Chile Verde and Mexican rice

One of the favorite go-to comfort meals in the Tiny Kitchen is Chile Verde, which in loose translation means "Awesome pork in green sauce", it's a great all day slow-cooked meal that will leave your living space, no matter the size, smelling like roasted chilies and tomatillos. My good friend Joel Linares' mom (and former GHS teacher and principal) Terry used to make this when I was in high school and I always vowed to one day be able to make it on my own, I don't think I can quite do hers justice, but I try anyway!

We start out by making the salsa verde, consisting of about 1 1/2 lbs. of tomatillos, 3 serrano chili peppers (you can use jalapenos for a somewhat less spicy version, or both), 1/2 a yellow or white onion rough chopped, 2 cloves of garlic, juice of 1/2 lime, a bunch of cilantro 1/4 teaspoon of sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of salt...


Husk and halve the tomatillos and peppers (don't include ribs and seeds if you want it not too spicy) and put a little olive oil on em and throw em under the broiler about 8 inches or so for 4 minutes...

I put the onions and garlic in and cook about 3 more minutes until it looks like this...

Then throw all of that goodness in a blender with the sugar, salt, cilantro, and lime juice and FRAPPE!!!

Be sure to not let the pork "hog" all of the salsa and set some aside for chips while your chili is cooking...


I buy the pork sirloin tenderloins from Costco, they come in three individually wrapped sections so you easily freeze two and have one in the fridge, cube it and salt and pepper...

Brown the cubed pork in some olive oil to lock some of the juice in...


Of course deglaze afterward with some chicken stock...

...then pour all of the tasty bits in the slow cooker with the pork

Add a can of green chilis...

...and pour in the salsa verde

This is good stuff! 8 hours on low...

For the Mexican rice you need some onion, garlic, jalapeno, tomato sauce, water, chicken broth, and whatever seasonings you like, i enjoy cumin, cayenne, chili powder, and salt & pepper...

Start out by cooking the onion, jalapeno, and garlic in some vegetable oil until translucent, then cook your dry rice until it gets golden brown (You have to stir often and maybe add some liquid to keep from sticking too bad)

Then add all of the rest of the ingredients, I used 2 cups of rice, so you want to have 4 cups of liquid all together, I used 1/2 cup of tomato sauce, 1 cup of chicken broth, and 1/2 cup of water...and all of the various seasonings, hot sauces and juice, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for about 20 minutes, it will still look runny, but when you stir it up (little darlin') it will be just fine...fluff then recover off heat for about 3-5 minutes and stir in some chopped cilantro...

Grumpy plate of Mexican food, had it with the Mexican rice and refried black beans that are found at Trader Joes and are fabulous..."No comer me señor!"
Til next time Amigos!

Mothers Day BBQ Ribs and Shrimp

This weekend the show was one the road to beautiful Roseville and Nevada City for a quick Mothers Day jaunt to see the family and some friends.

Our good friends Stephen and Kim Zachar from Memphis brought us out this rub from the famous Rendezvous restaurant and while it is a good rub, it contains MSG so I wanted to use this and one of my own to see which one would win the battle.

My rub contained brown sugar, smoked paprika, chili powder, dry mustard, salt, pepper, a dash of cayenne.


This is the Traeger smoker that uses wood pellets and a hot rod to smoke.


The ribs have been rubbed the night before at the beautiful Roller residence in Roseville...


The two racks about 2 hours into the cooking.


While the ribs were cooking, I started some New Orleans style BBQ shrimp, ironically enough there is no use of a grill or smoker to BBQ these shrimp, just a couple of pots and pans...2 lbs of shrimp is started with removing shells (which need to be saved) and dusted with a generous portion of Cajun seasoning and wrapped and kept cool in the fridge.


To start off you need some onion and garlic, 1/2 cup of worcestershire sauce and a 1/2 cup of dry white wine, 3 lemons peeled and sectioned and a couple of bay leaves.


Cook the onion and garlic in some olive oil for a minute or two (so technical!)...


Then add all the ingredients including the removed shrimp shells a cup of water and some salt and pepper...

Turn the heat to a simmer and let it cook up for 20-30 minutes...


Then strain the sauce into a smaller sauce pan, bring to a vigorous boil and let it cook down to a syrupy conistency, about 15 more minutes, this will be the BBQ sauce...


Get a cup of cream and 2-3 tablespoons of butter ready...


Cook the shrimp in some olive oil for about 2-3 minutes over med heat and add the BBQ sauce and cream and cook for a few more minutes...


Remove the skrimps with some thongs or tongs, whatever you have available and add the butter to make even more rich and delicious...


Took the ribs off after smoking at 200 degrees for 6 hours...Whooooooo boy!

Licking my lips...



Finished the shrimp with some green onions...



Heavenly...


This finished plate with a smoked/baked potato, some brocoli rasin salad and some Bush's Baked Beans (give me a break!)

In case you were wondering who won the rib rub battle...it was MINE...sorry Rendezvous.


Next weeks meal! J/K Sally.

Osso Bucco

Mollie Stones had some nice looking veal shanks on sale for $3.99 a lb., never having tried osso bucco, or veal shanks in general, I decided Sunday is as good a day as any to prepare this slow-cooked classic.

Start things off with a uniform cut mirepoix using one yellow onion, one carrot, one rib of celery and a minced garlic clove or two...

Make a bouquet-garni with sprigs of thyme, rosemary, parsley, and a couple of whole cloves (you can use whatever whole spices and herbs you have handy)

Be sure to tie up the shanks with some butchers or cooking twine to keep the meat from falling off the bone, dredge in flour and brown in a butter and olive oil mix...do in shifts, adding more olive oil and butter if necessary...remove the shanks and add some more butter/olive oil and add the onion and some minced garlic and cook for about 5 minutes, deglaze the pan with some dry white, sherry, Marsala, chicken stock, water or whatever you have handy scrape the brown bits and add the celery and carrots and cook through, about 7 minutes...

Return the shanks and whatever juices have formed on the plate, along with a can of diced tomatoes, a cup of chicken broth and the bouquet-garni to the dutch oven and place in a 325 degree oven for about 2 hours basting with the sauce every 45 minutes. I also added a little tomato paste...
Make up a gremolate with parsley, lemon zest and a minced garlic clove...don't worry the lemon zest really subdues the raw garlic!


Optional...after 2 hours take out the osso bucco and keep in a warm oven, strain the sauce and boil til reduced to about 2 cups, it will definitely thicken up a bit! Glaze over the warming shanks a few times to reheat...


The finished product! The meat on the bone turned out to be a little fattier than I hoped, although the real star is the blackened bone marrow. You use a small instrument to retrieve the tasty goodness from the center of the bone...it's rich and decadent.

I served it with some instant Yukon gold potatoes from Costco and some green beans from Trader Joes...risotto and polenta are popular side dishes.

Leftover I have a whole lot of fresh thyme and rosemary which will be put to use in the next installment of "Tiny Kitchen Chronicles"

P.S. The food pictures will improve over time!