For adding an extra kick to everything from a pot of chili to roast chicken, we’ve started turning to chiles en adobo. They have a smoky and slightly sweet flavor, and just one of them is spicy enough to make our toes tingle.
Do you love them, too?
Most cans of chiles en adobo contain chipotle peppers marinated in a tangy-sweet red sauce. Chipotles are the smoked and dried version of jalapeño peppers, and putting them in this adobo sauce seems to only bring out more of their wonderful smoky and spicy flavor.
To use them, we usually mince one (or two, if we’re feeling brave) of the peppers with a few teaspoons of the sauce until it becomes a thick paste. We’ll stir this into soups and sauces, or use it as a marinade for meats. Try mixing some with pulled pork - so good!
A little really does go a long way. We’re no strangers to heat, but the first time we tried chiles en adobo, it really knocked our socks off. If it’s your first time using this ingredient, start with the smallest chile in the can and add more as you go. You can also tame some of the heat by stripping out the seeds inside the chiles before mincing them.
Cans of chiles en adobo seem to be pretty common these days. Look for them near the other hot sauces and canned foods or in the Mexican foods aisle at your grocery store. Unused portions can be refrigerated in a clean air-tight container for about a month or frozen for several months.
How do you use chiles en adobo?
Related: Food Science: What Makes Chile Peppers Spicy?
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Chili. Soup. Paella. Shrimp. Waffles (yes, really).
Love them but why do they come in those big cans? Like you said, You only ever need one or two. A lot of the time 90% of the can just ends up getting thrown out if I don't have enough energy to put the leftovers in another container in the fridge. Why can't they just come in jars?
fish tacos!
http://thekosherfoodies.com/dinners/spicy-tuna-tacos/
Mac and cheese. Mmmmm.
@deldredge -- don't throw out what you don't use. The chiles keep much longer than a month in the fridge (don't ask me how I know this).
It really doesn't take that much energy to dump the contents of the can into a different container, does it?
Mashed with sweet potatoes and goat cheese.
Made into vinaigrette with lime juice and tossed with potatoes, feta, and pepitas.
@deldredge, you can also freeze them. I ended up wrapping chiles in foil with a tbsp of adobo sauce and froze individually, or you could use those 1/2 cup tupperwares.
@deldredge--and once they're in a container they freeze nicely.
Love, love, love chipotle in adobo. As a texan, I've been using them for years to everything. My two favs... with sour cream/mayo to add to fish tacos and pulled pork (carnitas). Also a great addition to queso, a tip I picked up from my sister who manages a burrito restaurant.
I concur, they're not hard to store. I stick my leftover chilis along with the sauce in a ziploc freezer bag. Smush it down so it's flat and I can stack it easily. I do the same with tomato paste. Just break of a chunk whenever you want.
I want to hear more about chipotle waffles. Topped with sour cream perhaps...
1/2 a small chipotle pepper in adobo, chopped, in about 1/2 a cup of honey (or to taste) is absolutely unreal with corn cakes, corn bread, black beans, sweet potatoes....
Nothing better in a simple black bean soup. And, yes, they keep much longer than a month in the fridge...
Love these! I'll usually add them to chili (white and regular), enchiladas, stews....I keep meaning to mince up a couple teaspoons and add them to cornbread the next time I make that as well.
And yes, these freeze beautifully, so that big can you buy doesn't go to waste.
I usually add one or two to a salsa or guacamole for some heat and smoky flavor.
I use them a lot. Here's a very quick meal with chipotle: http://myeverydaybites.wordpress.com/2010/04/13/tinga-de-pollo-chicken-tinga/
caution, it is veery hot
mixed with mayonnaise on sandwiches, made into "tinga" (holler at me mexican peeps), I also buy the "salsa de chipotle" which is essentially the same thing minus the chiles. I make my chipotle chile with about an ounce of dark (70%) chocolate. The smoky chipotle and chocolate are excellent. add a chopped chipotle to barbecue sauce amazing!
The reason, i suspect, chipotle keeps so well even after opening is because chipotle is smoked and dried jalapeno.
The first time I used them, I was just winging it the kitchen and decided that since it was just a small can, I'd dump the whole can in the sauce.
Wow! I like heat but holy jalepenos, it was hot! I use one or two at a time now and freeze the rest of the can.
These are absolutely wonderful! And there is no replacing their heat and flavor in the kitchen, I just recently used them in a recipe I found for pumpkin tortilla soup! So wonderful and just the perfect amount of spice, they warmed my husband and I right up on a one of the already chilly fall nights!
La Morena is my favorite brand of Chipotles en Adobo for pure design reasons. Who doesn't want a hot babe hanging out in their pantry?
http://www.globalpackagegallery.com/main.php?g2_view=core.DownloadItem&g2_itemId=85714&g2_serialNumber=2
And they store very well in a Mason Jar in the refrigerator. I'll keep them for up to two months. Preservatives of canned goods + refrigeration, ideal.
My most used recipe:
Chipotle Black Bean Dip
1 can drained Black Beans, water reserved
1 rinsed, seeded medium sized chipotle
1 Tbsp Adobo sauce
Juice of 1/2 lime
1 clove Garlic
Salt to taste
Blend all ingredients, adding more/less to taste in your food processor. Add small amounts of black bean's water to get the consistency right. This goes over great at parties and bbq's, I get requests from friends throughout the year! And it isn't just a dip, you can throw it in a tortilla with other goodies for a meal.
I store them in a mason jar. I also buy pickled jalapenos in a can and store them this way too. Looks like you canned them yourself! I like to make brie and chipotle quesadillas.
I mostly use them for red sauce for chilaquiles, though I have taken to putting a pinch in my pizza sauce lately. I keep the leftovers in a baggie in my freezer and just pull one out when I need it.
They keep for many months in the fridge in a small jar.
We enjoy the chipotle challenge: a piece of chipotle on extra old cheddar, chased by beer.
I wrote an article about what to do with the leftovers in a can of chipotles:
http://www.psuvanguard.com/arts-culture/can-o-adobo-1.2381549
I love chiles en adobo in soups, bean dips, lasagna, shepherd's pie... pretty much a dab in almost everything at my house. Once I open that can, I place them in a jar or air tight container and dip into it for weeks.
I just put one chile and some sauce in each section of a (black!) silicone ice cube tray and freeze. Then I put my chipotle en adobo cubes in a baggie and have just the right amount for each recipe.
If I have some left over, I will put them in my mini food processor and puree them. I spoon tablespoon-sized dollops onto plastic wrap and freeze them.
I use chipotle peppers in adobo sauce for just about everything. Especially when using a crock pot, I throw one of the who peppers in and it imparts a subtle heat to chicken, pork, stews, etc.
I'm very glad I read this article, because I've never used these before and I like spicy foods. I was going to put the whole can in my crockpot chili, I'm sure glad I didn't do that my weekend meal would of been totally ruined. Not to mention my taste buds LOL.