Reviews from Rick Bayless's Mexican Cooking

[beacooker]

For those who didn't see the earlier thread, I am attempting to cook every recipe from Rick Bayless's Mexican Cooking. I will write all my reviews in this thread.

I am rating all recipes on the following scale:
4 - Great, will definitely make again
3 - Very good, will probably make again
2 - ok, but probably won't make again
1 - yuck.

Here is what I have made so far:


Crusty Chayote Casserole with Poblanos, Corn and Two Cheeses
- Rating: 3 I had never used chayote before, but saw some in my produce market the other day, and got them without knowing what I would cook with them. Found this recipe, and then saw that you could add leftover ham, of which I had plenty, to it to make a main dish, and I was sold! First of all, chayotes are quite slippery after you peel them. I had a tough time holding onto the little buggers. Luckily, we use the 3-second rule in my house. Secondly, the chayote juice leaves a thin film on your hands that looks like peeliing skin when it dries. So I spent the rest of the afternoon getting it off my hands. I got my first taste of the chayote after I steaming it, before I added it to the other casserole ingredients. I would say that it tastes a lot like yellow squash. Its texture is much more substantial though, DH described it as being potatoe-y. The finished dish was really, really good. I do think that the ham was the most prevalent flavor, and I do love ham. Rick says you can sub zucchini for the chayote, but I am not sure I would do that. It would probably taste fine, but I really liked the texture of the dish with the chayotes.

Essential Roasted Poblano Rajas with Seared White Onions and Herbs
Rating - 4 This is a pretty basic recipe, and in fact in this case was used as a component of the above casserole. One of my favorite restaurants in San Antonio used to serve these rajas in a light cream sauce as an appetizer, which you would put into little tacos. Rick suggests doing the same thing, and I know I will be making those. A very simple dish, but oh so wonderful!

Pickled Red Onions Rating: 3 These I made ahead as a component to a dish I will be serving on Monday, so I haven't had more than a taste of them. They are just what they sound like, nothing special, but very tasty.

Essential Chopped Tomato-Serrano Salsa Rating: 3 Again, a very basic salsa. Just tomatoes, garlic, onion, and serranos. It was good enough, but not my favorite.

Shrimp a la Mexicana with Tomatoes, Serranos, and Cilantro Rating: 2 This is just shrimp marinated in lime juice, then cooked in the above salsa. Eh, it was allright. Not really flavorful enough for my taste.

Ripe Plantain Turnovers with Fresh Cheese Filling Rating: 2 This recipe was one of the reasons I decided I wanted to cook everyting in this cookbook, but was a real disappointment. If it had been easy to make, I would probably have rated it a 3, but since it was a bit of a pain (although was easier than I expected), I only give it a 2. The plantain tasted pretty much just like cooked plantain, and the cheese filling was kind of overwhelmed by the plantain's flavor. So, it seemed like an awful lot of work when I would have been just as happy eating store-bought plantain chips. However, I am thrilled that I tried this recipe, because it was so different from anything I have ever made before. I had never made turnovers, and I had never used my tortilla press before, either. I also had never had queso fresco.

Essential Roasted Tomatillo-Chipotle Salsa Rating:4 This is the salsa that Rick recommends serving on the above turnovers. Yummy, yummy salsa! It has two of my favorite things, tomatillos and chipotles. When I tasted it by itself, I noticed a hint of bitterness, so I was a bit worried about it, but DH and I both loved it on the turnovers. I would be quite happy with a bowl of this salsa and some plantain chips! I am not sure how it would be with regular tortilla chips, if the bitterness would show through, but I look forward to experimenting.

OK, I think DH is getting a bit tired of Mexican food, so now more of Rick's recipes until my appetizer party on Monday night. More reviews coming soon...

Oh, and if I can figure out how to scan in recipes, I will post recipes upon request.

[Svadhisthana]

Anne,
Thanks for the reviews.
I'm assuming that you are making the recipes as is. When it's all said and done, do you think you'll go back and tweak any of the recipes either for flavor or the amount of fat?
Also, How many recipes are in this particular book?

Crystal

[gertdog]

Anne, I missed the thread where you said you'd be taking on this book. I'm so impressed (and envious)- I'll be watching hungrily for your reviews. :)

I have this book but have only made a few things- the rajas you reviewed above are among them. I add chard, cooked potato chunks, and some of that "homemade thickened cream" he gives directions for to make a divine veggie taco filling. Mmmmm.

