Bertha's Chile Verde

This is another not-quite-a-soup entry. My department at work had a chili tasting contest at our last expanded staff meeting. My entry for the contest was my wife Bertie's Chili Verde. It is actually a recipe handed down from her mom Maria so technically it is Maria's Chili Verde but Bertha is such a cool name I had to go with that.

Back in the 70's and 80's when we were first seeing each other and early in our marriage Bertie and I, along with our daughter Shawna, would go to Maria's house on Saturdays as would Bertie's 6 brothers and sisters along with a host of kids. Shawna loved getting to see and play with her cousins, Bertie got to visit with her sisters and I got to use my Spanish. I didn't let on for several weeks that I could speak enough Spanish to understand much of what was being said around the house which was fun since I was the only white guy in the family and several years younger than Bertie, some of the conversations were hilarious. But the best part of these weekly visits was Maria's cooking. Her menudo was the best I've ever had, still. Her posole' was wonderful, her beef soup with cow's feet was delicious, her carne asada was excellent. She made her carne seca by hanging thinly sliced flank steak on her clothesline in the back yard. I loved spending time with her in the kitchen because she always made sure my plate was full. I wish I had made a point of watching her prepare these dishes and writing everything down because none of her daughters know all of the recipes and Maria had them all in her head. I did get a chance to make my Albondigas for Maria before she died so that was really nice. I'm sure I was her favorite son-in-law.

Now on to Bertha's Chile Verde. This recipe will feed about 4-5 people, the batch we made for the chili contest was about 3 times this one. By the way, Bertha's Chile Verde won first prize in the contest's open voting and 3rd prize in the executive voting. We got $100 in gift cards which was really great. I haven't seen them since I brought them home.

INGREDIENTS

• 4-5 Country Style Pork Ribs (boneless or bone-in, doesn't matter)
• 5 medium size yellow chiles (if they have an orangish tint to them you'll find these to be quite a bit hotter.
• 5 medium to large tomatoes with the core removed
• 1 tsp of minced garlic
• 3 green chiles sliced in long thin strips (best if you roast your own or canned will work)
• Salt

METHOD

1. Cut the pork into 1/2 inch cubes. If you're using bone-in ribs you can keep one or two of the bones and put into the skillet while browning the pork for a little added flavor. You can remove some of the fat while cutting up the pork but be careful not to lean it out too much or you'll lose flavor and end up with dry pork
2. Brown the pork in a large skillet with 1 level tablespoon of salt. Cook over medium heat for about 20 minutes, stirring frequently. If there is any fat to drain when done, do so. Leave the pork in the skillet and put aside.
3. Meanwhile, place the tomatoes and chiles in a pot for boiling. Cover them with water and boil for 20 minutes until the chiles are soft.
4. Remove the tomatoes with a slotted spoon and place into a holding bowl to cool.
5. Remove the chiles from the pot, remove and discard the stems. Place the chiles into the same bowl as the tomatoes to cool. Be sure you let the tomatoes and chiles cool because if you puree them while hot pressure in the blender builds quickly and explosions have been known to occur.
6. Reserve the water.
7. After cooling, place the tomatoes and chiles into a blender along with 1 tablespoon of minced garlic and two teaspoons of salt.
8. Blend until the mixture is pureed with no chunks remaining.
9. Taste the salsa, if it is spicier than desired use some of the reserved cooking water bring to a more desired level.
10. Pour the salsa over the browned pork in the skillet, add the sliced green chiles, heat for serving. Salt to taste