There are a few dishes that bring in me a nostalgic sentiment. One that never fails to do so is Carne con Chile, which, by my definition, can be considered a comfort food from the state of Sonora, in northern Mexico.
Sonoran cuisine is very different from the rest of Mexican food. On the contrary of most of the country’s dishes, Sonoran food doesn’t use that many spices and meat is a primary choice of an ingredient. There’s something about meat in Sonora that makes it one of the tastiest in all Mexico. And dried peppers are always around any Mexican home.
One of the trademark dishes in Sonora is carne con chile, which is relatively easy to make and goes great by itself, with a little red rice or in burritos.
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What You’ll Need
- 2 pounds of beef. I used chuck in about 2 inches squares.
- Dried peppers, preferably red dried California peppers, I used about 5 or 6.
- 2 tablespoons of whole wheat flour.
- 2 potatoes.
- Salt to your taste.
- 2 cloves of garlic.
Instructions
- First put the meat on a pan that has enough water to cover it and get to a boil, let it simmer for as long as it needs to get the most tender meat in the universe. Mine took about 2 hours. You can also do this in a slow cooker if you manage to figure it out and outsmart me.
- Remove the veins and seeds from the peppers.
- Put the peppers in a small saucepan with water (just as the meat, enough to cover it), and let it simmer for about 20 minutes.
- Peel the potatoes and cut them into small squares.
- Remove the meat and set aside. Don’t throw away the broth, we will use it to both blend the peppers and make a ridiculously delicious soup.
- Let the meat cool while you take the peppers out of the pan and into a blender, with about a cup of the beef broth and the cloves of garlic. Add salt to your taste and blend until you get a homogeneous sauce.
- Shred the beef. The longer you cooked it the easier this step will be. I wasn’t very successful but it tasted good!
- In a large skillet, “cook” the flour for a couple of minutes until it gets just a little brown and then place the sauce on it. For a better experience, strain the sauce to remove any pieces of pepper skin or seeds that you might have missed.
- Put both the meat and potatoes in and bring to a boil. Let it simmer for about half an hour or until potatoes are soft. You can add more water from the pan where you cooked the peppers if you feel your sauce is too thick.
- With the remaining beef broth, you can cook a red rice or, like I did, a delicious soup that was so tasty that you could cry.
Serve in a small bowl and enjoy!
Carne Con Chile Instructions with Pictures
- First put the meat on a pan that has enough water to cover it and get to a boil, let it simmer for as long as it needs to get the most tender meat in the universe. Mine took about 2 hours. You can also do this in a slow cooker if you manage to figure it out and outsmart me.
- Remove the veins and seeds from the peppers.
- Put the peppers in a small sauce pan with water (just as the meat, enough to cover it), and let it simmer for about 20 minutes.
- Peel the potatoes and cut them in small squares.
- Let the meat cool while you take the peppers out of the pan and into a blender, with about a cup of the beef broth and the cloves of garlic. Add salt to your taste and blend until you get a homogeneous sauce.
- Shred the beef.
- In a large skillet, “cook” the flour for a couple of minutes until it gets just a little brown and then place the sauce on it.
- Put both the meat and potatoes in and bring to a boil. Let it simmer for about half an hour or until potatoes are soft.
- With the remaining beef broth, you can cook a red rice or, like I did, a delicious soup
- Serve in a small bowl and enjoy!
I really hope you enjoy this very simple and delicious Sonoran recipe. Don’t worry, dried peppers are not spicy at all and you can eat this with flour tortillas, rice, refried beans or by itself. It’s warm, soft, comfort food that will let you wanting more.
So, are you enjoying these recipes? Fallen in love with authentic Mexican cuisine right in your home? What would you like to cook next? Let us know in the comments section!
