Budín Azteca de Pollo y Rajas Poblanas

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •9-by-13-inch ceramic or talavera baking dish
• •Gas burner, charcoal grill, or hot broiler for charring the poblanos
• •Wide skillet for the rajas and for softening tortillas
• •Large stockpot for poaching the chicken
• •High-powered blender for the salsa verde
• •Kitchen tongs and a clean towel for sweating the chiles

Instructions

1. 1

   Poach the chicken

   Place the chicken in a large stockpot with the halved onion, halved head of garlic, bay leaves, and salt. Cover with cold water by two inches. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat. Skim the gray foam that rises in the first ten minutes. Lower the heat and cook at a lazy simmer for 35 to 40 minutes for a whole bird, 25 minutes for thighs and breasts, until the meat pulls away from the bone. Cold water start and low heat give you tender meat and clean broth. A rolling boil gives you stringy chicken and cloudy water.

   Save every drop of the broth. You need a cup for the salsa, and the rest is the foundation of tomorrow's sopa de fideo or arroz.
2. 2

   Shred the meat

   Lift the chicken out and let it cool until you can handle it. Pull the meat off the bones in long, irregular shreds. Discard the skin and bones, or save the bones for stock. You should have about 4 cups of shredded meat. Season it with a pinch of salt and a ladle of the warm broth so it does not dry out while you build the rest of the dish.

3. 3

   Char the poblanos

   This is the soul of the dish. Place the poblanos directly on a gas burner over a high flame, or under a hot broiler. Turn them every couple of minutes with tongs until the skin is blackened and blistered all the way around. The flesh underneath should still be firm, not collapsed. Drop them into a bowl and cover with a kitchen towel. Let them sweat for 15 minutes. The steam trapped under the towel lifts the skin off the flesh.

   Do not rinse the charred poblanos under running water. You will wash away the smoke, which is the whole point. Rub the blackened skin off with your fingers or a dry towel.
4. 4

   Cut the rajas

   Peel the burnt skin off the poblanos with your fingers. Slit each chile open, scrape out the seeds and veins, and tear or cut the flesh into strips about half an inch wide. These are your rajas. They should look ragged, not uniform. Industrial precision is not the style of this kitchen.

5. 5

   Cook the rajas and elote

   Melt the lard in a wide skillet over medium heat. Add the thinly sliced white onion and cook until soft and translucent, about five minutes. Add the rajas and the elote kernels. Cook together for another five to seven minutes, stirring occasionally, until the corn picks up a little color and the rajas have absorbed the onion and the lard. Season with salt. Taste. The rajas should be smoky, the corn sweet, and the onion barely there. Set aside.

6. 6

   Make the salsa verde

   Place the tomatillos and serranos in a saucepan, cover with water, and bring to a simmer. Cook for eight to ten minutes, until the tomatillos turn from bright green to a dull olive green and feel soft when poked. Drain. Transfer to a blender with the two raw garlic cloves, cilantro, one cup of the reserved chicken broth, and a teaspoon of salt. Blend until smooth but not foamy. Taste for salt. The salsa should be tart, herbaceous, and have enough heat to make itself known.

7. 7

   Soften the tortillas

   Heat a thin film of neutral oil in a small skillet over medium-high heat. One by one, dip each tortilla into the hot oil for about five seconds per side, just until they are pliable but not crisp. Drain on paper towels. This is the step nobody wants to do, and it is the step that keeps the budín from turning into a soggy mess. A raw tortilla goes limp in the oven. A lightly fried tortilla holds its structure and tastes like a tortilla. No me vengas con atajos.

   Day-old tortillas absorb less oil and hold up better in the bake. Fresh tortillas straight off the comal are too soft for this dish.
8. 8

   Build the budín

   Heat the oven to 375F. Spread half a cup of the salsa verde across the bottom of a 9-by-13-inch ceramic baking dish. Lay down a layer of tortillas, overlapping them and tearing pieces to fill the gaps. Spoon over a third of the shredded chicken, a third of the rajas and elote mixture, a generous ladle of salsa verde, a drizzle of crema, and a handful of queso Oaxaca. Repeat for two more layers. Finish with a top layer of tortillas, the last of the salsa verde poured over so every tortilla is touched, the rest of the crema in long ribbons, and all the remaining queso Oaxaca piled on top.

9. 9

   Bake until bubbling

   Bake uncovered for 30 to 35 minutes. The cheese on top should melt into a golden blanket with dark spots at the edges, the salsa should bubble up through the corners, and the whole dish should smell like a fonda at lunchtime. If the top browns too fast, tent with foil for the last ten minutes. Pull it out and let it rest for ten minutes before serving. A budín cut straight from the oven slides apart. A rested budín holds its layers.

10. 10

    Finish at the table

    Scatter the crumbled queso fresco, fresh cilantro leaves, and a few rings of raw white onion across the top. Bring the whole baking dish to the table and serve it family style, cutting generous squares with a spatula. Recetas probadas y garantizadas.

Chef Tips

• •Queso Oaxaca is what makes this dish what it is. Pull it apart by hand into thin strands the way you would for quesadillas. If you cannot find true queso Oaxaca, low-moisture mozzarella is a compromise, not an upgrade, and the budín will taste like it. Asadero from a Mexican grocery is a closer match.
• •Char the poblanos over a real flame. A gas burner or a charcoal grill gives you smoke. A broiler will get you most of the way there. A pan-roast will not get you there at all. The smoke is the recipe.
• •Use day-old tortillas if you can. Fresh tortillas off the comal are too soft and they fall apart when you fry them. Day-old tortillas have the structure to hold the layers together through 30 minutes in the oven.
• •The salsa verde here is on the loose side because the tortillas drink it up as the budín bakes. If your salsa looks thick going in, thin it with another splash of chicken broth. A dry budín is a sad budín.

Advance Preparation

• •The chicken can be poached and shredded up to two days ahead. Refrigerate the meat with a little broth to keep it moist.
• •The rajas and elote mixture holds in the refrigerator for three days and the flavor only deepens. Make it ahead.
• •The salsa verde can be made one day ahead and refrigerated. Loosen with a splash of broth before using if it has thickened.
• •The fully assembled budín can be built the morning of, covered, and refrigerated for up to six hours before baking. Add ten minutes to the bake time if it goes into the oven cold.
• •Leftovers reheat well in a 350F oven, covered with foil, for about 20 minutes. The microwave makes the tortillas gummy. Do not.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 460g)