Enchilada Virgin

Melba's Jammin said:

I just grabbed this recipe from the Cooks.com site. Never mind the
quantities; I'm more interested in the ingredient list -- does it look
acceptable? [snip]

GROUND BEEF ENCHILADAS

1 1/2 lb. ground chuck
1 tbsp. chili powder
Salt & pepper to taste
1/2 c. oil & 1 tbsp.
1 qt. enchilada sauce
1 lg. onion, chopped
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
24 corn tortillas
1 lb. grated cheddar cheese
[snip]

You clearly have this all under control. It would be typical of
Mexican cooking to add cumin and oregano to the chili powder, and of
course you can always use minced garlic with the onion instead of the
garlic powder. I think a thread not too long ago noted that cotija
cheese often gets crumbled over enchiladas at the end. Oh, and there's
cilantro, to be sure... :-) . My sister is the enchilada maker in
the family and she prefers the LaPalma brand of sauce; I pretty much
think they're all okay. -aem

In article <[email hidden]>,

aem said:

Melba's Jammin said:

I just grabbed this recipe from the Cooks.com site. Never mind the
quantities; I'm more interested in the ingredient list -- does it look
acceptable? [snip]

GROUND BEEF ENCHILADAS

1 1/2 lb. ground chuck
1 tbsp. chili powder
Salt & pepper to taste
1/2 c. oil & 1 tbsp.
1 qt. enchilada sauce
1 lg. onion, chopped
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
24 corn tortillas
1 lb. grated cheddar cheese
[snip]

You clearly have this all under control. It would be typical of
Mexican cooking to add cumin and oregano to the chili powder, and of
course you can always use minced garlic with the onion instead of the
garlic powder. I think a thread not too long ago noted that cotija
cheese often gets crumbled over enchiladas at the end. Oh, and there's
cilantro, to be sure... :-) . My sister is the enchilada maker in
the family and she prefers the LaPalma brand of sauce; I pretty much
think they're all okay. -aem

Thanks. Much as I love cilantro, Rob does not, so there won't be any
cilantro involved (I don't have any anyway. :-) Cumin and oregano will
be included - thanks for the reminder. I don't have cotija cheese but I
do have the Chihuahua.

What about my can of pinto beans? Just smash them and heat them?
--
-Barb
<http://jamlady.eboard.com> Updated 3-27-2006 It Can Can!

"If it's not worth doing to excess, it's not worth doing at all."

Melba's Jammin said:

I bought a small can of Old El Paso mild enchilada sauce. My plan was
to brown a half pound of ground beef with some onion and then maybe whiz
it in the food processor to make it fine, dip a corn tort into the ench
sauce, put some ground beef in it, fold it over a bit and lay it in a
casserole dish and then pour the rest of the ench sauce over it and bake
until hot -- maybe put some Chihuahua cheese on my two, and some
fat-free fake Cheddar on Rob's and heat 'em up.

I'm thinking that you'll make beef paste if you put the ground beef in
the food processor. I fry my hangerberger, drain the grease, then
smash the hell out of the meat with a potato masher.

Quoted message said:

I'm thinking about some tortilla soup first. We like that a lot and
I've been making it frequently.

We have yet to try that, but I don't know anyone who doesn't like it.

Quoted message said:

I also bought a can of pinto beans and plan to smash them up and call
them refritos. :-) I don't have any pork fat for them, but I do have
some schmaltz. Fusion beans - Mexican Jewish. :-)

You need two other things for those beans. Mix in some beer, and top
with some shredded cheese.

Quoted message said:

I've got some leftover rice that I may add some red and green pepper and
onion (all fried up) to and wet it with some V-8 juice.

Bacon! You forgot the bacon!

Quoted message said:

Whaddaya think? It's 2:45 here; I've got 3 hours to think about this.
And I'm not going back to the supermarket for anything.

GROUND BEEF ENCHILADAS

This is making me hungry! <>

Please let us know what you do.

Peace,
Carol

Don't let the shape fool you. They are not sex toys.
:-)

Melba's Jammin' wrote:>

Quoted message said:

Thanks. Much as I love cilantro, Rob does not, so there won't be any
cilantro involved (I don't have any anyway. :-) Cumin and oregano will
be included - thanks for the reminder. I don't have cotija cheese but I
do have the Chihuahua.

