Sinaloa Style Chilorio

Makes 10-12 servings     INGREDIENTS

• 4 pounds boneless pork shoulder or butt, fat on, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher or sea salt, divided
• 5 cups water
• 4 ounces (about 14 to 15) guajillo chiles, stemmed and seeded
• 2 bay leaves
• 8 garlic cloves
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon coriander seeds
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground back pepper
• Pinch ground cumin
• 1/4 cup white distilled vinegar
• 1 cup finely chopped white onion
• 1/2 pound (about 3) fresh Anaheim chiles, seeded and chopped
• 4 ripe Roma tomatoes, cored and chopped

TO PREPARE

• Preheat a large heavy casserole over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the pork pieces, sprinkle 1 teaspoon salt, and cook for 15 minutes, stirring as it starts to brown. Reduce heat to medium, pour in 5 cups of water, cover and cook for another hour and a half.

• Meanwhile, place the guajillo chiles, bay leaves, and garlic in a medium pot, cover with water and bring to a boil. Simmer over medium heat for 10 to 12 minutes until the chiles are completely rehydrated and plumped up.

• Place rehydrated guajillos, garlic, and bay leaves in the jar of a blender, along with 1 cup of the cooking liquid, and the oregano, coriander seeds, remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, black pepper, cumin, and vinegar. Puree until completely smooth.

• Pour the chile puree onto the meat, mix well, and continue to cook, partially covered, for another 10 to 15 minutes. Stir energetically, but occasionally. By the end, the meat should be so tender and luscious that it falls apart completely and will break into very thin and almost shredded pieces. Turn off the heat.

• This is the prepared chilorio base. You can let it cool and scrape into a colander, set over a bowl or pot, to drain the fat. Reserve the fat for later use. You can refrigerate the chilorio and the fat until ready to use.

• If you are ready to eat it, set a casserole over medium heat, add a tablespoon or two of the reserved fat from the chilorio. Once hot, add the onion, Anaheim chiles, and tomatoes, stir and cook for 8 to 9 minutes until softened. Add the chilorio, mix well, and continue to cook for 10 more minutes.

• Serve with flour or corn tortillas or use for any other type of filling or dish (such as pasta, lasagna, tortas, sandwiches, burritos).

Sopitas con Huevo y Chilorio

Makes 4 servings

      INGREDIENTS For the garnish:

• 1 cup slivered red onion
• 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
• 1 tablespoon white distilled vinegar
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• Kosher or sea salt, to taste

For the sopitas:

• 2 tablespoons chilorio fat, or vegetable oil
• 12 corn tortillas, store-bought or homemade, broken into small pieces
• 1 cup finely chopped white onion
• 1/2 pound (about 3) fresh Anaheim chiles, seeded and chopped
• 4 ripe Roma tomatoes, cored and diced
• 1 cup La Chata Chilorio, or homemade
• 8 large eggs, beaten
• 1 ripe avocado, halved, pitted, diced
• Salsa of your choice, optional

TO PREPARE To make the garnish:

• Prepare the garnish at least a half hour before making the sopitas. In a bowl, combine the red onion with the lime juice, vinegar, oil, and salt. Mix and let it sit and macerate.

To make the sopitas:

• In a large saute pan, add the chilorio fat and heat over medium-high heat. Once very hot, add the broken corn tortillas and let them heat, toast, and season, stirring occasionally, for about 4 to 5 minutes. Add the onion and Anaheim chiles, and cook for a couple minutes. Add the tomatoes and cook for 4 to 5 minutes, until completely softened.

• Incorporate the prepared chilorio and cook for a couple more minutes. Pour in the beaten eggs and cook, stirring occasionally, until set as in messy scrambled eggs. Serve, topped with avocado, the red onion garnish, and, if you wish, a salsa of your choice.

Bizcotela Vestida

Makes 30 sandwich cookies

      INGREDIENTS

• 1 pound unsalted butter, at room temperature, sliced, plus more to grease baking sheets
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 4 large eggs
• 8 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons baking powder
• Pinch kosher or sea salt
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1 1/2 cups white coarse sugar or sugar crystals
• 1 cup cajeta or dulce de leche, homemade or store-bought

TO PREPARE

• In the bowl of a mixer, beat the butter along with the granulated sugar at medium speed for a couple minutes until smooth, creamy, and puffed up. Add the vanilla and the eggs one at a time, beating until well incorporated.

• In a bowl combine the flour, baking powder, and salt.

• With the mixer running at low speed, add the flour mixture and milk in multiple additions, alternating between the two. Continue beating until well incorporated and you have a homogenous dough. Turn off mixer and gather dough into a ball.

• Preheat oven to 350°F with the two racks set in the lower and upper thirds. Pour the sugar crystals onto small plate and grease a couple non-stick baking sheets with butter.

• Use your hands to make small balls of dough of about 1 1/2- to 2-inches. Flatten slightly and cut 5 short lines around the edge of the disk with scissors, as if making petals, without cutting all the way into the center. Press down gently in the center to make a flower shape. Then flip over and press the top into the sugar crystals and then place right side up on the baking sheet. Repeat with all the dough balls, leaving about an inch of space between the cookies on the baking sheet.

• Bake cookies for 30 to 32 minutes, until cooked and barely beginning to brown around the edges. Remove from the oven and let them cool on a cooling rack.

• Once cool, make sandwiches with a couple teaspoons of cajeta or dulce de leche in between of two cookies with the sugar side facing outwards.