[pammy]

I have this book, and Mexico One Plate at a Time. Have you tried the Chipotle Chilaquiles yet? Very simple to make, and absolutely delicious! They are going to become a staple meal in our home - I always have the ingredients on hand. I plan to make a batch the next time I do Sticky Chicken - Chilaquiles are a great use for leftover chicken.

[beacooker]

Crystal, surprisingly enough, true Mexican food isn't as fat-laden as you probably expect. It is a Tex-Mex thing to cover everything with a thick layer of cheese! My plan is to follow the recipes as closely as possible, but I will use oil as I always do, which is to usually use much less than recipes call for. In making some of the recipes, like Refried Beans, I will go ahead and use lard, as the recipe calls for. Homemade Refried Beans isn't something I expect to make on a regular basis, and the difference between Refried Beans made with lard or bacon grease and that made with out any fat is huge. This is an area where I think it is worth the occasional fat splurge! I will just spread out making the high-fat recipes. As far as tweaking for flavor, I do plan on doing some of that now, although being careful not to change it so much that I miss the point of making the recipe. And if a recipe is good enough to become a repeater, I am sure I will adapt it as I go.

I haven't taken the time to count how many recipes are in the book. It is an average-sized cookbook, I would say. What that means, I don't know! But you wouldn't pick it up and think it was really large, or really small. Maybe 100 recipes? But I suck at estimating stuff like that.

gertdog - yes, that is exactly what I want to do with those Rajas. Mmmmmm - Heaven!!!! I am drooling just thinking about it. Hopefully my reviews will help you pick out more things to make from the book. Or you can cook along with me! ;)

Oh, pammy, I missed your reply. Yes, in fact after having Mexico One Plate at a Time for about a year and dreaming over it, I finally made my first recipe out of it a few weeks ago. It was those Chipotle Chilaquiles. They were so easy, and so wonderful! Making those really led me to doing this. What other recipes do you like from One Plate?

[swquilts]

You all are making me hungry for Mexican food! I've order One Plate at a Time after looking it over at Williams Sonoma. I'm looking forward to your reviews of Mexican Cooking.

[Svadhisthana]

Originally posted by beacooker
Crystal, surprisingly enough, true Mexican food isn't as fat-laden as you probably expect. It is a Tex-Mex thing to cover everything with a thick layer of cheese! My plan is to follow the recipes as closely as possible, but I will use oil as I always do, which is to usually use much less than recipes call for. In making some of the recipes, like Refried Beans, I will go ahead and use lard, as the recipe calls for. Homemade Refried Beans isn't something I expect to make on a regular basis, and the difference between Refried Beans made with lard or bacon grease and that made with out any fat is huge. This is an area where I think it is worth the occasional fat splurge! I will just spread out making the high-fat recipes. As far as tweaking for flavor, I do plan on doing some of that now, although being careful not to change it so much that I miss the point of making the recipe. And if a recipe is good enough to become a repeater, I am sure I will adapt it as I go.



Thanks for the reply. I knew that his books were full of "real" mexican recipes, but, I had no idea about the difference in fat between those and the more common Tex-Mex type recipes. I'll have to pick up his books from the library.

Crystal

[ShanaG]

Oh, Anne! Thank you so much for the reviews! I love, love, love Mexican food :)

And I so admire Rick Bayless. I really appreciate the fact that he has such a passion for the country, and has dedicated his life to learning and teaching others about it.

Count me among those who will be looking forward to future reviews from you. If I had to pick one cookbook to make every recipe from, it would definitely be a Mexican food book :D

BTW, I have been trying for two years to teach my SO the difference between authentic Mexican food and the more Americanized version, which is so often smothered in cheese (ick!). A friend once served a delicious, authentic chili verde at a dinner party, and SO asked where the cheese was :rolleyes: I was so embarrassed!

[kwormann]

Originally posted by beacooker


OK, I think DH is getting a bit tired of Mexican food

WHAT???!!!!???!!!

