Chiles Campesinos (1936) Farmer’s Stuffed Chiles
Hernandez, Ana Maria. Como mejorar la alimentacion del obrero y campesino. Chihuahua, Mexico: Imprenta Modelo. 1934. P. 46. [TX716.M4 H47 1934]
Chiles Rellenos is one of my favorite Mexican dishes. As you can see from the formatting, this particular recipe from Como Mejorar la Alimentacion del Obrero y Campesino for chiles rellenos is quite old. Unlike today’s cookbooks, which separate ingredients and instructions, this text is written all together in one block.
In my version of the dish, I substituted vegetable oil and Pam Cooking Spray for lard. Also, the recipe says to use ancho peppers, but I chose to substitute for one red, one yellow and one green, for presentation purposes. In addition, it requires fresh whole garlic. Instead of using whole garlic, I blended garlic cloves to make a paste to increase the flavor. The flour makes for a great breading when seasoned with adobo seasoning, black pepper, and oregano. Most of the products I used (tomatoes, peppers, eggs and onion) were organic and had no added pesticides. Note that the recipe says to peel the tomatoes, but I simply chopped them finely along with the onion. Also, it recommends using fresh cow cheese, but I chose to use shredded pepper jack cheese to melt inside of the stuffed peppers. This dish was delightfully tasty and I cannot wait to make it again!
Chiles Campesinos
Chiles Campesinos: 10 chiles anchos colorados, un queso de vaca fresco, 3 huevos, 20 tomates, una cebolla, dos dientes de ajo, 6 cucharadas de manteca, una cucharada de harina. Los chiles los abres, los desvenas y los rellenas con el queso rebanado, la manteca la pones en una sartén a la lumbre y cuando esté bien caliente vas friendo los chiles que los habrás pasado por los huevos batidos a que queden de un bonito color dorado. Los tomates los pelas, los picas muy finamente lo mismo que la cebolla y los ajos, en una cazuela de barro pones una cucharada de manteca, cuando esté bien caliente le pones la harina cuando empieza a dorar. Le pones el recaudo, bien frito le pones un pozuelo de agua, lo sazonas de sal y con este caldillo sirves los chiles.
Campesino Chiles:
10 red ancho chiles,
queso fresco
3 eggs
20 tomatillos
1onion
2 cloves of garlic
6 tablespoons lard,
1 tablespoon flour
- De-vein the chiles and fill with grated cheese.
- Lightly beat the eggs in a bowl.
- Heat 5 tablespoons of lard in a skillet over medium heat.
- Dip the chiles in the eggs and then fry.
- Remove the tomatillo husks. Chop the tomatillos, onion, and garlic finely.
- In a dutch oven or large pot, put 1 tablespoon of lard, and place it over the heat.
- When the lard is hot, add the flour and stir until it begins to turn golden.
- Place the tomatillos, onion, and garlic in the dutch oven, add water, and season with salt. Serve this broth with the chiles.
Librarian’s Note: In general, “tomate” is translated as “tomatillo.” However, in most recipes, including this one, using tomatoes will also produce a tasty dish, though somewhat different from the original.
