Chipotle Chili

I was surprised at how much I loved this untraditional chili...especially since I'm not the biggest fan of chipotle peppers. It's smoky and spicy and pairs perfectly with this cornbread. I made this for my grandparents and they loved it! At least that's what they told me! :) Make it, you'll love it.

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 red bell pepper, diced
2 pounds lean ground beef
1 medium sized yellow onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, chopped
2 tablespoons McCormick grill seasoning
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 chipotles in adobo, chopped, plus 1 tablespoon of the sauce
1/2 cup steak sauce (I used A1)
1 1/2 cups beef stock/broth
1 can crushed fire roasted tomatoes
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained

Heat the olive oil in a soup pot over medium high heat. When the oil starts to smoke, add the bell peppers and onions. Cook until semi-soft. Pour into a separate bowl. Add the beef to the pot and cook. Season with grill seasoning, chipotles, and Worcestershire sauce. Drain any grease. Add the onions and peppers back to the pot in addition to the tomatoes and beef stock. Ladle into bowls and serve!

source: adapted from here

Have any questions about this recipe? Email me at me@amandaabby.com

Mexican Rice

This is my favorite Mexican rice recipes and is so quick and easy! I use basmati rice, so I adjust the amount of chicken broth. To make this recipe easier, I will often use chicken bullion cubes plus water and use canned, diced tomatoes instead of the fresh ones.

2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 onion, diced
2-4 garlic cloves, chopped
2 cups long-grain white rice
4 cups chicken broth
1 packet sazon seasoning with coriander and annatto (Goya brand- found in Mexican food aisle)
2 small plum tomatoes, seeded and diced
salt and pepper

Heat the oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and saute until tender and translucent. Add the chicken broth, rice and sazon packet packet and stir. Stir in the tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Reduce the heat to low and cover with a lid. Cook until the rice is tender and all of the liquid is absorbed, about 15-20 minutes. Remove the lid and fluff with fork.

source: recipe adapted from here

Chipotle and Orange Pork Tacos

If you want to make something sooo good and flavorful- make these pork tacos. They were extremely tender and had just the right amount of orange flavor. They were pretty spicy-so if you have an aversion to spicy foods- I'd leave out some (or all) of the chipotle peppers and just add the chipotle pepper sauce. The spicy-ness factor toned down the next day, though. I thought they were even better as leftovers. Try the pork with enchiladas, burritos, quesadillas, nachos- anything!



 recipe from Tasty Kitchen

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 lbs of pork shoulder, cut into large chunks (be sure to trim the fat)


• 1 package of Sazon con Culantro y Achiote (coriander and Annatto)*


• 3 tbsp olive oil


• 2 large oranges, zested and juiced


• 3 cloves of garlic, skin removed, smashed


• 3 canned chipotle peppers, chopped  (see note above)


• 4 tbsp of the chipotle adobo sauce (I only used 3 tablespoons)


• guacamole or avacado


• Small handful of cilantro, chopped


• red onion, sliced


• shredded cheese


• sliced black olives


• shredded lettuce


• corn tortillas, warmed through (to make tortillas crispy- heat a skillet with a drop or two of canola oil on high ish heat- add a tortilla and cook until crisp. keep warm in a 250 toaster oven or regular oven on a plate)

Begin by sprinkling the sazon all over the pork shoulder chunks. To a large skillet, add the oil and bring to a medium high heat. Add the pork, in batches, and brown each side. During this time, bring out the slow cooker.  Zest the oranges and place in the bottom of the slow cooker, along with the juice from both oranges. When the pork is browned, add them to the slow cooker. Top with the pieces of smashed garlic, the chopped chipotle peppers, and the adobo sauce. Place on low, cover, and forget about it for at least 6 hours. I let mine go at least 10-12 hours, which is perfect if you prep the night before, and let it cook while you go to work (or church- in my case- as I made these yesterday. I cooked mine for about 10 hours).

Get some tongs or two forks, and begin shredding apart the pork, within the slow cooker. If cooked long enough- the pork will just fall apart. You can place these on your warm tortillas at this stage, or you can take a small batch of the shredded pork, and add it to a skillet that has been warmed on medium heat, and build a little bit of crisp on the strands of pork. I like doing this as it adds just the right texture to the pork. (I did this when eating leftovers- so good)

When you are ready to serve, add as much pork as you want to two corn tortillas with cheese melted between them (a quesadilla of sorts). Add toppings and devour.

note: served this with cilantro lime rice (recipe to come!)

*The sazon might be hard to find- but if I can find it in a walmart in the podunk town I live in, you probably can too. It's in the ethnic food aisle. As a bonus- I think it only cost $1.12 and it contains 8 little (5 gram) packets.