WARNING: RECIPES ENCLOSED. If you have a problem with recipes - hit your "move along" button - NOW - and don't bother the rest of us with your objections. Bv)> At 08:10 PM 7/19/2003 -0500, Pecos B wrote: >Howdy folks, sorry I haven't popped in sooner. Been terribly busy over the >past several months with all the happenings in the world. Finally got a break. > >I am in need of a great enchilada recipe. Trouble is, where I am it is not >easy to get some things. >I'm looking for a recipe that would have everyone singing praises, but >could also be made in a versatile heat range. > >All help is greatly appreciated. I'm going to split this into two batches. These are my favourite recipes in this category. The first one is a basic recipe to all red sauce enchiladas. It comes from a wonderful cook who used to post on FIDO's Cooking Echo. All of her recipes are practical and pretty easy to do. I've never seen a bad one. If you ever see a Kathy Pitts recipe float past - even if you have no immediate need - snag it. It's a keeper. Recipes with "Uncle Dirty Dave's Kitchen" are recipes I have made and liked. Recipes with "Uncle Dirty Dave's Archives" are recipes I plan to make - someday. MMMMM----- Recipe via Meal-Master (tm) v8.06 Title: Homemade Enchilada Sauce Ala Kathy Categories: Tex-mex, Sauces, Chilies Yield: 1 Recipe 6 Dried ancho chiles 6 Dried pasilla chiles 1 cn Chicken broth 1 sm Onion; minced 1 Or 2 cloves garlic Mexican oregano Cumin Salt Ground chile peppers OR Hot sauce NOTE: Wish we could GET Las Palmas here. It's, IMHO, the best of the canned enchilada sauces, but doesn't seem to make it to Texas. Making your own isn't all that difficult. Time consuming and sinus clearing, but not difficult. Don't have a recipe (when you're around here long enough, you'll know that I almost NEVER have a recipe), but I can tell you how to make it. DIRECTIONS: Start with about 6 dried ancho chiles, 6 dried pasilla chiles. Place the chiles on a flat baking sheet and roast in a pre heated 350oF oven until the chiles become fragrant (about 15 minutes). Do not allow them to scorch. NOTE: You might want to open all the windows while doing this, the fumes will definitely clear your sinuses. Remove the chiles from the oven and cool slightly. Slit open and remove the stems, seeds and veins. Place the remainder in a bowl, and cover with boiling water. Allow to sit for about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, heat a can of chicken broth, to which you have added a small minced onion, 1-2 cloves of minced garlic, and a generous pinch of Mexican oregano and cumin. Simmer until the onion and garlic is very soft. Meanwhile, remove the chiles from the liquid, and force through a fine sieve. Do not yield to temptation and whirl this mixture through a blender. The chile peels tend to be bitter, and will transfer this bitterness to the sauce. Discard the peels, and any remaining seeds, but be sure to force all the chile pulp through the sieve. Scrape the chile puree (called a caribe) into the chicken broth mixture. Pour this mixture into a blender or food processor and process until smooth. Return to the pan, and simmer, adjusting seasonings (it may need more cumin, will need salt) to taste. If the mixture isn't hot enough for your taste, add pure ground chile peppers and/or hot sauce to taste. Continue simmering over low heat (careful, it scorches like crazy), stirring frequently, until the mixture is thick enough to coat a spoon. For a quickie version of this, you can always opt for the classic Tex- Mex Chilli Gravy. Melt 2 tbsp. of lard in a frying pan, and add 2 tbsp. of flour, and as much chilli powder (the stuff that contains ground chiles, cumin, oregano, sometimes salt, and God-knows-what-else) as your conscience allows (1/4 cup is a good starting point.) Cook the flour/fat/chile mixture until a thick paste forms. Do not allow it to brown. Now wisk in enough chicken broth to make a medium-thick sauce. Personally, I think this results in an enchilada sauce that tastes remarkably like the enchiladas in frozen TV dinners, but some folks like it. Kathy in Bryan, TX From: Kathy Pitts Uncle Dirty Dave's Archives MMMMM MMMMM----- Recipe via Meal-Master (tm) v8.06 Title: Chicken Enchiladas - Clinton Categories: Poultry, Latino, Sauces Yield: 6 Servings 1 tb Plus 1/3 cup oil 8 oz Can chopped green chilies 1 lg Clove garlic;, minced 28 oz Can tomatoes; drained, Liquid reserved 2 c Chopped onions 2 ts Salt 1/2 ts Oregano 3 c Shredded; cooked chicken 2 c Dairy sour cream 2 c Grated Cheddar cheese 15 Corn tortillas <Sonya Whitaker-Quandt> "This is Clinton's favorite entree. Definitely not low-fat, it has wonderful flavor. In a skillet over medium-high heat, heat 1 Tbsp oil. Add the chilies and garlic; saute until