Ceviche de Soya

Ceviche de Soya, made with texturized soy protein, is a tasty and refreshing alternative perfect for meatless Mondays or Lent Fridays.

Soya (texturized soy/vegetable protein) is a very popular ingredient here in Mexico. Not only is it a great alternative to meat, it's also budget-friendly and it's easy to store in your pantry. I use soya (TVP) most during Cuaresma (Lent). It's quick and easy to prepare, and is a perfect substitute for ground meat if your budget is tight or you're simply trying to eat more meatless meals. And best of all, it's super versatile. Some of my favorite ways to prepare soya is in carne adobada for tacos al pastor, sloppy Jose's, and picadillo.

But my favorite way to enjoy soya in a cool and refreshing Ceviche. Made with finely chopped fresh tomatoes, onion, serrano chiles, and freshly squeezed lime juice, Ceviche de Soya is perfect for a light lunch or no-fuss dinner. If you've never tried texturized soy/vegetable protein, this soy ceviche is the easiest and most flavorful way to enjoy it.

Like most ceviches, serve Ceviche de Soya atop crisp tostada shells and garnish with avocado slices and a few drops of your favorite bottled hot sauce. And while you're at it, serve yourself a tall glass of ice cold Agua de Jamaica or pop open a bottle of your favorite Mexican beer.

Yield: 8 to 10 servingsAuthor: Leslie Limón

Ceviche de Soya

Ceviche de Soya, made with texturized soy protein, is a tasty and refreshing alternative perfect for meatless Mondays or Lent Fridays.

prep time: 30 MINScook time: 2 hourtotal time: 2 hours and 30 mins

ingredients:

For the soya:

• 1/2 medium white onion
• 2 cloves garlic 
• 1 handful fresh cilantro 
• 1 cube Knorr Suiza chicken bouillon 
• 8 cups water 
• 8 oz. texturized soy/vegetable protein 

For the ceviche:

• 5 roma tomatoes, finely chopped 
• 1/2 medium red onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 medium white onion, finely chopped 
• 4 serrano chiles, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, finely chopped 
• 1-1/2 fresh lime juice 
• Tostada shells 
• Mayonnaise or Mexican crema (optional) 
• Avocado slices (for garnish) 
• Bottled hot sauce (like Tapatío, Valentina or Tabasco) 

instructions

1. To cook the soya, place onion, garlic, cilantro and bouillon cube in a large saucepan. Pour in the water. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to low and let simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Using a slotted spoon, remove and discard the onion, garlic, and cilantro.  
2. Add the dried soya to the hot broth. Stir gently to combine. Cover and let soak for at least 10 minutes until the soya is completely hydrated. Drain and let cool completely. 
3. Once the soya has cooled completely, squeeze out any excess broth that the soya has absorbed. (You don't want the excess moisture to water down the ceviche.) 
4. In a large serving or mixing bowl, add the drained and cooled soya, the tomatoes, onions, serrano chiles, chopped cilantro, and the lime juice. Stir gently to combine. Season with coarse salt to taste. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving. 
5. To serve, spread tostada shells with a little mayonnaise or Mexican crema, if desired. Top with a few heaping tablespoons of ceviche de soya. Garnish with avocado slices and a few drops of your favorite bottled hot sauce. ¡Buen provecho! 

http://www.lacocinadeleslie.com/2009/06/ceviche-de-soya.html

©La Cocina de Leslie

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11 January 2018

Ceviche de Soya

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Spicy Salsa Verde Shredded Chicken Tostadas

These crunchy Mexican tostadas topped with refried beans, queso fresco, and shredded chicken in a spicy homemade salsa verde topped with lettuce, pickled onions, and sliced radishes make for a simple and delicious dinner any night of the week.

This week our town is celebrating las fiestas patronales in honor of St. Michael's feast day (September 29th). It's one of the busiest and most important celebrations of the year for our small town. Because I don't want to miss out on the day to day festivities of las entradas, I am relying on the quickest and easiest recipes in my repetoire to feed my family, so we can avoid ordering out which can be rather costly for a family of six. If you follow me on Instagram, you know that I post daily "cook with me" videos in my Insta-stories showing the step-by-step process of the meals I prepare for my family. Today, I made these simple and delicious Spicy Salsa Verde Shredded Chicken Tostadas.

