Chiles En Nogada Stuffed Poblano Chile Peppers Recipes

Steps:

• Roast poblano chiles over an open flame on a gas stove or grill until the skin is black and charred on all sides, turning often, 10 to 15 minutes.
• Place the charred chiles in a plastic bag or in a large bowl covered with plastic wrap. Allow to sit for 5 to 10 minutes, then open and peel off the skin. Cut a slit in each chile lengthwise and remove the seeds.
• Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and cook until soft and translucent, 3 to 4 minutes. Add ground pork and cook until browned, breaking up with a spoon while cooking, about 7 minutes. Mix in tomatoes, plantain, apple, peach, parsley, candied orange peel, pine nuts, raisins, almonds, cloves, salt, and pepper. Simmer until filling is cooked through and flavors are well combined, about 10 minutes.
• Combine walnuts, milk, goat cheese, sugar, and cinnamon stick in a blender; blend until walnut sauce is smooth and creamy.
• Fill each poblano chile with the pork filling and place on a plate. Spoon walnut sauce over chile and sprinkle with pomegranate seeds and parsley.

Steps:

• Make the picadillo: Heat olive oil in a large skillet over high. Spread pork in an even layer and cook, undisturbed, until lightly browned, about 3 minutes. Toss and continue to cook, breaking up meat with the back of a spoon and scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan, until meat is crumbled and lightly browned, 4 to 6 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the browned meat to a large bowl and set aside.
• Reduce heat to medium and cook onion, apple, pear, plantain, garlic and 1 1/2 tablespoons kosher salt, stirring occasionally, until tender but not browned, 10 to 12 minutes, adjusting the heat as necessary. Add 1 teaspoon pepper, the oregano, cinnamon and clove, and cook, stirring frequently, until very fragrant, 1 minute.
• Stir in sherry and cook, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid has evaporated and no longer smells of alcohol, 2 minutes. Stir in tomatoes and their juices, peach, raisins and almonds and cook, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid has evaporated, 5 minutes.
• Add the cooked pork, olives, lemon zest and 1 cup water, and cook, stirring occasionally, until all the liquid has evaporated, the vegetables and fruit are tender and the pork is cooked through, 10 to 15 minutes. Stir in the parsley and lemon juice, season with salt and pepper, and set aside until ready to use.
• Meanwhile, fry the poblanos: Heat vegetable oil in a large saucepan fitted with a deep-fry thermometer on high until thermometer registers 375 degrees. Working in four batches, fry the poblanos, turning once, until skin is opaque and blistered, 1 to 2 minutes per side. Transfer poblanos to a large, heatproof bowl, wrap tightly with plastic and let sit 15 minutes. When cool enough to handle, peel skin from chiles, leaving stem intact. Chiles should still be firm and bright green. Using a paring knife, make a 2-inch cut (about 1 inch from the top) lengthwise down the side of each poblano and carefully remove seeds and ribs.
• Place the poblanos cut-side up on a rimmed baking sheet and fill each with about 1/2 cup picadillo, gently pressing the filling into the poblanos with the back of a spoon, until full but not bursting or splitting. Set aside.
• Make the sauce: Purée the walnuts, almonds, crème fraîche and queso fresco with 1 1/4 cups water and 3/4 teaspoon salt in a blender until creamy. Season with salt and thin with more water, if necessary.
• Serve stuffed chiles at room temperature topped with nogada sauce, pomegranate seeds and parsley leaves.

Steps:

• Cook pork:
• Put pork in a 3-quart heavy saucepan with salt, onion slice, garlic, thyme, and enough cold water to cover by 1/2 inch and bring to a boil, skimming foam. Reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, until pork is very tender, 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Cool pork in liquid, uncovered, 15 minutes. Drain, then cut pork into 1/3-inch dice. Discard onion, garlic, and thyme.
• Make filling:
• Cook onion and garlic in oils in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderately low heat, stirring, until softened, 5 to 8 minutes. Add tomatoes, thyme, bay leaves, cinnamon, allspice, cloves, nutmeg, 1 tablespoon vinegar, 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar, and 3/4 teaspoon salt and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until tomatoes have broken down and sauce is slightly thickened, 20 to 30 minutes.
• While tomatoes simmer, cut an X in bottom of peach, then immerse in boiling water until skin begins to loosen, 10 to 30 seconds. Transfer peach to a bowl of cold water to stop cooking, then peel, pit, and dice (1/3 inch).
• Discard bay leaves, thyme sprig, and cinnamon stick from tomato mixture, then add diced pork and remaining filling ingredients and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until fruit is softened but still intact, 8 to 10 minutes. Season with additional salt, sugar, and vinegar.
• Make sauce:
• Purée walnuts and almonds in a blender with milk, cheese, 1 tablespoon sugar, and 1/4 teaspoon salt until smooth and silky, about 2 minutes. (Sauce should thickly coat back of a large spoon. If sauce is too thin, add more almonds and puré. If too thick, add more milk.) Season with salt and sugar.
• Stuff and bake chiles:
• Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F.
• Cut a lengthwise slit in each chile and carefully cut out seeds with kitchen shears, leaving stem intact. (For milder heat, carefully cut out ribs also.)
• Divide pork filling among chiles, then close, overlapping sides of openings slightly. Transfer, seam sides up, to a 13- by 9-inch shallow baking dish, then cover with foil and bake until just heated through, 15 to 25 minutes.
• Transfer chiles to plates, carefully turning them seam sides down. Pour about 1/3 cup walnut sauce over each chile, leaving some of chile visible, then sprinkle chiles with pomegranate seeds. Serve chiles warm or at room temperature.