Chile Rellenos Balls, Native American

How to Make

• Step 1: Warm a Dutch oven over high heat.

• Step 2: Salt meat and then place it in skillet and brown on both sides,about 5 minutes total.

• Step 3: Scatter garlic cloves around meat. Pour in stock, and scrape up browned bits from bottom. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer about 1 1/2 hours or until tender.

• Step 4: Check after about 1 hour and add more hot water if needed to stay moist

• Step 5: Let meat cool in pan liquid. When the meat is cool enough to handle, discard fat and pull meat into at least a half dozen chunks, then reduce remaining cooking liquid to about 2 tablespoons.

• Step 6: In a food processor, chop together the meat and cooking liquid, pulsing just until meat is chopped uniformly. Add chile and pulse in several short bursts until chile is mixed in evenly. Mixture should be fairly finely chopped, but pieces of chile should be still visible. Mixture should be well-seasoned too.

• Step 7: Add salt if you wish. Check texture of mixture.

• Step 8: If it holds together when compacted tightly, it’s ready. If not, add 1 tablespoon of flour, and pulse once more until flour is mixed in.

• Step 9: Test again. If not holding together, add up to 1 more tablespoon of flour and pulse again.

• Step 10: Form balls of meat-and-chile mixture just a smidgen smaller than golf balls.

• Step 11: Arrange on a baking sheet. Refrigerate briefly while you ready the batter and oil.

• FOR THE BATTER

• Step 12: Beat egg whites with a mixer until soft peaks form. Stop mixer, add egg yolks and 2 tablespoons of flour, then mix again just until combined.

• FOR THE ASSEMBLY

• Step 13: Warm about 3 inches of oil in a broad saucepan or deep skillet over medium heat to 350° F.

• Step 14: Place 1/2 cup flour in a shallow bowl.

• Step 15: Arrange several thicknesses of paper towels within easy reach of stove.

• Step 16: Dredge balls first in flour, then in egg batter. Your first few may look a bit free-form rather than like perfect spheres. Experiment to see if you find batter-dipping easiest with fingers, using a small spoon as a scoop, or spearing the balls with a thin-tined fork.

• Step 17: Gently add balls to oil, a few at a time. Balls will sink to bottom, then rise back up to top of oil.

• Step 18: Fry until batter coating is puffed, golden-brown, and lightly crisp, about 4 minutes.

• Step 19: Nudge balls around a bit with a slotted spoon as needed to fry evenly.

• Step 20: Using slotted spoon, drain them on paper towels.

• Step 21: Continue until all chiles rellenos balls are fried, adjusting oil temperature as needed to keep it steady. Eat warm.