MEXICO – GUADALAJARA
MEXICO – GUADALAJARA
Theme is Mexican fiesta with lots of small dishes of condiments to compliment our soft, spicy chicken tacos.
Queso Fresco
Mexico (Guadalajara) - Queso Fresco. Click here to download and try this recipe now!
Translates to "fresh cheese". Crumbly in texture and with a slightly acidic queso fresco is probably the most common Mexican cheese found in Mexico.
Ingredients
2 L whole milk
3-4 T lemon juice
2 tsp salt
Bring the milk to the boil in a saucepan, reduce to a simmer for 10 minutes stirring to prevent scalding and/or a skin forming. Add the lemon juice. It will curd immediately. Turn the heat off and let the hot milk set for 5-10 minutes. The milk will quickly coagulate into solid white curds and a clear greenish liquid whey. Line a colander with a fine cheesecloth (or thin tea-towel). Pour the curds and whey into the colander. Allow to drain for one hour or until the curd has stopped dripping whey. You can hurry this along by squeezing gently. Remove the cheese from the cloth. It will be a solid mass of curd. Sprinkle with salt, cover and store in the refrigerator until ready for us. It will last for up to a week in the fridge.
Makes 1 cup cheese
Soft Chili Chicken Tacos
Mexico (Guadalajara) - Soft Chili Chicken Tacos. Click here to download and try this recipe now!
Serves 6 – 8
Shredded Chicken
3 chicken breasts (skin and bones removed)
½ onion
1 bay leaf
Salt and pepper
Poach chicken by putting in a pot and covering with water, adding chopped onion, bay leaf, salt and pepper. Bring to a slow simmer and simmer for 20 minutes. Allow to cool in the stock then remove and shred using two forks. Save the stock to add to chili chicken mix.
To make the chili chicken filling:
1 T oil
1 large onion, white or brown
4 tomatoes
2 red chilli – charred in a dry pan
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 cup stock
Shredded chicken
Heat the oil in a pan and add the onions to sauté gently until soften. Add the tomatoes (grate these into the pan), chopped green peppers, chilies, cumin seeds and garlic. Add the shredded chicken and stock and cook gently for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Taste and season as required.
Serve with soft warm tortilla, guacamole, salsa, shredded lettuce and queso fresco.
Chocolate and Pecan Empanadas
Mexico (Guadalajara) - Chocolate and Pecan Empanadas. Click here to download and try this recipe now!
These little parcels combine 2 great ingredients of Mexico – chocolate and pecan nuts. Pecan trees, Carya pecan, are large trees native to Mexico. This recipe makes nearly 20-25 sweet party snacks and so easy to make!
Pastry
170g all purpose flour
100g butter
1 egg yolk
1 Tb caster sugar
Ice cold water
Put the flour and butter into the bowl of a food processor and pulse until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the egg yolk and continue to pulse until mixed in, then add iced water, a little at a time and keep mixing until it comes together as one whole ball of dough. Be careful not to over-mix. A drier pastry is preferable at this point even though it can seem more difficult to handle.
Remove from the mixing bowl, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 10-30 minutes.
300g dark chocolate – either buttons or pieces, use the best quality you can afford
120 g pecan nuts (or about 30 pecan halves)
What to do:
§ Preheat the oven to 180 C
§ Roll out pastry to 0.5 cm thickness and cut into circles. Divide the chocolate and nuts between all pastry circles, assembling the ingredients in the centre (works out to about 10g or 2 squares of chocolate and 2 pecan per parcel).
§ Using a pastry brush, brush the edges of the pastry with water.
§ Fold each in half to make semi-circles. Press the edges with a fork to ensure a good seal!
§ Bake on a lined baking tray for 15 minutes or until puffed up and golden brown.
§ Dust with sugar and cinnamon and serve warm or cold.
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