Chili Colorado
Chili Colorado is a red chile beef stew built on a sauce of whole dried New Mexico chiles. Soaking and puréeing the pods, then straining out the skins, gives a smooth, brick-red gravy with deep, earthy heat instead of the grit of chile powder. The beef is dredged in seasoned flour before browning, which thickens the pot as it simmers for three hours. Serve it with rice, beans or warm tortillas.
Instructions
Put the chiles and 3 cups of water in a medium stockpot and bring to a boil. Take the pot off the heat and let the chiles steep for 30 minutes, until soft. Strain them over a bowl and keep the liquid.
Blend the softened chiles with some of the reserved liquid until completely smooth, adding more liquid as needed to make a pourable sauce. Press the sauce through a fine mesh strainer to catch seeds and tough skins, then set it aside.
Cut the beef into chunks of 1 to 2 inches. Stir the flour, salt and pepper together in a bowl, then toss the beef in the mixture until every piece is coated.
Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Cook the onion for about 5 minutes, until tender and translucent.
Add the beef a few pieces at a time so the pot is not crowded, and cook until evenly browned. Move each browned batch to a plate and carry on with the rest.
Return all the meat to the pot and stir in the chile sauce. Pour in enough beef stock to just cover the beef, or a little less or more to taste, and bring to a boil over medium heat.
Turn the heat to its lowest setting and simmer for 3 hours, until the beef is tender. Add a splash more stock during cooking if the pot looks dry.
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