Pepian Sauce over Chicken

By forkspoonnknife

Pepian Sauce is made with Tomatillos and green peppers as the main ingredients.

Once I had tasted the sauce, I totally fell in love with the tomatillo. I just couldn't get enough of the tarty taste; if you like eating raw mangoes, you'll love the tomatillo.

The sauce goes great with any white meat such as fish, chicken, pork and veal. If you are vegetarian, you can substitute the meat with portobello mushroom caps or cottage cheese (paneer) fillets.

I like my sauce spicy but if that isn't your preference, you can tone it down by de-seeding the jalapeno and substituting the poblano with a regular green bell pepper.

http://forkspoonnknife.blogspot.com/2009/03/story-of-tomatillos-and-pepian-sauce.html

Ingredients

• To roast:
• 1 pound fresh tomatillos
• 1 large poblano pepper
• 1/2 medium green bell pepper
• Dry spice:
• 1/2 cup raw unsalted pine nuts
• 5 whole peppercorns
• 4 cloves, 1 stick of cinnamon, 1 star anise broken
• 1 tsp whole cumin seeds
• To saute:
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 jalapeno chopped fine
• 1 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves, plus 1/4 cup for garnish
• 1/2 cup chicken or vegetable broth
• 2 T sour cream
• 6 boneless chicken thighs pounded to 1/2 inch thickness
• salt and pepper to taste and olive oil as needed

Details

Servings 6
Adapted from forkspoonnknife.blogspot.com

Preparation

Step 1

Turn the broiler on. Remove the papery husk from tomatillos and rinse them in warm water to remove their natural stickiness. Cut into quarters. Deseed the poblano and green peppers and cut into quarters. Toss the tomatillos and peppers with some olive oil to coat them. Place them cut side down on a baking tray and broil for about 10 minutes or until the skin is charred.

Meanwhile, toast the dry spice in a large pan until the mixture releases its fragrance. Transfer to a plate and cool. In the same pan, heat 1 tablespoon of oil over medium heat. Add onions, garlic and jalapenos and sauti until the onions are soft and translucent. When done transfer to a plate and let cool.

Season the chicken thighs with salt and pepper and set aside. Blend the tomatillos, peppers, onion mixture, cilantro and dry spices on high until totally smooth. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in skillet and brown the chicken on both sides and nearly cooked through, about 5 minutes per side. Add the blended pepian sauce to skillet and covering chicken pieces. Add the chicken broth and sour cream and stir to incorporate. Season with salt and pepper. Turn the heat up to bring the sauce to a simmer and cook an additional 10 minutes, until the chicken is cooked completely.

Serve chicken topped with sauce. You can serve this dish with herb rice or crusty bread.