Chile Colorado Meatballs Recipes

CHILE COLORADO

Steps:

• Cut the meat into large stewing pieces about 1 to 2 inches across. Salt well and set aside.
• Remove the stems and seeds from the dried chiles, tear them into pieces and put into a large bowl. Pour boiling water over them and cover. Let this stand until the chiles are rehydrated, about 30 minutes. Once the chiles are soft, put them in a blender with enough of the chile soaking water to make a puree the consistency of ketchup. If you want -- and I recommend this -- push the sauce through a fine-meshed strainer (into another bowl) to remove any stray seeds or bits of skin.
• In a heavy, lidded pot or Dutch oven, heat the lard over medium-high heat. Pat the meat dry with a paper towel and brown it well. Do this in batches and take your time. Remove the meat as it browns and set aside.
• Add the onions to the pot and cook them, stirring occasionally, until they just begin to brown on the edges. Add the garlic and cook another minute. Return the meat to the pot and mix in all the remaining ingredients. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook until the meat is tender.
• Serve with tortillas or over rice, garnished with queso seco, cilantro, maybe some raw onion, avocado and hot sauce.

CHILE COLORADO

Steps:

• Cut the tops off of all the chilies with kitchen shears. Cut chilies along one edge to open like a book; scrape out all of the seeds. Reserve some of the seeds to finish the soup if you want more heat.
• Heat a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add chiles and briefly toast until fragrant, Cover the chilies with enough water so that they aren't touching the bottom of the pan (careful it will steam a lot). Simmer for 5 minutes, then turn off heat and let the chilies soak to soften while you prep the beef.
• Trim the beef of excess fat then chop into 1-inch pieces. Whisk together the flour, ½ teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper in a plastic bag or large bowl. Add the beef and toss to evenly coat; set aside.
• Remove chilies to blender along with 1 cup of the soaking liquid and the can of fire roasted diced tomatoes. Process until smooth, leaving a corner of the blender open so steam can escape; set aside. If you don't have a high-powered blender, then strain the chili sauce through a fine mesh strainer into a bowl, using rubber spatula to push the mixture through and discard the solids.
• Rinse and dry the Dutch oven. Heat 2 tablespoons vegetable oil in the Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add half of the beef in an even layer and sear; flip the beef over and sear the other side then stir to evenly brown all sides; remove to a plate with a slotted spoon. Repeat with remaining beef.
• Add a drizzle of olive oil if needed to the now empty skillet. Cook the onions over medium heat until softened, scraping up the brown bits, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and ground cumin and sauté 30 second
• Add the beef back to the pot followed by the chile sauce and rest of the ingredients (oregano, coriander, smoked paprika, bouillon, cocoa powder, sugar, cinnamon, bay leaves and broth).
• Cover and bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer over LOW for 45 minutes or until the beef is tender, stirring every 10 minutes or so and replacing the lid so the bottom doesn't burn. Uncover, increase heat to medium and simmer an additional 15 minutes (uncovered), or until the sauce has thickened to desired consistency. Taste and season with additional salt if desired or some reserved chili seeds or cayenne pepper for heat.
• Discard bay leaves and serve with Mexican rice, beans, tortillas and desired toppings.

CHILE COLORADO III

Steps:

• Combine the beef cubes and 3 tablespoons rice flour in a bowl; toss to coat evenly.
• Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the beef to the hot oil, reduce heat to low, and cook and stir until the beef is completely browned and tender, 7 to 10 minutes. Stir the garlic and 1 tablespoon rice flour into the beef and cook another 2 minutes. Add the chili powder and stir. Pour the beef broth over the beef mixture; mix well. Season with the sea salt. Raise the heat to medium; bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and allow the mixture to simmer until the beef is cooked through and the sauce has thickened, about 30 minutes.

CHILE VERDE MEATBALLS

Steps:

• Into a large, heavy pot, add the onion, garlic, salsa verde, broth or beer, and the meatballs.
• Simmer on low for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally; add the ground cumin and simmer for 15 minutes more.
• Serve with sour cream for garnish, along with rice and beans and tortillas (the sauce goes nicely on other items, too).
• Note: you can also make this in your crockpot on low for 4 hours, adding in the cumin in the last 30 minutes.

CHILE COLORADO MEATBALLS

Steps:

• In a large bowl, stir together the boiling water and bouillon granules until dissolved.
• Add remaining ingredients.
• Pour all into either a crockpot and cook on high for 2 to 3 hours (or low for 5 hours), or a large casserole and bake in preheated 350 degree F oven for 45 minutes.
• Enjoy! Serve as part of a Mexican-style combination dinner of enchiladas or tamales, rice, and refried beans- the sauce goes really well with other dishes on the plate.
• *Note:I prefer using 1 tsp of Maggi Chicken with Chipotle bouillon cube and 1 tsp of Chicken and Tomato bouillon cube instead of 2 tsp beef bouillon; please note that most Maggi bouillon cubes contain 2 tsps, so you'll be using half a cube.
• Another note: also, you can add another tsp of bouillon and cup of water to make more sauce if you want to add another pound of meatballs for more servings.

CHILE COLORADO

Steps:

• Place chiles and 3 cups water into a medium stockpot, and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and steep for 30 minutes to soften. Strain into a bowl, reserving the cooking liquid. Place the chiles and some of the liquid into a blender, and puree until smooth. Add more liquid as necessary to form a smooth sauce. Pass sauce through a fine mesh strainer to remove any seeds and the tough skins; set aside.
• Cut the roast into 1 to 2 inch chunks. In a medium bowl, combine flour, salt, and pepper. Dredge the beef chunks in the seasoned flour; set aside.
• Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Saute onion until tender and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add beef chunks a few at a time, so as not to overcrowd the pot, and cook until evenly brown. Remove cooked meat, and continue browning remaining meat. Return reserved cooked meat to the pot. Stir in pureed chile mixture. Add beef stock to just cover beef chunks, or to personal preference. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce heat to lowest setting, and simmer for 3 hours, or until meat is tender. If necessary, adjust with more stock during cooking.