recipelutions #3

[Deitz Dittrich]

Seafood Chili

The Base:

2 Tbsp. vegetable oil

1 red onion, chopped

1 white onion, chopped

4 garlic cloves, pressed and minced

1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro (plus more for garnish)

1 red bell pepper, roasted, cored, seeded, and sliced

1 Anaheim chili pepper, roasted, cored, seeded, and minced

1 jalapeño chili pepper, roasted, cored, seeded, and minced

1 1/2 Tbsp. chili powder

2 tsp. ground cumin

2 tsp. crumbled dried oregano

Cayenne pepper to taste

1 pound tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped (about 2 cups). Use canned if fresh are not at their best.

1 tsp. green salsa (green taco sauce)

2 tsp. white wine

Salt

The Rest:

1/2 pound medium shrimp, shelled and deveined

1/2 pound bay scallops

2 pounds clams, steamed and shelled (about 1/2 lb meats)

1/2 pound firm-fleshed fish, such as pollack, cod , halibut, monkfish, or red snapper, cut into bite-size chunks

1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese, or a mixture of cheddar and Jack cheese (optional)

Garnish:

Sour cream or plain yogurt

1 ripe avocado, peeled and diced

Cooking Instructions:

Heat the oil in a wide, deep skillet. Sauté the red onion, white onion, garlic and cilantro until the onions are soft and translucent.

Add the bell pepper, Anaheim and jalapeño chiles, chili powder, cumin, oregano and cayenne and stir well to combine.

Stir in the tomatoes and the green salsa, and cook over low heat, stirring often, until the tomatoes break down into pulp. When the mixture starts to stick to the pan, add the wine and stir vigorously to loosen it and make a dense sauce. Season to taste with salt and additional minced fresh cilantro.

At this stage you can remove the sauce from the heat, let cool and store for later use, two nights refrigerated, up to three months frozen. A night of refrigeration will allow the flavors to mellow.

Reheat the sauce over a moderate heat. Stir in the shrimp, scallops and fish. Simmer gently until they are thoroughly opaque when cut into, about 12 minutes. Add the clams and simmer another 2 to 3 minutes.

Remove from the heat and stir in the cheese, if desired. Serve at once, garnished with a dollop of sour cream or yogurt and the diced avocado.

Servings Per Recipe: 4

Deitz:4.25 stars out of 5--- Wow... What a unique flavor. When I chose the recipe for this weeks recipelution, I had no idea what to expect. And the first bite sat in my mouth, and I wasn't quite sure what to think. But you know how you eat a potato chip, and the first one is good, but the second one is better, and next thing you know you cant get enough and the whole stupid bag is gone?. Well, thats what this is like. The first bite was ok, but after about 5 bites it was VERY good.

We only used 1/2 of the hot peppers, as I have a bit of a wimpy German tongue. I maybe could have stood a little more heat, but not a lot. We also did not make the sauce a day ahead, we just made it and rolled with it, I think tonight wee are going to try the leftovers with soft tacos.. .

If you like Chili, and if you like seafood, then this is a must try for you. It tasted like something a fancy schmancy expensive place would charge $25 a plate for. It was that good.

[reinhard1]

i can see why you almost gave it a 5. realy a must to try. good luck.

[c0untryf1sh3r]

Man, that does sound really good. What the devil is an Anaheim chili?

[Deitz Dittrich]

Man, that does sound really good. What the devil is an Anaheim chili?

It was a fairly large pepper(8ish inches long) that had some heat to it.. not as much as a really hot pepper, but had heat!!