Pork in a Pasilla Chile and Pumpkin Seed Sauce

Pipian De Chile Pasilla Con Carne De Puerco

This dish I prepared in Mexican cuisine class. The recipe could seem complicated, but it is not.

Ingredients

Stewing pork with fat, cut into 1 1⁄2” cubes                 3 1/2 lb
Garlic cloves, peeled, crushed                                              9  ea
Salt                                                                                   1 1/2 Tbsp
Chile pasilla negra, about 8, wiped   
clean, vein, seeds removed and reserved                              6 oz
Lard (see index), or vegetable oil                                           2 Tbsp
Pumpkin seeds, raw, hulled                                            1 1/2 cups
Garlic cloves, small                                                                 3 ea
Peppercorns                                                                            5 ea
Cloves                                                                                      4 ea
Garnish  
Cilantro leaves                                                                        1 bunch
Lime wedges                                                                       as needed
White rice                                                                            as needed

Method

1. Put the pork into a wide casserole, cover with 4 quarts water, add the smashed garlic and salt, cover, and cook over medium-low heat until the pork is just half cooked, about 20 minutes. Remove 2 quart of the water and reserve.
   
2. Continue cooking the pork until it is tender; by this time the cooking water should have evaporated. If not, remove the broth and continue cooking the pork over medium heat until the fat renders out and lightly browns the meat. Leave 1⁄4 cup of fat in the pot.
   
3. Meanwhile, toast the chiles lightly on both sides in a dry skillet over medium-high heat; don’t burn the chiles or the sauce will be bitter. Rinse and soak in 3 cups of the reserved broth for about 15 minutes.
   
4. Toast the chile seeds until they change to a pale brown colour. Grind them in a spice grinder.
   
5. Heat the lard in a skillet and gently fry the pumpkin seeds until they begin to swell up and pop around. Add them along with the whole spices and the peeled garlic to the blender jar with the ground seeds. Add 2 1⁄2 cups of the reserved broth and blend together to a slightly textured purée. Add this to the meat that is frying in the casserole.
   
6. Blend the soaked chiles with the broth in which they were soaked and add to the pan.
   
7. Continue cooking for about 5 minutes. Add any remaining broth and salt to taste and
   continue cooking over low heat for 5 minutes. The sauce should be fairly thick, coating the back of a wooden spoon.

8. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.
   
9. Garnish with cilantro and serve with white rice and corn tortillas. 
   

Tortilla Soup

Right bottom corner
of the plate

This is my first time I ate this soup and the first time I made it. It was alway a strange idea for me to put some bread (tortilla) in the liquid.

Chicken, fowl, quartered                     1 ea. 
Chicken stock                                        1 gal
Water                                                     1 gal
Vegetable oil or lard                              2 oz
Spanish onions, minced                        1 lb
Garlic cloves, rough cut                        4 ea
Corn tortillas, rough cut                       5 ea
Plum tomatoes, charred,
left whole                                               1 lb
Salt and ground black pepper              to taste
Fresh epazote                                         1 Tbsp

Garnish
Chicken meat, from above         
pasilla, chilies, toasted
Fried corn tortilla, julienne strips         from 12 tortillas
Monterey Jack cheese, grated               1 lb
Avocados, medium dice                        2 ea
Limes, juice of                                        2 ea

Method

1. For the soup: Combine the chicken stock, water, and chicken and simmer 1 to 11⁄2 hours— until the chicken is tender and completely cooked. Remove the chicken to cool and strain the resulting broth. At this point you should have 11⁄2 gallons of broth. If you do not, add chicken stock to have 11⁄2 gallons total. 
   
2. Heat the oil and add the onions, garlic, and tortilla pieces. Cook them until they start to turn golden. Place the cooked onion and tortilla mixture in a blender along with the charred and peeled tomatoes. Purée all very fine. Add to a stockpot and simmer 5 minutes. Add the chicken broth and epazote and simmer for 30 minutes. Season as necessary with salt and pepper. Adjust with lime just prior to serving.
   
3. For the garnish: Remove the meat and skin from the chicken and cut into a small dice. Lightly toast the whole pasillas in a cast-iron skillet over a medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes; they cannot get dark. Remove the stems and seeds and grind roughly in a spice grinder and reserve.
   
4. Cut the tortillas into short julienne and deep-fry at 350°F, drain on paper towels, and reserve. Grate the cheese and reserve. Dice the avocado and reserve. Place the cooked chicken meat, lime juice, and pasillas in the broth just before service. Bring to a simmer and place in the soup warmer.
   
5. Serve with garnish of diced avocado, cheese, and tortilla strips.