Chile con Queso recipe!

[Saviolo]

So, this week we're doing super trashy comfort food/party food! Hubby grew up in Texas, so of course was exposed to a lot of norteño food, and lots of Tex-Mex. This recipe is super comfort food for him, as it's very close to the sort of food he grew up with. This one is a bit of a guilty pleasure, because it works best with those super processed sort of cheese singles. Easier if you can get the ones that aren't individually wrapped, and also causes less waste.

This probably has its roots in actual Mexican dishes like queso flameado, but don't be fooled. This is pure Tex-Mex. It's a great party dish (even better if you have a way to keep it warm and flowing), stores well, and comes back easily with a short zap in the microwave. Another recipe that makes it easy to customize, you can make this as hot as you like with additions like hotter peppers, or even bits of spicy chorizo or something like that. We added a tiny dollop of our super spicy fermented ghost and scorpion pepper relish (you can see it near the end, there) which gives it a real intense heat. We'll be doing a video on that fermented pepper sauce soon!

Anyway, please enjoy!

[MontanaMama]

1. Hmmmmm.

While I consider myself a food snob, I've come to realize that dips like this can only succeed with processed cheese. The evaporated milk in the recipe looks like the other secret to making this so darned smooth! Great tip! The boys in my house will be delighted with this. Thanks for sharing Saviolo. I'm on the hunt for the ghost pepper relish now...

[Saviolo]

2. The ghost pepper relish is homemade!

Well, it was made in my hubby's restaurant (when it was still open). Anyway, it's super easy, and we'll be doing a video on it someone soon. Basically we just ground up onions and ghost/scorpion chiles, packed them in salt (there's some math to do there that I don't know, but hubby will be able to confirm!) and then let it ferment! Great flavour and lots of heat. We also have a regular one made with tabasco chiles and Thai bird chiles that also has a lot of flavour, but far less heat.

[MontanaMama]

3. Really?

I need to know more about this! Pending your video...may I ask how you ferment? Room temperature? Any special container? Glass I assume? I'm kind of excited about the possibilities, if you can't tell.

[Saviolo]

4. Room temperature for the first little bit

And then in the fridge going forward. There are a couple of ways do do it, really. If you don't mind the sauce changing character constantly throughout its life, you can just let it keep fermenting slowly in your fridge. Flavours will change, you'll get some more complex aromas and such, and if you keep skimming any little yeast colonies off the top, it won't go bad for a long while. You can also pasteurize it, and can it, and it will stay at room temperature (unopened!) for a long time, and then when you open it, it can live in the fridge and it won't ferment any further.

We have a couple of fermentation videos on our channel. Here's the perserving and fermenting playlist:

&list=PL_Sj0tcahFakCInwOy80slEE6ehm7PbSX

[MontanaMama]

5. Thank you.

I have a bunch of hot peppers in my garden that I'm picking this weekend since the hard frost is coming. I'll subscribe to your channel. Much appreciated!

[Saviolo]

6. Hubby swears by this book:

https://www.amazon.ca/Art-Fermentation-Depth-Exploration-Essential/dp/160358286X

This is basically the fermentation bible. Detailed instructions on how to ferment just about anything.

[MontanaMama]

7. Fascinating.

The reviews on Amazon are excellent - I am ordering this today. What a wonderful resource. I'm glad I happened upon you two.

[Major Nikon]

8. Looks like it's not that much different than the recipe on the cans of Rotel

I do something similar, but my recipe is a bit different/

Processed cheese actually works quite well for melting applications because it doesn't separate. You can prevent regular cheese from separating by adding some corn starch after shredding and then melt slowly over some sort of liquid ingredient(s) while stirring constantly.

I like to use hotter peppers like jalapenos or serranos. I also like mixing sharp cheddar with queso fresco or homemade queso blanco. I also use a bit of hot salsa, and/or diced tomatoes, and Shiner Bock.

[Saviolo]

9. We sometimes use hotter peppers

But the Ontario poblano peppers were amazing this year, plus we have a ton of that homemade ghost and scorpion pepper sauce.

Your method makes it sound much more like a classic fondue with a Tex-Mex twist! Bet it would be great for dipping bits of fajita beef into.

[Major Nikon]

10. If you use real cheese, you need some kind of starch

One way to do this is to make a roux and then gradually add shredded cheese. Another is to add corn starch directly to the cheese as described and then slowly melt over a heated liquid.

Using white Mexican cheeses makes for a bit more authentic Mexican cheese sauce as compared to Tex-Mex. I suppose the same is true for using milder peppers like poblano or hatch. Personally I like a combination of both as I like the Mexican style cheese with more heat.

[Saviolo]

11. For sure...

If I'm going to go out and get the actual Mexican cheese (chihuahua or oaxaca) I'm going to go whole hog and just make queso flameado! Get it shredded up nicely in a small casserole or large ramekin and crumble some chorizo and slice some mushrooms and just let it melt into a big melty mess.

[Phentex]

12. Now I want cheese!