Flavors  of  Mexico

By Renee Hopkins

Clubs spice up menus by merging cuisines.

Mexican food remains a popular choice for many diners, but you’re not likely to find “Combination Plate No. 1” on any Associate Club menu. Instead, as when they’re preparing other ethnic cuisines, chefs who want to bring a Mexican influence to their menus will mix and match individual textures and flavors. The result can be labeled as Mexican, but also can be described by the whole range of hyphenated names that have sprung up around merged cuisines: Texas Tex-Mex, California Mex-Tex, and New Mexico Mex. And, of course Southwestern, which itself is a mix of the native dishes and flavors of the American Southwest with those of Mexico.

In his book Rick Bayless’s Mexican Kitchen: Capturing the Vibrant Flavors of a World Class Cuisine (Scribner, 1996), Mexican food expert Rick Bayless defines some “essential flavors” of Mexican cuisine — tomatoes, tomatillos, chiles — and offers recipes for salsas (sauces) and seasonings that form what he calls the “building blocks” of flavor in Mexican cuisine. Bayless owns the celebrated Topolobampo and Frontera Grill restaurants in Chicago and is also author of Authentic Mexican: Regional Cooking from the Heart of Mexico (William Morrow & Company Inc.).

Not surprisingly, many of Bayless’ “building blocks” show up in recipes gathered from three private clubs that often feature Mexican-influenced dishes: The Center Club in Costa Mesa, California; the Plaza Club in San Antonio, Texas; and the Metropolitan Club in Sun City, Arizona (near Phoenix).

Some recipes from the clubs, such as those that follow, make heavy use of ingredients that Bayless cites as those most specific to the flavors of Mexican food: Fresh or dried chiles, tomatillos, tomatoes, and corn.

Dishes with ethnic influences, particularly trendy Thai cuisine, often appear on the menu at the Center Club in Costa Mesa. The club’s southern California location almost mandates that Mexican-influenced dishes be added to the list of six specials that are featured each day.

Executive chef Bruno Massuger’s Lobster Enchiladas are flavored with jalapeño chiles and tomatillos in the sauce. The “enchiladas” themselves are not truly enchiladas, but chimichangas: Flour tortillas wrapped around filling, sealed, fried, and then served with a sauce and garnished with sour cream, black beans, and pico de gallo (a fresh chutney-like sauce of peppers and cilantro). The lobster meat called for in the recipe may be difficult to find, but resourceful cooks can buy lobster tails and use the meat from them.

The tomatillos used in the sauce may be an unfamiliar ingredient to some readers, but tomatillos are now available in grocery store produce departments throughout the country. Tomatillos resemble small green tomatoes (though they are not tomatoes), and are covered with a papery rough husk. Bayless says they have a richer texture than tomatoes, and a tangier, more citrusy flavor. For those not familiar with tomatillos, Bayless recommends choosing smaller ones (smaller than golf-ball sized) that have grown to fill their husks. If the husk is loose, the tomatillos aren’t fully mature. When you get ready to use them, peel off the husk and rinse the tomatillos.

If you can’t find fresh tomatillos, substitute canned tomatillos. An 11-ounce can is equivalent to 1 pound of fresh tomatillos.

The authentic Mexican taste of hominy flavors posole, a pork stew contributed by executive chef Al Smith from Arizona. Hominy comes from not sweet corn but field corn that has been boiled until it swells and becomes tender and flavorful. Hominy — not regular corn —is ground into masa for corn tortillas.

Smith says posole, a traditional Mexican soup, often is served at special occasions such as baptisms and birthday parties, and is ordered frequently by natives of Mexico who visit The Lakes Club and Metropolitan Club where he is chef. Posole, he says, is also reputed to be a hangover remedy, and one that is easier for “gringos” to like than menudo, another traditional Mexican soup.

