Chiles Rellenos (Stuffed Peppers)

Horchata



Ingredients

• 1 cup uncooked white long-grain rice
• 5 cups water
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 tablespoon ground cinnamon
• 2/3 cup white sugar

Directions

1. Pour the rice and water into the bowl of a blender; blend until the rice just begins to break up, about 1 minute. Let rice and water stand at room temperature for a minimum of 3 hours.
2. Strain the rice water into a pitcher and discard the rice. Stir the milk, vanilla, cinnamon, and sugar into the rice water. Chill and stir before serving over ice.

The Infamous Salvadorean Tamales

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• 1/2 bag of banana leaves
• 1 pound of ground beef
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 can of tomato soup
• 2 cups of water
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 1/4 tablespoon of pepper
• 2 tablespoons of chili powder
• 1 can of whole kernel corn, drain
• 1/2 cup of chopped bell pepper
• frying pan
• baking string
• refried beans

How to Cook Salvadoran Tamales

1. Pan fry ground beef and onion in skillet until lightly brown. Drain off excess grease.
2. Add tomato soup, water, seasonings, corn and green pepper. Simmer 15 minutes.
3. Place a portion of the meat mixture in banana leaves. Fold and secure by wrapping a baking string around the tamale.
4. Bake in preheated oven at 425 degrees, for approximately 20-25 minutes; until banana leaves are slightly brown around the edges.
5. Serve with re-fried beans or favorite Mexican side dish.

OMG Platanos!

Ingredients

• 1 quart oil for frying
• 2 plantains

Directions

1. Preheat oil in a large, deep skillet over medium high heat.
2. Peel the plantains and cut them in half. Slice the halves lengthwise into thin pieces.
3. Fry the pieces until browned and tender. Drain excess oil on paper towels.

Yay Pupusas!

• Masa harina -- 2 cups
• Warm water -- 1 cup
• Filling (see variations) -- 1 cup

Method

1. In a large bowl, mix together the masa harina and water and knead well. Knead in more water, one tablespoonful at a time if needed, to make a moist, yet firm dough. (It should not crack at the edges when you press down on it.) Cover and set aside to rest for 5 to 10 minutes.
2. Roll the dough into a log and cut it into 8 equal portions. Roll each portion into a ball.
3. Press an indentation in each ball with your thumb. Put about 1 tablespoon of desired filling into each indentation and fold the dough over to completely enclose it. Press the ball out with your palms to form a disc, taking care that that the filling doesn't spill out.
4. Line a tortilla press with plastic and press out each ball to about 5-6 inches wide and about 1/4-inch thick. If you don't have a tortilla press, place the dough between two pieces of plastic wrap or wax paper and roll it out with a rolling pin.
5. Heat an ungreased skillet over medium-high flame. Cook each pupusa for about 1-2 minutes on each side, until lightly browned and blistered. Remove to a plate and hold warm until all pupusas are done. Serve with curtido and salsa roja.

Variations

• Pupusas de Queso: With a cheese filling. Use grated quesillo, queso fresco, farmer's cheese, mozzarella, Swiss cheese or a combination. Add some minced green chile if you like.
• Pupusas de Chicharrones: With a filling of fried chopped pork and a little tomato sauce. A reasonable facsimile can be made by pulsing 1 cup of cooked bacon with a little bit of tomato sauce in a food processor.
• Pupusas de Frijoles Refritos: With a refried bean filling.
• Pupusas Revueltas: Use a mixture of chicharrones, cheese and refried beans.
• Pupusas de Queso y Loroco: With a cheese and tropical vine flower filling. Loroco can be found in jars at many Latin markets.
• Pupusas de Arroz: A variety of pupusa that uses rice flour instead of corn masa.
• Cooked potatoes or finely minced, sautéed jalapeño peppers are also tasty fillings. Try a mixture of different fillings.
• The above recipe uses masa harina, a special dried cornmeal flour used in making tortillas, tamales, etc. If you are able to get fresh masa, definitely use it instead. The flavor will be much fresher. Just substitute the masa harina and water with fresh masa. One pound will make about 4-6 pupusas depending on size.

Notes

• The pupusa is so fundamental to the cuisine of El Salvador that the country has even declared November 13th "National Pupusa Day."
• Pupusas are traditionally made by slapping the dough from palm to palm to flatten it out. I find the tortilla press to be quicker and easier for beginners.

The very rare but misunderstood "Panes con Pollo/Pavo"

Panes con Pavo is a typical Salvadorean dish made on Christmas Eve or New Years Eve. My recipe comes from two of my aunts. The first aunt Elvita West, who was married to my Tio Mario (Dad’s brother). This is actually Elvita’s recipe. I remember when we moved back from Spain, going to their house to eat Panes con Pavo.
Years ago (in the 1960’s),when my Mom’s sister Maria Teresa (we call her Titi)lived with my Tio Mario and Elbita, Elbita taught her how to make the Panes con Pavo. In 2009 my “Titi” wanted to come and visit. I had previously told her I wanted to learn how to make the panes con pavo. So bless her heart, she traveled from Sacramento to Clovis one Saturday morning with her little turkey in hand to come teach me how to make it. She said, the trick to making the Panes con Pavo....“Focus, Ana Maria, Focus!” ha ha (a little family joke)

• for the turkey the night before:
• 1 small turkey (12 lb)
• ½ cup butter (softened)
• yellow mustard (to cover turkey)
• salt (to taste)
• pepper (to taste)
• For the sauce:
• 1 bunch of cilantro
• 1 Bell. peppers
• 1 bunch of green onions
• 11 dashes of salsa perins
• 1 ounce of capers (with juice)
• 3 large squirts of mustard
• 1 Tablespoon of All Spice
• 2 large cans of whole tometoes (24 oz)
• For the curtido:
• 4 onions, thinly sliced
• 1½ cup red wine vinegar
• 1½ cup of water
• 2 Tablespoons oregano
• 1 bay leaf

• The night before, put butter under the skin of the turkey and season with salt and pepper. Baste entire turkey with yellow mustard.
• Cover and refrigerate overnight.
• The day of:
• Take the turkey out about ½ hour before cooking.
• Preheat oven to 350°.
• In blender put cilantro, bell pepper, green onion, salsa perrins, capers, mustard, all spice and tomatoes.
• Blend all together. (you may have to make in two separate batches)
• Pour half the mixture over the turkey and inside the cavity of the turkey. cook the turkey until it reaches 165°
• In a saucepan, simmer the rest of the sauce. (it is not necessary to baste the turkey).
• Once the turkey is done, let it rest and cool off. Once cooled, shred the turkey. Scrape the drippings from the pan in which the turkey was cooked and add a little hot water. Mix the drippings into the saucepan with sauce.
• Mix thouroughly.
• Heat bread in oven until lightly toasted.
• Put a spoonful of sauce on bread.
• Add shredded turkey.
• Add more sauce if desired.
• Add curtido/onions. (see notes for recipe for curtido)
• Emergency Curtido:
• slice 4 onions very thin put in a saucepan with red wine vinegar, water oregano, pinch of cloves and bay a leaf. Bring just to a boil at medium heat and remove. Let cool.

Original Website: http://www.tastebook.com/recipes/1227964-Panes-con-Pavo-Panes-con-Chumpe-