March 15, 2005
WHAT ARE FRIENDS FOR? GOOD CHILI RECIPES!
PETE'S CACTUS LEAF PORK CHILI
I've known Pete for about 10 years now. In addition to being a stand up guy, a good friend, and the father of my goddaughter, he's also a damn fine cook who likes to bring on the heat. So naturally I had to hit him up for a chili recipe to post on this site.
I made this recipe of his about a year ago. Being the good Wyoming boy that he is there's some - shall we say - "out of the ordinary" ingredients in this one: cactus leaf, Cubanelles, tomatillos, Guiness Stout. Some of this stuff you won't find in your average grocery store, but if there's a produce market or Mexican grocery store near you I can almost guarantee you'll find these things there.
Pete's recipe calls for cubanelle, poblano, and Thai dragon peppers. Cubanelles (also known as banana peppers) are a large wax pepper that are naturally sweet, mildly hot, and have a really fresh flavor to them. Poblano peppers (called Anchos when dried) are a mild-to-medium hot pepper used frequently in Mexican cooking, particularly chiles rellenos and most mole sauces. Polanos mature from light green to dark green to reddish brown, and the more mature a poblano is the hotter it is going to be. The reddish brown ones are going to pack the most heat, but you'll usually find them dark green at the store. Thai dragon chiles are nuclear on the Heat Scale, near habanero heat in my opinion. These chiles are slender, about 2" long, and are bright, bright red when fresh (they turn a reddish brown when dried). I grow these myself, but you can buy these fresh or dried at any Asian market.
This recipe is going to take you most of an afternoon to make, but its well worth the time.
PETE'S CACTUS LEAF PORK CHILI
INGREDIENTS
2-2.5 lbs of country pork ribs, diced into 1/8" cubes
1 large white onion
4 large cloves of garlic
1 fan cactus leaf (approx. 8" x 6" x 3/8")
4 Thai dragon peppers (2 fresh/2 dried)
2 Poblano peppers
2 Cubanelle peppers
12 small tomatillos
4 medium vine-ripened tomatoes
2 bottles Guiness Stout (one for the chili, one for the chef while he's cooking)
4 cups V8 vegetable juice
4 16oz cans pinto beans
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp chili powder
2 tbsp fresh cilantro
4 tsp salt
2 tsp fresh ground pepper
METHOD
In a big pot, cook the onions and garlic in a little oil until the onions are translucent.
Brown the meat in a separate pan in small batches. Deglaze the pan with one bottle of Guiness. Put the contents into the big pot.
Score the red tomatoes with a knife. Put the tomatoes, tomatillos, Poblanos and Cubanelles on a cookie sheet and put them under the broiler to roast them. Turn them frequently until the skin blisters on the peppers and the tomatoes start getting loose. Turn off the heat and let them sit for awhile. Once cool enough to handle, take the skin off the red tomatoes and peppers.
Chop the tomatoes and peppers up and put into big pot.
Put the tomatillos into the blender with the V8 and blend until smooth. Put into the big pot.
Clean and despike the cactus leaf and cut into 1/4" chunks. Put into the big pot.
Finely chop the Thai peppers and combine them and all the spices into the big pot.
Simmer on low for 2-3 hours.
Thoroughly wash the pinto beans under the tap to remove all the gas-causing goo. Add them to the big pot. Taste and add seasoning as necessary.
Simmer for another 1-2 hours.
Questions? Comments? Email scott@urbanchiles.com
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