I visited Albuquerque last week and although I wasn't in town at the right time for farmers' markets or the annual chile harvest, I did get to experience some of the local cuisine. Just about every other meal I was served contained the famous New Mexico green chiles. These deliciously hot peppers made their way into everything from omelettes to biscuits to enchiladas.
Ingredient Spotlight: New Mexico Green Chiles
New Mexico green chiles are similar to Anaheim peppers, but they are a bit more pungent. The term actually encompasses several different cultivars that have been bred since the 1800s, including Long Green, Big Jim, and Española. (Anaheims are a cultivar that was developed when New Mexico chile seeds were brought to California in 1896.) Many people consider the ones grown in the town of Hatch to be the tastiest.
Harvested in late summer, the peppers are usually roasted and then dried, canned, or frozen to be enjoyed throughout the year. When green chiles are left to mature on the vine, they turn into red chiles, which are harvested in the fall.
I was so inspired by all the green chile-containing dishes I ate in Albuquerque that I had to bring some of the peppers home with me. Embarrassingly, I completely forgot about airline regulations and had a jar of chiles confiscated from my carry-on luggage! Fortunately, I was allowed to keep my packet of dried green peppers. Now I've been looking at mail order sources such as Hatch Chile Express and the seed catalog of New Mexico State University.
Here are a few recipes I've got bookmarked:
• Green Chile Cornbread, from Simply Recipes
• Green Chili Pie and Stuffed Tomato, from Downtown Historic Bed and Breakfasts of Albuquerque (highly recommended!)
• Vegetarian New Mexico Green Chile, from Karina's Kitchen
Do you have any other recipes to recommend?
Related:
Sense of Place: Southwestern Flavors and Ingredients
Sense of Place: Food and Cuisine of the Southwest
(Images: Flickr member timlewisnm licensed under Creative Commons, Flickr member Vilseskogen licensed under Creative Commons)
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Ingredients - Fruit, Ingredients - Pantry, Local - Southwest, green chiles, hatch chiles, new mexicoRelated Links
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David Tanis' Green Chile Stew in his book Platter of Figs is amazing!!! And easy to make (as with most of the recipes in the book)...
view lemonbird's profile
Having moved to Colorado in the past year I have gotten a small but obvious taste of the regions love of green chile. I can't wait to head south to New Mexico for a weekend on an eating tour. Yum!!
view kmarie's profile
I get to new mexico every 8-10 years and I crave these the entire intervening time.
Try them with eggs.
view Niamh's profile
I haven't used them myself yet, but I recommend you scope out Trader Joe's for wee cans of Hatch chiles. They're not in stock at the moment, but snatch 'em up next time you see them on the shelf! Much easier (and cheaper) than ordering them...
view thebigJC's profile
I saw the picture in the post, I just about fainted -- I lived in New Mexico through my teenagehood and part of college and am a total green chile addict!! There is no comparing "Mexican" fare in the rest of US to "New Mexican" food (not that it's bad, just not remotely the same). Green chile is one of the most amazing foods, and it pains me that I cannot get the same thing anywhere else. I have honestly gone as far as roasting Anaheim peppers over my gas stove, but it's still not the same. Luckily my hubby's whole family lives in Albuquerque, and we try to visit as much as possible -- we try to make them believe it's not just for the food!!!
By the way - the state has an official state question "red or green" -- something you'll hear in a restaurant in reference to what type of chile you prefer on your dish. I'm a green girl!
view ninamachina's profile
I live in Texas, and every year, the grocery chain The First Ever Un-edited & Un-tested Hatch Chile Pepper Recipe Bookhref>, with customer submitted recipes.
If you can find a copy of this book, I highly recommend it. But more importantly, if you can find fresh Hatch Chiles, you would be crazy not to pick them up. We roast them and freeze them for use in fresh salsa and Tex-Mex (and New Mex) dishes throughout the year.
view matmccoy's profile
I bothced the HTML in my previous post. It was supposed to say that the Hatch chili cookbook is put out by the grocery chain Central Markethref>.
view matmccoy's profile
I live in Colorado and live for the cool fall days that bring Hatch chilis up to our area. The farmers markets have roasters and I usually pick up a bushel to freeze. We put them in stews, cornbread, dips, and lots of other things. The canned just dont compare.
view realserendipity's profile
I live in santa fe now, and would highly recommend a trip to the santa fe farmers market in september to get fresh roasted chile -- romero farms' chile is excellent, and the red chile from chimayo is delicious (though you have to get that a little later in the fall).
I ordered from hatch chile express when living in nyc, and it was a very good mail order option for those not able to visit new mexico.
view nycsoozy's profile
Thanks for the recommendations, everyone! I hope to go back to NM someday when the chiles are fresh and just roasted. And matmccoy, I'm going back to TX for a visit next month, so I'll swing by Central Market!
view Emily Ho's profile