Pacholas Guanajuatenses

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Volcanic stone metate and metlapil, or tortilla press with plastic sheets
• •Cast iron comal for toasting chile ancho
• •Wide cast iron skillet for frying
• •Wire rack or brown paper for draining

Instructions

1. 1

   Toast the chile

   Heat a dry comal over medium. Toast the chile ancho one at a time, about 20 to 30 seconds per side, just until the skin darkens slightly and the chile smells sweet, like raisins and warm earth. Do not blacken it. Burned ancho turns bitter and then you are fighting the whole recipe.

2. 2

   Soak and grind

   Put the toasted chiles in a bowl and cover with the hot water. Let them soften for 15 minutes. Drain, saving 2 tablespoons of the soaking liquid, then grind the chiles on a metate with the garlic and salt until you have a thick red paste. If you use a blender, use only enough soaking liquid to move the blades. A watery chile paste makes loose pacholas.

   The metate is not decoration here. It works the chile and garlic into the meat more evenly than chopping, and it gives the pachola its old texture. Use the blender if you must, but know what you are giving up.
3. 3

   Soften the bread

   Put the torn bolillo in a small bowl and pour the milk over it. Let it sit for 5 minutes, then squeeze it with your hand until it becomes a soft paste. This bread is not filler. It holds moisture in the thin meat patty so the pachola fries crisp at the edge without drying into shoe leather.

4. 4

   Season the meat

   In a wide bowl, combine the ground beef, chile ancho paste, soaked bread, grated onion, egg, black pepper, cumin, Mexican cinnamon, clove, parsley, and mint. Mix with your hand until the meat feels sticky and even, 2 to 3 minutes. The warm spices should sit behind the chile, not announce themselves like perfume. This is Guanajuato, not a pastry shop.

5. 5

   Adjust the texture

   Pinch off a tablespoon of the mixture and fry it in a little lard. Taste for salt. If the mixture feels too wet to shape, add fine dry bread crumbs a spoonful at a time. Stop as soon as the meat holds together. Too much crumb makes a stiff pachola, and stiff pacholas are how you know the cook got nervous.

6. 6

   Work on metate

   Divide the meat into 12 equal balls. On a lightly moistened metate, press each ball forward with the metlapil to make a thin oval, about 1/4 inch thick and 5 to 6 inches long. Lift it carefully with wet fingers or a thin spatula. If you do not have a metate, press each ball between two sheets of plastic with a tortilla press, then shape the oval by hand. The metate marks are traditional, but thinness is the real instruction.

7. 7

   Fry in lard

   Melt the manteca de cerdo in a wide cast iron skillet over medium heat. When the fat shimmers, lay in 2 or 3 pacholas without crowding. Fry 2 to 3 minutes per side, until the edges turn dark brown and the center is just cooked through. La manteca es el sabor. Vegetable oil gives you a flat taste and a harder crust. No me vengas con atajos.

8. 8

   Rest and serve

   Transfer the pacholas to a rack or brown paper for one minute, just long enough for extra fat to settle. Serve hot with refried bayo beans, Mexican red rice, salsa de jitomate asado, and warm corn tortillas wrapped in a servilleta. The plate should look like a Bajio home meal, not a restaurant performance. Recetas probadas y garantizadas.

Chef Tips

• •Ask the butcher for 85 percent lean ground beef. Too lean and the pacholas dry out. Too fatty and they shrink hard in the skillet. The Bajio knows meat, so start there.
• •Chile ancho should be flexible, dark reddish brown, and smell fruity. If it cracks like old paper or smells dusty, leave it with the vendor. Si no conoces el mercado, no conoces la cocina.
• •The herbs are small but important. Parsley and mint give a clean lift against the beef and chile. Do not replace them with cilantro. That is another register.
• •A tortilla press is acceptable for a weeknight kitchen, but keep the patties thin. A thick pachola misses the point. The old metate method works the seasoning into the meat and leaves the surface ready to brown.
• •Fry in manteca de cerdo. This is not negotiable if you want the Guanajuato flavor. Use enough fat for shallow frying and save the strained lard for beans.

Advance Preparation

• •The meat mixture can be made up to 12 hours ahead and refrigerated, covered. Let it sit at room temperature for 20 minutes before shaping so it presses evenly.
• •The chile ancho paste can be made one day ahead and refrigerated. Keep it thick, because watery paste loosens the meat.
• •Cooked pacholas reheat well on a hot comal for 1 to 2 minutes per side. Do not microwave them unless you enjoy punishing good food.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 470g)