Jaymes

How fun. We'll be following along. Damn sporting of you to do this, Nessa...

It is so popular here in Texas that some of the large grocery chains even put out their own "generic" in-store brand version.

Beats me, and I probably shouldn't venture an opinion since I've never worked with a pressure cooker. But if, as you say, the liquid wouldn't cook off, I don't think it'd work out the same. The way mi amiga mexicana taught me to do it, you only partially cover the pot in order to help the liquid reduce. The point is to wind up with that heavily-flavored, concentrated stuff that coats and absorbs, and then fry. So although a pressure cooker might produce something quicker, and tasty, and maybe even tastIER, I wouldn't think it'd be the same. Although interesting thought..... let us know if you try it. PS - are you still on vacation?

I've been making Key Lime Pie at least once a week for the past several months. Am staying with my parents temporarily and it's my father's favorite. You can buy the key limes in a green net bag at most grocery stores with a decent produce selection. They're the ones from Mexico, as stated above, but are the same thing. I actually have had a much harder time finding bottled juice than the fresh limes. It's not that hard to squeeze the small limes if you pop them into the microwave for a few seconds before you squeeze them. The heat of the microwave breaks down the juice pods and the juice practically pours out. I use a recipe that calls for 1/2 cup lime juice, but we like it much more tart than that, so we add several additional tablespoons of juice to 1 can SCM. And I prefer the texture with the egg yolks, so I use three of them. Then into the graham cracker pie shell and into a 350 oven for just about ten minutes or so to help it set. Allow to cool for about 15 minutes and then into the fridge to chill. To top, I combine whipped cream with some sugar to taste, a tsp or so of good vanilla, and a Tbls or so of dark rum. I use Meyers.

I add maple sugar to the whipped cream when I serve it atop bourbon pecan pie. And if it's for regular pecan pie, I add both maple sugar and some bourbon to the cream. Gotta get that bourbon in there somewhere, y'know.

Wow. Impressive. Thanks for sharing it with us.

LA in late June, eh. Is it my imagination, or does that coincide with the Pillsbury Bakeoff Finals?????? You know, where one of the one-hundred finalists from all over the country will win a million bucks? THAT Pillsbury Bakeoff?????

Beef enchiladas are a whole different deal. There are many ways to prepare the beef. You can make what is basically a green chile stew and allow it to simmer until the liquid evaporates. Or you can use beef that is dried and shredded. Obviously many home cooks use ground beef, even in Mexico. Some folks refer to "beef enchiladas" and mean enchiladas that are filled with cheese, but covered with a chili/beef preparation.

Oh my goodness, I left out the onion. That's what I get for just typing this from memory instead of looking at my notes. I have to go back and add it!

I actually know quite a few folks that skip the "dip into hot oil" step. It's less fattening. The red sauce does soften the tortillas and coat them with flavor. I do that myself sometimes. But they really are better if you first dip them into the hot oil and fry just a wee bit.

Interesting. I'd never thought about this, but I guess that is what I do. I mean, I just stick the chicken in the pot and put it in the sink and turn on the water spigot, so I guess I am starting with cold water. And the black peppercorns are a great idea. I'm amending my recipe as we speak.