Chili would seem a typical Texas dish, yet when green chiles rather than red are used, Texas chili takes on a more traditionally Mexican flavor. Such is the case with Chef’s Award-winning Green Chili at the Plaza Club. The chili won the top award for four consecutive years, 1990 to 1993, at the Great Texas Chef’s Chili Confrontation in Dallas, Texas.

Most of the chili’s flavor comes from tomatillos and from green chiles (also called chiles verde). While canned ingredients could be used, it’s worth the effort to roast fresh tomatillos and chiles.

Serrano or jalapeño chiles usually are used when a recipe calls for green chiles. Serranos often are the same color as bell peppers, sometimes turning yellow or red in places, depending on how dry they are.

Fresh chiles are best roasted over a fire, but that’s often not practical. Bayless suggests two alternatives: either roasting them over the flame of a gas burner, or roasting them under a very hot broiler. The trick is to cook the flesh a little, soften the tough skin, and add flavor.

Small chiles, such as jalapeños and serranos, may be roasted directly on a dry skillet or griddle until soft and charred, and don’t necessarily have to be peeled, although this recipe instructs you to peel them. Bayless says fresh chiles can be roasted ahead of time and kept in a refrigerator or freezer.

Tomatoes and tomatillos can be roasted on a baking sheet under a hot broiler. They should be blackened on the outside and completely soft inside. Roasted tomatoes don’t have to be peeled, but some cooks prefer them that way. On the other hand, roasted tomatillos are not usually peeled. They can be roasted several days before using them, as long as they are covered, and refrigerated or frozen.

A common problem when cooking with tomatoes is the unavailability of fresh, flavorful tomatoes at certain times of the year. Try plum tomatoes, or roma tomatoes, or even “hothouse” tomatoes, and allow them to sit at room temperature a day or two to ripen a little more. Never put tomatoes in the refrigerator; they’ll lose their flavor. If you have to use canned tomatoes, use plum tomatoes; a 28-ounce can is equal to about 11⁄2 pounds of fresh tomatoes.

Bayless describes onions and garlic, which are used to flavorful abundance in the featured recipes, as “the warp in a Mexican sauce, into which more assertive flavors are woven.” But white and yellow onions are not created equal, Bayless says, and are not interchangeable. The more complex, sweeter flavor of yellow onions sometimes translates into a muddy taste. White onions, more tangy and sharp, are better for these recipes. Super-sweet onions such as Vidalias or 1015s should be avoided.

Advice for “deflaming” raw onions once they’re cut up: Rinse them under cold water. If they need to be chopped several hours ahead, soak them for a few minutes in a bowl of cold water to which a splash of vinegar has been added.
Renee Hopkins, former food editor for The Dallas Morning News, writes about food and restaurants for a variety of publications.

POSOLE

  • 1 medium white onion

  • 1 medium carrot

  • 1 1⁄2 pounds pork stew meat in 1⁄2-inch chunks

  • 4 cups beef stock

  • 3 cups water

  • 4 tablespoons red chile powder

  • 1 green bell pepper

  • 2 fresh medium tomatoes

  • 1 (16-ounce) can yellow or white hominy, rinsed

  • 1 tablespoon fresh chopped garlic

  • 1 teaspoon whole oregano

  • Salt to taste

Garnishes, as desired: Shredded cabbage, shredded radishes, chopped green onions, lime wedges, avocado chunks, chicharrones (fried pork rinds)

Peel and dice onion and carrot. Simmer pork, onion, carrot, and chile powder in stock and water for 1 1⁄2 hours. Skim off any fat. Seed and dice bell pepper; seed, dice and peel tomatoes; add it to soup, along with hominy, garlic, and oregano. Simmer 1⁄2 hour more.

