Gluten-free Gourmand

One of the things that I promised myself after returning from Hiatus 2015  was that I'd figure out how to make Cochinita Pibil.  It's kind of a regional specialty in the Yucatan and all the restaurants compete for the title of "Best Cochinita."  So I made it yesterday for the first time.  Here's the method: Chicken Pibil 1. Go to a cute Mexican store.  I chose Mercado Don Pancho on Alberta because it's like a portal to another world.  Why spend so much money on a plane ticket when you can just go to the Mercado and be instantly transported to another country?  There I purchased a small package of Achiote for

In celebration of Cinco de Mayo, I thought I'd post a really great enchilada recipe that my cooking partner  and I came up with using my braised chicken tacos recipe .  This is the perfect way to use up some day-old corn tortillas.  Since you stack the enchilada instead of rolling, the tortillas are easier to manage. Chicken Enchiladas Verde Recipe makes 2-4 servings In a heavy saucepan, heat: 1 Tbsp olive oil Once the olive oil is hot, brown on both sides, one or two at a time: 4 boneless skinless chicken thighs Brown them one at a time if necessary; don't crowd them in the pan.  Once there is nice browning on the bottom of the pan remove the chicken to a plate and pour in: 1/2 cup beer Scrape up the browning from the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon.  This browning makes the sauce deliciously rich.  Once the pan is completely deglazed, add the chicken back in and top the chicken with: salsa verde more beer if...

I love Mexican food.  I've been to Mexico so many times it's hard to count.  One of my favorite Mexican dishes is the Chile Relleno, or stuffed chile, but now when I go to restaurants I usually can't have it.  Even though it's mostly chile, egg, and cheese, it's usually not made gluten-free.  A little bit of flour is used in the egg batter to hold it together. I'm having my sister and her family over for Cinco de Mayo, and this hand-down her favorite Mexican dish.  She and her family are vegetarian, and this dish is one of the few Mexican dishes that is both satisfying and meatless.  I decided to wow her with my new chile relleno recipe that I've adapted to be gluten free.  I'm hoping it's just like the traditional chile relleno we used to have in Mexico. Recipe for Gluten-free Chile Relleno This recipe makes 2-3 chiles rellenos.  Double, or triple it as necessary for more servings.  The recipe makes plenty of sauce and batter for two...

On weekends, I like to have some kind of hearty egg dish for brunch. As my loyal readers may have gathered by now, I love Mexican food. Combine brunch and Mexican food, and what you get is chilaquiles. Similar to migas, chilaquiles is a traditional Mexican dish served in the morning using the leftovers from last night's cooking. It is pretty simple, and usually involves corn tortillas, enchilada sauce, cheese, and egg. I make it with tortilla chips instead of corn tortillas when that's all that I have around. If you do make it with tortillas, let them fry a bit in with the chorizo or in oil before adding the other ingredients. I don't really measure anything when I cook this, so all quantities are approximate. I tried to get a good photo of each step this time to give you a visual of the quantities. This "recipe" is one serving. The timing is more crucial than the quantities on this one, as you don't want the tortilla chips to be too cruchy or too so...

In Mexico, they serve ceviche everywhere on the coast. They serve it in restaurants, and vendors sell it from coolers on the beach (not recommended!) It is actually made without cooking the fish, but the lime and any other acids in the juice "cook" the fish in a chemical process without heat. As with any recipe, but especially when raw fish is concerned, buy your ingredients some place that you trust. I get my fish from New Season's in NE Portland or at Umajimaya in Beaverton. Both places have fish good enough to eat raw. If you want to do a shrimp ceviche, the shrimp should be cooked, but otherwise you can follow this recipe. There are lots of variations to this recipe, but I tried to make it like they serve it on the Pacific coast of Mexico. This dish is usually considered an appetizer, but I could eat it all day. I am not going to give quantities for this one, as you can adjust the ingredients according to your taste. Start by buying the fish. About a qu...