Mark's  GREEN CHILE LENTIL SOUP

Santa Fe 2007

Dice 1 medium to large onion
Sautee onion in olive oil until it is transparently obvious.
Add medium (14.5 oz) can of diced tomatoes thoroughly drained.
Add one or more 16 oz jars of roasted green chilies -preferably hot (Cannon's is a good brand)
Add one package (1 lb.) of dried lentils
Add approx. 1.25 lbs of cooked ham, trimmed and cubed.
Cover with ample water so that you have a relatively thin broth.
Cook for 1 hour or until the lentils are soft.
Garnish with strips of roasted red and green chile

Mark's  PREPARE IN 15 MINUTES GREEN CHILE STEW

2006 Santa Fe Version

Dice 1 medium to large onion
Sautee onion in olive oil until it is transparently obvious that they are ready.
Add medium (14 to 15 oz.) cans of
      diced tomatoes (do not use any substitute toes)
      cut corn or posole
      kidney beans (or other bean preference)
      cut green beans
Add jar (15 oz.) of green chilies. The best choice here is jars of roasted green chilies from New Mexico. Try El Pinto's Green Chile Sauce (medium or hot) or Cannon's plain old roasted green chile.
Add 3 or 4 chicken legs or thighs
Add 1 cup of liquid (Maybe use the drained liquid from the cans. Add more liquid if you want a thinner broth.)
Mix all together. So far all you’ve done is sautéed an onion and added cans of things and pieces of cut up chicken. Pretty easy.
Bring to a boil and cook on a low light covered for 2 hours.
Add seasoning to taste (salt, pepper, hot sauce, other things). This tastes great with just salt, but go ahead, mess it up with your favorite stuff. And read Mark Kurlansky’s Salt: A World History.

Mark's GREEN CHILE Stew

1996 Santa Fe Version

1. Cut up 4 (or more) large ONIONS and 5 (or more) cloves of GARLIC, and 1 or 2 RED BELL PEPPERS for color -

Cook in OLIVE OIL in large skillet for 10-15 minutes

2. Cut up 2-3 pounds (more or less) of PORK. Trim fat and cut into small pieces. (TRY THIS WITH CHICKEN INSTEAD! IT WORKS GREAT!)

Optional: If using pork, boil for 30-45 minutes (if the meat is tough or the later cooking time is less than 3 hours). Drain.

If using pork:  Fry 5 strips of BACON and brown the pork in the bacon fat until dark brown. Cut up the bacon to add later

3. Cut up 4-5 large POTATOES and 6-8 medium CARROTS in small cubes/slices. Cut up 2-3 large ripe TOMATOES. (Do NOT use tomato paste or sauce.) Add one or two packages of frozen GREEN BEANS. (This helps with color and consistency) Optional: Add other roots or beans, e.g. JICAMA, TURNIP, BEETS, etc.

4. Acquire as much green chile as possible - preferably NEW MEXICO HATCH MEDIUM GREEN CHILIES, roasted. Peel, seed and chop enough for at least 2 cups, and preferably 3-4 cups.

5. Combine all of the above in a large pot 2 to 3 8 oz. cans of BLACK BEANS. Optional: PINTO or other BEANS. Add enough WATER to cover.

6. Add seasonings: 3-5 tablespoons of SUGAR, plus some RED CHILE sauce or powder, plus BLACK PEPPER, plus other varieties of chilies if you can get them (POBLANO, CHIPOTL etc.) chopped, plus other stuff you like (OREGANO, maybe SAGE, and CUMIN) plus 4 or more tablespoons of OLIVE OIL.

7. Bring to a boil, reduce flame and simmer covered for at least 2-3 hours. Stir frequently. Add additional water if necessary. At the end stir in about 4 tablespoons of CORN STARCH.

8. Serve in large bowls with TORTILLAS, and HOT CHILE SAUCE. ENJOY!!!

Comments welcome at: xfpsi@aol.com

Recipe edited Feb 2001 to remove inclusion of tomato paste (it makes the broth too red and masks the taste of the green chile) and to make standard the use of green beans (it helps give the stew a more green broth and better consistency). But, hell, do whatever you want.

Mark's GREEN CHILE Salad

1997 Santa Fe Version

Mark's GREEN CHILE Garlic Bread

1998 Santa Fe Version