I didnt know that could happen.....it hasnt happened to me yet:D:D;) ;)

[ShanaG]

Kim, I thought of you when I saw this thread, because I know how much you love Mexican food :)

[wallycat]

I made one of his pickled jalapeno things and am embarassed to say it is STILL sitting in the back of my fridge...has to be a year at least..
I'm almost afraid of it now :rolleyes:
If you get to it, will you let me know how it turned out :eek: :o

[kwormann]

Originally posted by ShanaG
Kim, I thought of you when I saw this thread, because I know how much you love Mexican food :)

And when I saw your post, I thought you will need to bring your SO HERE, so we can take him to TexMax AND Mexican and he can see the difference:D

[beacooker]

Kim, I feel the same way - how on earth can you get tired of Mexican food?? When I lived in San Antonio, I used to eat it several times a week. He could only stand to eat it once a month or so. :rolleyes:

Wallycat, LOL! I would be kind of scared of them too, after a year. I hope it is in some kind of container that you can just throw away, instead of having to open it and dump the peppers out.

[kwormann]

Anne, I have to say how MUCH I love your signature. Its PURE poetry!

Im inspired. Company is coming for dinner Sunday, and Mexico One Plate At A Time is on the bed right now for meal planning:D:D:D

[JHolcomb]

I have One Plate at a Time...the shrimp ceviche coctail is one of my favorite foods ever and the reason I bought the book (tho DH isn't a fan--likes his shrimp plain boiled and hates avacado). Anne, I may have to pick up this book after I read all your reviews!

[beacooker]

Originally posted by JHolcomb
I have One Plate at a Time...the shrimp ceviche coctail is one of my favorite foods ever

NO, NO, NO, NO, NO!!!!!!! You may not tell me about wonderful recipes in other cookbooks. You are trying to take me off course!! ;) I already made the Mexican Chocolate Streusel Cake from One Plate today (and, oh, is it good!).

Actually, I think there is a shrimp ceviche recipe in this cookbook, too. I will have to look to see if it is the same one.

Kim, I loved that quote from One Plate. I really love how he writes.

[Meganator]

Happy cooking! I've thought often that I should hone my Mexican cooking skills while I live in Texas and have all the ingredients easily available. I have One Plate at a Time, but have only tried a couple recipes - both of which were great. His "Tortilla Soup with pasilla chile, fres cheese, and avoocado" is my standard tortilla soup recipe.

Since he clearly makes "authentic" Mexican food, I was a little puzzled (still am) a while back with a discussion in another thread about how "real" tortilla soup has the tortillas crumbled up in the soup, not served crispy on top of the soup. However, Bayless' recipe has the tortillas fried and served in strips on top of the soup, which is the only way I've had it in restaurants.

[newtricks]

Anne, I've got some questions - you Rick Bayless expert you.

I'm having a Cinco de Mayo party on Saturday. I'm trying to keep it as easy as possible. (dh is travelling and will arrive home at 6:00pm on Saturday!) Guests are bringing some appetizers and desserts but here's what I'm providing:

Chips and guacamole

Dinner Buffet:
pork tamales (made by a woman locally, I'm just putting a little salsa verde on them)

chicken taquitos (frozen, but really really good frozen ones)

:o

roast vegetable enchiladas - using browneye's recipe

shrimp ceviche - from "One Plate at a Time"

Classic Red Rice - You recommend this one right?

Black beans - Which recipe would you use?

Also, I was thinking about the rustic jicama appetizer. That looks like a salad type dish, not a "pick-up" crudite dish. Is that right?

Or maybe just a big green salad.

So, which rice, which beans, and do you recommend the jicama? Thanks.

[beacooker]

Originally posted by newtricks
Anne, I've got some questions - you Rick Bayless expert you.


Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha. I am about to burst that particular bubble of yours!

The only recipes from this book I have tried are the ones listed above. I am making that jicama appetizer tomorrow night. Like you, I am kind of confused about how the finished dish is eaten. I am thinking it is like a salad, too, but I will let you know on Tuesday.

Your party sounds wonderful, wish I was going!

Kim, I am hoping you will tell us what you end up cooking for your guests tonight.

[Donna P]

The jicama appetizer is fantastic -- I've made it at least 4 times and everyone asks for recipe. It is more of a salad than a "pick up" appetizer. It's very yummy and fresh.

