Pambazo Queretano (Guajolote)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Cast iron comal or wide plancha
• •Heavy skillet for papa con chorizo
• •Saucepan for frying the adobo
• •Blender
• •Fine-mesh strainer
• •Tongs or a wide spatula

Instructions

1. 1

   Cook the potatoes

   Put the potato cubes in a saucepan and cover with cold water by one inch. Add a generous pinch of salt. Bring to a simmer and cook 8 to 10 minutes, until the potatoes are tender at the edges but not falling apart. Drain well and let them sit in the colander for five minutes. Wet potatoes fight the chorizo fat. Dry potatoes absorb it.

2. 2

   Toast the chiles

   Heat a dry comal or heavy skillet over medium. Toast the chile guajillo in batches, about 12 to 15 seconds per side, just until the skins turn glossy and smell deep and fruity. Do not blacken them. Guajillo is thin and bitter when burned. Cover the toasted chiles with hot water and soak for 20 minutes.

   Hot water, not boiling. Boiling water toughens the skins and gives the adobo a rough bitterness. No me vengas con atajos.
3. 3

   Char the aromatics

   On the same comal, toast the onion slices and unpeeled garlic until the onion has brown spots and the garlic softens inside its skin. Peel the garlic. This small step gives the adobo the flavor of a mercado plancha instead of a raw blender salsa.

4. 4

   Blend the adobo

   Drain the chiles, saving the soaking liquid. Blend the chiles with the toasted onion, peeled garlic, Mexican oregano, cumin, clove, salt, vinegar, and 3/4 cup soaking liquid until completely smooth. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve, pressing hard on the solids. The adobo should coat a spoon like thin mole, not run like water.

5. 5

   Fry the adobo

   Melt 2 tablespoons manteca de cerdo in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the strained adobo carefully, because it will sputter. Cook 6 to 8 minutes, stirring often, until the red deepens and the fat begins to shine at the edges. Taste for salt. If it thickens too much for dipping, loosen it with a spoonful or two of hot water.

6. 6

   Make papa con chorizo

   Melt 1 tablespoon manteca in a wide skillet. Add the chopped white onion and cook until soft, about 3 minutes. Add the fresh Mexican chorizo and cook 7 to 9 minutes, breaking it up with a spoon, until it is fully cooked and its red fat stains the onion. Add the drained potatoes and fold them through the chorizo. Crush a few potatoes with the back of the spoon so the filling holds together. Taste for salt.

7. 7

   Prepare the bolillos

   Split the bolillos lengthwise, leaving a hinge if the bread allows it. Pull out only a little of the soft center if the crumb is heavy. Do not use telera. Telera is softer and marked with three grooves; bolillo is crisper and built for this job. Asi se hace y punto.

8. 8

   Dip and griddle

   Heat the comal over medium and melt 1 tablespoon manteca across the surface. Dip the outside of each split bolillo quickly into the warm guajillo adobo, one second per side, then swipe a thin layer on the cut faces with a spoon. Do not soak the crumb. Lay the bread on the comal and fry 2 to 3 minutes per side, adding the remaining manteca as needed, until the red crust darkens and the edges turn crisp.

9. 9

   Fill the guajolotes

   Open each fried bolillo and fill with a generous spoonful of papa con chorizo. Add shredded lechuga romana, a line of crema Mexicana, and crumbled queso fresco. Close the bread and press it gently on the comal for 20 to 30 seconds so the filling settles into the warm crumb. Serve immediately, with escabeche on the side if you use it.

Chef Tips

• •Buy chile guajillo that is flexible, brick red, and still smells like fruit and dry earth. If it cracks like old paper or looks dusty, leave it. You can have perfect technique and bad chiles and you will still get a bad adobo.
• •Use fresh Mexican chorizo, not Spanish cured chorizo. They are different ingredients. The Mexican chorizo releases chile-stained fat that seasons the potato, and that fat is part of the filling.
• •Bolillo and telera are not interchangeable. Bolillo is crisper and shaped for tortas. Telera is softer, grooved, and collapses faster under adobo. The guajolote needs bolillo.
• •Crema Mexicana is thinner and rounder than sour cream. If sour cream is all you can find, thin it with a spoonful of milk and understand the compromise. A substitution is a compromise, not an upgrade.
• •Do not assemble guajolotes ahead. Market cooks griddle to order because the lettuce wilts, the crema sinks, and the bolillo loses its edge. Hold the adobo and filling separately, then build them when people are ready to eat.

Advance Preparation

• •The guajillo adobo can be made up to 3 days ahead and refrigerated. Rewarm it gently and loosen with hot water before dipping the bolillos.
• •The papa con chorizo filling can be made 2 days ahead. Reheat in a skillet so the fat wakes up again before filling the bread.
• •The lettuce can be washed, shredded, and dried 1 day ahead. Keep it wrapped in a clean towel in the refrigerator. Wet lettuce ruins the bread.
• •The bolillos should be bought the day before if your panaderia makes a very soft roll. A slightly day-old bolillo takes the adobo better.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 330g)