Daring Cook's Challenge: Stacked Green Chile & Chicken Enchiladas

Tomatillos from the farmer's market

Having grown up in California, with a large Mexican population, Mexican cuisine is one of my most loved cuisines. And let me tell you - Mexican cuisine is far more diverse than burritos and tacos. After eating authentic Mexican food, I can't go back to the bastardized-"Mexican" food you would find at places like Taco Bell. Chipotle is not considered that authentic either, although it's clearly a significant step above Taco Bell, and as far as chain restaurants go, I think it's pretty decent. There used to be a Mexican restaurant near where I previously lived called Maz Mezcal that made fresh, homemade tortillas, fantastic shrimp enchiladas, and mouthwatering tamales. You could just tell that their dishes were authentic because some of the dishes I had never even heard of - they actually serve a baby cactus salad there, which previously I didn't know could even be eaten (was decent, as far as I can recall, but I don't know if I feel that I'd have to have it again). And they gave you big portions also. Maz Mezcal was almost always packed, even if it wasn't a Friday or a Saturday, which tells you just how popular the restaurant was; the noise inside it seriously reached deafening proportions, and whenever I ate with someone there, we'd both have to shout to hear each other (a bit annoying). But I still miss that place because there aren't too many good, authentic Mexican restaurants near where I live now, at least not that I know of. Long story short, I haven't had Mexican food in awhile so I was very excited about this month's Daring Cook's Challenge!

At first, I was worried that I wouldn't find some of the ingredients I was looking for, such as Anaheim chiles and tomatillos. But apparently, Anaheim chiles aren't that hard to find, and even if you can't find them, you can substitute some other type of green chile such as Poblano chiles or you can order canned varieties online. And you can find fresh tomatillos at Fairway's on the Upper West Side (74th & Broadway), Garden of Eden markets, Western Beef markets, or occasionally, at the Union Square farmer's market. I also found masa harina, but it wasn't organic, and nowadays I prefer to eat organic foods as much as possible. However, you can order organic masa harina from http://goldminenaturalfoods.com - they carry white, yellow, AND blue corn masa varieties in 1 pound bags (and also other hard-to-find grains and products, such as black quinoa.)

A note about masa harina: it is a must when making corn tortillas from scratch. Any other type of corn flour will not produce the same results at all due to the special way that masa harina is made. To give you a bit of background on masa harina, it's made when corn is dried and then treated in a solution of lime and water, called slaked lime. This does two things: 1) it loosens the hulls from the kernels and softens the corn, and 2) the lime reacts with the corn so that the nutrient niacin can be digested. The soaked maize is then washed, and the wet corn is ground into a dough called masa. When this fresh masa is dried and powdered, it becomes masa harina. I read that fresh masa is even better than masa harina but far more difficult to find.

Anyway, yay for another successful Daring Cook's challenge recipe! Makes me want to try my hand at other chile sauces, tamales, and the famous Mexican mole sauce.