What about my can of pinto beans? Just smash them and heat them?

I've never used canned beans for refried but don't see why they
wouldn't work. Never fried them in schmaltz either, but I have used
corn oil and they come out fine, just not as flavorful as with lard or
other pork/[non smoked] bacon fat. Never used beer in them, either. I
do taste for salt a few times while they're cooking as my beans tend to
start out needing salt. I don't add cheese until the beans are done.
My refried beans tend to be noticeably moister than canned. -aem

Melba's Jammin said:

What about my can of pinto beans? Just smash them and heat them?

If you want to refry them, the following works. Heat a few
tablespoons of onion in 1 to 2 tablespoons of oil in a saucepan.
After they have sizzle a few minuts, start adding the beans
gradually, smashing them as you go. I use a plastic kitchen
spoon, but you could use a fork if you don't care about scratching
the saucepan. By the time you've added the entire can, you
will be stirring them more than smashing them. The final result has
some intact beans, but mostly smashed.

Tangentially, flat enchiladas are my favorite. If you have a
ristra you can try replacing the canned enchilada sauce with
homemade.

Steve

: Melba's Jammin' wrote:
: > I just grabbed this recipe from the Cooks.com site. Never mind the
: > quantities; I'm more interested in the ingredient list -- does it look
: > acceptable? [snip]
: >
: > GROUND BEEF ENCHILADAS
: >
: > 1 1/2 lb. ground chuck
: > 1 tbsp. chili powder
: > Salt & pepper to taste
: > 1/2 c. oil & 1 tbsp.
: > 1 qt. enchilada sauce
: > 1 lg. onion, chopped
: > 1/4 tsp. garlic powder
: > 24 corn tortillas
: > 1 lb. grated cheddar cheese
: > [snip]

: You clearly have this all under control. It would be typical of
: Mexican cooking to add cumin and oregano to the chili powder, and of
: course you can always use minced garlic with the onion instead of the
: garlic powder. I think a thread not too long ago noted that cotija
: cheese often gets crumbled over enchiladas at the end. Oh, and there's
: cilantro, to be sure... :-) . My sister is the enchilada maker in
: the family and she prefers the LaPalma brand of sauce; I pretty much
: think they're all okay. -aem

Chili powder already has cumin and oregano in it. Don't confuse chili
powder with ground red chile - the two aren't the same thing. If using
ground red chile, then you'd need to add cumin and mexican oregano.

1Tbsp simply isn't enough spice either - bump it up to 2 or 3 Tbsp.

On Thu 30 Mar 2006 01:43:50p, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it Melba's
Jammin'?

Quoted message said:

I just grabbed this recipe from the Cooks.com site. Never mind the
quantities; I'm more interested in the ingredient list -- does it look
acceptable?

Sounds like you've alrady made up your mind. :-) Acceptable? Yes. Like the
restaurant? Who knows. It sounds good, nevertheless.

--
Wayne Boatwright @¿@¬
_____________________

Melba's Jammin said:

In article <[email hidden]>,

aem said:

Melba's Jammin said:

I just grabbed this recipe from the Cooks.com site. Never mind the
quantities; I'm more interested in the ingredient list -- does it look
acceptable? [snip]

GROUND BEEF ENCHILADAS

1 1/2 lb. ground chuck
1 tbsp. chili powder
Salt & pepper to taste
1/2 c. oil & 1 tbsp.
1 qt. enchilada sauce
1 lg. onion, chopped
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
24 corn tortillas
1 lb. grated cheddar cheese
[snip]

You clearly have this all under control. It would be typical of
Mexican cooking to add cumin and oregano to the chili powder, and of
course you can always use minced garlic with the onion instead of the
garlic powder. I think a thread not too long ago noted that cotija
cheese often gets crumbled over enchiladas at the end. Oh, and there's
cilantro, to be sure... :-) . My sister is the enchilada maker in
the family and she prefers the LaPalma brand of sauce; I pretty much
think they're all okay. -aem

Thanks. Much as I love cilantro, Rob does not, so there won't be any
cilantro involved (I don't have any anyway. :-) Cumin and oregano will
be included - thanks for the reminder. I don't have cotija cheese but I
do have the Chihuahua.

