For Christmas I got the 2009 Page-A-Day Book Lover’s Calendar, which features a different book each day. Guess which author turned up on the page for Wednesday, January 14?
Isabel Allende and her book Inés of My Soul.
I’ve never read that book, but based on the Page-A-Day write-up, it is a passionate love story that takes place in 16th Century Spain and Latin America—a sort of hot and spicy romance set in rich historical times. Which, I suppose, is why the title for the page is CHILE CON CARNE.
Chile with meat.
Or, I suppose it could have just been a play on the word Chile, being that Isabel Allende is de Chile and that Doña Inés, protagonist of the featured book, ends up in Chile with Don Pedro.
No matter what the origin of Book-A-Day’s title is, I thought I’d provide my mother’s Chile con Carne recipe here. That way you can make a pot of steaming green chile stew to savor along with the heat of Doña Inés and Isabel Allende.
Chile con Carne
You’ll need:
- A pound of pork
- Tablespoon of olive oil
- Tablespoon of flour
- Two cloves of garlic
- A large yellow (Spanish) onion
- Five or six red or yellow potatoes, peeled
- Four or so roasted, peeled, and deseeded chile pods
- A package of frozen corn
- Salt and pepper to taste
Chile con Carne, otherwise known ’round these parts as Green Chile Stew, is best made in a crock pot so that the flavors can simmer all day long and the meat becomes very tender.
First cut the pork into small chunks. (You can also use beef or chicken, but Mom always makes it with pork.) Brown the pork in oil in a large pan on the stove, along with a couple of cloves of chopped garlic and a whole chopped yellow onion. In the mean time, have your crock pot heating up.
After the meat is brown, add about a tablespoon of flour for thickening. (If you want a gluten-free version, use soy or rice flour.) Then add about four cups of water to the meat, and once the water starts boiling, put the whole thing into the crock pot.
Let the meat cook all afternoon, and about two hours before you’re going to serve the stew, add in the potatoes, peeled and chopped. (I like to cut mine into medium-sized pieces, not too small and not too big.) Also add the chopped green chiles, and 3/4 of the package of frozen corn. You may need to add more water.
Season with salt and pepper. Simmer on low for another two hours, and it’s ready to go.
NOTE: You can add fresh chopped tomatoes or any other vegetables, but the stew is wonderful with just the few simple ingredients above.
ybonesy, this looks really good, and especially with the kind of cold we are having in the Midwest this morning (-21 air temps!). I’m a big fan of the crock pot, too, so I’ll be wanting to try this for sure.
Hey, do you happen to know where the tradition of green chili stew comes from? I was just curious because I had never had it until I visited the Southwest and it’s something I try to find in the local restaurants when I’m there. It’s so different than the Chili Con Carne that I grew up with in Georgia.
I love my mother’s recipe for her version, too. And as you heard in other comments on red Ravine, diddy’s dad has a knock-out secret chili recipe that I finally emailed to Bob!
You are on a roll with Isabel Allende! And what a cool calendar. A different book every day, how inspiring. This is a fun post.
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I’m not sure where NM Green Chile Stew came from, but I’ll poke around. You know, in NM as in other places where chile is a staple food, there are a lot of different ways to cook chile. Red, green, as a condiment, as a main dish. Green chile stew is one of my favorites, but red chile with meat is another. And green chile chopped with garlic—put it on a sandwich, just like you would onions (well, not you 8) ) or lettuce.
Hey, I’d love to see your mom’s recipe for Chili Con Carne. I had no idea you ate that growing up in Georgia!!
And yes, nothing like chile to warm one up during cold days. Yikes. Can’t even imagine that kind of cold.
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BTW, if any other interesting books or authors pop up on the Book Lover’s Calendar, I’ll definitely share them. It’s a real mix of history, reference, fiction, etc. So far, I don’t recognize hardly any of the authors. Ah, so many books, so little time.
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yb, the recipe sounds yummy & I intend to try it, for sure! I also love crock pot cooking & this will be a new recipe for me to add to that list. Last Saurday I made pot roast in mine.
I wanted to comment yesterday on this post, but due to a stomach virus, I decided to come back & read the entire thing. How cool to find the Allende quote! Do you ever sneak a peak at future quotes or restrain from that? D
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I have been fighting urges to sneak peek, but I usually peek about one or two days ahead. I know, I just am too curious! 8)
I’ve always wanted to cook a pot roast in a crock pot. I’ve only only tried once and it didn’t come out nearly as good as I’ve seen when others have done it. Any hints or tips?
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BTW, sorry to hear about the stomach virus. Yucky. Was it a 24-hour thing?
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Looks like there’s a new recipe for the House files. Yummy!
