Tonight I made a stew featured in The Border Cookbook, though the original comes out of the Santa Fe Cooking School. This simple, hearty, green-tinged stew gets a lot of flavor from 3 cups of roasted poblano peppers. The long cooking time makes the beef extremely tender.

Chris says:

I heart roasted poblanos!

Lisa says:

This is *so* filling.

Chris says:

Yeah, the potatoes totally break down and thicken it up.

Lisa says:

…and I like the skins left on.

Chris says:

The beef is really tender too.

Lisa says:

Eight servings, huh? I can’t wait for leftovers.

Roasted Poblano Stew
——————–
1.5 lbs beef stew meat, cut into bite-sized pieces
2 medium onions, diced
5 garlic cloves, minced
3 large baking potatoes, unpeeled, diced
1 tbsp salt
5 cups chicken broth
3 cups chopped roasted poblano peppers (about 6 large peppers)
1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced
3 tbsp minced cilantro

In a large saucepan over medium heat, cook the meat until it browns and most of its liquid has evaporated. Add the onions and garlic and cook for an additional few minutes, until the onions turn translucent. Add the potatoes, broth, and salt, and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 1 hour. Add the poblanos and red bell pepper and simmer for another 1-1.5 hours, until the beef is super tender.
Stir in the cilantro and serve.

8 Servings

Lisa was looking for a recipe to utilize the rest of our veggies from the CSA box, and came across this recipe from Food & Wine Magazine. Potatoes and broccoli are the big players here, with a supporting cast of mushrooms, tomatoes, and basil. The green curry paste we had on hand was pretty subtle, but still added a nice flavor to the dish.

Chris says:

Hot damn, I like this!

Lisa says:

What? It’s not hot at all. The flavor is really good though.

Chris says:

I didn’t mean “spicy” damn… I really like the flavors, too, and you can always make it spicier with the ol’ rooster…

Lisa says:

I like these generous portions… Hm, guess what I’m having for dinner tomorrow night while you’re at school?

Thai Vegetable Curry
——————–
1 1/2 tablespoons cooking oil
1 onion, sliced thin
1/2″ ginger, sliced thin
1 to 1 1/2 teaspoons Thai green curry paste
14 oz can light coconut milk
1 cup chicken broth
1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup drained canned bamboo shoots, halved
1 pound potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
1 pound broccoli, thick stems removed, tops cut into small florets (1 quart)
8 oz mushrooms, sliced
1 tomato, chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons lime juice
1/3 cup thin-sliced basil leaves

In a large saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion and ginger and cook, stirring occasionally, until starting to soften, about 3 minutes. Stir in the curry paste and fry, stirring, for 1 minute.
Add the coconut milk and broth and bring to a boil. Stir in the soy sauce, brown sugar, salt, bamboo shoots, potatoes, broccoli, and mushrooms. Reduce the heat and simmer, partially covered, until the vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes.
Stir in the tomato and heat through, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and add the lime juice and basil.

Serve with rice.

4 Servings

Tonight I made another soup from Healthy Latin Cooking — this time, a mixed seafood chowder featuring shrimp, halibut, and cod.

Lisa says:

Now this is a broth-based soup I can get behind!

Chris says:

Huh? Why this one?

Lisa says:

It has so much other “stuff” in it — the potatoes, the carrots, 3 types of seafood… that actually fills me up.

Chris says:

Yeah, it’s filling, but I want this to be… creamier… more chowder-like. It tastes really good, but it could be thicker. Anyway, the recipe as listed calls for conger eel, but I couldn’t find it.

Lisa says:

That’s probably just as well, because if you made it with eel you wouldn’t find ME at the dinner table.

Chris says:

Oh come on, you’d try it…

Lisa says:

Maybe if you didn’t tell me what it was first.

Chris says:

So, remember when I said the store didn’t have it? Well…

Lisa says:

No! You’re kidding, right?

Lisa says:

Right?

