CHILI POBLANO

A RICH COMBINATION OF BEEF, ANCHO PEPPERS, AND TOMATILLO

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I initially tried this recipe as part of a chili cook off at work, the flavor profile reminded me of Abuela's Carne Desmechada (pulled beef) due to it's salty beefy base with undertones of cumin. But this dish really takes its shape from the addition of tomatillo and dried chiles which push it further to become a proper chili with a distictly different flavor from the traditional American 'chili'.

The main difficulty with this recipe is landing the final flavor after all of the chili has had time to sit and homogenize. Once you mix the beef, peppers, and tofu (or beans), the flavors( spices, salts, etc...) will continue to be absorbed by the ingredients through osmosis, which will change the flavor profile slightly but noticeably. The best method I have found to ensure this happens minimally is to marinate as many of the ingredients as possible so that there is less flavor exchange at the point where the chili is resting after cooking. This will matter a lot if the chili needs to sit a while as it is being served (such as in a competition) or it is intended to be served the next day.

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INGREDIENTS:

3	Frech Chile Poblanos (Chile Ancho's will do for a deeper flavor profile)
3 and 1	Green Bell Pepper and Yellow Bell Pepper
2	Jalapeños (skip for mild flavor)
2	Cans of Green Chiles (sometimes can be hot)
1	Onion
3-4	Garlic Cloves
1	Green Onion (Bunch)
4	Dried Guaillo Peppers
10-12	Shiitake Mushrooms
1.5 - 1.75 K	Beef Chuck
2	Tofu Cubes (Can exchange for favorite beans)
1 Tbsp	Cumin
1 tsp	Oregano
3-6 Tbsp	Chili Powder
-	Black pepper to taste
-	Salt to taste
1 cup	Beef or chicken broth

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FLAVOR NOTES:

This chili should have a deep beef and roasted green chile flavor, carried with a tang from the tomatillo and cumin seasoning. The tofu or beans will provide nutty notes to the aftertaste. ALT: This is the option that removes the jalapeños for a milder level of spice

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INSTRUCTIONS:

• Salt beef chuck and sear on all sides on a pan with a little oil. This will caramelize/brown the edges of the meat and fats a bit.
• Cut beef into large chunks and boil in a pot along with 4 cups of water, shiitake mushrooms, and dried guajillo peppers.
• Roast skin on bell peppers, ancho peppers, and jalapenos over an open flame. Make sure you dont burn the meat of the pepper but you sear the skin all around until its mostly black
• De-seed and mince peppers, then mince garlic, onions, and white bottoms of green onions
• Place on a large pan to fry with some vegetable oil.
• Add green chile cans to pan and cook down until all vegetables are soft
• Add can of tomatillo and using the broth that has formed on the boiling pot of beef, add a couple ladle fulls of liquid to the mixture. Add cumin and oregano, then place lid and cook on low heat.
• Continue to boil beef and cook peppers separately for a total of about 1 hour or until the beef is tender but not falling appart. Stir the vegetables to prevent charring.
• While those boil take tofu cubes out of package, slice into 1/2”-3/4” slices . Salt and cover thoroughly with chili powder and set aside to marinate in the dry spices.
• Once beef is tender, take the large chunks of beef out of the pot and cut into large cubes (small enough to fit in a spoonful) Also thinly slice shiitake mushrooms that boiled along with the beef, and mince guajillo peppers.
• Combine beef, mushrooms, 1 cup of broth, and vegetables in the large pot and cook on low heat for another 1 - 1.5 hours.
• The chili should be a bit salty and have a good amount of liquid at this stage. This will be offset when you add the tofu which will absorb some salt and add volume to the pot.

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