These Spicy Salsa Verde Chicken Tostadas are so easy to make! In the time that it takes the chicken breast to cook, you have more than enough time to prepare the rest of you ingredients, including making the Spicy Serrano Chile Salsa Verde from scratch. (Recipe will be posted tomorrow.) And if you really want to save time in the kitchen, you can use a store-bought rotisserie chicken in place of cooking the chicken on the stovetop. See what I mean? Súper fácil! (Super easy!)

Yield: 6 to 8 servingsAuthor: Leslie Limón

Salsa Verde Chicken Tostadas

These crunchy Mexican tostadas topped with refried beans, queso fresco, and shredded chicken in a spicy homemade salsa verde topped with lettuce, pickled onions, and sliced radishes make for a simple and delicious dinner any night of the week.

INGREDIENTS:

For the shredded chicken filling:

• 2 lbs. bone-in skin-on chicken breasts
• 1/2 medium white onion
• 2 garlic cloves
• 6 to 8 sprigs fresh cilantro
• 1 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1/4 medium white onion, diced
• 1 cup Spicy Serrano Chile Salsa Verde

For the tostadas:

• Tostada shells
• 3 cups Refried Beans
• 1-1/2 cups crumbled queso fresco
• Shredded lettuce
• Cebollas Encurtidas (pickled red onions)
• Thinly sliced radishes
• Spicy Serrano Chile Salsa Verde 
• 1 cup queso cotija

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. In a 4 to 6-quart Dutch oven or saucepan, bring the chicken, onion, garlic, salt, and black pepper to a boil with 8 to 10 cups of water over high heat. Cover and reduce heat to low; let simmer for 45 to 60 minutes until chicken is tender. Remove from heat; let cool slightly.
2. Remove skin and bones from cooked chicken. Shred or roughly chop the chicken.
3. Cook the refried beans in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat.
4. Heat the vegetable oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Saute the diced onion for 2 to 3 minutes until the onion is translucent. Stir in the shredded or roughly chopped chicken and the salsa verde. Let simmer until heated through.
5. To assemble the tostadas, spread 2 to 3 heaping tablespoons of refried beans on each tostada shell. Top with 2 tablespoons of crumbled queso fresco and 2 to 3 heaping tablespoons of the salsa verde shredded chicken. Garnish with shredded lettuce, pickled red onions, sliced radish, Spicy Serrano Chile Salsa, and queso cotija. Enjoy!

http://www.lacocinadeleslie.com/2017/09/spicy-salsa-verde-shredded-chicken.html

La Cocina de Leslie

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25 September 2017

Spicy Salsa Verde Shredded Chicken Tostadas

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How to Make Mexican Sopes (Sopes de Frijoles y Chorizo)

Sopes are one of my favorite traditional Mexican antojitos (street foods). Loaded with delicious fillings like Refried Beans, chorizo, shredded beef, pork or chicken, or a variety of guisados like Picadillo, Pork Chile Colorado, and/or Rajas con Crema (just to name a few). But why stop there?! Sopes can also be topped with shredded lettuce, crumbled queso fresco, Mexican crema, and a variety of fiery salsas for an irresistible treat. For those of you unfamiliar with Mexican sopes the base is like a thick handmade corn tortilla with a small border to keep the yummy fillings from spilling out. And like tacos and tostadas, sopes are eaten with your hands. Traditionally sopes are fried in manteca (lard) before adding the fillings, but vegetable oil works just as well and that is how I prefer to fry my sopes.

27 April 2016

How to Make Mexican Sopes (Sopes de Frijoles y Chorizo)

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Carne Asada Caprichos #ThrowbackThursday

What do you get when you cross a taco with a quesadilla? Some might call them tacodillas or quesatacos, but here in our small town we know them as Caprichos. Caprichos have all the fillings of a traditional Mexican street taco like carne asada, beans, chopped onion, and cilantro AND each capricho is stuffed with lots of ooey, gooey melted cheese.

21 April 2016

Carne Asada Caprichos #ThrowbackThursday

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Say Queso! {Classic Quesadillas}

Mexican Independence Day is just around the corner.  The entire country is abuzz with preparations for the big Bicentennial celebration.  It's also the time of the year that I really start craving Mexican "antojitos".  

Mexican food doesn't get much simpler than the quesadilla.  In it's classic form, all you need is a tortilla (corn or flour) and a little cheese.  All I can say is, "Viva la comida Mexicana!"

Classic Quesadillas

Ingredients:

• Corn or flour tortillas (I used corn)
• 6 to 8 oz. queso Oaxaca, thinly sliced (or substitute Mozzarella)

Directions:
Heat a comal or griddle over medium heat.  Warm the tortillas slightly on the comal.

