It’s Hatch green chile season, or so I’ve heard (can’t remember where), so I thought I would pander to that crowd this week, in the form of grilled grits with poached egg and Hatch chile cream.
As usual, when I do food from New Mexico, I like to throw in something shaped like Texas — people find that kind of thing “cute,” whatever the hell that means, and, though I can’t prove it, I’m pretty sure foods shaped like Texas are more nourishing than those shaped like other states. If the picture didn’t give it away, eggs get the Texas treatment this time. Of course, you can poach your eggs like normal (I guess), just, whatever you do, don’t try to shape them like Delaware. That would look and taste bad.
P.S. I threw in some fried stuff for no real reason. Enjoy!
Grilled grits with poached egg and Hatch chile cream
(serves 4)
Ingredients:
4 eggs
9 tbsp instant grits*
2 roasted hatch chiles, skins removed
1 hatch chile cut into strips
1 cup corny dog batter
1/4 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/8 cup cotija cheese
1 tbsp butter
2 or 3 sprigs of cilantro
water
oil
salt
good attitude
Grilled grits:
Heat the instant grits and 2 cups water in the microwave on high for about 5 minutes. It should have thickened up considerably. If not, give it a minute more at a time, until thickened. Stir in cheese, 1/2 tsp salt and butter. Pour the mixture into a pan that’s about 9″ x 9″. Allow it to come up to room temperature, then refrigerate a couple more hours. Slice into four squares, then grill about 4 minutes per side. Don’t be a hero, use a non-stick grill pan if you’ve got it, or a broiler.
Texas shaped eggs:
Get about an inch of water boiling in a large pot. Place two small, round ramekins in the pot several inches apart. Place your trusted Texas shaped cookie cutter in a larger, oval ramekin and spray with cooking spray. Place the larger ramekin so that its ends rest on the smaller ramekins and the area where your egg will be is exposed more directly to the heat from the steam. Crack an egg into the cookie cutter. Place a lid on the pot and steam about five minutes. Or just make regular poached eggs. Repeat.
Hatch chile cream:
Puree the roasted chiles and cilantro with a tbsp of broth until relatively smooth. Add the remaining broth and heavy cream. Pulse until smooth.
Fried hatch chile sticks:
Did the strips of chile into the corny dog batter and fry until golden and crispy.
Instructions:
1. Assemble and eat.
*Yeah, yeah, yeah. If you try it and don’t like it, then come back and complain about the fact that I used instant grits.
