ROASTING GREEN CHILES
Fresh green chiles really make the difference. In preparation for your recipes and in order to preserve them in the freezer, you can roast them using the following steps. Fresh chiles can be used in salads; however, the tough outer skin makes this uncooked form undesirable in other recipes.
STEP 1:
Select chiles with large smooth pods with well-rounded smooth shoulders. The chiles should be firm, mature, thick-fleshed pods with bright shiny surfaces. Avoid shriveled, immature, dull or crooked pods.
STEP 2:
Rinse each pod with cool, fresh water. Pierce each pod with a fork to allow steam to escape during roasting.
STEP 3:
Place chile on a cookie sheet and broil 4 to 6 inches below broiler unit. Broil on high with door open; turn chiles frequently for even blistering. Chile will blacken.
OR Place chiles on hot mesquite coals until blackened. This method enhances the flavor and eliminates the mess in your kitchen.
STEP 4:
Place blackened chiles in a ziplock bag or bowl and cover with damp cup towel to steam 10 to 12 minutes.
STEP 5:
Chiles are ready to place in freezer bags for later use. To use, hold chile pod under slow-running tap water; remove skin from stem end peeling downward. Remove stem and seeds. Leave the stems intact if you are making chiles rellenos.
Pepper Facts
The Scoville hotness scale rates the heat in pepper varieties on a scale of 1 to 10. Hotness can vary within a variety or even among peppers of the same variety within the same garden plot. Use this table for comparative purposes.
| Pepper Variety | Hotness Scale | Scoville Units |
| Habanero | 10 | 100,000-300,000 |
| Cayenne | 8 | |
| Tabasco | 8 | 30,000-50,000 |
| Serrano | 6 | 5,000-15,000 |
| Jalapeño | 5 | 2,500-5,000 |
| Ancho | 3 | |
| Pasilla | 3 | |
| New Mexico (dried) | 3 | 1,000-1,500 |
| Poblano | 2 | |
| Anaheim | 2 | |
| Big Jim | 2 | 500-1,000 |
| Mexibell | 1 | |
| Bull’s horn | 1 | 100-500 |
| Bell | 0 | |
| Sweet Banana | 0 | 0 |
Casserole
No Thanksgiving feast is complete without sweet potatoes.
6 sweet potatoes, boiled and drained, reserving ⅔ cup of liquid or 1 large can sweet potatoes with ⅔ cup potato juice reserved
¼ cup butter
¼ cup sugar
¼ cup milk
2 beaten eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
Preheat oven to 350º.
Heat reserved juice. Add all ingredients and mash. Put into 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Top with:
TOPPING
1 cup brown sugar
½ cup flour
1 cup chopped pecans
½ stick butter, melted
Mix sugar, flour and pecans; spread over potatoes. Drizzle butter over top and bake for 30 minutes.
Serve hot.
Serves 6 to 8
Wild Texas
Rice
Texas is a top-producer of rice. This rice dish is popular with our Beef Tips and Beef Stroganoff. If there’s any left over, add chicken stock, some vegetables and a little meat and you have a hearty soup.
2 cups long grain rice
1 cup wild rice
6 cups chicken stock
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter
Combine all ingredients in large saucepan with tight-fitting lid. Bring to boil and stir. Reduce heat. Cover tightly and simmer 45 to 50 minutes. Remove from heat and let rest 10 minutes.
Serve piping hot.
Serves 12 to 14
with Bacon
Bill’s Aunt Ann Newcomb served this as a main dish—with bread. Of course, there was no original recipe, so it took a few testings on the cowboys at Lambshead to perfect it. If you have leftovers, add some pinto beans the next day—for a different dish.
3 cups large elbow macaroni, cooked
10 slices thick-sliced bacon, diced
2 cups diced yellow onion
15-ounce can whole tomatoes
10-ounce can diced tomatoes with green chiles
2 15-ounce cans tomato sauce
salt and pepper to taste
Cook macaroni according to package directions. While macaroni is cooking, sauté bacon in large skillet over medium heat. Just before bacon is completely browned, add onions and cook until soft. Drain cooked macaroni and stir into bacon and onions. Reduce heat. Add whole and green chile tomatoes. Stir and cook for 5 minutes. Add tomato sauce and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes.
Serve hot.
Serves 8 to 10
Homemade
Egg Noodles
These are a staple on German and Czech menus across Texas. To serve, toss with butter and freshly ground black pepper.
12 eggs
1 tablespoon salt
12 cups flour
Beat eggs and salt in a large bowl until salt is dissolved. Gradually mix in flour. Mix until dough is stiff. If dough is sticky to touch, continue to add flour until no stickiness remains. Divide dough into four or five balls. Roll each ball on floured surface to ⅛-inch thickness. When all balls are rolled out, dust first ball with flour. Beginning at one edge, roll into tube shape. Cut tube into ¼-inch slices. Unroll each strip and set aside. Repeat until all balls are cut. You may freeze or cook immediately by boiling in water or chicken broth.
Serves 8 to 10
Green Chile
Hominy
This was developed for the Texas Trails Chuck Wagon back in the ‘70s.
4 15-ounce cans white hominy, drained, reserving half of the juice
10 thick slices bacon, diced
2 cups diced onions
1 cup sour cream
½ pound sharp Cheddar cheese, grated
8 fresh green chiles, roasted, peeled and diced
Preheat oven to 325º.
Crisply fry bacon in medium skillet; remove. Sauté onions in bacon drippings until soft. Heat hominy in saucepan. Add reserved juice to hominy; add sour cream and half of the cheese. When cheese melts, add onions, half of the peppers, and half of the bacon. Mix. Pour into 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Sprinkle with remaining bacon, peppers and cheese. Bake 15 minutes until cheese melts.
