Chicken Tamales

There was enough fall-apart juicy tender spicy crock-pot chicken leftover after making some Enchiladas Rojas. It seemed like a fun idea to keep up the Mexican theme this week and make Chicken Tamales.

Some store-bought nixtamalized masa de harina, plus a bundle of dried corn husks were handy in the pantry.

Not too long ago, cassava tamales came about which, while not a unanimous favorite, was not a total reject either.

Quite the standard recipe that was printed on the bag of masa, with minor variations - mainly, no lard.

Ingredients:
2 cups masa instantánea de maíz
2 cups stock or water
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
½ to ⅔ cup vegetable oil (add in installments while beating)
1 cup shredded chicken cooked in spicy chili sauce, (sauce drained)
6 to 8 corn husks, soaked in water for about 30 minutes

Preparation

1. Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl; add in the stock/water, plus ½ cup oil first and beat until the batter is smooth; if too crumbly and thick, add a bit more oil and water as needed to form a smooth and mildly sticky batter
2. Open out a pliable corn husk that has been soaking, spread the batter in a thin layer, add the chicken filling, top with more batter to enclose the chicken
3. Wrap the filled corn husks and steam for about an hour
4. Serve warm with hot sauce and cooling plain Greek yogurt (or sour cream, if preferred)

Mini Pepper Poppers

Bajji, Pakoda, Ulunthu (Urad dal) Vadai, Masaal Vadai, Samosa... deep fried snacks were quite an indulgence around monsoon season when I was young. Of course, they were made for festivals and guests, and just because as well. Bajjis were my favorites - batter-dipped and fried eggplant, large green chilies, carrots, onions.

The weather being cold and soggy, and it being winter break for the kids, we felt like having some home-made deep-friend snacks.

Mini Peppers are so cute and colorful and have become my favorite indulgence of late, along with Baby Bella aka Cremini mushrooms.

Rather than the usual Baajjis, we had some Jalapeño and Mini Pepper Poppers, with some Habañero (seeded) thrown in the filling for the adults. Not an unusual recipe, but, quite satisfying nonetheless... Save any leftover filling in the fridge and use as sandwich spread

Ingredients
12 Jalapeño, Mini Colorful Peppers,
½  Habañero pepper, seeded and finely minced (optional)
8 oz Cream cheese or Neufchâtel cheese
grated cheddar and mozarella as much as needed for the filling
garlic, herbs, finely minced
1 Tbsp finely minced drained, squeezed pineapple bits (optional)

some milk, flour for coating
about 20 oz. breadcrumbs or as much as needed for coating

oil for deep frying

Preparation

1. Filling: Mix the Neufchatel cheese, freshly grated cheddar and mozarella, some minced seeded habañero, finely chopped pineapple, minced garlic and set aside
2. Cut the peppers in half lengthwise, seed them, and scoop some filling in and keep handy
3. Have a bowl of milk, a plate of flour, a dish of breadcrumbs ready
4. Heat the oil to about 375°F
5. Dip the filled half peppers in milk, then in flour, allow to dry; then dip in milk and then in breadcrumbs and allow to dry; then once more in milk then in breadcrumbs and deep fry
6. Drain in a paper towel and serve with favorite dipping sauce

Chili Rellenos

Years ago, when I first saw the recipe for Chili Rellenos, with a gorgeous picture, the first thing that came to mind was my mom's Mirchi Bajji (aka Molaga Bajji).

The recipes seem similar: take a large-ish, not-too-hot chili; smoke and skin it to enhance flavor and to reduce the rawness (optional); make a slit and scoop out undesirable membranes and seeds from the inside; stuff with favorite stuffing; coat in light batter; fry in oil till crisp on the outside; serve hot off the stove, with some chutney or salsa.

Traditional chili rellenos recipes call for a light egg batter which involves separating the eggs, beating the whites to a stiff peak, beating the yolks and then folding the whites in. I was not up for it, so, I decided to use a different batter.

I wanted to try the stuffing my mom used for Mirchi bajji: a mixture of dry grated coconut, tamarind, paneer (home-made bag cheese), potatoes and spices. But, omitted the tamarind and coconut, and went with a slightly different stuffing here.


