Chuletas De Puerco Adobados

Chuletas De Puerco Adobados (Pork Chops seasoned with Adobo Paste)

Here you can see the Ancho Chiles rehydrating, after toasting them for a couple minutes.

Hard to pass up a shot of the salt, thyme, cumin, garlic and what would be Seville orange juice.  The Molcajte I purchased in Mexico and brought back on the plane along with two others.  Beautiful pieces, very heavy, but they work quite well, and were worth buying the real deal, as opposed to the ones in the states.

The final product, very good, and I will make it again, except I think I will tone down the sauce.  The recipe called for 6 services of pork chops, and I kept the same measurements for the Adobo paste, so that flavor was a bit strong, with only two chops.  

Pico De Gallo Con Duraznos

Here is Diana's Pico De gallo con Duraznos recipe (Peach Pico De Gallo).  Turned out quite well, and has a nice kick to it from the Serrano Peppers.

Here is the final product, unaltered from above, but served with Arroz Blanco or White Rice.

Salsa De Muchos Chiles

Here is another salsa recipe from Diana Kennedy that I tried, Sauce of Many Chiles.

Couple mistakes, questions, I have regarding the recipe and what I found to work. For instance, the recipe in "The Essential Cuisines of Mexico"states that the chiles should crumble easily. I did not find this to be the case. The Arbols crumbled just fine, but as explained by a friend, this is just because they are so thin to begin with. Everything else I had to tear apart myself, and after blending just so much as to leave some rustic consistency, I found the larger pieces chewy. Not cool. So I blended everything again, to turn it into a sauce rather than a salsa. I did not add the cilantro either, at the end as I just ran out of time.

Very tasty, very smokey, and quite complex in flavor.

As seen here in order, we have the cascabel, morita, arbol, chipotle, and guajillo chiles.

Notice, how most of the chiles were still left in rather large pieces after trying to crumble. Chiles burn quite easily, and very quickly so I think you are better off under toasting rather than over toasting and burning.
You can see the salsa, after blending the first time, and while there is still some consistency, but with large chewy pieces of chiles. I decided to puree, and blend it all together after this.

The final product, pureed, and without cilantro. Very good still. Will make this one again, for sure.

Ingredients
2 chiles cascabel
2 chiles moritas
2 chiles de arbol
1 chile chipotle
1 chile guajillo
2 large tomatoes
4 cloves garlic, peeled
1/4 teaspoon sea salt, or to taste
1/2 cup cold water
1/2 bunch chopped cilantro leaves
Directions
Heat a comal or cast iron skillet over a medium high heat. Toast the chiles, turning them constantly so they don=t burn, 30 to 60 seconds. Let them cool and remove their stems. Crumble them with their seeds and veins.
Toast the tomatoes and garlic until slightly charred. Let them cool. In a blender combine the chiles, garlic, tomatoes, salt, and water and blend until you have a rough sauce. Pieces of the chiles should be visible. Transfer salsa to a bowl and stir in the cilantro.

Pollo En Ajo-Comino

Pollo En Ajo-Comino (Chicken in Garlic and Cumin)

Recipe is adapted from Diana Kennedys book "The Essential Cuisines of Mexico."

I used chicken thighs, and threw in a fried egg for good measures. I think I will cut the amount of oil next time, as well as cut the amount of cumin by a 1/3.

4 ancho chiles, veins and seeds removed
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
12 black peppercorns
1 whole clove
1 tablespoon kosher salt, or to taste
4 garlic cloves
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
4 1/2-pound chicken, cut into serving pieces

1. In a small skillet, cover the ancho chiles with water and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 5 minutes, then soak for another 5 minutes. Drain.
2. Using a molcajete or mortar, grind the cumin, black peppercorns, clove, salt, and garlic. Add about 1/4 cup of water to form a thin paste.
3. Blend the soaked ancho chiles with 3/4 cup of water until smooth.
4. Pat the chicken pieces dry with paper towels and season lightly with salt.
5. In a heavy pot, heat the vegetable oil over medium heat. Fry the chicken pieces until pale gold, about 5-6 minutes per side. Remove the chicken from the pot and set aside.
6. Immediately add the cumin and garlic mixture to the pot and cook for about 3 minutes while stirring constantly.
7. Add the pureed ancho chiles and cook for another 3 minutes while scraping the bottom of the pot constantly.
8. Add 2 1/2 cups of water and return the browned chicken pieces to the pot. Bring to a boil and lower the heat to maintain a gentle simmer. Braise while uncovered for about 45 minutes, turning the chicken occasionally.
9. Taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary.