MANCHAMANTELES DE CERDO Y POLLO
from “Authentic Mexican”
by Rick Bayless with Deann Groen Bayless
serves 4
INGREDIENTS:
6 medium dried chiles anchos, stemmed, seeded and deveined.
¼ cup lard or vegetable oil plus a little more if needed.
½ medium onion, chopped.
5 large cloves garlic, peeled and halved.
1 pound lean, boneless pork shoulder, cut into 2-inch squares.
1 large whole chicken breast, boned and cut into 2-inch squares.
2 cloves (or a pinch ground).
3 black peppercorns (or a big pinch ground).
½ inch cinnamon stick (or about ½ tsp.ground).
2 slices firm white bread, broken up.
salt to taste.
2 tbs. cider vinegar.
¼ small (about 1 cup) fresh pineapple, cored, peeled and cubed.
1 ripe, medium plantain.
about 1 1/2 tbs. sugar.
PREPARATION:
1. Tear the chiles into flat pieces and toast them a few at a time on a griddle or heavy skillet over medium heat, pressing them down for a few seconds with a metal spatula, then flipping and pressing again; when they send up their aroma and change color, they’re ready. Cover with boiling water, weight with a plate to keep them submerged, and soak for 30 minutes.
2. Fry the onions with 2 tbs. lard or oil in a medium-size skillet over medium heat until soft, 6 or 7 minutes. Add the garlic and fry until the onion is quite brown, some 4 or 5 minutes longer. (my onions didn’t brown - i didn’t care - it worked fine.) Transfer the onions and garlic into a blender jar, leaving as much fat as possible in the pan.
Raise the heat to Medium-high and add more fat, if needed, to coat the pan. Dry the pork on paper towels, then brown it in an uncrowded single layer, 2 to 3 minutes per face; remove, draining well. Dry the chicken pieces, then brown them for 2 to 3 minutes per side and reserve. Set the skillet aside.
3. Drain the chiles and add to the blender. Pulverize the spices in a mortar or spice grinder and add to the chiles along with the bread and 1 cup water (i needed more than 1 cup water and added less water later to compensate). Stir, blend to a smooth puree, then strain through a medium-mesh sieve.
If necessary, add a little lard or oil to coat the skillet, then set over medium-high heat. When quite hot, add the puree all at once and fry, stirring constantly, for 4 to 5 minutes, untill darkened and thick, dislodging any bits that earlier may have stuck to the pan.
4. Scrape the chile mixture into a large saucepan, stir in 2 cups water, the saly, vinegar and pork. Partially cover and simmer for 45 minutes to an hour, until the pork is tender. Add the chicken and pineapple, cover and simmer for 13 minutes.
While the chicken is cooking, heat a tbs. of lard or oil in a medium-small skillet over medium. Peel and cube the plantain, then fry it until browned, 3 or 4 minutes and add to the manchamanteles. Stir in the sugar, taste for salt and thin with a little water if the sauce has thickened past a medium consistency; the flavor should be slightly sweet and fruity. Remove from the heat immediately and serve on warm, deep dinner plates.
TRADITIONAL VARIATIONS
Prepare the recipe, using a double quantity of meat and sauce ingredients and adding 1/4 cup each of skinned toasted peanuts and blanched toasted almonds to the chiles before pureeing; along with the pineapple, add 1 large sweet potato, 1 apple and one pear (all peeled, cored, if appropriate, then cubed) (i added my sweet potato a bit earlier to let it cook longer). For a different dimension, add 8 oz. fried chorizi sausage with the chicken. Serve garnished with pickled jalapenos.
RvB’s VARIATIONS
I’m not traditional. I substituted venison, marinated in Turkish beer (thanks Marian) and balsamic vinegar for the pork and chicken; Japanese ume plum vinegar for the cider vinegar; toasted pumpkin seeds and sesame seeds for the peanuts; dried apricots for the pears; and Mexican chocolate for the sugar. The seeds and chocolate have traditional precedence. I doubt that ume plum vinegar is used often in traditional Mexican cuisine, but i had some and it seemed appropriate at the time. It tastes good in the manchamanteles.
COMMENTS
The dish can be prepared entirely in advance; remove from heat immediately after adding the plantain, cool quickly, and store up to 4 days in refrigerator. It improves with a little age. Reheat slowly on stovetop or in a 350 degree oven. Thin if necessary.