Ingredients:
4 poblano chilies, fairly large
oil for frying (canola or peanut)

for the batter: 1 cup fine rice flour 1/2 cup cornstarch 1 cup cold water (more or less) 1 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon sugar 1 teaspoon salt

for the dipping salsa: 1 cup tomato puree 1 Tbsp cayenne pepper powder ½ cup finely minced onions 2 garlic cloves, finely minced salt to taste

for the stuffing:
1 cup crumbled queso panela (or, grated aged cheddar)
1 medium potato, skinned, cooked, crumbled
1 Tbsp cayenne pepper powder
1 Tbsp coriander powder
1 tsp brown sugar (optional)
salt to taste

Preparation

over the flame or under a broiler, char the poblano chilies till the skin blisters; throw into a paper bag or plastic bag immediately and seal the bag tight; allow the chilies to sweat; after about 15 minutes in the bag, take them out and peel off the skin; make a slit lengthwise and scoop out the seeds and membranes carefully; keep handy for stuffing

combine the salsa ingredients and blend to a fine sauce consistency; simmer on low; adjust flavors; set aside to cool

combine the stuffing ingredients, adjust spices to taste; keep handy

heat the oil for deep frying to about 375°F; peanut oil can be heated to higher temperature than canola oil

meanwhile stuff the poblanos with the prepared stuffing, close the chili as best as possible so the stuffing doesn't fall out while frying

combine the dry batter ingredients, add water a little at a time to form a smooth light batter, pretty much like tempura batter; prepare this batter just when ready to fry

dip the stuffed poblanos in the batter, drain a bit, so the batter forms just a thin coating, drop it in the hot oil and deep fry till golden brown; remove and drain on paper-towel lined plate

Optionally, if there is batter leftover after using for the chilies, dip some onion slices in the batter, deep fry and serve hot with the dipping salsa.

Home Canning: thokku and pickles

As a newlywed, I discovered the delights of canning.

When I was in my mum-in-law's kitchen for the first time, she opened a can of salsa she had made for one of our meals. D was pretty matter-of-fact about it, but, it made a deep impression on me.

My mom has always made pickles, vadams, snacks and such at home, stored them appropriately and served them year round.

I hadn't done any canning and was new to the Art of Putting Food By. So, I read books, scoured the web, and experimented with boiling water bath for canning.

First summer after we moved to Oregon, we went garage-sale-hopping and found a wonderful pressure canner for $2! Of course, the pressure gauge was broken, but D was confident of finding one online and getting it fixed. Which he did, of course, the gauge cost 20$! Still, at 22$, it is a steal for a 5 gallon pressure canner.

Now, even though I have a precious pressure canner for all my canning needs, boiling water bath remains my favorite as it meets the needs of most of the foods I can, like: indian pickles, salsa verde, salsa roja, veggies, tomatoes, pasta sauce, marinara sauce, berry jams and fruit syrups.

Indian pickles are not quite the same as pickling with vinegar.

Generally, they are packed in oil with spices and salt; some undergo a bit of cooking; some, like thokku, are sautéed, simmered, and undergo reduction till oil separates.

Many need to sit in a cool dark place for a few weeks to mature and develop.

Some are simply brined.

Some are simply allowed to soak in a blend of spices, salt, and oil, and served along with the savory liquid - my favorite of this kind being the tender/baby mango pickle called "maavadu", or "kadugu manga" when mustard seeds are used.




Tomato Thokku and Green Chili Thokku
Thokkus are almost like paste: smooth, not chunky. Generally, I blend the thokku ingredients into a paste when raw, then roast it in oil, stirring frequently till oil separates and is reduced to a thick, spreadable consistency. Can immediately. Store in a cool dark place for 2-4 weeks before serving.

Tomato thokku: tomatoes, paprika, red chili powder, salt, jaggery or brown sugar, oil
Green Chili thokku: green chillies, asafoetida (tiny bit), salt, oil, brown sugar, brown mustard seeds, tamarind

I am omitting exact measurements here. Adjust to taste. Make small or large batches as you desire... I usually make large batches and can them and let them mature in the cool dark basement:-)

Tomato thokku mixed in with some cream cheese makes a great sandwich spread.

Chili Lime Pickle
Green chilies, slit; fairly thin-skinned lime, cut into pieces; garlic cloves, chopped (optional); salt; chili powder; asafoetida; fenugreek, crushed; black mustard seeds,crushed; oil
sauté chilies and lime in oil, add the spices and salt, adjust to taste, cook over medium high heat stirring constantly till oil separates; can immediately; allow to mature for 6-8 weeks before using.

As it matures, the chilies mellow out, and the tanginess of lime takes over in a pleasant way, balanced with the salt and brown sugar; the lime skin gets soft and fork-tender. It goes perfectly with south-indian style yogurt rice, aka "thayir shadam".

If not canning, store in an air tight container in a cool dark place (or in the fridge) for a few weeks before using.

Again, I am omitting exact measurements here. Adjust to taste. Make small or large batches to suit your needs...

Also, substitute chili and lime with mixed vegetables, or just garlic for variation.