The Nine Chilli Dinner

Inspired by some of the posts of Steve from Rancho Gordo, today’s dinner was a tribute to the almighty chilli. A total of nine different chillis were involved in tonight’s meal of chilli rellenos:

1. Poblano
2. Jalapeno
3. Guajillo (dried)
4. California (dried)
5. Cascabel (dried)
6. Pasilla Ancho (dried)
7. Chipotle (dried)
8. New Mexico (dried)
9. Bell Pepper

In brief, as I don’t feel like writing out everything I did…

The dried chillis (purchased from Whole Spice{.broken_link} in Napa) were cut open, seeded and stemmed, cut into smaller bits and then covered in boiling water and set aside for a while to soften.

The poblanos, charred and peeled, were stuffed with a mixture of diced/sauteed onions, garlic and jalapenos, red quinoa, diced zucchini, Rancho Gordo’s Good Mother Stollard{.broken_link} beans, salt, cumin (both ground and whole seed). These were topped with monterey jack cheese and popped into the oven for about half an hour. Pull the rellenos from the oven when the cheese is bubbly and starting to brown.

While that cooks, the rehydrated chillis are strained (save that liquid) and pureed along with a clove of garlic, a smidge of red wine vinegar, a pinch of salt and a fair amount of Rancho Gordo Mexican Oregano. The reserved liquid is used to keep things moving and to thin the mixture to the desired level. Top the rellenos with this chilli sauce.

Just before pulling the chilli rellenos from the oven, sautee more zucchini along with some red bell pepper. Season with salt and a squeeze of lime juice and top with pepitas.

Because it happened to be in the fridge, the meal was served with a Ca’ Del Solo Big House Pink. This worked surprisingly well.

The bonus: there are plenty of leftovers so I’m going to be eating this well for the rest of the week.