[kwormann]

Originally posted by beacooker


Kim, I am hoping you will tell us what you end up cooking for your guests tonight.

With the day we had Sat and Sun, I wasnt going to have time to make a big recipe, so I rubbed New Mexico chili powder, lime juice, salt and crushed garlis on pork loin and grilled it. Served it with grilled onions, tomatoes, cheese, salsa and tortillas. Needed something very hands off for today:)

[beacooker]

Last night I had some friends over for an appetizer party. Several of the dishes had to be made at the last minute, and my plan had been to have my friends, who are from my supper club, help me make those dishes, and then we would start nibbling on all the dishes. However, things never work out like you plan, right?? I finished two of the dishes before they got there, and when they arrived we started munching and talking. Oh, and drinking. Before I knew it, we had eaten all of the first dishes, and hadn't started making the others. So then we would make 1 dish, and eat it, then make another. We ended up eating our dessert at 10:30. Menu and reviews:

Tomatillo-Green Guacamole Rating:3 I am not a big guacamole fan, and neither was one of my guests, but we all really liked this guacamole. The addition of the roasted tomatillos and peppers were a great addition. I think this will become my standard guacamole recipe.

Oaxacan Seared Cheese with Tomato and Green Chile Rating:3 Interesting recipe - you make the simple salsa, and then cook queso fresco in a skillet until it browns, remove the cheese to a platter, then warm the salsa and pour it over the cheese. Supposedly queso fresco doesn't melt, but Rich does mention that some cheeses are labeled 'queso fresco' but aren't really, and will melt. Well, I put my Costco-purchased queso fresco to the test, and guess what?? It melted. Oh well. I got it out of the pan before it made a mess, and it still tasted good. It would have been nice to have the right stuff though, and get the yummy browned cheese. Still, it was a good simple recipe.

Classic Seviche Tostadas Rating:3 As the title says, this is the classic seviche recipe. I did fudge a bit, and follow one of Rick's variation of the dish, using cooked fish instead of raw. I would have liked to do the raw fish, but I knew that DH and one of my guests wouldn't have eaten the dish if the fish wasn't cooked.
Rustic Jicama Appetizer with Red Chile and Lime Rating:3 Hmmmm. I feel a little weird about this one. I think I didn't make the recipe quite right. I didn't add enough lime juice or oranges. This ended up being the last dish we made, and I was in a hurry, and not really paying attention, plus was kind of full by this point. So, I am giving it a 3 mainly because a few other people have given it such high reviews, so I want to make it again and see if I like it better next time. I just may not be a jicama person, though. Too crunchy for me.

Chorizo-Stuffed Ancho Chiles with Sweet-Sour Escabeche Rating:4 My, oh my, oh my!!!!! I didn't even notice this recipe the first few times I looked through the appetizer chapter. When I finally noticed it, I was pretty skeptical, and when I was assembling it right before serving, I was apologizing to my friends - 'Sorry if this is too weird. You don't have to eat it.' I was very wrong - this was awesome! Such an odd mixture of flavors and textures, in perfect balance. I can't wait to make this again.

Frontera's Gold Margarita Rating: 2 I am a margarita sissy, and like mine sweet and totally un-authentic. This recipe was for an authentic margarita, so of course I didn't like it. There are 2 more margarita recipes in the book, but I think I am not going to include them in my quest.

Dessert was Mexican Chocolate Streusel Cake from One Plate. It was awesome!

[newtricks]

Your party sounds really fun! Quite an impressive number of things that you made too.

Funny about the Costco Queso Fresco. I've got a huge block of it sitting in my refrigerator right now. Mine's just going in veg enchiladas and on top of refried beans (Rick Bayless by the way).

And I've decided against the jicama appetizer because I realize that I'm not really a jicama person either but I'm still somewhat intrigued by that whole combination so maybe we'll try it some other time.

Now I want to try the anchos. I've looked at that recipe and thought it was too involved - particularly the idea of reconstituting peppers and then stuffing them. But maybe I'll get invited to a mexican pot luck one of these days.

Just to report back to you - I made his Essential Roast Tomato and Jalapeno Salsa. It's the tomato base of Classic Red Tomato Rice. The salsa is, to me, a four (and a half?) Very basic but you broil the tomatoes (I use canned) and griddle roast the jalapeno and garlic. It's my sort of salsa because then it goes in the food processor (except for the onions and cilantro which you chop and then add).