garlic is soft. Break up tomatoes and add to chilies along with onions, 1 tsp salt, oregano and 1/2 cup reserved tomato liquid. Simmer uncovered until thick, about 30 minutes. (You can add more reserved tomato liquid if sauce gets too thick too quickly.) Remove tomato sauce from heat and set aside. Heat 1/3 cup oil in a skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Dip tortillas in hot oil for a few seconds, or just until they become limp. Drain well on paper towels. Fill tortillas with chicken mixture. Roll up and arrange side by side, seam down, in a 9 x 13 x 2-inch baking dish. Pour tomato sauce over enchiladas and bake at 350 degrees until heated through, about 20 minutes. Can freeze cooked enchiladas and heat through in oven before serving. Makes 6 servings. Uncle Dirty Dave's Archives MMMMM MMMMM----- Recipe via Meal-Master (tm) v8.06 Title: Tex-Mex Style Enchiladas Categories: Tex-mex, Beef, Cheese, Chilies Yield: 6 Servings 2 lb Ground beef, 2 md Onions, chopped 4 tb Flour S & P 2 1/2 c Enchilada sauce; separate Recipe 1 lb Cheddar cheese; grated-sharp PREPARE SAUCE AND FILLING: Brown ground beef and 1 chopped onion in a large skillet. There should be enough fat in the beef to eliminate any need for extra oil and also to saute the onions at the same time. While you are browning the beef (it should be completely cooked with no pink or red color left), be sure to break it up so that it is granular in texture, as opposed to chunky, when completely browned. Onions should be limp and translucent but not brown. Add about 4 Tb of flour and saute until flour is completely incorporated into the meat mixture. Add the enchilada sauce. Heat over low heat. If the mixture is too thick, add a little water. The consistency should be that of a thick gravy, but not soupy. Simmer over low heat for 20-30 minutes. PREPARE ROLLED ENCHILADAS: Rolled enchiladas are tougher to assemble, but more authentic. Have ready a large baking pan, we always use an oblong Pyrex pan. One at a time, dip each tortilla in the enchilada sauce just enough to coat and slightly soften. Lay the tortilla flat in the baking pan, spoon about 3 Tb of the enchilada sauce in a line down the middle, top with about 1 ts chopped onion and about 3 Tb of grated cheese. Roll the tortilla tightly into a cylinder with the seam on the bottom, and position against the bottom edge of the baking pan. Repeat until the pan is full. This can get tricky (but it is possible) as the pan gets full. Assembling the enchilada outside of the pan is usually a messy disaster. Depending on the size of the pan and how tightly each enchilada is rolled, you can get 8-12 enchiladas in a pan. This recipe should make about 16-24 enchiladas. Spoon enchilada sauce over the assembled enchiladas to cover thinly. Sprinkle generously with grated cheese. Bake at 425oF. for 20 minutes. PREPARE STACKED ENCHILADAS: This is the New Mexico style. It is much easier to assemble. Have plates ready. One at a time, submerge each tortilla in the enchilada sauce (which should be cooking on low heat during this process) and cook until limp but not falling apart, this may take a little practice to gauge the time. Remove the tortilla from the sauce and place flat on a plate. Spoon a little sauce, including meat, over the tortilla, add about 1 Tb chopped onion and about 4 T grated cheese. Repeat the process until you have a stack of 3-4 tortillas on a plate, depending on the appetite of the person who will eat them. Top the last tortilla with a generous amount of sauce and cheese. Serve immediately. The fundamental difference between these two styles is the method used to cook the tortillas. In the rolled style, the sauce is cooked into the tortilla through the baking process. In the stacked style, the tortilla is cooked directly in the sauce. Only the appearance differs, the taste is the same with either style. NOTES: * Central Texas style Mexican enchiladas; We cook beef enchiladas in two ways, the traditional rolled enchilada and the easier-to-cook New Mexico stacked style. Both procedures are given. Also, we used to cook the enchilada sauce/chilli from scratch but more recently began using a shortcut with canned Old El Paso brand enchilada sauce, since it is not only faster (20 minutes vs. 4+ hours) but also has a very authentic spice combination. Yield: Serves 6-8. * I always use Old El Paso canned enchilada sauce, though it is possible to make your own. (UDD note) I use Kathy Pitts' enchilada sauce recipe. It ain't hard to make. Difficulty: moderate. Time: 1 hour. Precision: approximate measurement OK. Pamela McGarvey UCLA Comprehensive Epilepsy Program Uncle Dirty Dave's Kitchen MMMMM ENJOY!!! Uncle Dirty Dave's Kitchen Home of Hardin Cider & Yaaaaa Hoooo Ahhhhh Hot Sauce!!!