Phew!!   ;-D

Susan

Hello, Julie Bove

That sounds similar to the way we do lentils. First we make a miricroix
(onion, celery and carrot peices sauteed in olive oil), then add the
lentils, cooked hot pork sausage, black pepper, and water and cook until its
done. When I make it, I add a medium dark roux and mashed garlic for the
flavor. When my son makes it, he omits the roux and adds a commercial spice
mix called Spike.  We tend to serve it with saltines and hot red chile
flakes or tobasco sauce at table.

Pinto beans we do pretty plain during cooking and add salt and a little oil
that has been heated to smoking to the pot at the end. There are spatter
issues but this step makes a difference to the taste. Lard was traditionally
used for this but we use vegetable oil. Then we usually have them with
either red or green chile sauce and flour tortilla or as burritos with
cheese and chile over or as frito pies with corn chips, chile, cheese, and
raw onion added to the beans.

I can't eat Frito Lay Fritos, but I can eat a few yellow corn tortilla chips
and that works. For tortillas, the regular ones are spike city but there are
some low carb ones that are almost as good as the regular comercial ones
(Santa Fe Tortilla Company Carb Chopper Flour Tortillas, 7g total carb with
3 of those as dietary fiber for 4gr net per tortilla). Not as good as home
made, but we never did make them. Grandmother's generation did, and they
were tasty.

The chile sauces I mention are not much like what people have for chile
elsewhere, sort of northern New Mexico Indian food. Very pure: just chile,
roux, garlic and water with fried or cooked beef or pork added. I've heard
of people putting chicken or chicken stock in there, but that would just
ruin it for me. Of course, if you boil the meat and skim the fat then the
broth is good to use instead of water. I never go far from home, so I don't
know if the chile powders (ground red in hot and extra hot) or frozen green
chiles (roasted and peeled) are available easily.

Do you cook the beans with the bell pepper and onion or add them raw at
serving time? Do you roast and peel the peppers?

I have to watch the cooked carrots. I only eat them cooked in the lentil
dish, and then I still have to be careful.

regards
rudy
bantista@thuntek.net