Stacked Green Chile & Chicken Enchiladas Ingredients: • 1½ pounds or about eight 6 to 8 inch fresh Anaheim chiles, roasted, peeled, seeds removed, and chopped coarsely* • 7-8 ounces or about 4-5 medium tomatillos, peeled, stems removed • 4 cups chicken broth • 1 clove garlic, minced • ½ teaspoon kosher salt, or more to taste • ¼ teaspoon black pepper, or more to taste • 2 tablespoons cornstarch or ¾ teaspoon xanthan gum, dissolved in 2 tablespoons water for thickening • Tabasco sauce or your favorite hot sauce (optional) • 2 boneless chicken breasts (you can also use bone-in chicken breasts or thighs) • 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, or more as needed • Kosher salt and pepper • 12 small corn tortillas, 5-6 inches in diameter, or if you making your own, 1¾ cups masa harina • 6 ounces grated Monterrey Jack or other cheese such as cheddar, pepper jack, Mexican cheeses, as long as they melt well and complement the filling (Note: This is not really an optional ingredient, but I omitted it this time due to current dietary restrictions) *Other green chiles (NOT bell peppers) could probably be substituted but be conscious of heat and size! Anaheim chiles have a heat score of 2500 (Scoville Heat Units) about 2-3/10. Jalapeños have a heat score of 5000 (Scoville Heat Units) about 4-5/10. Thai chiles have a score 150,000 (Scoville Heat Units) 8-9/10 and Habanero chiles have a score of 325,000 to 570,000 9+/10. Anaheim chiles are therefore considered very mild. Roasted Fresh Chiles Directions: 1. Put on a pair of disposable latex gloves so as to protect your skin from the chiles - and protect your eyes, in case you accidentally rub them after handling the chiles. (Anaheim chiles are mild in heat, but it's good to wear gloves just to be careful.) Coat each chile with a little olive oil. If you are doing only a couple chiles, using the gas stove works. For larger batches (as in this recipe), grilling or broiling is faster. 2. Lay the oiled chiles on the grill or baking sheet (line pan with foil for simpler clean-up). Place the grill or broil close to the element, turning the chiles so they char evenly. They should be black and blistered. If you do all the chiles at once on a grill or using the broiler, it will take 15-30 minutes, plus time to steam (10 minutes) and time to peel and remove seeds (20 minutes). 3. As they are completely charred (they will probably not all be done at once), remove them to a bowl and cover with plastic, or close up in a paper bag. Let them rest until they are cool. 4. Pull on the stem and the seed core MAY pop out (it rarely does for me). Open the chile and remove the seeds. Turn the chile skin side up and with a paring knife, scrape away the skin. Sometimes it just pulls right off, sometimes you really have to scrape it. 5. DO NOT RINSE! How to roast Anaheim chiles: http://www.ehow.com/how_5106125_roast-anaheim-peppers.html http://www.ehow.com/how_4437304_roast-anaheim-green-chiles-grill.html Green Chile Sauce Directions: 1. Put a medium saucepan of water on to boil and remove the papery outer skin from the tomatillos. Boil the tomatillos until soft, about 5-10 minutes. You can also grill the tomatillos until soft, about 2-5 minutes. You could also broil them, for about 8-12 minutes. This can be done the same time the chiles are roasting. 2. Drain and puree in a blender or food processor for a few seconds. 3. Return the tomatillos to the saucepan along with the chicken broth, chopped green chiles, minced onion, oregano, garlic, salt and pepper. 4. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and then reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes. 5. Add the cornstarch/water mixture and stir well. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sauce is thickened and reduced to 4-5 cups, another 10-15 minutes. 6. Adjust seasonings and add hot sauce if you want a little more heat. Stacked Green Chile and Grilled Chicken Enchiladas Directions: 1. Heat a gas grill to medium high or build a medium-hot charcoal. Coat the chicken with olive oil and season well with salt and pepper. Preheat oven to 450°F. 2. Grill the chicken until just cooked through, 4-6 minutes per side for boneless chicken breasts and longer for bone-in chicken pieces. If you roast your chicken, a bone-in breast takes about 30 minutes (depending on size). Be sure chicken is done but not overcooked, since it will be in the oven in the last stage of the recipe. 3. Cool and then slice into thin strips or shred. 4. In a small skillet, heat 3 tablespoons oil over medium-high heat until very hot. Dip the edge of a tortilla into the oil to check – it should sizzle immediately. 5. Using tongs, put a tortilla into the pan and cook until soft and lightly brown on each side, about 15-20 seconds per side (at the most). 6. Drain on paper towels. 7. Add oil as needed and continue until all 12 tortillas are done. 8. In a baking dish large enough to hold four separate stacks of tortillas, ladle a thin layer of sauce. 9. Lay four tortillas in the dish and ladle another ½ cup of sauce over the tortillas. 10. Divide half the chicken among the first layer of tortillas, top with another ½ cup of sauce and a third of the grated cheese. 11. Stack another four tortillas, top with the rest of the chicken, more sauce and another third of the cheese. 12. Finish with the third tortilla, topped with the remaining sauce and cheese. 13. Bake until the sauce has thickened and the cheese melted, about 20 minutes. Let rest for 5-10 minutes. 14. To serve, transfer each stack to a plate. Spoon any leftover sauce over the stacks. The stacks may also be cooked in individual gratin dishes. For how to make juicy grilled chicken: http://kalynskitchen.blogspot.com/2007/05/how-to-make-juicy-grilled-chicken.html Corn Tortillas From Rick Bayless’s Mexican Kitchen Ingredients: • 1¾ cups masa harina, makes about 15 tortillas • 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons hot water Directions: 1. Pour hot water over masa harina, cover and let sit 30 minutes. Add (additional) cool water 1 tablespoon at a time until the dough is soft but not sticky. Divide the dough into 15 balls and cover with plastic wrap. 2. Heat a large (two burner) ungreased griddle or two large skillets, one on medium-low and one on medium-high. 3. Put a ball of dough between two sheets of plastic. If you don’t have a tortilla press, press to a 5-6 inch circle using a heavy frying pan or bread board or other heavy, flat object. Put the tortilla into the cooler pan or cooler end of the griddle. The tortilla will probably stick, but within 15 seconds, if the temperature is correct, it will release. Flip it at that point onto the hotter skillet/griddle section. In 30-45 seconds, it should be dotted with brown underneath. Flip it over, still on the hot surface and brown another 30 seconds or so. A good tortilla will balloon up at this point. Remove from heat and let them rest while cooking the remaining tortillas. Use quickly. For how to make corn tortillas: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JDegTyqL55o http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qm6_iAZ-CCA&NR=1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JFn3GKVLHnM&NR=1 http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/how_to_make_corn_tortillas/ For how to make flour tortillas: http://www.mangiodasola.com/2009/09/tortillas-de-harinaflour-tortillas.html http://www.texasrollingpins.com/tortillarecipe.html http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LEz0puaKNTk http://www.rickbayless.com/recipe/view?recipeID=207 http://homesicktexan.blogspot.com/2007/03/and-end-to-my-quest-flour-tortillas.html