After a Friday afternoon cooking demonstration at La Mezcaleria in Vancouver, Chef Susana Trilling shared her recipes with the guests, so we could try the dishes for ourselves at home.
ENCHILADAS OAXAQUEÑAS
TORTILLAS IN COLORADITO MOLE OR RED MOLE
This Oaxacan-style dish is the perfect way to use leftover mole sauce. In Oaxaca, enchiladas are traditionally made with mole coloradito or mole rojo. We always use queso fresco made by Rosa, our neighbor, but you can find many varieties of this “fresh cheese” in Mexican specialty food stores. The parsley is important to the dish, as it gives a fresh green taste as well as color. Enchiladas are red (the mole), white (the cheese and onions), and green (the parsley)–the colors of the Mexican flag, which makes a patriotic dish. ¡Viva Mexico! You can stuff the triangles with chicken or cheese and fry lightly. Serve with black beans or with a fried egg for breakfast. For a heartier meal, serve with a piece of grilled Tasajo, Cecina, or grilled chicken. These are also nice as a light meal served with a salad. You can use Mole Negro instead of the Mole Rojo to make Enmoladas.
Makes6 servings
INGREDIENTS
4 cups mole coloradito Oaxaqueño or mole rojo sauce
¼ cup chicken stock, if needed
½ cup sunflower or vegetable oil
12 corn tortillas
2 medium white onions, thinly sliced or cut in thin lengthwise wedges
¾ pound queso fresco, crumbled
24 sprigs (1¼ cup) flat-leaf parsley, leaves only
METHOD
In an 8-inch cast-iron frying pan over medium heat, heat the mole sauce to a boil, stirring constantly. Lower the heat and simmer 5 minutes. Add a little stock or water to thin the mole so that it just coats the back of a spoon, no more. Keep the mole hot.
In another 8-inch cast-iron frying pan, heat the oil until smoking hot. Fry each tortilla quickly, on both sides until soft and then drain. Place atortilla in the mole sauce and coat both sides with the sauce. Place the coated tortilla on a plate and fold it in half, then fold it again to make a triangle. Repeat with another tortilla. Lay the second tortilla on top of the first with the points going in the same direction. Spoon more sauce on top. Garnish with some onion slices, queso fresco, and parsley. Repeat with the othertortillas, two per plate. Serve immediately.
Hint: If you get fresh, hot tortillas made with nixtamal, you can place them directly into the sauce and omit frying them.
Excerpted from ¨Seasons of My Heart: A Culinary Journey Through Oaxaca, Mexico
¨
(Ballantine Books, November 1999, ISBN 0-345-42596-0)