Add salt to taste. Serve in bowls with choice of garnishes: Shredded cabbage and radishes, chopped green onions, lime wedges, avocado chunks, chicharrones. Makes 2 quarts.
From executive chef Al Smith, Metropolitan and Lakes Clubs, Sun City, Arizona


LOBSTER ENCHILADAS

  • 1 teaspoon olive oil

  • 1⁄2 red bell pepper

  • 1⁄2 yellow bell pepper

  • 1⁄2 green bell pepper

  • 1⁄2 onion

  • 1⁄2 shallot

  • 1⁄2 pound lobster

  • Old Bay seasoning to taste

  • Vegetable or olive oil for frying

  • Egg whites for egg wash

  • Flour tortillas

  • Tomatillo Salsa (see recipe)

  • Garnishes, as desired: Pico de gallo, iceberg lettuce, radicchio lettuce, puréed black beans, sour cream

Heat olive oil in sauté pan over medium-to-high heat. Seed peppers; chop peppers, onion, and shallot into 1⁄4-inch pieces. Add to pan and sauté until they begin to get a little tender. Cut lobster into 1⁄4-inch chunks. Add lobster and seasoning; sauté all ingredients together until tender. Drain juice from mixture.

Place some mixture in the middle of a flour tortilla. Wrap and tuck in ends; seal with egg wash.

Heat oil to about 350 degrees in deep skillet over medium heat. Deep-fry enchiladas a few at a time for about 5 minutes, until golden brown, like chimichangas. You may also shallow-fry in less oil, for 3 minutes on each side.

When finished, place on paper towel-covered plate to drain and cool a bit.

Cut enchiladas in half and put four pieces on the plate in a fan arrangement. Place chopped iceberg lettuce on top, then pour tomatillo sauce over the top of that. On each plate place three cups formed from radicchio lettuce leaves; in one, put puréed black beans; in another, sour cream; in the third, pico de gallo or salsa. Makes 10 to 12 enchiladas.
From executive chef Bruno Massuger, Center Club, Costa Mesa, California

 

TOMATILLO SALSA

  • 8 tomatillos, husked and rinsed

  • 1⁄2 jalapeño pepper

  • 1⁄4 white onion

  • 1⁄2 bunch cilantro

  • 1⁄2 to 3⁄4 quart water

  • Salt and pepper to taste

Chop tomatillos, pepper, onion, and cilantro. Add all ingredients to pan over medium heat. Cook for 15 minutes. Purée in blender until smooth. Adjust seasonings (may add a little sugar if tomatillos are too tart).
(An alternative salsa can be found in the book, Rick Bayless’s Mexican Kitchen)

 

CHEF'S AWARD-WINNING GREEN CHILI

  • 1 1⁄2 pounds ground turkey, pork, or other meat

  • 2 onions, diced

  • 3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

  • 1⁄3 cup flour

  • 1 1⁄2 pounds diced green chiles, roasted and peeled, or 3 (7-ounce) cans diced green chiles

  • 1 pound tomatillos, roasted and puréed (about 15)

  • 1 pound tomatoes, or 1 (28-ounce) can, diced

  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin

  • 1 teaspoon oregano

  • 2-3 cups of stock, water, or canned chicken broth

  • Salsa

  • Garnishes: Sour cream, fried flour tortilla strips, grated cheese

To roast tomatillos, lay them on a baking sheet and place 4 inches below a very hot broiler. When the tomatillos blister, blacken, and soften on one side, about 5 minutes, turn them over and roast the other side. Cool completely on the baking sheet.

Roast chiles on an ungreased griddle or heavy skillet over medium heat, turning occasionally until blackened in spots and soft, 5 to 10 minutes. Cover with a towel while cooling for a few minutes. Then pull stems from the chiles and peel.

In large pot, brown meat in olive oil. Add onion and garlic and cook until onion is transparent. Continue cooking mixture until all water is evaporated and only fat remains. Stir in flour and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Lower heat and allow to simmer for one hour.

Season to taste with salt, pepper, and a tad of sugar. Serve in bowls with sour cream, fried flour tortilla strips, and grated cheese. Also good folded into warm flour tortillas and served with plenty of pico de gallo.

Chili is best if made at least a day ahead, then reheated.
From Plaza Club, San Antonio, Texas