I PM'd this to several folks, but have been asked to post it...so...okay... But first, a disclaimer. I make absolutely no assertion whatsoever that these are the best, or most "authentic," or most "anything" recipes that you will ever find for enchiladas. They just happen to be two of my favorites. I am basically a home cook. Most of my Mexican recipes come from friends that are also home cooks like I, only Mexican. Every recipe I've ever seen for enchiladas that comes from a Mexican source combines a few simple ingredients that require little additional cooking after assembly. So, the instructions are invariably to just pop into oven for twenty minutes or so to heat through. Most "U.S." or TexMex concoctions have gloppy, heavy sauces (often one of the "cream of" soups) and one must cook these for much longer. Now, I'm not berating these 'American-Mexican' type of enchiladas. They have their place. But anyone searching for 'authenticity' would do well to err in the direction of less is more. I am giving two recipes here. Both are quite simple. But they are wonderful. The first is the traditional rolled enchilada most of us are familiar with. The second is the type of stacked enchilada typical of Sonora, northern Mexico, and New Mexico. And both of these were given to me by Mexican friends who got them from mothers, and grandmothers, and greatgrandmothers. Convenience foods are used ("Just BUY the tomato sauce, for heaven's sake," one friend told me that her mother had replied after she complained that she didn't make enchiladas much because granny's recipe started off by cooking down fresh tomatoes and blending and straining them to make the sauce and that was so much trouble) when appropriate, but these recipes are "authentic" and have been handed down for generations. Chicken Enchiladas Stew 1 nice big fat chicken with seasoned salt, couple cloves garlic, an onion, bay leaf, sprig fresh oregano, in water just to cover. Remove chicken (reserving broth for another use), cool and pick off meat, tearing into large bite-sized chunks. Simmer 24-oz canned tomato sauce, 3-4 Tbls 100% New Mexico Red Chile Powder (accept no substitutes), or other favorite pure chile powder or ground dried chiles, cumin and seasoned salt to taste, stirring and simmering till all spices are thoroughly blended and sauce is smooth. Take about a half-pound or so each of good-quality mild Cheddar and jack cheese and grate and combine. (Of course, if you live in an area where you have access to good Mexican cheeses, and have a favorite for enchiladas, use that.) In skillet, heat unflavored oil (I just use canola or Wesson or something tasteless) until warm but not smoking. Dip corn tortillas, one at a time, first into the oil and allow to cook slightly but not harden, and then into the hot red sauce, quickly, just to soften and coat with sauce. (This is very tricky. If you don't get the timing exactly right, your tortilla will fall apart. I had a hard time with it for years until finally a Mexicana friend of mine told me she could never do it either, so she got a pie pan and dipped the tortilla into the hot oil, then laid the tortilla in the pie pan and SMEARED it with the red sauce. She did these one at a time until she had four or five in the pie pan, then made her enchiladas from the tortillas in the pan. MUCH easier!) In your enchilada baking pan, smear a little red sauce over the bottom, then one of your dipped tortillas. In the middle of tortilla, spread in a straight line about 1 Tbls of the mixed grated cheeses, 1 Tbls sauce on top of the cheese, 1 T finely-chopped white onion, then finally, several chunks of the chicken. Roll up the enchilada and place in the pan, seam side DOWN. That should mean that the cheese and sauce side is now UP. Repeat this until all your ingredients are gone. You will be better off if you put your enchiladas in a nice arrangement, snugly side by side, but don't fill up all of the nooks and crannies. If you just shove them in any which way, it won't taste worse, but it doesn't look as pretty and is much more difficult to garnish attractively. Now, pour the rest of your red sauce crosswise over the center of the enchiladas, like you're laying a red carpet down their middles. Sprinkle cheese in the middle of the 'carpet.' Your ingredients are already cooked, so you don't want to leave the enchiladas in the oven too long or it will dry out. Just long enough to heat through and melt the cheeses. 350 for about 20 minutes. This makes about 15-18 enchiladas, kinda depending on how big your chicken is. Remove from oven. Garnish with sour cream, then sprinkle with sliced black olives and chopped green onions and serve immediately. If you don't think this is "authentic," then for goodness' sake, don't add them. I don't care. Sonoran-Style Stacked Green Chile Enchiladas Prepare your green sauce first: For sauce: 12 medium green chile peppers (of course, fresh are way best, but if you must, use canned) 2 medium tomatoes (or 1 cup canned tomatoes) 1 medium onion, chopped 2 small garlic cloves, smashed and chopped 1 tsp salt Roast chiles over gas burners, or on outdoor grill, or on comal, or under broiler until blistered. Put into plastic baggies and allow steam to permeate. This makes the chiles easy to peel. Remove peel, core, seeds, and visible veins. Chop into half-inch pieces. Place into saucepan and add tomatoes, onion, salt and garlic. Pour in enough water just barely to cover and simmer ten minutes. For enchiladas: 1 doz corn tortillas 2 C grated cheese (again, if you have a fave Mex cheese, use it; if not, half good quality mild cheddar and half jack) 3 C green chile sauce Allow two or three tortillas per person. Fry tortillas quickly in hot fat just to soften, then dip into hot green chile sauce. You are going to assemble these on the individual serving plates. I usually have my plates stacked in a warm oven. One at a time, place a prepared tortilla on warm plate, sprinkle with cheeses, another hot tortilla, more cheese, top with hot tortilla. Pour over as much green chile sauce as you like for desired wetness. Serve immediately. You can top it with a dollop of sour cream if you'd like. That turns it into an Enchilada Suiza, or Swiss Enchilada (for some reason I've never understood). And these are two of my favorite recipes. What are yours?

You know, this is just one of those things I've been doing for so long that I basically "wing it" without really considering measurents, etc. The last time, I tried to pay more attention because I knew I was going to post about it. I used 2 lbs of cubed pork shoulder in a Dutch oven. I used the approximate measurements of juices and tequila (along with the chiles and herbs) that I gave a little earlier in the thread. I poured in chicken broth just to cover the meat. I did watch the liquid and sometimes it was at the simmer, but sometimes brought it to a boil if I thought I needed to hurry it along a little. The meat was packed into the Dutch oven fairly tightly, in one layer. When the liquid was gone and only the fat remained, I scraped it into a lasagna pan and crisped it in a hot oven. PS -- Am going to start a thread about chicken enchiladas, and I hope everyone will contribute. I'm always looking for new ideas.

Sorta surprised that some folks had a hard time getting the liquid to boil down. I usually use a Dutch oven or other large pan for that stage, and do only partially cover. I kinda watch it to be certain that the fire is hot enough for the liquid to be steadily evaporating and make adjustments as I go. So, don't really have any advice, other than that. Sorry.