Place a couple of thin slices of cheese on one half of the tortilla.  Fold the tortilla in half and set aside.

Cook the quesadillas on the comal until the cheese has completely melted.

Serve with Chile de Molcajete, Pico de Gallo or Guacamole. Enjoy!!!

Look at all that melted yummy-ness!

07 September 2010

Say Queso! {Classic Quesadillas}

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Sunday Supper {Tostadas & Tortas de Lomo}

Sunday Supper on a Two's-day?  No, I haven't lost my mind.  I've temporarily misplaced it!

All kidding aside, Sunday Supper was actually the inspiration for my Two's-day feature.  It's one recipe served two ways.

Every Sunday, the entire family gathers at my in-law's home for lunch.  All 19 of us!  Lunch in Mexico is the equivalent of American Supper.

Trying to please everyone's likes and dislikes and taking everyone's dietary needs into consideration can't be easy.  The one thing we all agree on is Tostadas de Lomo (Pork Shoulder tostadas).  The ingredients are all prepared ahead of time and no reheating is required.  This recipe is a great way to use any leftover Roast Pork.

I prefer my suegra's Tostadas because they are served at room temperature.  Most restaurants in town serve Tostadas de Lomo very cold.  (Not appetizing at all!)

We don't buy the packaged baked tostadas that are sold in stores.  We buy fried tostadas on a string, called Ensarta de Tostadas.  But use your favorited kind of tostada.

I did say that this is Two's-day. right?  For those that don't want a crunchy tostada, you can enjoy a delicious Torta de Lomo.   A Torta generally refers to a sandwich in Mexico.  But in Jalisco, a Torta is an open-faced sandwich. 

It is prepared on Pan para Tortas (special torta bread).  If you can't find Torta bread, Bolillo works well with this recipe.  (Its what we use when Tortas are sold out.)

And extra bonus is when our cheese lady stops by to sell us the best tasting homemade queso fresco and panela to put on our Tostadas.

For faster and easier assembly, I suggest that you place all of your ingredients together.  This is a great idea for a dinner party.  Set the ingredients up buffet style and let your guests serve themselves.

Tostadas y Tortas de Lomo

Ingredients:

• 5 pounds pork shoulder roast
• 1 medium onion
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 sprig cilantro
• 5 pounds tomatoes
• 1 medium onion, sliced and separated into rings
• 1 pinch Oregano
• 3 cups of Cooked Beans (with bean broth)
• Queso Fresco or Panela (optional)
• Shredded Cabbage or Lettuce (for garnish)
• 1 large tomato, sliced
• Tostadas
• Pan para tortas or Bolillo rolls

Directions:
Slice the pork shoulder roast in to 1-inch slices.  Place in large stockpot with the medium onion, garlic clove, and sprig of cilantro.  Cover with water.  Season with salt; cover and simmer over medium heat until meat is very tender.  (Between 2 and 3 hours.)  Shred the meat when it is done cooking.

In another large stockpot, fill with the tomatoes and cover with water. Cook over medium heat until the tomatoes are fully cooked.  Puree the tomatoes in a blender, about 1 cup of the cooking water.  Add more of the cooking water if your salsa is too thick.  Season with salt.  Add the onion rings and the pinch of Oregano.  Set aside.

In a small saucepan, heat the cooked beans.  Puree the beans in a blender until smooth and spreadable.  If mixture is too thick, add 1/4 cup of bean broth or water.

Gather all of your ingredients to make assembling the tostadas much easier.

To assemble the tostadas, spread desired amount of pureed beans on tostada.

Crumble queso fresco over beans. (Optional)

Top the queso fresco with shredded pork.

Top with shredded cabbage or lettuce.

Spoon tomato salsa over tostada.

Garnish with a slice of tomato.

For the torta, slice torta bread or bolillo roll in half lengthwise.  Assemble as you would the tostada.

Enjoy!!!

With Love,
Leslie Limon

10 November 2009

Sunday Supper {Tostadas & Tortas de Lomo}

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Encurtidos {Pickled Pigskins}

Encurtidos is the word used when referring to pickled vegetables such as potatoes, carrots, onion, nopales (cactus), jicama, peanuts, and pickled pigskins and pigs feet. 

In Mexico, we call them Cueritos (pigskins) en vinagre, Papas (potatoes) en vinagre, Zanahorias (carrots) en vinagre, Patas (Pigs feet) en vinagre, and so on and so on.

