Authentic Mexican Recipes' Use of Chiles: Rajas Con Crema For Example

By Carlos Lima


When thinking of authentic Mexican recipes, people typically see pictures in their mind of tacos and chiles. They see things wrapped in tortillas and imagine the burning sensation of hot chiles in their mouth.

As someone who's lived in Mexico for years, I can say that when it comes to the tortilla thing... yes, they are used everywhere. Corn has been around for ages in Mexico, long before it was ever called "Mexico". The indigenous tribes of Aztecs and Mayans believed it to be a gift from the gods themselves, and it has found its way into virtually every corner of the cuisine--even the drinks (Atole, anyone?)

But when it comes to chiles, real Mexican food is seldom as spicy as people think. In fact, spicy Tex-Mex recipes are often hotter than spicy authentic mexican recipes, and this is because Mexicans use chiles primarily to add flavor, not just to "spice" a dish. In the Mexican food you find abroad, in Mexican restaurants across the globe, you'll often find a hodgepodge of ingredients taken from Mexican cuisine, Tex-Mex cuisine, and the local cuisine, mixed together and wrapped up in a tortilla, as though the tortilla makes it "Mexican", and then you'll have the insanely hot chile salsa off in the corner for those who want to burn their mouth to hell.

But inside real Mexico, this is not the case. The chiles in Mexican cuisine are almost always used to actually contribute a flavor to the dish that works well with the rest of the ingredients. The chile is integrated into the dish, not just thrown on top at the end "to add some zest". It's a very different approach, and consequently a very different result.

So it is true that tortillas are everywhere in Mexico; and chilis are used in many different Mexican dishes, but they are used in a much more natural way. To show you, here is one of many delicious authentic Mexican recipes for something a little unique, that you've probably never heard of before, that uses chiles in this different, more "Mexican" way:

Rajas con Crema - An Authentic Mexican Side Dish

This recipe is for Rajas con Crema and it's a Mexican side dish that will inject flavor into any main course. Simply put, rajas con crema are cooked strips of poblano peppers with sour cream added. It is a very "Mexican" side dish and is also popular with Mexican food aficionados and casual eaters new to the cuisine alike, so you're in for a treat here.

Rajas con crema take a bit of time and effort to prepare, so give yourself about 45 minutes to make this dish when you're planning ahead.

EQUIPMENT for cooking this:

    1 medium size pan
    1 sharp knife
    1 cutting board
    1 plastic bag
    1 pair of clean rubber gloves

INGREDIENTS (serves two):

    chiles poblanos (poblano peppers) - 3 large green ones
    sour cream - about 1 cup
    lard (a small block for cooking, for full authenticity) or olive oil - 2 table spoons (healthier)

PREPARATION:

1) Roast the poblano peppers. With the stove on "medium", place the poblano peppers one at a time on the open stove, bare flame (or bare element if using an electric stove) and keep rotating the pepper until the entire outer surface of the pepper is caramelized (roasted and dark brown in color).

Then put each roasted poblano into a plastic bag and wrap it up so that it's air-tight. This is to make the chile sweat, to prepare it for skin removal.

2) Turn the stove to "low", get a medium size pan, add some lard (or two table spoons of olive oil) to it to let it preheat.

Put some rubber gloves on so you don't burn your hands, and then remove the chiles from the plastic bag.

With one hand gripping the body of the pepper and the other holding the stem, rip the stem out of the body by pulling the two in opposite directions. Toss the stem away.

Now the messy part: with the body of the pepper on a cutting board, open the pepper up and "unroll" it so it's no longer conical in shape but, instead, flat on the board, and from the outside, wipe off any of the caramelized burn scabs from when you cooked it on the open flame earlier, and from the inside, wipe away all the seeds. To do this, you can just use your fingers if you're wearing gloves, or you can put your hand inside a plastic bag and rub away at the hot pepper. This will take a bit of time, and it does take some patience.

After cleaning the peppers, slice them up into about six pieces each, length-wise, and add them to the pan to cook. Leave them on the pan and mix them around on there until they're soft.

Then add the sour cream to the pan, mix it around so all the softened peppers are covered, and let it cook for another five minutes.

3)Then remove them from the pan, add to your plate with the rest of your food, and enjoy another one of the most delicious authentic Mexican recipes!