Ingredients

• 4 guajillo chiles
• 2 teaspoons cumin seeds
• 1 teaspoon ground cloves
• 10 allspice berries
• 1/3 cup Mexican oregano
• 12 sprigs fresh thyme
• 6 garlic cloves
• 1 onion, roughly chopped
• 1/3 cup cider vinegar
• 1 (12-pound) goat, quartered or 1 (6 to 8-pound) lamb shoulder
• Salt and pepper
• 1 (2-pound) package dried avocado leaves (we substituted banana leaves)

Preparation

Toast chiles, cover with boiling water in a deep bowl, and set aside for 20 minutes. Grind cumin, cloves, allspice, and oregano in coffee grinder. Drain soaked chiles, puree in blender the chiles, ground spices, thyme, garlic, onion, vinegar, and 1/2 cup of water. Process until smooth Push mixture through a sieve, season goat with salt and pepper. Rub paste all over the meat. Arrange in a bowl and allow to marinate for 4 hours, refrigerated. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. In a deep roaster pan scatter half of the avocado leaves on the bottom, place meat on top of the avocado leaves and scatter the remaining leaves over the meat. Cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil. Cook the goat 6 to 7 hours until meat is falling off the bone. If using lamb shoulder cook for 4 hours.

Food Network

Ingredients

• 4 medium-thick pork chops, bone-in or boneless
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons neutral oil
• 8 chiles de árbol
• 3 plum tomatoes
• 1 small onion, peeled and thickly sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, unpeeled
• ½ cup raw, hulled, unsalted pumpkin seeds
• ⅓ cup unsalted peanuts
• ⅓ cup hulled sesame seeds
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
• ¼ teaspoon ground allspice (or 2 allspice berries)
• 1 canned chipotle pepper
• 2 tablespoons neutral oil, lard or chicken fat
• 1 cup chicken broth, homemade or low-sodium
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon light brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon cider vinegar

Preparation

Make the sauce: Remove the stems from the chiles de árbol, and gently roll the chiles between your fingers to remove the seeds. Discard seeds. Set a bare skillet over high heat for 5 minutes, then add the chiles. Toast until they are darkened and fragrant, approximately 4 to 5 minutes. Place them in a bowl, cover with 2 cups boiling or very hot water, and set aside to soak.

Return the skillet to high heat. Add the tomatoes, onion and garlic, and cook, turning occasionally, until charred, approximately 10 minutes. Put the vegetables on a plate, and set aside to cool, then slip the skins off the cloves of garlic.

Return the skillet to medium-low heat. Place the pumpkin seeds, peanuts and sesame seeds in the skillet, and cook, stirring and shaking the pan continuously, until they are toasted and fragrant, approximately 2 to 4 minutes. Put the seeds and nuts in a bowl, and stir in the cinnamon, cloves and allspice.

Put the chiles and soaking liquid in a blender with the tomatoes, onion, garlic, the nut-seed mixture and the chipotle. Purée until smooth. Add the oil, lard or chicken fat to a large, heavy-bottomed pot, and heat over medium heat until it is nearly smoking. Add the purée. It will sputter a lot. Lower the heat, and stir, cooking the mixture down to a thick paste. It will continue to sputter and pop. Add the broth to the paste, and stir, then season with the salt, sugar and vinegar, and cook for another 15 minutes or so, until it resembles a thick, creamy soup. Lower heat to a bare simmer.

Make the pork chops: Season the pork chops aggressively with salt and pepper, and dust them with the flour. Add the oil to the skillet, and heat over medium-high heat until nearly smoking. Add the chops, and let them cook undisturbed, in batches if necessary, until crisp and well browned, about 5 minutes per side. Set them aside to rest for 5 minutes or so. Serve a chop per person on a generous amount of sauce, with tortillas to mop it up. Extra sauce can be used to braise chicken, lamb or more pork, or as a topping for enchiladas.

The New York Times

Ingredients

• 3 lbs chuck roast (fat trimmed), cut into 2-inch chunks
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 chiptoles in adobo sauce, chopped (or more to taste)
• 1 (4-ounce) can chopped green chiles
• 1 small white onion, finely chopped (about 1 cup)
• 1/4 cup fresh lime juice
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 3 bay leaves
• 1 Tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 Tablespoon dried Mexican oregano (or regular oregano)
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves
• 1/2 cup beef broth or water

Preparation

Combine all ingredients in the bowl of a slow cooker. Toss gently to combine. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, or on high for 3-4 hours, or until the beef is tender and falls apart easily when shredded with a fork.

