Chile Verde


makes 2 cups +

	2 Tbs vegetable oil or olive oil
	1/4 to 1/2 small onion, diced
	1 large garlic clove, minced
	2 Tbs flour
	1/4 tsp ground cumin
	1/4 tsp black pepper
	1 1/2 cups chicken or pork broth
	1 cup roasted, peeled green chiles (10-12 fresh New Mexico, Anaheim
		or California or poblano chiles), or (if you don't have 
		fresh chiles) 8 oz canned green chiles.
	1/4 tsp oregano
	1/2 tsp salt
	(optional:  2 tsp or more chopped, canned or fresh jalapenos
		if you want it hotter)

	Heat the oil in a 1-2 qt saucepan over medium heat.  Add onion
	and garlic, cover and cook over low heat for about 5 minutes to
	wilt the onions.  Don't let them brown.  Raise heat to medium, stir
	in flour, cumin and black pepper. Cook, stirring about 2 min.  When
	the onion/flour mix just begins to color, remove from heat and
	add broth, stirring constantly to avoid lumps.

	Add rest of ingredients.  Return pan to heat, bring to a boil, cover
	and simmer over low heat another 30 min.  The finished sauce should
	not be too thick; dilute with more broth or water if needed.
	You can puree it if it's not smooth enough.  Will keep in fridge
	for a week; heat before using.
	

	An interesting variation is to add 3-4 diced chipotles (don't add
	the jalapenos in this case) with the green chiles.  This gives
	a hot, smoky green chile sauce that goes great with plain bean
	burritos or cheese enchiladas; it will overwhelm more complex
	dishes.

Mike
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Michael Bowers			  Internet: mikeb@radonc.ucdmc.ucdavis.edu

	Green chile (or chili), or chile verde can mean different
	things, and knowing one from another is a distinction that
	marks one as an insider (or _real_ chile-head!).  The term
	applies to 1) the fresh green chiles picked before they
	turn red, 2) a paste made from roasted green chiles and garlic
	presented at the table to flavor 'frijoles' (= beans), 3)
	the thickened cooking sauce served over enchiladas, burritos, etc,
	4) the same sauce with chunks of cooked pork (or other meat)
	served as a soup/stew or a sauce for bean burritos.

	The following recipe is for the chile verde sauce (#3).  It can
	also include tomatoes and/or tomatillos (now that we've discussed
	epazote and cilantro, how about tomatillos!?).

	There are many versions; this is one that I like; I have others
	that use no oil, and ones that include other ingredients (see previous 	
	paragraph).
From the Chile-Heads Recipe Collection
http://neptune.netimages.com/~chile/recipes.html