Enchiladas Suizas (Verdes)

Living in Mexico, this was easily one of my top five dishes to order, and as far as I'm concerned, enchiladas suizas are without a doubt the best enchiladas out there. Creamy, cheesy chicken and green chile sauce? Yes, please. And just so you know, it would be nearly sacrilegious to make enchiladas with flour tortillas. (In fact, corn is always best, in my not-so-humble opinion.)

This recipe is a variation on one I found about five years ago in the San Francisco Chronicle Food Section. The woman who wrote it got the recipe from the family running the bed and breakfast where she stayed. The original version calls for making the salsa verde from scratch, but I didn't want to spend all day on this and just used canned green enchilada sauce. Some brands are better than others, and while I've yet to do a brand by brand taste test, I know that El Pato, Las Palmas and La Victoria are decent.

(If you are wondering, the word suiza, surprisingly enough, means Swiss. Apparently Swiss immigrants in Mexico often ended up making cheeses and other dairy products, like the crema Mexicana in this dish.)

The Chicken

• 2 chicken breasts (It called for bone and skin, but we used boneless/skinless.)
• 1/4 of a white onion
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 quart chicken broth

1. Rinse chicken and put in a 4 quart pot with the onion quarter and garlic. Add broth. If the chicken is not completely covered, add water until covered. Bring to a simmer, then reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes.
2. Remove from heat and let chicken cool in broth for 20 minutes. Remove chicken from broth and when cool, shred it.
   
3. Save the broth for use in any recipe calling for chicken broth. (We used it to make tortilla soup.)

The Enchiladas

• 2 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon canola oil
• 10 large corn tortillas
• 4 cups (or more) green chile enchilada sauce (spicy, if you like!)
• Shredded chicken from above
  
• 1/2 cup chopped white onion (optional)
  
• 3 cups grated manchego or Monterey Jack Cheese (We used cheddar and it was fine.)
• 3/4 cup crema Mexicana (We had to substitute sour cream; it's definitely not as good as the real stuff.)

1. Heat 1/2 tablespoon of the oil in a wide skillet and fry the tortillas (1-2 at a time) to soften them, turning once--about 20 seconds on each side. Stack them as you finish. Add more oil to the pan as needed.
2. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.
   
3. Use 1 teaspoon oil (I used a spray instead) to coat a 12x9 inch (or so) baking dish. Spread 1 cup of green sauce over the bottom of the dish.
4. Moisten the shredded chicken with 3/4 cup of the green sauce.
5. For each enchilada, spoon some of the chicken, some chopped onions and some shredded cheese down the middle of a tortilla. Roll it up and place seam side down in the dish.
6. When all of the enchiladas are in the dish, spread 1 tablespoon of crema over each one. Pour 2 cups (or more as desired) of the green sauce over the enchiladas, then sprinke more grated cheese all over the top.
   
7. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, until heated through and bubbly. Pass the remaining salsa verde at the table.
   

Chilaquiles

I remember very clearly the first time I had chilaquiles, a staple in Mexico not frequently found at Mexican restaurants in the U.S. I was 18 and living in Mexico City on my first stint studying abroad. A group of other students and I had reservations at the Hotel Majestic for brunch, purely for the direct view of the Zocalo--historic Mexico City's expansive main square. We were able to watch Ruben Blades perform (part of a series of free summer concerts) from above the fray of thousands--while enjoying breakfast. The music was good, but the chilaquiles ended up stealing the show.

Chilaquiles come in many forms: red sauce or green sauce, with eggs without eggs, with chicken or other meat or vegetarian. But my favorite remains the way I originally experienced them: with green sauce, chicken and no eggs. Traveling throughout Mexico, I'd always order them when I found the right combo. The other versions are not bad by any means, but with the green sauce they're transcendent.

Awhile ago, Mark and I made a version of chilaquiles with shrimp roughly adapted from my Dona Tomas cookbook. We used homemade totopos, tortilla chips, from the same. It may have been the best version I've ever had--and that's saying something. (NOTE: There are delicious chilaquiles offered at La Bamba on SE 49th and Division in Portland.)

For the chilaquiles:

• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 3 cups (or so) chile verde enchilada sauce
  
• 10 ounces corn tortilla chips
• 1 1/2 cups grated cheese (Monterey Jack is recommended, but we used cheddar)
• 1/4 thinly sliced white onions
• 1/3 cup crumbed Cotija cheese (worth getting for authenticity's sake)
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
• 1/4 cup crema or sour cream

1. Add the oil to a skillet over high heat.
   
2. Add about 2 cups of green sauce. Bring to a boil, then add tortilla chips. Saute the chips in the sauce for about 3 minutes, stirring with a wooden spoon until the chips absorb the sauce.
   
3. Continue to add sauce until all the chips are well coated but not soupy. You may not need all of the sauce.
   
4. Add the grated cheese and stir once or twice util barely melted. Transfer to a serving plate or individual plates.
   
5. Sprinkle with onion, Cotija and cilantro. Drizzle with crema. Top with shrimp or chicken. Die of happiness.

For the shrimp:

• 1/2 white onion, sliced
  
• 1 pound frozen shrimp
• Salt
• 2 tablespoons unslated butter
• 1 jalapeno chile, thinly sliced
• 1 1/2 tablespoons chopped garlic
• Lime

1. Heat a large saute pan over high heat. Add the oil and onion--quickly stir 2-3 times. Add the shrimp and a few dashes of salt. Saute for a minute.
   
2. Add the butter, jalapeno and garlic. Saute for a minute, until butter melts and the garlic releases it's aroma and shrimp are done.
3. Serve on top of your chilaquiles.