Comfort Food: Caldillo

When the cold weather hits, I go through a mini-depression watching all of my outside plants turn brown and die. My favorite is a six-foot tall mandevilla that peeks out of the ground every spring and dies instantly the following Thanksgiving. This summer was it's eighth showing. It's bright pink blooms are truly spectacular, and when it's time to cut it down, it's like chopping off my left arm.

Great soups and stews are a small consolation prize for bidding another goodbye to the garden. Today we woke up to a light rain and overcast skies...a perfect combination to stay home and cook some good comfort food!



This caldillo is my version of a stew my husband and I like to get at the truck stop by my office. I'm not a huge fan of the cafe there, but their stew is incredible, and the servers tell us truck drivers stop in just to eat it.

With big chunks of red potato, lots of ground beef and beans, you could almost stuff a tortilla with this stuff and make a burrito.



Start by browning about a pound and a half of ground beef. Drain well.



Dice up an onion or two (I stuck with one this time around) and about four hot green chiles.



Saute the onion and green chile in a large stock pot in two tablespoons of butter. Add some garlic salt and lots of fresh ground black pepper.



While the onion and chile are sizzling, chop up 6 red potatoes into 1-inch chunks. You can use regular potatoes, but I like the color these add to the soup.



After the chile and onion mixture is translucent, add 8 cups of water to the stockpot, along with a 27-ounce can of pinto beans, the ground beef and 4 chicken bouillon cubes.



Bring everything to a boil and simmer over low heat for at least an hour. Serve with toasted flour tortillas or crusty bolillos. Yum!

Here's a cut-and-paste version:

Caldillo

1.5 lbs ground beef
1 or 2 onions, diced
4 hot green chiles, diced
2 tbsp. butter
6 red onions, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 can (27 oz.) pinto beans
4 chicken bouillon cubes
8 cups of water
1 tsp. garlic salt
salt and pepper to taste

1. Brown ground beef in a skillet. Drain well.
2. In a large stock pot, saute onion and green chile in the butter. Add garlic salt.
3. After chile and onion mixture is translucent, add water, beans, bouillon, ground beef and potatoes.
4. Bring pot to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for at least an hour. Serve with flour tortillas or rolls.