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yb, I totally understand about the sneak peek thing. I used to do the same thing when I was given daily calendars as Christmas gifts. Not too far in advance though! (I think it is a natural Gemini trait! 🙂
I’m over (with fingers crossed) the stomach virus & yeah about 24 hours, one reason I had problems sleeping the other night.
I do have a tip for the pot roast. I use a good pot roast or London Broil, that has been allowed to sit for awhile to take the chill off, with most of the fat trimmed off. I put it in the crock pot with some water in the early morning on low & wait until it is almost done. I then add my cubed potatoes, chopped carrots , chopped celery & onions, salt, pepper, & paprika. You choose the size of the veggies. ( I like yellow potatoes skin on . I cover all of this well with a good beef broth & set the temp to high. It takes about 3 hours for the veggies to get just right. I then thicken it with a Tbsp of of flour & 1/4 cup of water which I shake until mixed in a sealed container. You can break up the roast or just serve as is with veggies on side. Perfect every time. D
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Thank you so much for that recipe, diddy. I never added enough water/broth, is what I think has happened. I guess I thought the juices from the roast would be enough. No wonder mine never had that fall-apart quality to them.
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Bo, glad to hear you’ll be adding that recipe to your list. It’s good for a Sunday family get-together, casual. Kind of like Frito Pie. 8)
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diddy, that crock pot pot roast sounds really good. I want to try it while it’s still cold outside. So you add a canned good beef broth to a London Broil? I think I always forget to add enough water, too, and the broth sounds good. Hmmm. I’m hungry right now so it sounds even better.
Hey, sorry you were sick, diddy, and I hope you are feeling better. There has been a lot of gunk going around in Minnesota, too, people at work sick. I’ve managed to dodge it so far (knock on all the wood I can find). ybonesy and I were commenting this week on how much we appreciate your comments. Even when the posts take time to read and digest, or are off on a whole other tangent, you are consistently there.
So, to you and all of our other regular commenters, thank you so much for sticking with us! It makes it so much more fun to have these conversations that go anywhere and everywhere!
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QM, thanks for the sweet comments & thanks to yb, also! I check in everyday. red Ravine is my go to place!
On the subject of the pot roast, I use a broth made by either Swanson or College Inn (I forget). It is in the tall box & is made from top sirloin. Simply the best! I use a whole box for one one pot roast. Campbells beef broth is also good, but you would need at least 3 cans. The real secret is letting the meat come to room temp. before you begin the cooking process. This is also true when grilling any meat. I helps to keep the meat from getting tough. And for the pot roast I usually do use London Broil. It depends on what is on sale at the time.
And yes, I’m much better, thanks!
BTW, it is 7 degrees here now, but a solid 77 in our living room. As much as I miss our downed trees of last year, I am giving much thanks to them now! Stay warm! Love ya! D
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Ha! I just read my last comment again! Can you tell I am a fan of the Food Network? 🙂 D
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Well, today I bought a really gorgeous roast from the meat store. I didn’t want a big one, so I had them cut one that was already kind of small into a 2 lb roast. Ha. It’s really small, but we’re not big meat eaters. I’ll probably make a soup to go with it that night, and a big salad. Plus all the potatoes and such, figure we only need a bit of meat. (Jim and the girls are not big on eating leftover meats unless it’s chicken or turkey.)
Anyhoo, I’m thinking I will only need about a cup of broth. What do you think, diddy?
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There are so many variations in the “chili” category, it’s impossible to nail down “chile con carne”…I guess I always thought that was the kind of Texas chili, you know, with lots of ground meat and beans, and a tomato-based spicy sauce.
I love green chile stew best for lunch the next day with a hot buttered tortilla.
Check out Jane Butel’s cooking club, “Cooking with Jane” at http://tinyurl.com/chilecook – she’s got good hot stuff.
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diddy, you should write a blog about food, totally in your own language and with your little tips written into the prose. I always want to make whatever it is you are writing about. You make it sound delicious! I do want to try this London Broil pot roast now. Maybe the next trip to the store.
How wonderful that those trees that fell in your yard last year can be used to keep you warm this winter. That seems like the way things should be, doesn’t it? And it goes without saying, great family and friends around to help out are always a blessing. Sometimes I wish we lived closer to family. Living far away from “original home” as much as I have, I’ve had to create my own family. And I’ve got some good friends here I can depend on. Makes a huge difference!
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Hey, diddy, I was telling Liz about your pot roast and she wanted me to ask you a question. Have you ever put your pot roast meat in a frying pan and browned the outside first before putting it in the crock pot? She’s seen that in some recipes and wondered if it adds to the taste by sealing in the flavors. What do you think? (I guess that makes two what-do-you-think questions, one above from yb!)