Using two forks, shred the beef into bite-sized pieces inside of the slow cooker. Toss the beef with the juices, then cover and let the barbacoa beef soak up the juices for an extra 10 minutes. Remove the bay leaves. Use a pair of tongs or a slotted spoon to serve the barbacoa beef.

If not using immediately, refrigerate the barbacoa beef with its juices in a sealed container for up to 5 days. Or freeze it for up to 3 months.

Gimme Some Oven

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 large white onion, diced
• ½ batch (12 ounces) homemade green chorizo, or use another spicy fresh sausage
• ¼ cup chopped cilantro stems, leaves reserved for serving
• 7 cups cooked black beans (from 4 cans or 1 pound dried beans), drained
• 1 (28-ounce) can diced plum tomatoes with their juices
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt, more as needed
• Diced avocado, for serving
• Sliced scallion, for serving
• Lime wedges, for serving

Preparation

Heat oil over medium heat in a large Dutch oven or heavy-bottom pot. Add onion and cook until softened, 5 to 10 minutes. Stir in chorizo and cilantro stems and cook 5 minutes over high heat, or until much of the liquid has evaporated.

Stir in beans, tomatoes and their liquid, and 1 cup water. Bring mixture to a boil over high heat; reduce to medium.

Partly cover pot and simmer until tomatoes have fallen apart, about 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes. Season with salt. Serve topped with avocado, scallion, cilantro leaves and lime wedges.

New York Times

Ingredients

• 1 pound ground pork
• 1 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
• 1 tablespoon whole coriander seeds
• ⅛ teaspoon whole cumin seeds
• ½ teaspoon dried oregano, preferably Mexican
• 1 dried bay leaf
• 4 whole cloves
• 8 garlic cloves (do not peel)
• 2 Serrano chiles
• 1 poblano chile
• ¼ cup sherry vinegar
• 1 cup parsley leaves
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt

Preparation

Place the ground pork in a large bowl. Set a cast-iron skillet over medium heat for 5 minutes. Add black peppercorns, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, oregano, bay leaf and cloves and toast briefly until fragrant, about 15 seconds. Remove from the heat, transfer to a spice grinder and grind to a fine powder. Add to the bowl with the ground pork.

Return the skillet to a high flame and heat for 5 minutes. Add garlic cloves, Serrano and poblano chiles and roast, turning them from time to time until softened slightly and blackened in spots, about 6 to 12 minutes, removing the pieces as they finish cooking. Set aside to cool at room temperature. Once garlic cloves are cool enough to handle, peel them and discard the skin. Wearing gloves if possible, remove the stems and seeds from the Serrano chiles. Remove the stems and seeds from the poblano chile, and peel away the charred skin.

In a blender, purée the roasted garlic cloves, Serrano and poblano chiles along with the sherry vinegar, parsley and kosher salt until smooth. Transfer to the bowl with the ground pork and spices.

Mix the chorizo with your (preferably gloved) hands until thoroughly combined. Transfer to a container and refrigerate until ready to use, or for up to 3 days. The chorizo can also be frozen in an airtight bag for up to 1 month.

New York Times

Ingredients

• 3 medium ancho chiles, toasted and ground
• 3 tablespoons NM red chili (medium)
• 2 tablespoons cumin seeds, toasted and ground
• 2 teaspoons Mexican oregano
• 7 1/2 c. water
• 4 lb. beef chuck roast, cut into 1" cubes
• 2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 lb. bacon, chopped
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 5 cloves garlic, chopped
• 4-5 small jalapeños [CP: yes, that many], cored, seeded, and minced
• 1 c. crushed tomatoes
• 2 tbsp. lime juice
• 5 tbsp. masa

Preparation

Mix chili powder, cumin, oregano, and 1/2 cup water to form paste. Toss beef cubes with salt.

Fry bacon in large Dutch oven over medium-low heat until fat renders and bacon crisps, about 10 minutes. Remove bacon with slotted spoon and drain. Pour all but 2 teaspoons grease into small bowl; set aside. Increase heat to medium-high; brown on all sides, about 5 minutes per batch, adding additional bacon fat as necessary. Reduce heat to medium, add 3 tbsp. bacon fat to empty pan. Add onion; sauté until softened, 5 to 6 minutes. Add garlic and jalapeños, sauté 1 minute. Add chili paste, sauté 2 to 3 minutes. Add bacon and beef, tomatoes, lime juice, and 7 c. water, bring to simmer. Cook at a steady simmer until meat is tender and juices are dark, rich, and starting to thicken, about 2 hours.

