March 21, 2020 Lunch – Mapo Dofu and Rice. Dinner – Pulled Pork Enchiladas

March 21, 2020 Lunch – Mapo Dofu and Rice. Dinner – Pulled Pork Enchiladas

We ate blueberries and yogurt for breakfast.  I added granola and milk to my bowl.  I then pruned rose bushes and Suzette worked on the hot tub.

At.1:00 we heated the last of the Mapo Dofu with rice.  Today I finished the dish by adding thinly sliced green onions and ground Nepalese peppercorns.  I was a balmy day, so we ate outside under the gazebo.  We drank Negra Modelos.

At 6:00 we began cooking dinner. I diced a head of garlic, a medium onion, ½ of a pasilla chili, three green chilis, 2 lb. of tomatillos, and a bunch of cilantro. Suzette cooked all these ingredients until they were soft and then puréed them in the Cuisinart into a sauce.  Suzette picked a basket of fresh arugula from our compost pile that I de-stemmed.

Then we constructed the Enchiladas.  Suzette softened six corn tortillas in a skillet filled with the chili sauce and layered the bottom of a large Pyrex baking dish with them.  We then added Monterrey jack cheese and pulled pork and sauce.  Then Suzette added another layer of tortillas softened in the chili sauce and we added arugula, we crumbled cojita cheese on top of the arugula and spread shredded Monterrey Jack cheese and more pork and sauce.  Finally after six more softened tortillas and another layer of cheese we  poured the remaining green chili sauce over the entire surface of the Enchiladas and put the bakIng dish into a 300 degree oven and baked the Enchiladas for 45 minutes. I fetched two ginger beers and we enjoyed on of the best enchilada casseroles we have ever made.

It was the combination of three dishes; the pork shoulder in black bean sauce shredded, the tomatillo green chili sauce, and finally the combination of those two dishes with cheese, fresh arugula, and tortillas into a final dish of exquisite complexity and flavor.

 

We watched Episode 4 of Salt, fat, acid, heat on Netflix as we ate, which took this gastronomic adventure to a higher level of enjoyment.

In these days of isolation, great food seems to be our only consolation.

I am trying to keep the good food flowing.  So far I am pleased, especially because cooking and eating great food and wine is a way for Suzette and Me to express our mutually shared talent and enjoyment of good food.

We went to Willy’s this morning to see Amy and Vahl, who came to Willy’s apartment to install a coyote fence to enclose his patio.  The told us about an older couple in Santa Fe who do not cook.  Amy said, “They lived at Harry’s Roadhouse and now they are driving all over Santa Fe to pick up rake out at the restaurants still open.

For some reason I found that funny and depressing. Or perhaps found our situation liberating.  Just look back over the last week or two at the fabulous meals we have been eating.  That can not be duplicated with take out, which I find treacherous and not very satisfying.

Bon Appetit

Bon Appetit