Green Chili

This green-hot chili packs a wollop, but you can serve it with plenty of tortillas and some cool guacamole.  It gets its color from the combination of fresh green peppers–sweet bell peppers and hot chile peppers. 

Featuring

Servings

Makes 6 to 8 servings

Ingredients

3 tablespoons Chef Paul Prudhomme's Meat Magic®, in all
1 tablespoon ground cumin, in all
3/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg, in all
1½ pounds ground pork
½ cup pork lard or chicken fat (either preferred) or vegetable oil
1½ (6-inch) corn tortillas
1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
2½ cups chopped onions, in all
2 cups chopped green bell peppers, in all
1¼ cups canned diced green chile peppers and their juice, in all
¼ cup minced fresh jalapeño peppers, in all
1½ teaspoons minced garlic
1/3 cup all purpose flour
5 cups pork or chicken stock, in all

How To Prepare

Combine 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon of the Meat Magic, ½ teaspoon of the cumin, and 1/8 teaspoon of the nutmeg. Sprinkle the pork evenly with this mixture and mix by hand until thoroughly combined.

Melt the lard or chicken fat (or heat the oil) in a heavy 4-quart pot over high heat. Add the meat and, stirring as necessary, cook just until brown. Remove the meat with a slotted spoon, getting as many of the tiny pieces out as possible, and set aside. In the same oil fry the tortillas over high heat until brown and very crisp, then drain on paper towels.

Combine the remaining Meat Magic, cumin, nutmeg, and the oregano in a small bowl, then add to the hot oil. Cook the seasonings over high heat, stirring constantly, until they roast, about 10 to 15 seconds. Add 1½ cups of the onions and cook, stirring constantly and scraping the pan bottom well, for 10 to 15 seconds. Stir in 1 cup of the bell peppers, ½ cup of the green chiles, and 2 tablespoons of the jalapeño peppers. Cook for 8 minutes, stirring fairly often—constantly toward the end of cooking time—and scraping the pan bottom well each time. Stir in the garlic and cook and stir a few seconds. Add the flour, stirring until well blended and scraping the pan bottom clean, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring and scraping almost constantly to make sure the mixture doesn't scorch. (Soups containing ground meat and flour stick more than other types of soup.)

Add 1 cup of the stock, scraping the pan bottom until all the browned bits are dissolved, then add the remaining 4 cups of stock. Stir until well blended and scrape the pan bottom clean again. Continue cooking over high heat, stirring occasionally.

Meanwhile, remove 1 cup of the stock from this mixture and place in a food processor. Crumble the fried tortillas, add them to the processor, and process until the tortillas are finely chopped, about 30 to 45 seconds. Stir the tortilla mixture into the cooking stock mixture. Stir in the remaining onions and bell peppers, and add the meat, stirring well. Bring the mixture to a boil, stirring occasionally, then reduce the heat and simmer, stirring and scraping fairly often—be careful not to let the mixture scorch—for 50 minutes. Stir in the remaining green chiles and jalapeño peppers, and simmer and stir for 15 minutes. Skim off any oil from the surface and serve immediately.

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