Red Chile from Hatch, New Mexico

   We were taught at a young age to worship these beautiful chile peppers. My dad (as most know because only family reads these posts) is from Las Cruses, New Mexico and he would take us to visit often and plan our trips around his favorite restaurants. We would go to the chile festival in hatch and buy a year's supply of red and green chile, and my mom would pick out a few ristras to decorate our home with. So not only did we eat the chile but we decorated with it too. My favorite memory was one summer when we bought several pounds of fresh green chile and brought it home and roasted them in our backyard, the smell was heavenly but the time together was unforgettable. Many of my happiest memories revolve around food and so do many of my traditions. This week while I made the red chile sauce I could feel all those happy moments flooding in. The smells, the routine and the calmness that I experience when cooking always makes me feel the closest to my Dad. Thankfully many of the foods I grew up cooking like this recipe are easier than most might think. Often I tell people I make my sauce from dried chile pods and almost always their eye widen and they say "wow, that's dedication." But honestly it is barely harder than opening that can of enchilada sauce you buy at the grocery store and the best part is you only need three ingredients.

What you will need
Hatch, New Mexico dried chile pods, you can use other kinds but I only use Hatch. I buy mine on amazon or you can order from Hatch Chile Express (theirs are better but a little more expensive).
Butter
Ground Cumin

The first thing you want to do is clear out your sink and put a bowl or colander in the sink. I use a colander for easier clean up. You will need to break the stem off the top of each pepper and then wash the inside and outside to get off any dirt and to rinse out the seeds. I leave the stems in the colander and put the other part in a big stock pot.

After I have cleaned each pepper, I fill my stock pot that already has the chiles in it with water until they are covered. Some will float to the top but that's okay. Turn heat to high until it begins to boil. once the water boils turn off the heat and leave it covered for 20 minutes.

Once your chiles are done steeping in the pot, use a slotted spoon to transfer the chiles to a blender. This will take a few batches; you don't want to overfill the blender because red chile stains are not easy to get out. Then with a measuring cup use some of the water the chiles were steeping in and pour it into the blender, normally a cup of water is enough, and blend until you have a runny consistency.

Put a mesh colander over a big stock pot and pour the sauce into the colander. Use the back of a big spoon to push the sauce through. After you have gotten as much liquid out as possible, there will be leftover chunks of skin and seeds that you will discard. I like to keep a bowl close by with a plastic bag for easy clean up.

After all the chiles have been blended, melt one stick of butter in a big pot. Pour in the blended and filtered chile sauce with about a tablespoon of ground cumin (more or less to taste) and let it heat up. You are now ready to make red enchiladas, Chile Colorado or any other amazing Mexican dish that calls for red chile sauce.

Recipe at a glance

Red Chile Sauce
makes about 10 cups
16 oz dried red chile pods
1/2 cup butter
1 TBS  ground cumin

1. The first thing you want to do is clear out your sink and put a bowl or colander in the sink. what you will need to do is break the stem off the top of each pepper and then wash the inside and outside to get off any dirt and to rinse out the seeds. Leave stems in the sink and put other half in a big stock pot. 
2.  After you have cleaned each pepper, fill the stock pot that already has the chiles in it with water until they are covered. Some will float to the top but that's okay. Turn the heat to high until it begins to boil. Once the water boils turn off the heat and leave it covered for 20 minutes. 
3. Once your chiles are done steeping in the water use a slotted spoon to transfer the chiles to a blender, this will take a few batches, do not overfill. Then with a measuring cup use some of the water the chiles were steeping in and pour it into the blender, normally a cup of water is enough, and blend until you have a runny consistency.
4.  Put a mesh colander over a big stock pot pour the sauce into the colander. Use the back of a big spoon to push the sauce through. After you have gotten as much liquid out as possible there will be leftover chunks of skin and seeds that you will discard. I like to keep a bowl close by with a plastic bag for easy clean up. 
5. After all the chiles have been blended, melt one stick of butter in a big pot.  Pour in the blended and filtered chile sauce with about a tablespoon of ground cumin (more or less to taste) and let it heat up.