Braised Short Ribs with Mole Verde and Huitlacoche Tamales

Short Ribs with Mole Verde and Huitlacoche Tamales

Recipes by Larry Delgado, chef and owner of The Delgado Collective

“I grew up making tamales with my mom, my grandmother and aunts. Like most of us did in the Valley, we would all get together for the tamaladas at Christmas, and I have food memories of doing that.

“Taking my experiences in dabbling in different cuisines, I like including a version of something familiar with ingredients that are not so familiar, like huitlacoche. The flavor of huitlacoche releases the most intense and earthy flavor that I have ever tasted. Enhancing anything that we make with corn huitlacoche is the perfect fit.

“It is the same concept with the Short Ribs with Mole Verde — taking something not traditionally elegant and turning it into something that can be shared around a candlelit table with a nice bottle of wine. This dish tastes like a down home meal, but it can be presented and served in a more elegant way.”

For the Short Ribs

Serves 8 4 pounds (1.8 kilograms) short ribs 1 cup (120 grams) flour 2 tablespoons (14.8 milliliters) olive oil Kosher salt Freshly ground black pepper 1 cup (168 grams) onion, diced into ¼ inch ½ cup celery (50.5 grams), diced into ¼ inch ½ cup (64 grams) carrots, diced into ¼ inch 4 bay leaves 1 tablespoon (2.7 grams) thyme 1 teaspoon (2 grams) cumin 2 quarts (1.9 liters) beef stock 1 cup (236.6 milliliters) red wine 2 ancho chiles

In a 5-liter (1⅓-gallon) Dutch oven, heat olive oil. Add vegetables (onion, celery and carrots) and sauté for 10 minutes. Set aside.

Trim any excess fat off the ribs. Season short ribs liberally with salt and pepper. Lightly dust the short ribs with flour. In same Dutch oven, heat oil and sear until golden brown. Set aside.

To deglaze the pan, add the remaining ingredients to a stockpot and simmer for 5 minutes. Set aside.

Line the bottom of the Dutch oven with the cooked vegetables. Place seared short ribs over vegetables in braising pan. Add liquid to Dutch oven and put lid on, braise for 3 hours at 350° F.

For the Mole Verde

Yields 1 quart ¾ pound (340.2 grams) tomatillos 1 fresh jalapeño 1 dried avocado leaf 1 dried bay leaf ¼ medium onion, chopped roughly 3 ounces (85 grams) roasted garlic 1 ounce (28.3 grams) epazote ¼ cup (7.5 grams) vegetable greens (beets and carrot tops, kale, spinach) ¼ cup (14.25 grams) lettuce 1½ teaspoons (9 grams) kosher salt 1 teaspoon (2.3 grams) black pepper 1 teaspoon (2 grams) ground cumin ½ cup (72 grams) toasted pepitas 1½ tortillas 1 ounce (28.3 grams) pork fat Cotija cheese, for garnish Pepitas, for garnish Micro-cilantro, for garnish

Boil tomatillos, jalapeño, avocado leaf, bay leaf and onion for 15 minutes. Remove from liquid and transfer to a blender. Add the remaining ingredients (minus pork fat) to the blender and blend until smooth.

In a medium stockpot, heat rendered pork fat, add the blended mixture to pork fat, and simmer for 10 minutes. Serve hot.

Huitlacoche Tamales

Makes 24 tamales ½ pound (227 grams) huitlacoche (fresh, canned or frozen) 2 ounces (59.1 milliliters) olive oil ½ yellow onion, diced 4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped 4 bay leaves 2 pounds (907.2 grams) masa nixtamal Kosher salt 24 fresh corn husks Cotija cheese, for garnish Corn relish, for garnish (recipe follows) In a 12-inch skillet, heat olive oil and sauté the huitlacoche, onion, garlic and bay leaves.

Add the huitlacoche mixture to a blender and pulse once or twice. The consistency should remain chunky.

Mix blended huitlacoche mixture with masa. Season to taste.

To assemble the tamales, divide the masa into 24 equal portions. Open the corn husks and place 1 portion of dough in the center of each corn husk. Fold over the sides of the husk and secure tamale with a piece of string. Repeat the process until all the dough is finished.

In a double boiler with a steamer insert, steam the tamales for 40 to 45 minutes.

Set aside to cool for 5 minutes.

To serve, remove husks. Garnish with corn relish and Cotija cheese.

Corn Relish

2 pounds (908 grams) fresh tomatoes, chopped 4 serrano peppers, diced 1 medium red onion, chopped ¼ cup (1 gram) cilantro, chopped ½ cup (118.3 milliliters) lemon juice 2 ears corn, fire-roasted Kosher salt

Remove husk and hairs form corn. Roast corn over an open flame for about 10 to 15 minutes.

Allow corn to cool, and remove roasted kernels from the cob. To do so, stand the cob vertically on a cutting board and using a sharp knife, cut the kernels off as close to the cob as possible.

Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl, and season to taste.

To plate the entire dish Slice the ribs along the bone and add to the plate. Spoon the mole verde over the meat and top with Cotija cheese, microcilantro and pepitas. Place the garnished huitlacoche tamales on the side.

Photos by Daniela Loera

Photo by Daniela Loera