En Vinagre, refers to the vinegar or pickling juice used to cure the veggies or pigskins.  The vinagre is made from pineapple and dulce macho (aka piloncillo), and seasoned with whole cloves, peppercorns, chile de arbol and just a hint of oregano.

The most popular of the Encurtidos are the Cueritos (pigskins).   There are two types of Cueritos en Vinagre available: Cuerito Grueso and Cuerito Delgado.

The Cuerito Grueso, is the thick pigskin that is obtained from the ears, face and feet.  (The top piece in the photo below is actually a piece of snout!)  My hubby loves Cuerito Grueso.

And the Cuerito Delgado, is the thin pigskin from the body.  My children prefer Cuerito Delgado.

Unlike Andrew Zimmern, I am not a big fan of exotic cuts of meat.  (Unless its deep fried.  I love chicharrones!)  My favorite Encurtido is Zanahorias (carrots) en Vinagre.

Serving Encurtidos is easy.  Season them with salt and top with fresh squeezed lime juice.  If the Vinagre isn't spicy enough for you, feel free to add a few drops of bottled hot sauce.  (Valentina or Tapatia brand hot sauce is best.)  Enjoy!!!

With Love,

Leslie Limon

22 October 2009

Encurtidos {Pickled Pigskins}

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Chile Relleno Two's-day

Since today is Two's-day, I'm going to show you 2 ways to enjoy chiles rellenos.  I'm considering making Two's-day a regular feature.   Every Two's-day, I will feature 2 ways to enjoy a recipe or a single ingredient. (What do you think? Is that something you would like?)  

Chiles Rellenos, just might be my favorite Mexican dish.  Roasted poblano peppers, stuffed with delicious queso fresco, coated with eggs and fried in oil.  Simply wonderful, served with a side of refried beans and mexican rice.

My grandpa made great chiles rellenos using Anaheim chilies and American cheese.  But in Mexico, Poblano peppers seem to be the chile of choice.  I like to use queso fresco, but a lot of cheeses work in this recipe.  Oaxaca cheese, string cheese, mozzarella or even a Mexican cheese blend will do, just slice or grate it.

Now for the twist to my chile relleno recipe...(drumroll)...Chile Relleno Soup!  I have never seen or eaten anything like this.  Its chiles rellenos in a very simple broth, but hubby describes it as being the epitome of Mexican comfort food.  (And I agree!) This is how my mother-in-law serves her chiles rellenos and I strongly urge that you try this recipe.

Chiles Rellenos

Ingredients:

• 4 to 6 Poblano Peppers
• 1 Queso Fresco, crumbled
• 1/2 cup flour
• 3 large eggs, room temperature
• Vegetable oil for frying

Directions:
Heat a griddle over high heat. Arrange the poblano peppers on the griddle.

Roast the poblano peppers until the skin has blistered on both sides.

Place the peppers in a plastic bag. Set aside for about 10 minutes.

Remove skin from peppers.

Make a small incision on the side of each pepper. Using a small spoon, remove seeds from peppers.

Spoon 1 to 2 heaping tablespoons of crumbled cheese inside of each pepper.

Don't worry if the incision is too big. You can secure each chile pepper with a toothpick.  (Just remember to tell your guests to be careful!)

Place flour in a shallow bowl. Lightly coat chili peppers with flour. Set chilies aside.

Pour enough oil into a large skillet to measure 1-inch. Heat over medium-high heat.

Immediately, seperate the egg whites and yolks. Beat the egg whites, on medium speed of an electric mixer, until nice and fluffy. Beat in egg yolks just until combined.

Dip chili peppers, one at a time, in egg mixture.

Carefully place chili peppers in oil. Fry in oil until golden brown on both sides. Place chili peppers on a paper towel lined plate.

Serve with Mexican Rice and/or refried beans. Enjoy!!!

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Chile Relleno Soup:

Ingredients:

• Chiles Rellenos
• 2 tablespoons chopped onion
• 1 medium tomato, chopped
• 3 cups chicken broth or water
• Mexican Rice

Directions:
In a deep skillet, heat one tablespoon oil over medium-high heat. Add chopped onion and tomato; saute one minute.

Pour 3 cups of chicken broth over the onion and tomato.  If using water, add 1 teaspoon of chicken bouillon.  Add chiles rellenos.

Reduce heat to low. Cover the chiles rellenos and let simmer 10 minutes.

