Cullen's Chili
Verde Enchiladas
2 red bell peppers
1 1/2 pounds fat-trimmed pork tenderloin
1 cup tomato salsa
2 cups shredded jack cheese
16 (6 inch) corn tortillas
1/2 cup cornstarch
1 (16 ounce) can fat-skimmed chicken broth
salt & pepper
1 tablespoon minced
2 (19 ounce) cans green enchilada sauce
2 cups nonfat milk
2 onions
1 1/2 teaspoons cumin seed
1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro
To taste; picante or other sauce Sauces Mexican
Rinse peppers and discard stems, seeds, and veins. Cut peppers into 1/4- by
2-inch pieces. Peel onions and cut into 1/4- by 2-inch pieces
Rinse pork, pat dry, and cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices not more than 2
inches long. Set a 10- to 12-inch nonstick frying pan over high heat; add meat
and stir just until no longer pink, about 2 minutes. Pour from pan into a bowl.
When cool enough to handle, in about 5 minutes, tear meat into strips about 1/2
inch wide.
Meanwhile, add peppers, onions, broth, cumin, and garlic to frying pan. Stir
often over high heat until liquid has evaporated and vegetables are lightly
browned, about 10 minutes. Pour mixture into bowl with pork; add cilantro.
Pour enchilada sauce into frying pan and add juices from meat
mixture. In another bowl, blend milk with cornstarch until smooth, and add
to enchilada sauce. Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring often. Remove from
heat.
Stack tortillas and enclose loosely in microwave-safe plastic wrap. Heat
in a microwave oven at full power (100%) just until hot, 1 to 2 minutes
Pour about 2 cups enchilada sauce mixture into each of 2 shallow casseroles
(each 3 qt., about 9 by 13 in.). Turn 8 tortillas, 1 at a time, in sauce in 1
casserole and stack at 1 end. Distribute 1/16 of the pork mixture and 1
tablespoon cheese down center of each tortilla, 1 at a time. Roll to enclose
filling; set tortillas, seam down and side by side, in sauce. Repeat to fill
tortillas in remaining casserole
Pour remaining enchilada sauce over tortillas, coating them evenly
Bake, covered, in a 375 degree oven until enchiladas are hot (140 degrees to 150
degrees) in the center, 40 to 45 minutes. Uncover, sprinkle remaining cheese
evenly over enchiladas, and bake until melted, 2 to 3 minutes longer
. Serve with a wide spatula. Add salsa and salt to taste.
Silences make the real conversations between friends. Not the
saying but the never needing to say is what counts.
- Margaret Lee Runback