Chilly, Chile, Chili - When its chilly get some chile and make some chili! - Here's a Recipe.

New Mexicans are very particular about their chile and no New Mexican worth their salsa would ever call our wonderful chile pepper chili. Chili is that Texas style bean and meat or lack of beans or lack of meat thick stew sort of concoction that you pour into a Fritos corn chip bag. Nothing wrong with chili but don't get it confused with chile.

As much as I love my traditional style of making chile and all the various chile sauces there are times when a big ol' bowl of hot steaming chili is just the ticket, add cornbread, avocado and sour cream and this is a bowl of winter heaven. 

Christo's Big Cowboy Chili

1 lb ground beef (or chicken or turkey)
1 large onion diced
3 cloves garlic minced
3 Tbs cumin powder
4 Tbs (use as much or as little as you want for level of heat desired) red chile powder (get it from New Mexico) 
1 small can tomato paste
2 cups water
salt and pepper to taste
1 lb dry of cooked kidney beans (I cooked a pound of dry beans in the pressure cooker you could use canned and it would probably work out to 2 quarts of beans) Make sure you have at least 3 cups of liquid with your beans
Avocado, sour cream and green onion for garnish

Brown the meat in a large skillet. When meat is brown add the onion and garlic and saute until soft. When the onion and garlic have softened then add the cumin and the chile powder and stir till everything is coated (if its not spicy enough add more red chile powder). When all of this is a nice deep red color then add the tomato paste and water. Simmer gently for 15 minutes. Add this mixture to your cooked beans and bean broth and simmer for 5 more minutes. Serve with your garnish and cornbread of you have it.

This is by far the easiest and tastiest chili you will ever have. No need to add any sugar as the onions add all the sweetness you need but if you do find that your particular can of tomato paste was extra acidy then add a squeeze of honey. Enjoy

A bowl of chili is a soothing, warming and an inexpensive way to bring lots of flavor and nutrition for you and your family, make some.

Fusion: Dragon Roll Burrito

Every now and then I like to take something I know and love and mix it with something else I know and love and hopefully the union is a good one. Usually I hit the nail right on the head because I am not  trying things like "green chile ice cream" or "candied steak" - typically its a blend of two things that want to be together - like my Shrimp Tempura Dragon Roll Burrito.

This dish came to me in a dream. I was fondly remembering my childhood in New Mexico and all the delicious burritos I had eaten when I fell asleep and dreamed I was a Samurai. Trekking through New Mexico as a Samurai I was getting hungry and all I had with me was shrimp tempura and rice - go figure. Surrounded by chiles and tortillas I decided to roll up my rice and shrimp in a tortilla and cover it with chile, sour cream and guacamole and a new dish was born. 

I think I need a name for my dream character now - Cheech Samurai - The Samurai Bandito - time to dream some more.