12    Dried red chiles
2 qt Water -- boiling
3 tb Oil
1/4 c  Garlic puree -- *
1/2 ts Salt -- or to taste
3 tb Flour

* Garlic Puree – peel 8 whole heads of garlic by smashing the cloves with
the side of a wide knife; the peel will slip off easily then. Put the
peeled garlic in a blender with about 2 cups of water, and puree. Drain, if
necessary, and store in a tightly closed glass jar in the refrigerator.

Salsa De Chile Colorado is used in countless Mexican dishes. It is
available canned and is usually called enchilada sauce. But nothing
commercial is as good as the sauce you make yourself from dried red chile
peppers.

To prepare a sauce, the peppers are softened in boiling water, then ground
into a rich red paste. The paste is thinned with the cooking liquid for use
as a sauce for enchiladas, et cetera. Left unthinned and spiced with
oregano and vinegar it becomes adobada and is used as a marinade for carne
(beef) adobada or puerco (pork) adobada.

Wash chiles in cold water and remove stems. Cook in boiling water until
tender. Remove chiles and reserve the cooking liquid.

Place a few of the chiles in a blender, along with 1/2 cup resreved liquid,
and blend to a paste. Remove to bowl. Repeat with remaining chiles. (It is
now unseasoned red chile paste).

Heat oil in a large skillet. Add garlic puree and flour, stirring until
four browns. Add the chile paste, stirring constantly until it boils and
thickens. Season with salt. Thin slightly with cooking liquid.

Yield: 2 quarts

El Charro Cafe Favorite Recipes