Mix masa with 2/3 cup water in a small bowl. Increase heat to medium; stir in paste and simmer until thickened, 5 to 10 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 tablespoon garlic, chopped
• Salt and ground black pepper
• 2 blocks firm tofu
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon cider vinegar
• Chopped fresh cilantro for garnish
• Chopped scallions for garnish

Preparation

Put oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables soften, 3 to 5 minutes.

With your hands, crumble tofu into the pan. Cook, stirring and scraping the bottom of the skillet occasionally and adjusting heat as necessary, until tofu browns and crisps as much or as little as you like, anywhere from 10 to 30 minutes.

Sprinkle with the chili powder, cumin and cinnamon; stir and cook, continuing to scrape any browned bits from the bottom of the pan until the mixture is fragrant, a minute or two. Stir in vinegar and adjust the seasoning taste. Garnish with cilantro and scallions and serve with warm corn tortillas or over rice.

Mark Bittman, New York Times

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp. olive or vegetable oil
• 1 large white onion, peeled and diced
• 1 chayote, skin and core removed, then sliced into matchsticks
• 8 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• 8 cups chicken broth
• 5-6 cups cooked pork carnitas
• 1-3 roasted serrano peppers (add to taste, instructions below)
• salt and pepper
• 2 cups potato-masa dumplings (below)
• 2 avocados, diced
• 1 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
• 6-8 cups fresh baby arugula
• lime wedges for garnish

for dumplings:

• 1 cup mashed potatoes
• 1/2 cup masa harina
• 1 egg
• 1/4 tsp. salt

Preparation (Dumplings)

Combine last 4 ingredients in a bowl and stir together until blended. Use your hands to knead the mixture a few times until smooth. Then pinch off about 1/4 cup of the mixture and roll it into a long tube about 1/2-inch wide in diameter. Use a knife to slice the tube into small coins, about 1/8-inch wide. Repeat with remaining dough to make dumplings. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

Preparation (Soup)

Heat oil in a large stockpot over medium high heat. Add the white onion and chayote, and saute for 5 minutes until cooked and the onion is translucent. Add garlic and cook for an additional 1-2 minutes until fragrant. Add the chicken broth, carnitas, and serrano peppers (add one at a time to test out the level of heat) and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer for at least 30 minutes.

Season generously with salt and pepper. Then ladle the soup into serving bowls, filling them about half full. Then add in a small handful of potato dumplings, avocados and fresh cilantro to each bowl. Then top each with a large handful of baby arugula. Serve with lime wedges for garnish.

Recipe from Gimme Some Oven, after XOCO

Ingredients

• 4 pounds bone-in pork shoulder roast, cut into 1 1/2- to 2-inch slabs
• Salt

Preparation

1. Moist cooking. Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Cut each slab of pork in half and lay the pieces in a baking dish (they should fit into a 13 x 9-inch baking dish without being crowded). Liberally sprinkle with salt (about 1 teaspoon) on all sides. Pour 1/3 cup water around the meat, cover tightly with foil, and bake for 1 hour.

2. Dry cooking. Raise the oven temperature to 450 degrees. Uncover the meat and cook until the liquid has completely reduced and only the rendered fat remains, about 30 minutes. Now, roast, carefully turning the meat every 7 or 8 minutes, until lightly browned, about 20 minutes longer. Break the meat into large pieces and serve on a warm platter, sprinkled with salt.

Rick Bayless

Ingredients

• 2 green chiles, grilled, peeled, and seeded
• 1 lb peanuts
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/2 cup mustard
• 1/2 cup hot water
• 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken
• 10 romaine lettuce leaves
• 1 tbsp salt, divided
• 1 tbsp pepper, divided
• 1 tbsp garlic powder, divided
• 1 tomato, chopped
• 1 cup green onion
• 1 tbsp olive oil

Preparation

Chop raw chicken into small, ½ inch squares. Season chicken with ½ tbsp salt, ½ tbsp pepper, and ½ tbsp garlic powder. Pan fry in olive oil until fully cooked. In a blender, combine the Hatch chiles, peanuts, honey, mustard, remaining salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Add the hot water slowly while blending. Once the blended mole mix and chicken are done, toss chicken in the mole mix. Add chopped tomato and green onion to mixture. Chop romaine lettuce into approximately 5 inch long sections. Wrap about 2 tbsp of mix in lettuce and secure with a toothpick. Serve for crispy wrapping. For soft wrapping, bake for 10 minutes.

Central Market