I also made the sweet chipotle seasoning paste. It looks and smells great but I was afraid to taste it. Too spicy!

Cheers, Barbara

[beacooker]

Barbara -

I am looking forward to making that chipotle paste. I love chipotles! And now you have me looking forward to the Roast Tomato and Jalapeno Salsa. Guess its time for me to pull out the book again, and figure out the next few meals from it. I took a few days off after OD'ing the last 2 weeks.

About those stuffed ancho chiles, it does look kind of involved, but I really didn't find it as bad as I thought. Two days before serving them, I made the escabeche and the filling, which took maybe an hour. About an hour before my friends showed up, I put the dried chilies in the escabeche. Since we didn't end up making them till a while after they got there, they ended up marinating for about 2 hours, but still were fine. Then I threw the filling in the microwave to heat it up, and stuffed the peppers. That part was really easy! Then again, I don't know why I am trying to convince you to make them this weekend. Its not like I will be getting any! I do hope you try them sometime though.

If anyone who doesn't have the book is interested in that recipe, a friend of mine found it posted here: http://www.kitchenlink.com/ch/samplerecipes.html

[GeckoGirl]

I think what Anne MEANT to say was.."a wonderful, funny, and infinitely SMART friend found it!"
:D

Lynda

[swquilts]

I found it at the Frontera Grill's website! :p

[JHolcomb]

I can't find the stuffed ancho recipe on either of the sites. Can someone help me?

[swquilts]

Try this link:

http://www.recipelink.com/ch/samplerecipes.html

Edited to say: I didn't find it on the Frontera site. My booboo. This might bring you to the page with multiple recipes, its down a little bit.

[beacooker]

Originally posted by GeckoGirl
I think what Anne MEANT to say was.."a wonderful, funny, and infinitely SMART friend found it!"
:D


Oh. I'm sorry, Lynda. I thought it was you who sent it to me.

If you had mentioned how beautiful and, especially, modest, the friend is, I would have known you meant yourself. ;)

Jen, did you find it? You have to scroll down for it.

[JHolcomb]

Thanks! I think my browser at work was screwy. I've printed this out and think I'll put it on the menu for next week, along with some pintos.

[MKSquared]

Heyyyy .... I made the Jicama appetizer. To be accurate, I made it without the jicama. Be careful about the ground chile you put in - it was hot, hot hot. :) And it's definitely more like a salsa/salad thing rather than a pick-up-appetizer.

[JHolcomb]

So what is jicama like? I imagine it to be sorta like a raw potato. Is it?

[beacooker]

Jicama is a bit like raw potato in texture, but crunchier. It reminded me more of celery, which I abhor. It has a sweeter taste than celery though.

[sunberst]

i love the chorizo and potato tacos- so simple as it only has chorizo, onion, red potatoes & the corn tortillas!

his salsas are terrific as well, i cant remeber off hand which ones i have made, but they were all superb.

i want to go to frontera for dinner now...

[beacooker]

I thought it was time to post some reviews again. I have been doing some really good eating!

I feel kind of weird for having so many items rated a 2, but I want to point out that a 2 means that I really liked the dish, just that I didn't like it enough to want to run out and make it again. This is often more because of how much work a recipe is, or, because the type of dish itself just isn't something I can see making again. The flan is a good example of this: I like flan ok, DH doesn't like it at all. The flan I made tasted great, for flan. For anyone who really likes flan, I would recommend this recipe. But I just don't think I will make it again. If I did ever make flan again, I would probably use this recipe.

Topolo "Caesar" Salad - Rating: 1 :( DH and I both hated this salad. It was different from traditional Caesar salads because it has lime juice in the dressing. Our dressing came out very bitter.

Achiote-Roasted Pork Tacos with Pickled Red Onions - Rating: 2 good, just kind of bland. The pickled red onions on the tacos were awesome though!

Tacos of Tomatillo Chicken with Wilted Greens and Fresh Cheese - Rating: 2 the tomatillo flavor wasn't strong enough for me on this one. I think I was expecting something more like enchiladas verdes, so I was bound to be disappointed.