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Great question, Liz (via QM)! My mom almost always browns her meat before putting it in the crockpot. Says it also makes for a prettier color of the broth juice that comes from the meat, kind of a golden.
Also, I second QM’s suggestion about diddy’s recipes. You could create a whole food blog or a cookbook. I’d sign up for the recipes!!
Last night I cooked a cilantro-garlic chicken from a recipe that a friend had sent me. It was so easy, assuming you have the ingredients. And the thing is, it’s different from all the usual stuff we make. I love trying recipes from others, assuming they’re pretty easy and don’t take hours to prepare.
Hey, lil, good to hear from you. Yeah, I think the term “chile con carne” is pretty broad. I’ve also heard it refer to the Tex-Mex sort of chile. I also like my green chile stew best the day after, once all the flavors have gotten stronger.
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yb, the amount of broth depends on how soupy you want your recipe. I like mine soupy so I can dip a warm buttered roll into it! That’s also why I barely thicken it. Gosh that chicken sounds yummy.
QM, yes I do sometimes brown my meat on the stove before cooking it in the crockpot. The same way yb’s pork is browned for the chile con carne. It does keep the juices in, but it should be done quickly in a very hot frying pan. So, I hope that answers Liz’s question. I always brown the meat first when making vegetable soup, for instance.
I always keep the freezer full of a variety of meats, so I usually don’t have to spend money on that every week. I get some great freezer bundles from a wonderful local store that has a great butcher shop. Usually 40 lbs. at a time. I then break down & freeze smaller 2 person size meals. My freezer is always full.
I have seriously thought about a food blog, but there are already so many out there.
Last Sunday I gave A.’s roomates girlfriend 8 recipes. She wanted them as I send food home with A. at times when I have leftovers. She cooks for him & his 2 roomates.
She’s coming back for more & we’ll sift through what I have on file. Kinda makes me feel good that they like my food. For me it is simply a labor of love. I think that’s what makes it taste better. D
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40 lbs at a time, diddy? Do you have an extra (or extra-big) freezer?
Yesterday I bought meat for the week, and then some—just under 10 pounds. I guess if I were to buy a month’s worth at a time, I could get up to almost 40. But then some nights we go completely meatless—like tonight: potato-leek soup and a salad.
I really need to be able to think of the dish first, and then buy the ingredients. If I buy a bunch of meat without thinking through what I’m going to make with it, I struggle to do anything creative and we end up eating the same ol’ things (when I cook) over and over (e.g., grilled pork chops. Ugh, I’m sick of ’em!). I’m such a not-creative cook unless I get ideas from others (including cookbooks—currently using one of my oldest ones—Moosewood).
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The chili we’ve been making lately is just big hunks of brisket, lots of different peppers (chipotle, adobo – those are the ones that I can remember, but I think there’s another one)) plus big pieces of yellow squash. No tomato sauce, no beans, no ground beef – which are the ingredients I used when I learned to make chili as a kid. This new recipe is oh so yummy. Different, but yummy!
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yb, the meat bundles I buy are a mix of meats. You know, 10 lbs. chicken breast, ground beef, sweet italian sausages, chicken thighs, etc. They mix it up. Sometimes I buy the 30 lb. bundle. It all depends on what they offer. We do have a small freezer in our basement. You know, I could eat chicken & turkey everyday of the week, but we sometimes enjoy a good steak & roast. I try to make healthy meals for us, although some are worthy of hardening the arteries. It just pays to stock up & mix it up. D
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I’ve never heard of the “freezer bundle” concept, diddy, but it sounds like it offers a great savings. I know meat costs can be so high at times, especially if you use a butcher shop or try to buy organic.
I’d love to hear about any other easy meat recipes you have. Like I said, I get so sick of my same old stuff. I do like a roasted whole chicken, and I don’t seem to get tired of that.
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Yum, sounds good, Bo. Do you roast and peel the different peppers first and then cook it with the meat? I really love the taste of the adobo. Also the poblano. Well, heck, I like them all. 8)
Jim bought some very hot little orange-ish peppers last week, I think. I made a homemade pizza with Italian sausage (also from the same meat shop we go to) and on his side included the chopped hot pepper. Man, was it hot. I didn’t put much but it got your lips burning. He can take that kind of heat. I can’t.
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yb, do you like crab meat? If so I have a wonderful crab souffle recipe that uses only 4 ingredients. I get many requests for that one. And the same store where I get my meat bundles also has a great seafood dept. & is offering 1 lb. petite lump crab meat for 12.95! It comes in 1 lb. cans & is pasteurized, so it keeps for months in the fridge. I fully intend to to grab a couple cans. I’ll share that in the future. I don’t want to hog up this post with my recipes.
