Fresh Mexico_ 100 Simple Recipes for True Mexican Flavor - Marcela Valladolid [26]
Bring a saucepan of salted water to a boil. Add the carrot slices and cook until just crisp-tender, about 3 minutes. Drain, and set them aside to cool.
Combine the tuna, mayonnaise, peas, and corn in a small bowl. Season to taste with salt and pepper and set aside.
Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the onions and garlic and cook for 5 minutes, or until the onions are slightly cooked but still crisp. Add ⅔ cup water and the vinegar, and bring to a simmer. Add the carrots, bay leaves, and oregano. Simmer for 8 minutes, or until the vegetables are crisp-tender and almost all of the vinegar has evaporated.
Stuff the chiles with the tuna mixture, and fit them snugly into a 9 x 13-inch glass baking dish. Pour the warm pickled mixture over the stuffed chiles, and allow to cool to room temperature. Cover and chill for 2 hours or overnight. Serve cold.
JALAPEÑO ROAST CHICKEN WITH BABY BROCCOLI
SERVES 4
½ cup (packed) fresh oregano leaves
1 shallot
4 garlic cloves
4 tablespoons (½ stick) unsalted butter
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 jalapeño chile, stemmed and seeded
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
One 5½-pound whole roasting chicken
1½ cups chicken broth, or more if needed
¾ cup dry white wine
2 pounds baby broccoli (see Tip)
There was always a roast chicken in our fridge when I was growing up—but I’d be lying if I said my mom cooked it. There was a wonderful rotisserie place a few blocks from my house and they would deliver a succulent roast chicken, fresh salsa, homemade tortillas, and frijoles charros (like the frijoles but with tons of bacon in the mix). We’d all stand around the kitchen table and make soft tacos, adding a few slices of avocado. We used leftovers for chicken salad, flautas (rolled up and fried chicken tacos), or tostadas (fried tortillas spread with refried beans, topped with shredded chicken, shredded iceberg lettuce, crema, salsa, avocado slices, and, in my house, a drizzle of olive oil and red wine vinegar).
This recipe is so easy and yields such a flavorful, succulent chicken that I doubt any rotisserie place in your neighborhood can rival it. And I doubt you’ll have leftovers. But if you do, go to town with tortillas, beans, avocado, and any of the salsas in this book and make tacos.
Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 400°F.
Combine the oregano, shallot, garlic, butter, 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, the jalapeño, 1 teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon pepper in a food processor, and process to form a coarse paste.
Pat the chicken dry and then place it, breast side up, on a rack in a large roasting pan. Using your fingers, loosen the skin from the chicken breast, legs, and thighs without detaching it. Spread half of the jalapeño paste under the skin. Tie the chicken legs together with kitchen string. Spread the remaining jalapeño paste all over the outside of the chicken.
Pour the chicken broth and wine into the roasting pan. Roast the chicken for 1 hour, basting with the pan juices every 20 minutes and adding more broth to the pan if it’s beginning to dry out.
Remove the roasting pan from the oven. Arrange the baby broccoli snugly around the chicken on the rack. Drizzle the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil over the broccoli, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast the chicken with the baby broccoli, basting occasionally with the pan juices, until a meat thermometer inserted into the innermost part of the thigh (but not touching the bone) registers 160°F, about 30 minutes.
Place the chicken on a platter, surround it with the baby broccoli, and serve.
TIP BABY BROCCOLI IS ALSO KNOWN AS BROCCOLINI. DON’T CONFUSE IT WITH BROCCOLI