Absolutely true. But I have lived places where one simply cannot get shallots....like in the middle of Alaska in the dead of winter. Whereupon one has to sub something and I found that the bulb of scallions plus a sliver of garlic seemed to work best. I'm not suggesting it as any sort of first choice, you understand.

I don't know that I've personally ever thought of them as being "mild onions." Certainly not when compared to actual mild onions. I've always understood them to be a sort of cross between onions and garlic. Could be completely wrong about that of course. Not sure even where I first heard that. When a recipe calls for shallots (which I usually do try to have on hand) and I am not in a position to get them, I chop up the whites of some green onions and then add a sliver or two of garlic. But again....I've always basically just been guessing. I use them in lots of things....in addition to the steak sauce, green beans & shallots come immediately to mind.

My favorite sauce for steak is to simply saute a few shallots in a little olive oil until just limp; then, off-heat, swirl in a few tablespoons of butter and pour over. I've tried it with onions when I don't have shallots and it's not the same at all. The difference is readily ascertainable.

I'll PM the chicken enchilada recipe to you, and to anyone else that wants it. For some, um, reason, I've decided against posting any more of my Mexican recipes. I have enough stress in my life right now. Thanks, Jaymes. I'm sorry for any added stress in your life, that is NOT what you need at this time. Your posts on Mexican food, way of life, and your recipes are what made me want to cook Mexican. Prior to that first recipe, it was never something I attempted, although I dabble in many other cuisines. I think I can safely speak for a lot of people when I say "Please keep posting and answering all our Mexican food questions! Your help is invaluable and the recipes are great!" Your salsa recipes have become staples in my kitchen and my SO thanks you. Thanks. Sniff. Your enchilada recipe is already on its way.

I'll PM the chicken enchilada recipe to you, and to anyone else that wants it. For some, um, reason, I've decided against posting any more of my Mexican recipes. I have enough stress in my life right now.

Dumb question: When you fry/roast in the oven, doesn't all the onion, garlic and non-pork stuff burn since you aren't stirring it? Or do you throw all that stuff out and just use the cubes at that point? I do stir. Guess I should have made that clear. For goodness' sake don't throw out the onions, chiles, etc. It all just kinda disintegrates into a sorta marvelously-flavorful culinary mulch. And the cubes and frayed bits fry up nicely. It doesn't wind up like MSG's well-defined cubes. It looks like Nessa's and Marco Polo's photos. It's ambrosial.

I, too, am eager for Nessa's exact proportions, but I will wade in here as well. Just made some a few days ago. To 2 lbs cubed pork shoulder added 2 chopped onions, 4 cloves garlic (smashed and minced), a couple of chopped jalapenos, nice dusting of New Mexico red chile powder, couple teaspoons each of cumin and Mexican oregano. Tossed it all together and let it sit overnight in the fridge. Next day put cubes into large dutch oven and added about 1/4 cup lime juice, 1/2 cup orange juice and 1 cup of tequila. Then enough chicken broth to cover cubes. I added no salt other than what was in the chicken broth. Let that simmer stovetop, partically covered, till the liquid was gone. Then dumped them into a lasagna pan and spread them out into one layer and roasted them at 450 for about 10-20 minutes. They were wonderful. But let me restate here that you can add whatever intrigues you to the stewing broth. The whole point is to infuse the meat with flavor while it cooks, and then fry it. Often I add a bay leaf (and remove it of course for the frying stage). This is a great recipe with which to experiment with various types of chiles, herbs, and other seasonings/liquids. As one person suggested, try Coca Cola. In my own personal view, there's no "right way" and no "wrong way." It's hard to screw this up. PS - Fifi - I haven't made them with beef, but when we lived in New Mexico, I had a Mexican friend that did. She essentially made green chile stew, but without the flour, potatoes, peas, etc., and then when the liquid all boiled away (the Mexicans call this stage carne seca), she fried it up in beef fat that she had rendered from scraps she got from our local butcher. Frequently she used pork lard that she had rendered from her own scraps. Her beef carnitas were really, really good, but I never liked them quite as well as the traditional pork. So please understand that while I am posting and explaining this method, I am not necessarily "advocating" it (to quote a previous poster).

Sublime. Utterly. Thanks.

Wow. Nessa, they're gorgeous. And man, you're right, the flavor of the citrus and tequila is fabulous and the "frayed bits" do soak up a lot of it. Wish I had a hot tortilla and could scoop some up right out of your pans. Thanks for posting that.

You are more than welcome. I'm going to be spending some considerable time in Mexico sometime during the coming year, at least several months, and will post back as I learn more. Love that Mexian cuisine is so popular on eGullet. It deserves it. Maybe I'll post my recipe for chicken enchiladas next. That should give EMSG another "project."

My god what a brilliant idea. I can just see it: beautifully-iced wedding cookies in pale pastels, three-tier lacy white cake adorned with roses and orchids, frosty silver platters of cold fruits like grapes and strawberries, brie tarts with figs, glistening flutes of pale champagne.... Wish I'd thought of it.