Oh, & back to the pot roast, I also add fresh chopped parsley & sometime thyme & rosemary. Whatever you fancy. I guess, because I do not really follow many recipes & just sort of do my own thing, I sometimes forget the little things.
Oh, & I know R3 gets his meats from the same chain as I do. They are local to this area with 7 stores. Too bad they can’t be nationwide. D
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This sounds delicious! I’m going to dust off my crockpot and give it a try sometime soon.
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I do like crab meat, diddy, although I don’t get it very often, only occasionally when the Alaskan King Crab legs go on sale. But I wouldn’t know how to pick out a good brand of, say, canned crab meat. I don’t think they carry the kind you’re talking about here.
Thanks for the tip on the fresh herbs. I need some thyme for a white bean and potato casserole recipe I got off of (coincidentally) Robin’s blog (thanks, Robin). Hope to make that this week, too. Tonight is green chile stew, which I’m about to go get started in the crock pot.
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yb, I thought it might be difficult for you to get lump crab meat. I remember someone who was in AZ & went into Subway there to get her favorite crab cake sub. They didn’t offer it there & she was very bummed!
Aren’t crock pots great? J & I get one for Scaramastra for Christmas, along with a terrific crock pot cookbook, & a cool miz of herbs & spices. I know that she has made Chicken Teryaki in it & loved it. D
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Oh my, a crab cake Subway sandwich?? Those are definitely not available ’round here. 8)
You know, I don’t use our crock pot nearly as much as I could. It’s so easy and perfect for when you work, yet I forget about it. (And don’t have enough experience with it.) But I’ll be using it this week for the pot roast (currently thawing in the fridge).
BTW, how long does it usually have to sit out to get to room temperature?
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p.s., sorry diddy, you’ve become my pot roast consultant. 8)
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diddy and yb, we are making your London Broil pot roast as we speak! The meat cooked in the crock pot overnight last night and this morning. A few hours ago, I put the veggies in and it smells so good. The meat finally fell apart and it’s such a high lean grade of meat that it looks great. And diddy, we saw your broth at the store, the high quality stuff. We bought a box of All Natural More Than Gourmet Beef Style Culinary Stock broth. We got these little baby carrots and the yellow potatoes, too. I can’t wait to try the pot roast when it’s done.
I want to clarify one question, too, about adding the flour. Do you do that at the very end after the veggies are all cooked? Or add the flour at the same time you add the veggies? (You are my pot roast consultant, too!).
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QM, I hope you & Liz enjoy. You know I add the flour right after the veggies are added. You can also use corn starch, but for some reason I prefer the flour. BTW, any left overs can be frozen, you know, for another cold day in the future. I love london broil, because it is lean & tasty. I don’t know if you remember, but for Moms 70th birthday party, I cooked it in a crock pot for French Dip, in addition to sausage gravy, bisquits, pulled pork, & collared greens. Yikes, I was on a roll that day! I own 3 crock pots, 2 large & 1 small one.
yb, I’ll check with Scaramastra on the name of the cookbook that I picked up for her. There are so many out there & I checked them all out before choosing the one we gave her! I can’t remember the name of it now, but perhaps she will comment or I will ask her. D
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yb, it really only takes about 30 minutes to 45 minutes for the meat to de-chill & rest before cooking. D
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diddy, I do remember the French Dip on Mom’s 70th birthday. YUM. Yes, you did do a lot of cooking that day. Delicious food.
Thanks for all the updates on the London Broil pot roast, too. I do love the crock pot! And your recipe is great. We had it last night for dinner and then again tonight after a long day, starting at the Inauguration this morning, work, Sub-Q fluids for the cat of one of our friends, and now catching up on all the balls and the end of the parade we recorded. Got to get to bed soon though. Sleeeepy. 8)
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diddy, after a long, long week (it seemed like the Inauguration was weeks ago!), we were exhausted and looked in the fridge last night for something for dinner —- there was the last of your pot roast recipe we had made. We heated it up and had the last of it for dinner. It was even better after it had sat for a while and the ingredients had a chance to mix and meld. I’m sold on your pot roast!
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Our crock-pot pot roast came out delicious, too. It was a small one, and Jim made tacos with the meat the next night. Then it was gone.
Thanks, diddy, for all your help. It was the best pot roast I’ve ever made.
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Thanks QM & yb, you know you just have to play around, make it your own. I found that out years ago.Go with your heart & what you like & it will be perfect everytime! I do what yb did. Make the roast, split it up & make soemething different with it. So happy that you all enjoyed! Warms my heart! Thanks! D
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