and bring to a boil.  Cover pan and reduce heat to low,  steam for 20 minutes.

I don't usually think of potatoes and rice in the same dish, but here they are perfect.  You can increase the amount of seasonings if you like more flavorful food.  The turmeric doesn't really add much flavor here, but you probably know that it is a natural anti-inflamatory, so it's good for all of us.  I hope you try, and enjoy this combination.

Green Chile at the Beach

It's Family Week at the beach for us. That usually means sunshine, kite flying, long walks, and hours spent building sand castles and hunting for shells on the beach. This year Mother Nature played a mean trick on us. While it is simmering hot just a few miles inland, the coast line has been shrouded in a cool "weather system". For us that has meant fog, low clouds, wind and very cool temperatures.  It hasn't slowed us down too much, but we have spent far fewer hours playing on the beach. On about day two the focus of the week subtly shifted from outdoor activity to games, books and, fabulous food.

Luckily, I have been blessed with a family of talented and energetic cooks. We love to eat and love to cook. This year each of our children took responsibility for one major dinner. Last night was Green Chile and Smoked Chicken Night - provided by Tyler, our youngest child, who now resides in Colorado. He spent the entire day smoking chickens, roasting chiles, chopping ingredients and watchfully simmering his precious concoction to perfection.  He has been honing his recipe for several years and has proven himself to be the King of Green Chile. The chicken stock he used had been made with from previously smoked chicken. The smokey flavor of the stock added a surprising depth and richness to the green chile. We served the smoked chicken taco-style in corn or flour tortillas topped with the Green Chile, onions, cilantro, and arugula. The chile was spicy hot and delicious combined with the smoked chicken.

I must add that Tyler prepared two different versions of the Green Chile: Hot and Hotter.  We loved them both and while Hot seemed pretty spicy to us the first night (we felt like fire breathing dragons), we had moved on the the Hotter version for our breakfast burritos the next morning.  When all was said and done, we had managed to squeeze one dinner, one lunch, and two days of breakfast out of the Green Chile.  Boy were we sad to see the last of it go.

In the coming days I'll give my rendition of Tyler's Green Chile recipe based on my observations.  I'll also report on a few other fabulous meals enjoyed at the beach.  Stay tuned.