Rustic Red-Sauced Eggs on Corn Tortillas - Rating: 3

Guajillo Chilaquiles - Rating: 3. DH loved this, I liked it ok. The sauce for this was a bit too salty for me. I had never cooked with guajillo chiles before, and if you asked me, I probably would have said that I had never eaten them before either. Now that I've tasted them, I realize that they are used quite commonly, so I had a bit of an A-ha moment: 'So that's what gives things this flavor!'

Seared Zuccini with Roasted Tomato, Chipotle and Chorizo - Rating: 2 This recipe used up a lot of things I had in my refrigerator, so I was very happy to find it. I think it would have been better if it had some potato or maybe some chayote squash in it. Maybe half the amount of zuccini, and the other half potato or chayote. The dish just didn't seem to have enough texture.

Classic Mexican Pot Beans - Rating: 2 Seems kind of hard to rate this recipe, because it was mainly 'put beans in water and cook until they are tender'. Not surprisingly, they were bland.

Modern Mexican Chocolate Flan with Kahlua - Rating: 3 I actually made the coffee-flavored variation of this recipe. As I said above, if I was a big fan of flan, I would definitely make this recipe again. However, I am not, so I probably will not. I will say that it was extremely satisfying to see the finished product looking so much like what you get in a restaurant.

Black Bean Chilaquiles with Smoky Chipotle Rating: 4 I have made these 3 times now, I love them so much. I almost hesitate to call them a '4' though, because I think that makes them sound like a really stand-up-and-grab-you kind if dish, and chilaquiles just aren't like that. This is just a very easy, homey, comforting dish. No matter what I am wearing or what the weather is like , when I eat them I feel like I am in my comfiest jammies on a cold winter night. Delicious with chopped shrimp and sour cream on top.

Smoky Shredded Pork Tacos - Rating: 4 I can't wait to have these again. This was the first authentic picadillo I have made, and I had a hard time convincing DH that raisins really are an authentic part of the recipe. Once he tasted the tacos, though, he quit complaining. :) This is a great use of leftover cooked pork.

Tangy Tomatillo-Sauced Fish Enchiladas Rating: 4 I am a happy, happy woman! One of my quests in cooking Mexican food was to discover the perfect recipe for enchiladas verdes, and this is it. The fish filling was very simple: just cooked flaked fish and some potato. It was the sauce that made this dish. The perfect amount of tanginess to it. And the diced white onion mixed with cilantro and the diced radishes were excellent on top of the enchiladas. Those were a small touch that helped make the dish perfect. In the future I will probably use chicken for the filling. And there definitely will be a future....

[JBR]

Thanks for all the Rick Bayless reviews! Mexican Kitchen was one of the first cookbooks I bought when I really became interested in cooking 6-7 years ago. Although I read the book from cover to cover, I never got beyond a few of the salsa and bean recipes. I'm lucky to live in the Chicago area now, and I try to go to Frontera when I got a craving for great Mexican food. All these great reviews have brought me back to this cookbook. With more cooking experience, the recipes aren't nearly as intimidating as I remembered. I've added a couple dishes to next weeks menu plan, and I'll look forward to more reviews.

Judy

[Gail]

Originally posted by beacooker
...Tangy Tomatillo-Sauced Fish Enchiladas Rating: 4 I am a happy, happy woman! One of my quests in cooking Mexican food was to discover the perfect recipe for enchiladas verdes, and this is it. The fish filling was very simple: just cooked flaked fish and some potato. It was the sauce that made this dish. The perfect amount of tanginess to it. And the diced white onion mixed with cilantro and the diced radishes were excellent on top of the enchiladas. Those were a small touch that helped make the dish perfect. In the future I will probably use chicken for the filling. And there definitely will be a future....

Checking back to let you know it's eleven pm and we just finished eating these about a half hour ago. I was impressed-- a good first Bayless recipe for me. I did this with mahimahi and though I cut down the amount of potato, probably I would've cut it down even more. I agree with you-- the sauce was the best part of the dish (though we enjoyed the mahimahi filling) and I would definitely use it again with chicken.

Thanks again for pointing me toward this recipe.

[lorilei]

Aha, Gail - you've found one of my favorite Bayless recipes.

When I've grown tomatillos in the yard, I've made up VATS of this sauce and frozen it for winter consumption. It's great stuff, and works for a myriad of dishes.

