Mexican Independence is getting closer, and in hopes of you celebrating it, I will continue to provide entertaining recipes. Now, let’s face it: some of you will resort to more Americanized foods and that’s okay. I know you just love nachos! Even I do, I have to say, and I have no problem in eating nachos or making them, as long as we don’t fall through the “is it Mexican food or not” rabbit hole. Much to my surprise and maybe even yours, nachos ARE Mexican!
El Moderno is a small restaurant in Piedras Negras, Coahuila, right in front of Eagle Pass, Texas. It was around 1943 and Chef Ignacio Anaya had just closed the kitchen when a group of American army wives walked in the joint. The ladies were hungry after their shopping trip and asked for whatever the chef could come up with; all he had left was Colby cheese, pickled jalapeños and hard tortillas. He tossed the ingredients together and threw them in the oven. The ladies were so delighted they jokingly started calling the snack “nacho’s special” -Nacho is the nickname for any Ignacio in Mexico.- Colby cheese was often called “help cheese” because American soldiers would hand it out to the people, times were hard on both sides of the border! The Americans who got Colby cheese would cross it to Mexico and sell it for a little profit.
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Back before the border was geopolitical, food was not either American or Mexican, nor texmex. It was Texan American food, and ingredients were shared back and forth with no nationalist label. Nachos went through changes as many dishes do, and as guacamole, beans, Pico de Gallo, sour cream and beef became more popular, nachos started to have more layers and flavors.
In 1970 a cheese sauce was invented (which in my opinion is one of humanity’s worst mistakes) and nachos changed forever. This is the origin of cinema nachos; you know the ones with the plastic like “cheese” sauce. Yuck. Anyway, in 1976 the first nachos of this kind appeared at a baseball stadium for a Texas Rangers game, and then a year later at a football stadium for a Dallas Cowboys game. After that, they were found all around the country and spread to other countries.
There is no specific recipe for nachos, but the nacho festival has three minimum requirements: tortilla chips, cheese and some sort of chile. I also think looking messy should be added. I think the messier they look, the more delicious they look.
In this edition, I will give you a recipe for chilorio, because the most delicious nachos I’ve ever had have chilorio in them. Chilorio is so good they sell it canned now at the supermarkets.
Chilorio is a traditional Mexican dish originating from the state of Sinaloa, it is a prehispanic dish, which was originally made with boar, porcupine and chile. After the Spaniards brought pork, the recipe changed. It’s a type of pork stew made by slow-cooking shredded pork in a rich, flavorful sauce typically made from dried chili peppers (usually ancho or guajillo), garlic, cumin, oregano, and other spices. The pork is often simmered in lard, which gives it a tender texture and a deep, savory flavor. It is very strongly believed that chile and many spices were used as a conservative for meat, along with pork lard. Mexicans in the north of the country used this to their advantage, that is how chilorio was born as a “to go” meat that could be enjoyed on its own or in a tortilla.
For the chilorio:
Ingredients:
2 lb. of pork meat, cubed.
1 ½ cups of water
½ teaspoon of salt
1 laurel leaf
2 spoonfuls of pork lard (can be substituted but try to use lard, it’s worth it)
4 ancho chiles
¼ cup of White vinegar
1 teaspoon of dry Mexican oregano
½ teaspoon of ground cumin
6 cloves of garlic
Salt and pepper to taste
Procedure:
Place the meat, water, laurel and salt and pepper in a pot. Cover and bring to a boil and simmer for about 45 minutes, until the meat is tender.
Soak the chiles in warm water to soften and remove seeds and veins. Cook in the same water for about 8 minutes until very soft.
Uncover and let all the water evaporate, make sure the meat doesn’t burn and add the lard if necessary. Let the meat turn a little golden and shred with the help of a couple of forks. Remove the laurel leaf.
Place the chiles and the same water in a blender along with the oregano, cumin and garlic. Pulse until you have a very smooth sauce.
Place the meat pot on the stove, add the salsa and vinegar. Mix well and let the flavors combine over very low heat. Season with salt and pepper.
Cook for fifteen to twenty minutes, until the salsa is absorbed and darkened, and the meat is just a little dry.
Nacho time!
Like I said, there’s no recipe but here’s how I like mine:
A bag of tortilla chips, refried black beans, chilorio, DICED avocado (not guacamole), a mix of cheeses (gouda, chihuahua and cheddar), Pico de Gallo, and pickled jalapeños. SOMETIMES I add crema, but it depends if I am in the mood.
For me, each chip should have a little of everything, so I do layer all my ingredients and have a glorious, delicious mess.
Now, another snack to have on the side or as an ingredient to add to your nachos, a good traditional red salsa.
For the salsa:
Ingredients:
1 pound plum (Roma) tomatoes
1 half medium white onion
2 serrano chiles
8 sprigs of cilantro
2 tablespoons cooking oil
1 teaspoon salt
Procedure:
Chop the ingredients before blending. You need to chop the ingredients before adding them to the blender. Precise chopping isn’t important. You just need smaller pieces so that it is easier to blend without adding water.
Don’t add water, put all the ingredients in your blender. Adding the tomatoes first makes it much easier to blend. Do not add water unless it won’t blend and then only add 2 tablespoons of water at a time. Most of the time you won’t have to add any; too much water makes the salsa runny. You want a full-bodied slightly chunky tomato salsa.
The easiest way to get it started is to pulse the blender 5 or 6 times until the blades start going. Then blend for about 30 to 45 seconds until it is fully blended but still has a coarse texture. The salsa sticks to food better when it has a little texture.
Once the salsa is blended, you are going to fry it in 2 tablespoons of hot cooking oil. To fry it you just pour it into the hot oil. This step is important to develop the flavor of the salsa and helps bind it. Don’t skip it, even if you are looking to make your diet healthier, this is a crucial step!
Bring it to a boil and then reduce the heat to low. Simmer for 15 minutes until it has taken on a deep red color and has more body. Looks good, doesn’t it? The tomatoes need to be very ripe for the sauce to take on the deep red color.
And that’s it! Thank you for reading and reaching out, I am always available at ale.borbolla@gringogazette.com