To serve, spoon one serving of Mexican rice into a bowl. Top with a chile relleno.

Spoon broth over chile relleno and rice.  Enjoy!!!

With Love,
Leslie Limon

Printable Recipe

13 October 2009

Chile Relleno Two's-day

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Comfort Food Classics: Mexican Pork Pozole Rojo

Pozole...this is one of the few Mexican dishes that I did not grow up eating. (A real shame if you ask me!) The only kind of Pozole that I ever tasted was the kind you find in a can with a lovely señorita on the label. Pappy bought a can once, thinking it was Menudo. What came out of the can was a few pieces of chopped pork, lots of hominy and a red goop with way too many spices. Although this was our only experience with Pozole, we decided that we weren't Pozole people.

Fast forward to many years later, during my mother-in-law's first visit to the U.S. She prepared a wonderful pork and hominy soup, seasoned with ancho chilies and garlic. When the bowls were served, I noticed that everyone was squeezing fresh lime juice over the soup, then garnishing their bowls with shredded cabbage, chopped onion and sliced radishes. The first taste of this soup was like an explosion of flavors. I had to have more! And I needed to know the name of what I was eating. When my mother-in-law said that it was Pozole, I immediately thought of that canned nightmare. She lovingly laughed, then told me that you can't get good Mexican food from a can!

Pozole is a very traditional dish in Mexico. It is often reserved for special occasions such as birthdays, Christenings, First Communions and during the holiday season. In Mexico, Pozole is prepared using Maiz Negro (dried purple hominy). The dried maíz negro needs to be cured with water and lye a day in advance, which helps to soften the hominy and to remove the outer skin.

But freaketh not! I'm not going to make you do all that work. I don't use canned goods very often, but in cases like this I'm willing to make an exception. The only size can that I was able to find here in town was a 3 kilo can. Holy hominy, Batman! That's like 6 or 7 pounds of hominy. But you don't need that big of a can for this recipe. My suegra (mother-in-law) says that a good rule of thumb is to use equal parts of hominy and meat.

Now on to the recipe...

Traditional Pork Pozole Rojo 

Ingredients:

• 3-1/4 lbs. boneless pork leg, cut into 2-inch pieces
• 20 cups water
• 1 medium onion, cut in half
• 5 garlic cloves, divided 
• Handful fresh cilantro 
• 2 dried bay leaves 
• 1-1/2 teaspoons coarse salt 
• 1 teaspoon crushed Mexican oregano 
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper 
• 2 (30 oz.) cans white hominy, drained and rinsed 
• 4 dried ancho chilies

Garnish:

• Limes
• Shredded cabbage
• Chopped Onion
• Sliced Radishes
• Salsa de Pepino, Salsa Macha, or your favorite bottled hot sauce 
• Tostadas 

Directions:

Combine the pork meat in a Dutch oven or large soup pot. Pour in 16 cups of the water. Add the onion, 3 of the garlic cloves, cilantro, bay leaves, salt, oregano, and black pepper. Bring to a boil over high heat, skimming off any foam that rises to the top, because we want a clear broth. Cover and reduce heat to low. Let simmer for about 90 minutes until tender.

While the meat is simmering, bring the dried ancho chiles and the remaining 4 cups of water to a boil in a medium saucepan over high heat. Remove from heat. Cover and let cool slightly until chiles have completely softened. Once cooled, remove the stems and seeds from the chiles. Puree the chiles in a blender with the water they were cooked in and the 2 remaining cloves of garlic. 

Stir in the 2 cans of hominy and pour in the ancho chile puree. Stir gently to combine; season with salt to taste, if necessary. Cover and let simmer over low heat for an 45 to 60 minutes. Remove from heat. 

To serve, ladle pozole into deep bowls. Garnish with shredded cabbage, chopped onion, sliced radishes, and a squeeze of fresh lime juice. Add a spicy kick of flavor with a spoonful of Salsa de Pepino, Salsa Macha, or a few drops of your favorite bottled hot sauce. Serve with tostada shells. Buen provecho! 

*Tip: Have all of the garnishes on the table and let your family or guests serve themselves. Be sure to have plenty of crunchy tostadas on the side. 


Love Pozole? Check out my recipes for Pozolillo Rojo (Red Chicken Pozole) & Pozolillo Verde (Green Chicken Pozole) 

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02 September 2009

Comfort Food Classics: Mexican Pork Pozole Rojo

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