What about my can of pinto beans? Just smash them and heat them?

Just mash them and stir in some sauteed onions might work. I usually
buy canned refritos. You know you don't really have to roll the
enchaladas; you can stack them. Mexican hotcakes. ;-)

Your chili powder already has cumin and oregano and garlic in it unless
it says something like "ground red chile" on the package. Add more if
you like it, just know that it already has some. (I always add extra garlic)

Have you seen my recipe for Mexican Hotdish? It would adapt easily to
make enchiladas. Leave out the cheese sauce and replace with a little
water, add more grated cheese, assemble kind of like that Cooks recipe
you found. Canned enchilada sauce is good stuff. I think last time I
made this I used two 15 or 16 ounce cans, and I used a little to thin
out the beans.

Try using mozzarella cheese with a little sharp cheddar mixed in. It
melts really nice.

Cilantro = yuck. It's not bad in pico de gallo, but don't put it in
anything that gets cooked (you can use a little coriander for that.)

Best regards,
Bob

--

Bob's Mexican Lasagna Hotdish!

1 package fresh corn tortillas [uses about 15 to 18 tortillas]
1 pound ground turkey or lean ground beef
1 cup (approx) cheese sauce [from a humongous can]
1 (19 ounce) can enchilada sauce
1 (16 ounce) can refried beans
1/2 large yellow onion, chopped
1 Tbsp chili powder
1 big pinch ground cumin
1 big pinch dried oregano
garlic powder to taste
Monterrey jack cheese, or medium cheddar, grated

Mix meat, onion, and spices in skillet. Cook until browned, chopping up
with your spatula. Stir in the cheese sauce and heat through. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Pour half the enchilada sauce in a 9x13"
lasagne pan. [I should have greased it] Cut a bunch of the tortillas
in half so they'll fit in the pan better. Spread the beans on enough of
the tortillas to cover the bottom of the pan. Cover with another layer
of tortillas. Spread the meat and cheese mixture over that second layer
of tortillas. Cover with a third layer of tortillas. Pour the
remaining enchilada sauce all over. Rinse the can with a little water
and pour that in too. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes.
Take out of oven, remove the foil, and sprinkle with that grated
cheese that you thought I forgot about to cover the top. Put back in
the oven, uncovered, for ten minutes. Allow to rest for 5 minutes
before cutting.

In article <[email hidden]>,

Damsel in dis Dress said:

Quoted message said:

I bought a small can of Old El Paso mild enchilada sauce. My plan was
to brown a half pound of ground beef with some onion and then maybe whiz
it in the food processor to make it fine,

Quoted message said:

I'm thinking that you'll make beef paste if you put the ground beef in
the food processor. I fry my hangerberger, drain the grease, then
smash the hell out of the meat with a potato masher.

Nope. I've already fried it and whizzed it in the fp. You gotta know
when to shut the machine off, Carol! And I do. :-) It looks great and
also made finer the peppers, onions, and garlic pieces I fried in with
the meat. No hay problema.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I also bought a can of pinto beans and plan to smash them up and call
them refritos. :-) I don't have any pork fat for them, but I do have
some schmaltz. Fusion beans - Mexican Jewish. :-)

You need two other things for those beans. Mix in some beer, and top
with some shredded cheese.

No beer in house, I don't need the extra fat from the cheese --
especially if I use the Chihuahua on my enchiladas.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I've got some leftover rice that I may add some red and green pepper and

Quoted message said:

Bacon! You forgot the bacon!

No bacon in house.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Whaddaya think? It's 2:45 here; I've got 3 hours to think about this.
And I'm not going back to the supermarket for anything.

GROUND BEEF ENCHILADAS

This is making me hungry! <>

Please let us know what you do.

Sure. I might even post pictures. LOL!!!
Right now I'm going to get the soup going -- I'll thaw a quart of
homemade chicken broth and use a coupla cups of fake made with bouillon
powder. I don't like to put chicken meat in it, though I have some in
the freezer. When I think about it, about the only soup I like meat in
is vegetable. :-/

--
-Barb
<http://jamlady.eboard.com> Updated 3-27-2006 It Can Can!

"If it's not worth doing to excess, it's not worth doing at all."