Chilean Fish and Shrimp Stew
—————————–
1 1/2 pounds mixed seafood (shrimp, halibut, etc.)
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons lemon juice
salt and ground pepper
1 onion, finely chopped
1 green bell pepper, finely chopped
1 cup dry white wine
1 lb potatoes, peeled and cut into large cubes
2 large carrots, cut into 1/2″ slices
1 bay leaf
4 cups fish stock
1/2 cup chopped cilantro

Cut the fish into cubes and place in a 13″ x 9″ glass dish along with the shrimp. Add a third of the chopped garlic, the lemon juice, and salt and pepper. Cover and marinate in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
Heat the oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the onions, remaining garlic, and the bell pepper and cook for 4-5 minutes until the onions become translucent, but not browned. Turn the heat to high, add the wine, and bring to a boil. Add the potatoes, carrots, bay leaf, and fish stock, and return to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for five minutes. Add the seafood, and simmer for 10 minutes or until the fish flakes easily. Stir in the cilantro and simmer for one minute. Remove the bay leaf, and add additional salt and pepper, if desired.

4 Servings

This week’s CSA box included plenty of potatoes and spinach, so this dish was an obvious choice. The recipe below is modified from a few different sources online.

Lisa says:

This is *so* good.

Chris says:

It really is — I love that combo of spinach and potatoes.

Lisa says:

Did you mention that we’re currently eating this with delicious garlic naan and some saffron rice?

Chris says:

No, I didn’t… but I guess you just did.

Lisa says:

Can we have this every week?

Chris says:

Yes, please.

Aloo Palak
———–
1 bunch spinach
1/2 bunch cilantro
3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1 inch fresh ginger, roughly chopped
2 onions, chopped
1 green chilies, chopped with seeds
1/2 lb potatoes, peeled and cubed*
(*We actually used a full pound, since we had them on hand)
1 tsp turmeric
1 1/2 tbsp butter
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp ground cumin

Saute the garlic, ginger, onions and green chili together until the onion starts to brown. Then add the cilantro and spinach and cook until the spinach wilts. Place in a blender and puree to desired consistency. Cook the potatoes (boil, or microwave) until almost done. In a deep pan heat the butter and fry the cumin seeds for about 20 seconds till they start to lightly brown. Add the turmeric and other spices and fry for about 30 seconds. Add the spinach-onion mixture, salt, and potatoes and cook for a few minutes for the flavors to meld and the potatoes to fully cook.

This recipe comes from Fitness Food. A hearty – but healthy! – chowder made with chicken, corn, and veggies.

Lisa says:

What’s with all the poaching this week? And isn’t poaching illegal?

Chris says:

Different kind of poaching. But I know what you mean — the enchiladas, the tuna, now this. Not sure. Maybe it’s like when all of a sudden there’s 20 zombie movies coming out, or books being written about Ben Franklin or something.

Lisa says:

Wait a minute — why is this “Ecuadorian” Chicken Corn Chowder?

Chris says:

Well, it’s not really, but that’s where these bowls that Thad and Abbie got for us are from.

Lisa says:

Sneaky! Well, it’s still really good, in spite of your false advertising.

Chris says:

…and the portions are huge!

Ecuadorian Chicken Corn Chowder
——————————-
1/2 lb chicken breast fillet
4 cups chicken stock
1 large onion, diced
2 potatoes, diced
1 stalk celery, diced
1 large carrot, grated
14 1/2 oz can creamed corn
11 oz can corn kernels, drained
1/2 cup skim milk
3 tbsp parsley, finely chopped

Cut 2-3 slits across the thickest part of the chicken fillet. Heat the stock in a large saucepan over medium heat, and poach the chicken fillet for 10 minutes or until just cooked through. Remove the chicken and set aside. When cool, use two forks to shred.
Add the onion, potatoes, celery, and carrot to the stock. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 20 minutes or until the potatoes are done.
Stir in the creamed corn, corn, milk, chicken, and parsley, and stir until heated through.

4 Servings