Enchiladas
Rojas - (Fried Sausage Filled Tortillas
with Red Chili Sauce
Classic Latin American
Recipe
Serves:
6
Sauce Ingredients:
6 Dried Ancho Chilies
1 cup Boiling Water
5 Fresh Tomatoes, peeled, seeded and coarsely chopped, or substitute
1 2/3 cups chopped, drained, canned Italian plum tomatoes.
1/2 cup Coarsely Chopped Onions
1/4 tspn. Finely Chopped Garlic
1/2 tspn. Crumbled Dried Epazote, if available
Pinch of Sugar
1 tspn. Salt
1/4 tspn. Freshly Ground Black Pepper
5 tbls. Lard
2 Eggs
1 cup Heavy Cream
Other
Ingredients:
6 Spanish Chorizo Sausages, skinned and coarsely chopped, or substitute
3/4 pound smoked, spiced pork sausage, skinned and chopped
2/3 cup Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese
12 Tortillas
1/2 cup Coarsely Chopped Onionsr
Procedure:
1. Under cold running water, pull the stems off
the chilies. Cut or tear the chilies into halves, and brush out
the seeds. With a small, sharp knife, cut away any large ribs;
then tear them into small pieces. In a small bowl, soak the chilies
in 1 cup of boiling water for 30 minutes.
2.
Pour the chilies and their soaking water into the jar of an electric
blender and blend at high speed for about 15 seconds. Add the
tomatoes, 1/2 cup of the onions, the garlic, epazote, sugar, salt
and black pepper, and blend for 30 seconds, or until the mixture
is reduced to a smooth puree. (To make the sauce by hand, puree
the chilies, tomatoes, onions, garlic and epazoteóa cup
or so at a timeóin a food mill set over a large mixing
bowl. Discard any pulp remaining in the mill. Stir in the sugar,
salt and black pepper.)
3.
In an 8- to 10-inch skillet, melt 1 tablespoon of the lard over
moderate heat until a haze forms above it. Pour in the chili and
vegetable puree and, stirring frequently, cook it for 5 minutes.
Remove the pan from the heat. In a small bowl, beat the eggs with
a fork until they are well combined, then stir in the cream. Slowly
pour the egg-cream mixture into the sauce in the skillet, stirring
constantly to prevent the eggs from curdling. Cover the skillet
and set it aside.
4.
In another 8- to 10-inch skillet, melt 1 tablespoon more of the
lard over moderate heat and add the chopped sausages. Fry for
about 5 minutes, stirring constantly, until the sausages have
rendered most of their fat and are lightly browned. With a slotted
spoon, remove the sausages from the skillet and drain them on
paper toweling. Discard the fat from the skillet. Place the sausages
in a small bowl and stir in 3 tablespoons of the chili sauce and
1/3 cup of the grated cheese.
5.
Preheat the oven to 350∞. In the heavy skillet, melt the
remaining 3 tablespoons of lard over moderate heat until a light
haze forms above it. Fry and fill the tortillas, one at a time,
in the following fashion: Dip a tortilla in the tomato sauce,
drop it into the hot lard, and fry it for a minute or so on each
side, or until it becomes limp but not brown. Transfer the tortilla
from the pan to a plate and place about l/4 cup of the sausage
mixture in the center. Fold one side of the tortilla over the
filling, then roll the tortilla completely into a thick cylinder.
Place it seam side down in a shallow 8-by-12-inch baking dish.
Fry and fill the remaining tortillas similarly, replenishing the
lard in the frying pan when necessary. When the tortillas are
all arranged in one layer in the baking dish, pour the remaining
tomato sauce over them, and sprinkle the top with the l/2 cup
of the chopped onions and the remaining cheese. Bake in the middle
of the oven for about 15 minutes or until the cheese has melted
and the enchiladas are lightly browned on top.
To
Serve: Gently transfer the enchiladas with a spatula
to heated individual plates and spoon some of the sauce over them.
Note:
3 Cups of leftover lean roast pork or cooked chicken, finely shredded,
may be substituted for the sausage. In that case, do not brown
the pork or chicken, but simply combine it with the tomato sauce
and the grated Parmesan cheese.
Other
Related Links:
Classic
Latin American Recipes