In article <[email hidden]>,
[email hidden] wrote:
(snippage)

Quoted message said:

: You clearly have this all under control. It would be typical of
: Mexican cooking to add cumin and oregano to the chili powder, and of
: course you can always use minced garlic with the onion instead of the
: garlic powder.

(snippage)

Quoted message said:

Chili powder already has cumin and oregano in it. Don't confuse chili
powder with ground red chile - the two aren't the same thing. If using
ground red chile, then you'd need to add cumin and mexican oregano.

1Tbsp simply isn't enough spice either - bump it up to 2 or 3 Tbsp.

I've cooked the meat -- used about 2/3# of 93/7 ground beef. Threw in
"some" Chili Seasoning (Penzeys stuff), "some" cumin (probably not a
half teaspoon), and "a little" oregano, crushed in my palms as I dumped
it in the pan with the meat and onions, etc.

Supper's about an hour away. The soup is made and I thought I'd
assemble the enchiladas. Bzzzztt! Thank you for playing, Barbara!!
I've got some Cruz brand "authentic" corn torts - about 7" diameter. I
dipped them into the ench sauce in a pie plate and dumped a big spoonful
of my ground beef mixture on top and tried to fold/roll it. No dice.
Drat!

PLAN B in place: I yam now making an Enchilada Torte. :-) Stacking
these suckers is the only way it's going to work tonight. ¡Que lástima!
They're ready for the oven; I've shredded the Chihuahua (I love to say
that) cheese and sprinkled some of the fatfree Fake Cheddar on half for
Rob.

I've got some of these dog torts baking in the oven, spritzed with olive
oil and sprinkled with some sea salt, so's I can crumple them into our
soup in the bowl.

Beans are rinsed and ready to heat and smash.

Oh, cripes! ¡The arroz! ¡Se me olvidó el arroz! ¡Ay caramba!
--
-Barb
<http://jamlady.eboard.com> Updated 3-27-2006 It Can Can!

"If it's not worth doing to excess, it's not worth doing at all."

In article <[email hidden]>,

(Steve Pope) said:

Melba's Jammin said:

What about my can of pinto beans? Just smash them and heat them?

If you want to refry them, the following works. Heat a few
tablespoons of onion in 1 to 2 tablespoons of oil in a saucepan.
After they have sizzle a few minuts, start adding the beans
gradually, smashing them as you go. I use a plastic kitchen
spoon, but you could use a fork if you don't care about scratching
the saucepan. By the time you've added the entire can, you
will be stirring them more than smashing them. The final result has
some intact beans, but mostly smashed.

Bien. Yo tengo cebollas. Muchísimas gracias, señor Papa. "-)

Quoted message said:

Tangentially, flat enchiladas are my favorite. If you have a ristra

No la tengo. :-(

Quoted message said:

you can try replacing the canned enchilada sauce with
homemade.

Steve

--
-Barb
<http://jamlady.eboard.com> Updated 3-27-2006 It Can Can!

"If it's not worth doing to excess, it's not worth doing at all."

In article <[email hidden]>,

Melba's Jammin said:

We usually have an enchilada when we go to our favorite Mexican
restaurant nearby. Seems like the filling isn't much but fried or
boiled ground beef -- it's pretty fine (texture).

I bought a small can of Old El Paso mild enchilada sauce. My plan was
to brown a half pound of ground beef with some onion and then maybe whiz
it in the food processor to make it fine, dip a corn tort into the ench
sauce, put some ground beef in it, fold it over a bit and lay it in a
casserole dish and then pour the rest of the ench sauce over it and bake
until hot -- maybe put some Chihuahua cheese on my two, and some
fat-free fake Cheddar on Rob's and heat 'em up.

As somebody else also suggested, try 'em flat. Put down some meat on
the plate. Cover with a moistened tortilla. Repeat once or twice,
depending on appetite. Add more sauce on the top and some cheese. If
you have ovenproof plates you can cook them in the oven (mostly warm
them and melt the cheese, everything is cooked already) or just put in
the microwave. Each person gets one plate full.

Quoted message said:

I also bought a can of pinto beans and plan to smash them up and call
them refritos. :-) I don't have any pork fat for them, but I do have
some schmaltz. Fusion beans - Mexican Jewish. :-)

If God wanted you to eat smushed beans, they would grow that way. Try
'em whole sometime. A little garlic is good, but otherwise plain.

