Sense of Home Kitchen
If you are looking for something to supply a little heat during this chilly season this recipe will fit the bill. There is no need to drown the chimis in a heavy sauce, this adobe sauce (normally reserved for enchiladas) packs a lot of heat and is big on flavor, a little goes a long way. The recipe starts right away with the heat by having you toast the dried ancho chiles and then pouring water over them and bringing them to a boil, this sends the spicy nature of the chiles into the air and soon all your senses are aware that you will be eating something sensational tonight.
I started preparing for our chimichanga dinner the day before by slow-cooking, I mean very slow cooking, over low heat, a 5 1/2 pound pork roast for approximately nine hours. After a day on low heat the roast literally falls apart when lifted from the pot. Then I shredded the pork setting aside at least 3 cups worth for making these chimis. That left plenty of shredded pork to make a dinner of pulled pork sandwiches with coleslaw on top. I then strained the pork stock to get any bits of meat or bone that remained and I stored the stock, uncovered, in the refrigerator.
The next day I took the stock out of the refrigerator, carefully lifted the solid pork fat off the top and set it aside to be used later in this chimichanga process. The stock was added to those rehydrated ancho chiles in a blender along with onion, wine, and spices and it was blended into a beautiful sauce. Mexican oregano is used in this sauce because it is stronger than Mediterranean oregano and stands up well in such a spicy, full-flavored sauce. The sauce is then added to a pot and reduced by about half, the color turning darker and the flavors richer in the process. The sauce I chose to make is based loosely on a chile sauce in the cookbook "The Homesick Texan" by Lisa Fain.
You won't be able to resist sticking a finger into this sauce and giving it a taste, then you will decide you need to take a piece of pork and dip it in as well, just to make sure the sauce is as good as you thought it was with the finger test. Save some of the sauce though to mix in with your shredded pork and green chili mixture and some to pour around the rolled chimis. Both shredded chicken and turkey can be substituted for the pork in this dish and chicken or turkey stock can be a substitute for the pork stock, use what you have on hand, it will be good.
Using homemade flour tortillas, or store-bought, you will warm and lightly toast the flour tortillas in a small amount of the reserved pork fat to cook and lightly toast your homemade tortillas or to warm and lightly toast your store-bought tortillas. Pork fat may have a bad reputation, but the truth is it is high in both omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids and low in trans fatty acids. These chimichangas are then baked at a high temperature to crisp them rather than deep-fried, making them less greasy.
Pork Chimichangas with Adobe Sauce
~from the Sense of Home Kitchen~
Serves 4
Adobe Sauce
4 dried ancho chiles, stem removed and seeded
2 canned chipotle chiles in adobe sauce
2 cups pork stock
1 medium onion, about 1 cup, chopped
1/4 cup Merlot, or similar medium body wine
3 large garlic cloves
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon Mexican oregano
Salt, to taste
In a dry heavy bottomed pot heated on high, toast the ancho chiles on each side for about about 10 to 15 seconds. Fill the pot with enough water to cover the chiles. Leave the heat on until the water begins to boil and then turn off the heat and let the chiles soak until the are soft, about 30 minutes. Once the chiles are hydrated, discard the soaking water and place the chiles in a blender. Saute the chopped onion until it is tender and translucent. Add the chipotle chiles, garlic, sauted onion, cumin, oregano, allspice, wine and pork stock to the ancho chiles in the blender and puree. The sauce should be smooth and thick. Pour the sauce back into the, now empty, heavy pot and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Simmer for approximately 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens and reduces by about half. Add salt to taste. Set aside.
Pork Chimichangas
8 small- to medium-sized tortillas, homemade or store-bought
1 tablespoon reserved pork fat
3 cups shredded pork
1 4.5 ounce can of chopped green chiles
1/2 cup adobe sauce (recipe above)
3 tablespoons fresh cilantro or 1 tablespoon dried
1 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Dried cilantro to sprinkle
2 tomatoes, diced
2 avocados, diced
Sour Cream
Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
Mix shredded pork, green chiles, adobe sauce, and 3 tablespoons of cilantro in a medium-sized bowl. Place a small amount of the adobe sauce in a 9 x 13 baking dish. Heat a heavy skillet and place a small amount of pork fat on the hot pan. Place tortilla on the skillet warming and lightly toasting on both sides. Remove tortilla from skillet to a clean plate, place 1/3 cup of pork mixture in the center of the tortilla and fold one end in and both sides in, place filled tortilla in baking dish and continue filling flour tortillas until all 8 are filled and in the baking dish. Sprinkle shredded cheese across the top of the filled tortillas and ladle adobe sauce around and across the top. The sauce should not cover the tortillas completely, that way the tortillas can crisp in the oven. Sprinkle with dried cilantro. Place in the preheated oven and bake for approximately 15 minutes, until tortillas are crisp and lightly browned.
Serve with diced tomatoes, avocados, and a dollop of sour cream.
Sense of Home Kitchen / Recipes / Main Dishes / Pork