Serves 10 to 12
Fresh Green Chile Hominy
Squash Casserole
Casserole—Calabacitos
Calabacitos translates to “tender little squash.” When draining squash, it may take two or more times to remove all water. The drier the squash is, the better the dish. If there’s any left over, you can add cooked, chopped chicken and broth to make soup.
3 pounds yellow squash, cut in thin rounds
1½ pounds zucchini squash, cut in thin rounds
2 cups chopped yellow onions
1 large red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
½ cup water
1 pound sharp Cheddar cheese, grated
5 ears corn, kernels cut and scraped from cob
3 fresh jalapeño peppers, seeded and finely chopped
½ teaspoon salt
2 cups sour cream
Preheat oven to 350º.
In a large Dutch oven, cook the squash, onions and bell pepper in ½ cup of water over medium heat, until tender. Drain liquid and mash with a potato masher. Add the cheese, corn, jalapeños, salt and sour cream. Stir to mix well. Pour into a buttered 12-inch cake pan or 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Sprinkle cheese on top. Bake until bubbly or starting to brown.
Serve immediately.
Serves 12 to 14
Grilled
Eggplant
Use this as a side dish with steak or pasta— or as vegetarian steak.
1 eggplant, sliced 1-inch thick
1½ cup olive oil
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons coarsely ground black pepper
1 tablespoon salt
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
Combine oil, vinegar and seasoning; mix well. Brush eggplant with mixture; let stand 30 minutes. Grill over mesquite coals, 12 to 15 inches above coals, for 10 minutes. Turn, grill 10 minutes until tender.
Serves 2
Mixed Vegetables
This festive dish offers lots of color and pairs well with beef tenderloin—and it’s the only vegetable you’ll need to serve.
3 red bell peppers
3 orange or yellow bell peppers
2 green bell peppers
1½ cups mushrooms, halved
2 cups yellow onions
4 zucchini squash, cut in ½-inch cubes
1½ cups Vinaigrette Dressing, recipe page 160
1 tablespoon fresh ground black pepper
1 teaspoon kosher salt or sea salt
2 large grilling baskets
Halve bell peppers, remove core and veins and cut in long thin slices. Peel outer skin on onions, place root side down and cut in half from top to bottom, slice halves for long slivers. Place all vegetables in 1 or 2 grilling baskets, assuring a medium thickness of vegetables. Pour all dressing over vegetables and let stand about 20 minutes. Cook over hot coals, stirring often. Peppers and onions should become quite limp after about 15 to 20 minutes.
Remove from grill. Salt and pepper and serve immediately.
Serves 12 to 14
Sautéed
Spinach
Fresh spinach is great in salads, but this is a quick and easy way to serve it warm.
¼ cup olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound fresh spinach, washed
1 teaspoon salt
In a 10-inch skillet or saucepan, slightly brown garlic in olive oil. Add spinach and salt; sauté until tender.
Serve immediately.
Serves 2
Bell Peppers
and Turnips
Substitute mustard or collard greens or use a mixture of all three. You may also add three or four diced turnips to the greens as they cook. No matter, Best Basic Cornbread is a must.
¾ pound lean salt pork or thick-sliced bacon, diced
4½ pounds fresh turnip greens, trimmed, rinsed well and coarsley chopped
1½ cups water
1 cup chopped yellow onions
1 teaspoon sugar
salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
In a Dutch oven, fry salt pork or bacon just until cooked. Drain, reserving 2 tablespoons of drippings. Stir in remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 45 minutes or until greens are tender.
Turnips
8 turnips, tennis ball-sized, peeled and chopped
4 tablespoons butter
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
In a medium saucepan, place turnips with water to cover. Bring to a boil and cook until just tender when pierced with a paring knife. Drain, reserving cooking liquid. Return turnips to saucepan with butter and sauté quickly for 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Serve with turnip greens or as a separate vegetable to accompany roast meats.
Serves 8 to 10
Turnip Greens and Turnips
Okra
This isn’t a hard-fried okra that most are accustomed to. It’s very tasty and can be cooked in large quantities and frozen in plastic bags for later use.
2 pounds okra, cut into ½-inch rounds
1 cup milk or buttermilk
1 cup cornmeal
½ cup flour
salt and pepper
1½ cups vegetable oil
Put cut okra into milk to ensure the corn meal mixture adheres to okra. Mix corn meal, flour, salt and pepper. Coat okra with meal mixture. Shake off excess and place in skillet with medium-hot oil. After okra begins to cook, cover skillet and cook slowly, stirring occasionally. You may have to add more oil. Cook until tender and slightly brown. Drain on paper towels before serving hot.
Serves 6
Okra
Gumbo
If you want a one-dish meal, add sliced smoked sausage when you add the cabbage.
6 thick slices bacon, diced
1½ cups diced onion
1 head cabbage, shredded
1 tablespoon salt
2 cups sliced okra
2 large tomatoes, chopped
2 tablespoons black pepper
1 pound smoked sausage, optional
Fry bacon in skillet; add onion and cook until tender. Add cabbage and salt. Simmer until cabbage wilts. Add okra and tomatoes. Cook until okra is just tender. Add pepper and salt to taste.
Serves 4 to 6
and Okra
We often have both fresh from the garden. Watt’s comment was, “If you don’t like it, don’t eat it.”
4 cups fresh or frozen black-eyed peas
2 cups fresh or frozen cut okra
4 slices bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 cup chopped yellow onions
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
Fry bacon in saucepan; add onion and sauté. Add peas, black pepper and salt. Cover with water and bring to a boil. Simmer for 30 minutes until peas are tender, add okra; simmer for 15 minutes. Serve immediately.
Serves 4 to 6
Black-Eyed Peas and Okra