--
Dan Abel
[email hidden]
Petaluma, California, USA

(snipped)

I am an enchilada virgin no more.
They were very good ­ Rob had a second helping, which surprised me a bit
and he even had some of the refritos.
Thanks to all for your advise. There are three pictures on my website.
View at your own risk and if you think my photography sucks, tell it to
someone who cares. "-)
--
-Barb
<http://jamlady.eboard.com> Updated 3-30-2006 Enchiladas for Two

"If it's not worth doing to excess, it's not worth doing at all."

Melba's Jammin said:

I've cooked the meat -- used about 2/3# of 93/7 ground beef. Threw in
"some" Chili Seasoning (Penzeys stuff), "some" cumin (probably not a
half teaspoon), and "a little" oregano, crushed in my palms as I dumped
it in the pan with the meat and onions, etc.

Sounds good!

Quoted message said:

Supper's about an hour away. The soup is made and I thought I'd
assemble the enchiladas. Bzzzztt! Thank you for playing, Barbara!!
I've got some Cruz brand "authentic" corn torts - about 7" diameter. I
dipped them into the ench sauce in a pie plate and dumped a big spoonful
of my ground beef mixture on top and tried to fold/roll it. No dice.
Drat!

Was the enchilada sauce hot? Heat makes them easier to roll. I usually
dip mine in hot oil, put the filling in and thenlay them into a pan
with a layer of sauce in the bottom. Once the layer is complete, I
pour the ramaining hot sauce over them, sprnkle a healthy dose of
cheese across the top and bake till bubbnly and the cheese is starting
to brown.

Quoted message said:

PLAN B in place: I yam now making an Enchilada Torte. :-) Stacking
these suckers is the only way it's going to work tonight. ¡Que lástima!
They're ready for the oven; I've shredded the Chihuahua (I love to say
that) cheese and sprinkled some of the fatfree Fake Cheddar on half for
Rob.

Stacked enciladas are a good thing. I've heard them referred to as
Sonoran enchiladas.

jim

aem said:

Melba's Jammin' wrote:>

Quoted message said:

Thanks. Much as I love cilantro, Rob does not, so there won't be any
cilantro involved (I don't have any anyway. :-) Cumin and oregano will
be included - thanks for the reminder. I don't have cotija cheese but I
do have the Chihuahua.

What about my can of pinto beans? Just smash them and heat them?

I've never used canned beans for refried but don't see why they
wouldn't work. Never fried them in schmaltz either, but I have used
corn oil and they come out fine, just not as flavorful as with lard or
other pork/[non smoked] bacon fat. Never used beer in them, either. I
do taste for salt a few times while they're cooking as my beans tend to
start out needing salt. I don't add cheese until the beans are done.
My refried beans tend to be noticeably moister than canned. -aem

for me, canned refried beans are a bit too bland. One simple way to
p8unch them up is to add a few tablespoons of dried decaffinated
coffee to them. It creates a deep smoky flavor. A shot or two of
hotsauce does wonders too.

jim

Melba's Jammin said:

(snipped)

I am an enchilada virgin no more.
They were very good ­ Rob had a second helping, which surprised me a bit
and he even had some of the refritos.

Felicidades. The tortillas need to be heated to roll easily. The
traditional way of dipping them in hot oil for a few seconds works, as
does as few seconds in the microwave. Next up for when you have
musgovian tortillas: chilaquiles! -aem

ensenadajim said:

for me, canned refried beans are a bit too bland. One simple way to
p8unch them up is to add a few tablespoons of dried decaffinated
coffee to them. It creates a deep smoky flavor. A shot or two of
hotsauce does wonders too.

Am I the only one who cooks pintos starting with dried beans?

Peace,
Carol

On Thu 30 Mar 2006 06:41:56p, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it Melba's
Jammin'?

Quoted message said:

(snipped)

I am an enchilada virgin no more.
They were very good ­ Rob had a second helping, which surprised me a bit
and he even had some of the refritos.
Thanks to all for your advise. There are three pictures on my website.
View at your own risk and if you think my photography sucks, tell it to
someone who cares. "-)

Your bowl of arroz looks really good. How did you make that?

--
Wayne Boatwright @¿@¬
_____________________