The name “manchamanteles is two Spanish words strung together. It means tablecloth stainer.
from “Authentic Mexican”
by Rick Bayless with Deann Groen Bayless
serves 4
INGREDIENTS:
6 medium dried chiles anchos, stemmed, seeded and deveined.
¼ cup lard or vegetable oil plus a little more if needed.
½ medium onion, chopped.
5 large cloves garlic, peeled and halved.
1 pound lean, boneless pork shoulder, cut into 2-inch squares.
1 large whole chicken breast, boned and cut into 2-inch squares.
2 cloves (or a pinch ground).
3 black peppercorns (or a big pinch ground).
½ inch cinnamon stick (or about ½ tsp.ground).
2 slices firm white bread, broken up.
salt to taste.
2 tbs. cider vinegar.
¼ small (about 1 cup) fresh pineapple, cored, peeled and cubed.
1 ripe, medium plantain.
about 1 1/2 tbs. sugar.
PREPARATION:
1. Tear the chiles into flat pieces and toast them a few at a time on a griddle or heavy skillet over medium heat, pressing them down for a few seconds with a metal spatula, then flipping and pressing again; when they send up their aroma and change color, they’re ready. Cover with boiling water, weight with a plate to keep them submerged, and soak for 30 minutes.
2. Fry the onions with 2 tbs. lard or oil in a medium-size skillet over medium heat until soft, 6 or 7 minutes. Add the garlic and fry until the onion is quite brown, some 4 or 5 minutes longer. (my onions didn’t brown - i didn’t care - it worked fine.) Transfer the onions and garlic into a blender jar, leaving as much fat as possible in the pan.
Raise the heat to Medium-high and add more fat, if needed, to coat the pan. Dry the pork on paper towels, then brown it in an uncrowded single layer, 2 to 3 minutes per face; remove, draining well. Dry the chicken pieces, then brown them for 2 to 3 minutes per side and reserve. Set the skillet aside.
3. Drain the chiles and add to the blender. Pulverize the spices in a mortar or spice grinder and add to the chiles along with the bread and 1 cup water (i needed more than 1 cup water and added less water later to compensate). Stir, blend to a smooth puree, then strain through a medium-mesh sieve.
If necessary, add a little lard or oil to coat the skillet, then set over medium-high heat. When quite hot, add the puree all at once and fry, stirring constantly, for 4 to 5 minutes, untill darkened and thick, dislodging any bits that earlier may have stuck to the pan.
4. Scrape the chile mixture into a large saucepan, stir in 2 cups water, the saly, vinegar and pork. Partially cover and simmer for 45 minutes to an hour, until the pork is tender. Add the chicken and pineapple, cover and simmer for 13 minutes.
While the chicken is cooking, heat a tbs. of lard or oil in a medium-small skillet over medium. Peel and cube the plantain, then fry it until browned, 3 or 4 minutes and add to the manchamanteles. Stir in the sugar, taste for salt and thin with a little water if the sauce has thickened past a medium consistency; the flavor should be slightly sweet and fruity. Remove from the heat immediately and serve on warm, deep dinner plates.
TRADITIONAL VARIATIONS
Prepare the recipe, using a double quantity of meat and sauce ingredients and adding 1/4 cup each of skinned toasted peanuts and blanched toasted almonds to the chiles before pureeing; along with the pineapple, add 1 large sweet potato, 1 apple and one pear (all peeled, cored, if appropriate, then cubed) (i added my sweet potato a bit earlier to let it cook longer). For a different dimension, add 8 oz. fried chorizi sausage with the chicken. Serve garnished with pickled jalapenos.
RvB’s VARIATIONS
I’m not traditional. I substituted venison, marinated in Turkish beer (thanks Marian) and balsamic vinegar for the pork and chicken; Japanese ume plum vinegar for the cider vinegar; toasted pumpkin seeds and sesame seeds for the peanuts; dried apricots for the pears; and Mexican chocolate for the sugar. The seeds and chocolate have traditional precedence. I doubt that ume plum vinegar is used often in traditional Mexican cuisine, but i had some and it seemed appropriate at the time. It tastes good in the manchamanteles.
COMMENTS
The dish can be prepared entirely in advance; remove from heat immediately after adding the plantain, cool quickly, and store up to 4 days in refrigerator. It improves with a little age. Reheat slowly on stovetop or in a 350 degree oven. Thin if necessary.
The name “manchamanteles is two Spanish words strung together. It means tablecloth stainer.