Sunday, October 7, 2012

chili time

it's october, folks!  my favorite month of the year.  i'm not really sure what makes october so awesome- it could be that the leaves have put on their fireworks show for everybody- one last hurrah before sleeping the winter.  it could be that there's always that threat of snow in the air.  it could be the amazing indian summers we have here.  it could be the zombie crawls and trick-or-treating.  or, it could be that this is the time of the chilies.

chilies mean fall in colorado.  the smell of them roasting on street corners starts in august and finishes in november, but late september and early october are the best time.  i can't smell them without thinking of raking leaves and drinking cider and having a fire.  it's a cozy smell.  there is a festival dedicated to roasted chilies in the town where i work, and my husband and i always go, lugging about at least a bushel of roasted goodness to take home with us.  the air is like mace, the pace is frantic, and farmers sweat themselves nearly to death managing the barrels roasters and flame throwers that make the humble pepper a thing of beauty.  over one hundred thousand people came this year to celebrate chilies- and we never buy enough.  (as an aside- a festival completely dedicated to foodstuffs is a thing of beauty all its own.  there should be more of them.)

i never really ate green chili as a kid- a rare thing for somebody who grew up in colorado.  it's like the state food.  but my parents weren't from here and really didn't like the spicy mexican fare, so i grew up eating a lot of asian inspired cuisine.  the first time i had green chili, it was a revelation.  (thank you, banana.  you gave me the gift of chili too!  no wonder i love you.)  i can't even put into words the wonder of a good green chili.  my best friend and i make it often, and when i'm welcoming somebody to colorado (in this case my brother's new bride! i'll write about the wedding soon- but it was lovely, if really really cold.) green chili is the first thing i make them.  it's thick, spicy, warm, and filling, and has the flavors of sunshine and heat to keep you remembering the blistering summer all through the year.  it's love in a pot.

Sharon's Gluten-free Green Chili

brown 1-2 pounds of boneless pork (could be stew meat, or chops- whatever is on sale.  it's going to cook forever, so it doesn't have to be fancy meat) in some olive oil
add in 1 onion, diced fine, and 5-6 cloves of garlic, minced.
cook until onion is tender, then add in a pound of roasted green chili, skinned and minced fine
sautee together for about ten minutes

in a seperate dutch oven, melt half a stick of butter on medium heat, then add in a quarter cup of gluten free flour (i use Bob's red mill all purpose) to make a roux.  cook for 5-10 minutes, stirring constantly, until the roux is light brown.  add in 8 to 10 cups of water or broth (if using water, then add in the appropriate amount of boullion to make a broth).  dump in the pork mixture.

dice up quite a lot (however much you want, really- i like my stew really potato-y) of yukon gold potatoes and put them in the chili.  (i know the potatoes sound weird, but it's traditional if you're making the chili as a main dish.  if you're making it as a gravy, you leave em out)  add in two cans of rotel.  season with salt and pepper- and then walk away.  you're going to have to simmer this bad boy for at least 45 minutes on low, stirring occasionally.  it's better if you leave it an hour, but that's hard to do sometimes.

come back, and serve it up!  we like to have corn tortillas with it, and put sour cream and cheese in the soup, especially if you have little ones eating it.  it can be VERY spicy.  fair warning.  eat it up, warm yourself, and think of summer.