Tuesday, June 3, 2008

Rajas en Crema

Rajas en crema is a traditional Mexican meal that I've actually mastered. Me, the non-cook. :) I've mentioned it before and after some encouragement from my Absolute Write friends, I took pictures as I made it last night. Ready?

Ingredients:
Equal number poblano peppers and tomatoes (7-8 for 4 servings)
Half red onion
4-5 garlic cloves, chopped
Mexican cheese - an amount roughly the size of a stick of butter
3 heaping tablespoons sour cream (one small container)

First you grill the peppers without oil/spray. I have six here, which makes enough for three large servings. I'd recommend a couple more if you have more people.

While they are grilling, chop all the veggies.

Here comes the fun part. Cook the peppers until they are blackened and the skin starts to bubble, then remove from heat. The more bubbled the easier it is to peel, but be careful they don't burn. They only need to cool enough that you can handle them.

While the peppers are cooling, coat a large skillet with oil. Add the garlic once it's hot, cook for a minute or two, then add the onion. Cook another couple minutes, then add the tomato. You might have to add more oil; use your judgment. As long as nothing sticks, you're fine. Add several shakes of salt, then lower the heat to medium and throw on a lid.

Now back to the peppers. They should be cool enough to handle so now you need to remove the skin.

Next, cut off the tops, discard the seeds, and cut the peppers into strips roughly half an inch wide.

Add the strips (rajas) to the cooking vegetables and mix. Next add the chopped cheese and cream.

Cook for a few minutes, just long enough for the cream and cheese to warm up. Serve,

and Enjoy! We eat it with tortilla, but a fork is fine too. :)


I have no idea how many calories or fat grams this has. I use low-fat sour cream but everything else is healthy (enough). If anyone tries this, let me know how it turns out!

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

Looks good enough to eat! Yum!

Melanie Hooyenga said...

Thanks! I have a bit leftover for lunch but after writing this, lunch might have to be now! (It's 11:30 am).

Janna Leadbetter said...

That looks sooo good, especially with the tortillas. I'll have to try it with my girlfriends, though, I don't think any of my family would touch it.

Melanie Hooyenga said...

It can be spicy, it just depends on which peppers you get. Ibis said there's no physical indication if one is spicier than another. My first bite about burned my tongue off, but the rest were better. The cream and tortillas help, too.

Janna Leadbetter said...

Yep, that clenches it; I'm gonna try it. I may try to have my girls over this week. Mmm. That picture near the end, when it's all melty, looks a.maz.ing.

I feel like I'm always typing "mmm." But I guess with as much as we talk about food, it's no surprise. :)

Anonymous said...

Wow, this looks so good. I've been eating healthy for a while and think that if made right, this can be a low-calorie meal. I may make this during this week.

Thanks for the recipie!

Nadine said...

Looks delicious! Although I'm not great with really spicy things so I may have to make sure the peppers are mild.

Thanks for the recipe and pics!

Anonymous said...

I'm gonna try this at the end of summer - with the tomatoes and peppers fresh from my garden.

I love mexican food! Is this dish local to the area? I've never heard of it before.

Dolores

Anonymous said...

Melanie cooked this for me and her Dad when we visited in February. I'm not big on spicy foods, but this was delicious! And you have to eat it with tortillas. A fork would ruin the effect -- like using a fork instead of chopsticks.

Melanie Hooyenga said...

Nadine - you could probably make this with bell peppers, too.

Dolores - I'm not sure if it's a regional thing or all of Mexico. I first had it with his family in the next state over and it's fairly common here.

Melanie Hooyenga said...

Thanks mom. :)