:) :) :)

[sherri]

I got his book from the library (Mexico One Plate at a Time) and I made the Tortilla Soup with shitake mushrooms...it was fabulous. I also want to make the Masa Gnocchi at some point!

[laughsandlaughs]

Anne or whoever'd like to answer,

I have to ask, what's a Chilaquiles?? You mention both Black Bean and Chipotle ones, and I just don't know what they are. Anyone have a recipe?

Thanks!!
Elizabeth

[beacooker]

Chilaquiles are basically a Mexican casserole. It is a dish created to use up leftovers. Basically, any chilaquile recipe consists of sauce and tortillas. You heat the sauce, then add broken up corn tortillas (or tortilla chips), and let simmer for a few minutes until the tortillas get soft. Optionally, you can add meat, cheese, avocado, whatever floats your boat. Of course, there are lots of recipes for chilaquiles, and I will post the Black Bean one, since I have it in Mastercook. You can vary your chilaquiles just by varying the sauce used, and you can always make up your own recipe by just using any leftover Mexican sauce you have on hand, or making any recipe for a sauce that looks good to you, and adding the tortillas. I have seen some recipes where you actually bake the chilaquiles, but I have never made one that way.


* Exported from MasterCook *

Black Bean Chilaquiles


Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
1 1/4 cups dried black beans -- cleaned
6 cups chicken or beef brotb or water
1/2 medium white onion -- roughly chopped
4 garlic cloves -- peeled and rougbly chopped
4 sprigs epazote
3 canned chipotle chiles en adobo -- plus 2 teaspoons tomatoey adobo from the can
1 teaspoon Salt -- if needed
8 ounces tortilla chips -- (about 8 loosely packed cups) preferably ones that are not too thin
1/2 cup sour cream -- thinned with a little milk
1/4 cup finely crumbled Mexican queso anejo, dry feta or Parmesan
1 small ripe avocado -- peeled, pitted and cut into 1/2-incb cubes, for garnish
cooked shrimp -- chopped

Rinse the beans, then scoop into a medium (4-quart) pot. Measure in 5 cups of the broth or water, the onion, garlic and 1 sprig of the epazote. Cut the chipotle chiles lengthwise in half, scrape out the seeds and slice into thin strips. Add 1/3 of the chiles to the beans; set aside the remainder. Bring beans to a boil, then simmer, partially covered, over medium to medium-low heat, until the beans are thoroughly tender, about 2 hours. (If necessary, add a little extra water during the cooking to keep the beans completely submerged).

In batches in a food processor or loosely covered blender, puree the bean mixture and all the liquid; transfer to a large (10- to 12-inch) skillet. Stir in enough broth or water (it may take an extra cup or so) to bring the bean sauce to the consistency of a thin cream soup Taste and season with salt.

Bring the black bean sauce to a boil over medium heat. Add the tortilla chips, 8 good-size leaves plucked from 2 sprigs of the epazote and another third of the chipotle chiles. Stir to coat the chips well, then rapidly boil over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until the chips have softened (but still retain a little chewiness), and the sauce has reduced to a medium consistency, 2 to 3 minutes for thinner chips and 4 to 5 minutes for thicker chips.

Scoop the chilaquiles onto a warm, deep serving platter (a 10-inch deep-dish pie plate or small Mexican cazuela works well). Drizzle with the cream, sprinkle with cheese, and the remaining chipotle chiles, dot with the avocado and lastly strew with a few roughly chopped epazote leaves. Serve without hesitation.



Source:
"Rick Bayless' Mexican Cooking"


NOTES : ADVANCE PREPARATION – The beans may be cooked several days in advance.

SHORTCUTS – Although the finished dish will not be as dramatically black, you can substitute two 16-ounce cans black beans (with their liquid) for the dried beans; puree as directed in step 1 along with a third of the chiles and broth or water as needed. Taste and season with salt, then proceed with step 2.

VARIATIONS AND IMPROVISATIONS
The family of Geno Bahena, one of our longtime chefs at Frontera Grill and Topolobampo, makes these chilaquiles by first softly scrambling an egg with the chips (don’t let it completely set), then adding the sauce and continuing. I like to vary the chile flavor to pasilla or guajillo, simmering some with the beans, then crumbling a little crisply toasted chile on top. Because of my passion for shrimp and black beans, I love black bean chilaquiles strewn with coarsely chopped grilled shrimp.

