Poblano Summer Salad

Prep Time: 30 min

Cooking Time: 10 min

Serving Size: 6 entrée salads, party size side salad

This recipe is so good as an entrée, side dish, taco topping, and many other things. It lasts a while in the refrigerator and can be made in advance of a party.

The Poblano Peppers

One of the most important steps in this recipe is properly peeling the peppers. The poblanos naturally have a waxy surface that can give your salad a bad texture if you don’t take the steps to remove it. No worries though, this is very simple to do!

Special Equipment

Baking Sheet w Silicone Mat – you can use an un-lined cookie sheet as well, but the silicone mat makes for easier cleanup.

Ingredients

• 6 Medium Poblano Peppers

• 16 Oz. Bag of Frozen Fire Roasted Corn

• 3 Roma Tomatoes

• 1 Fresh Jalapeño Pepper

• 1 – 15 Oz. Can Black Beans

• 1 Bunch Cilantro

• 2 Medium Limes

• 1 Cup Crumbled Cotija, Queso Fresco, or Other Crumbly Cheese

• 3 Tbsp Olive Oil

• Salt

How To

1. Turn on the oven to the high broil setting and move one of the oven racks to about 6” from the broiler heat source. Rinse and dry the poblano peppers. Place them on a silicone mat lined baking sheet and put it under the broiler. Rotate the peppers every 5-7 minutes until they are charred on all sides, but not burned. When the peppers are charred, put them in a bowl and cover it tightly in plastic wrap. Let the peppers sit for 10-15 minutes until they are cool enough to handle. Peel off the waxy skin, then cut the pepper open and remove the seeds. Medium dice the peppers.

2. To prepare the tomatoes, wash, dry, and remove the seeds and juice so you are left with only the pulp. Small dice the tomatoes.

3. Wash, dry, and finely dice the jalapeno peppers.

4. Drain and rinse the can of black beans.

5. Rinse and roughly chop the cilantro, you will need about ¾ cup loosely packed.

6. Microwave the corn to defrost and strain any excess liquid.

7. Place all of the ingredients into a large bowl along with the olive oil. Toss to coat.

8. Before cutting, roll the limes with your palm on the counter to release the juices. Back and forth 3 to 4 times is about right. Juice 1 lime and taste, add additional lime if there isn’t much flavor from the first lime. I use about 1 and a half limes.

9. Salt to taste.

10. Sprinkle with cheese just before serving. Enjoy!

Serving Suggestions

This salad with great topped with chicken, shrimp, or any other protein.

Beer and Red Chili Braised Short Ribs

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Prep Time: 45 Min

Cooking Time: 8-10 Hours

Serving Size: 6 people, 2 short ribs each

In our house, we love Mexican food. This year, Cinco de Mayo occurred ON Taco Tuesday! That doesn’t happen too often, so it’s cause for celebration. For this recipe, I combined two recipes I have used in the past for some fantastic flavor!

This recipe makes plenty of short ribs, either for a small group or to use throughout the week for a number of other things. I used the leftovers for pizza toppings, burrito bowls, with eggs, and many other things!

The Protein

The protein for this meal is short ribs. I love short ribs because they braise so well and absorb so much flavor! They are also cheap, which is always a plus. I like to buy short ribs whenever they’re on sale and keep them in the freezer until I’m ready to use them.

When picking short ribs, don’t be afraid to be picky at the butcher counter. I look for ribs that are all about the same size and have lots of meat on the bone. They’re typically 4”-5” log and about 3” thick. I purchase my short ribs from the Whole Foods butcher because the quality of the meat is superb.

The Braise

This braise for this recipe is a combination of beer and a red chili sauce. I wanted a Mexican flavor, but also wanted to use some dark beer we’ve had sitting around the house for months. Neither of us loved to drink the dark beer I used, but I has excellent flavor for cooking and the alcohol helps break down the toughness in the meat.

You can use any dark beer you have, though I would avoid dark beers with obscure flavors. I used a Chocolate Bock for this recipe. If you want to splurge, Chimay Red or Blue are some of my favorite beers to cook with because they have so much flavor!

Special Equipment

8 Qt Crock Pot - A large crock pot always comes in handy! If you have a smaller one that’s fine, but I would scale down the quantity.

French/Dutch Oven - I love my Le Creuset Dutch (technically French) ovens, but there are other brands out there that are more budget friendly.

Blender - Investing in a quality blender is important, particularly for recipes like this. I recommend this one as it blends well and comes with various attachments for different tasks.

Ingredients

• 3 tbsp Olive Oil

• Salt & Pepper

• 9 -12 Short Ribs, approximately equal in size

• 4 Cups Chicken Stock

• 4 Dried Guajillo Chilis

• 4 Dried New Mexico Chilis

• 1 Dried Chipotle Chilis

• 2 Yellow Onions

• 5 Cloves of Garlic

• 1/2 Cup Brown Sugar

• 24 oz. of Dark Beer

• Tortillas, Radishes, Cilantro, Sour Cream, or Other Taco Toppings

How To

1. Place the Dutch Oven on your stove top, add olive oil. Heat oil on medium high heat until hot.

2. While the oil heats up, rinse and fully dry the short ribs with paper towels. The meat must be dry to get a good sear. Salt and pepper thoroughly, don’t be shy with the seasoning!

3. When the oil is hot, brown the short ribs in batches. Be careful not to overcrowd them. Be patient during the browning process, don’t move the short ribs around until they’re ready. You’ll know they’re ready when they release themselves from the pan. If you have to scrape it off, it’s not done yet. Brown all 4 sides, they should be a deep brown color. Transfer short ribs directly to the slow cooker so that you can collect any juices in the slow cooker. While the short ribs are browning in batches, start making the red chili sauce.

4. Put 2 cups of the chicken stock in a microwaveable bowl and microwave for 2 minutes.

5. To prepare the chilis, remove the ribs and the seeds. “Toast” the chilis by microwaving them for 20 seconds, in 10 second intervals. Submerge the chilis in the hot chicken stock and cover with plastic wrap for at least 10 minutes.

6. Peel the onions, roughly chop, and add them to the blender. Peel the garlic and add it to the blender. Add the brown sugar to the blender as well.

7. Lastly, add the reconstituted chilis and their soaking liquid to the blender. Blend it all together until smooth. If you find that it’s dry, add more of the chicken stock.

8. Once all the short ribs are browned, arrange them in the slow cooker with the bones vertical. This allows the liquid to surround the meat evenly.

9. When all of the ribs are done browning, remove some of the excess fat or oil from the dutch oven, but be careful not to remove any of the brown bits. Add the pureed chili sauce to the dutch oven to deglaze the pan. Cook on medium heat for 5 minutes.

10. Remove the chili sauce from the heat and add the beer. Stir to combine.

11. Pour the chili beer sauce over the short ribs. Make sure that the short ribs are fully submerged in the braising liquid. If not, add some of the extra chicken stock until the short ribs are fully submerged.

12. Turn the slow cooker to low and let the short ribs cook for 8 to 10 hours.

13. After they’re done, the short ribs should fall right off the bone (literally)! Shred the meat and you’re ready to go!

Serving Suggestions

I served the braised short ribs with corn tortillas, watermelon radish (for a nice crunch! regular radish works fine too), homemade chipotle cream (sour cream, lime juice, some sauce from canned chipotle in adobo), and cilantro.

On the side we had Spanish rice, refried beans, tortilla chips, and queso fundido.

This, of course, pairs well with a strong, homemade margarita!