Elizabeth, if you try these, let me know how you like them!

[beckms]

I dragged up this old thread to add my reviews of two recipes.

I reviewed Quick Fried Shrimp with Sweet Toasty Garlic (http://community.cookinglight.com/showthread.php?t=77668) yesterday. Excellent.

Today for lunch I made Queso Fundido, essentially a soft taco using corn tortillas and filled with crumbled chorizo, roasted poblano pepper, onion, and cheese. Another hit!

I borrowed this book from the library to "audition" it, and I think it's passed the test! :D

[irishspy]

I borrowed this book from the library to "audition" it, and I think it's passed the test! :D

It's one of my favorite books, too. (Aw, heck. I like all Bayless' books. I could eat Mexican three times a day. :D ) In fact, I made the Queso Fundido for dinner last Sunday. Perfect with a cold Negro Modelo and a good movie. :cool:

[Kristal]

Thanks for bringing this back up, I don't know how I missed it the first (or second!) time around. I have this cookbook at home and look forward to trying some of the "4" recipes that Anne reviewed.

[beacooker]

beckms, you must have known that I've been feeling major Rick Bayless guilt lately. Rick Bayless recipes were perfect for me when I was a SAHM, because his recipes involve many small steps that you can do over the course of a day or two, but they don't fit very well into a working mom's schedule. :( Still, I have at least pulled out the cookbook a few times in the last few weeks, so I maybe I will cook some more recipes from the book soon. I haven't given up on my quest!

[swquilts]

Can anyone share the recipe for Tangy Tomatillo-Sauced Fish Enchiladas Rating: 4? I have lots of fish in the freezer.

[granolagirl]

I realize this is an old thread, but any more reviews? :)

[Sararwelch]

Actually, yes! I've really been enjoying this book.

Refried beans - I make these all the time, sometimes with pintos, sometimes with black beans. They're delicious, using a little bacon fat really makes a huge difference.

Layered tortilla casserole with swiss chard and corn - almost like a mexican vegetarian lasagna, with corn tortillas, tomato sauce and layers of corn, zucchini and swiss chard. This was good, but not amazing.

Achiote fish tacos - these were good, but be careful when making achiote paste! I stained my spice grinder orange. I made enough achiote paste for the fish and for the pork recipe at the same time.

Achiote pork tacos - great, I used boneless pork country ribs instead of pork butt. The marinated red onions for topping the tacos are a must.

Crusty quesadillas - really good for a quick weeknight meal, I make the poblano mixture a day in advance and then just assemble when I get home from work.

Mushroom pasilla tacos - good, but mine ended up quite spicy, so make sure you serve with sour cream.

Tomatillo chicken tacos with greens - I thought this was really delicious, the filling ended up a little more watery than I would have liked though.

Chipotle shrimp - quite good, a little bit sweet, a little bit spicy.

Fava bean soup with pasilla and mint - I made the full batch and put half in the freezer for another night, I think it'll reheat nicely. The soup was pretty simple, but the fava beans break down to make a thick and creamy base.

Fideos with zucchini - a great recipe, really different from the usual pasta dishes.

Next up: smoky braised pumpkin with seared onion. I'm making this tonight, already made the tomatillo and chipotle salsa. I'm using a sugar pie pumpkin.

I've had a lot of success with this book. I find that although the recipes can sometimes look a little complicated, almost all of the sauces can be made in advance, and sometimes I even make them a week in advance and freeze them to cut down prep time on a weeknight.

[margeslp]

Thank you for bringing this thread to the top. As a relative newbie I had no idea this was available.
I get comfort without calories watching Rick on PBS. Even his voice is soothing. He's not on our local channels anymore (I'm out in the country so don't have cable) but always felt satisfied and not overly saturated with fat in listening to his preparations. Glad to get all your reviews

[drewberry4]

Dessert was Mexican Chocolate Streusel Cake from One Plate. It was awesome!

I only have One Plate so far, but I've made this Mexican Chocolate Streusel Cake and it was really good! Definitely a different flavor than what I had expected, but I really enjoyed it!

[coffeeisamust]

Thanks for the reviews I love Mexican food too!