Relleno de Pan Oaxaqueño

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •12-inch wide clay cazuela or 9-by-13 baking dish
• •Wide heavy skillet for the sofrito
• •Tongs for charring the poblanos
• •Two sheet pans for drying the bread
• •Microplane or fine grater for the orange zest

Instructions

1. 1

   Dry the bread

   Cut the bolillos into 3/4-inch cubes. The bread must be stale. If yours is still soft, spread the cubes on two sheet pans and dry them in a 250F oven for 25 minutes, tossing once. They should feel light and sound hollow, not toasted brown. Fresh bolillo turns the relleno into a wet sponge. Stale bolillo holds its shape and drinks the broth like it should.

   Two-day-old bolillo from a real panaderia is what this dish was built for. The crumb has set and the crust has hardened. Supermarket sandwich bread does not work here. No me vengas con atajos.
2. 2

   Roast and clean the poblanos

   Set the poblanos directly on an open flame or under a hot broiler. Turn them with tongs until the skin is blistered and black on every side, about 8 to 10 minutes total. Drop them into a bowl, cover with a plate, and let them sweat for 15 minutes. The skin will slip off under your fingers. Do not rinse them under running water. You wash away the smoke and that smoke is half the flavor. Stem, seed, and cut into 1/2-inch strips.

3. 3

   Build the sofrito

   Heat 1/2 cup of the manteca in a wide heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the onion with a pinch of salt and cook for 6 to 8 minutes, until it turns translucent and the edges go gold. Add the garlic and cook one minute more, just until fragrant. La manteca es el sabor. Use butter and you have made an American Thanksgiving stuffing. Use lard and you have made an Oaxacan relleno.

4. 4

   Cook the fruit and spices

   Add the diced apples and pear to the skillet. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring, until the fruit softens at the edges but still holds its shape. Add the prunes, raisins, almonds, and pecans. Stir in the crushed fennel, oregano, canela, clove, black pepper, and the orange zest. Cook two more minutes until the kitchen smells like a Oaxacan panaderia at Christmas. Pull the skillet off the heat and stir in the orange juice. Let it cool for 10 minutes.

5. 5

   Combine in a wide bowl

   In a very large mixing bowl, combine the dried bread cubes with the poblano strips and the warm fruit-and-nut mixture. Toss with your hands until every cube has touched the lard. Pour the warm chicken broth over the bread in three additions, tossing between each. The bread should drink it but not collapse. Stop adding broth the moment the cubes are damp through but still distinct. Season with the tablespoon of salt and taste a corner. Adjust until it tastes assertive on its own; the eggs and the oven will mellow it.

   Different bread drinks different amounts. Trust your hands. The mixture should hold together when you squeeze a fistful but spring back when you let go.
6. 6

   Bind with egg

   Once the mixture has cooled to just warm (not hot or you will scramble the eggs), pour the beaten eggs over the top and fold them in with a wooden spoon. The egg is what holds the relleno together when you slice it on the table.

7. 7

   Bake in the cazuela

   Heat the oven to 350F. Grease a wide 12-inch clay cazuela or a 9-by-13 baking dish generously with the remaining 2 tablespoons of manteca, sides included. Pile the relleno in loosely. Do not pack it down. Pressed-in stuffing turns gummy. Dot the top with a little more lard if you have it. Bake uncovered for 45 to 55 minutes, until the top is dark gold and crisp and the inside is set when you tap the cazuela.

   If the top is browning before the inside sets, tent loosely with foil for the last 15 minutes. Pull the foil at the very end so the crust crisps back up.
8. 8

   Rest and serve at the table

   Let the relleno rest in the cazuela for 10 minutes before serving. Scatter pomegranate seeds and a few parsley sprigs across the top if you have them. Bring the whole cazuela to the table. This is a dish for a Christmas pavo or a roast chicken from the panaderia, and it belongs in the middle of the family, not portioned in the kitchen. Asi se hace y punto.

Chef Tips

• •Buy your bolillo from a real Mexican panaderia, not a supermarket. The crumb structure is different and it matters here. If you can only get it fresh, leave it uncovered on the counter for 48 hours before you start.
• •Toast the fennel seeds for 30 seconds in a dry skillet before crushing them. Untoasted fennel tastes like a vitamin. Toasted fennel tastes like a Oaxacan panaderia.
• •If pomegranates are not in season where you live, leave them off. Out-of-season pomegranates are dry and sour. Mexican grandmothers cook with what the mercado is selling that week, not what looks good in a magazine.

Advance Preparation

• •The bread can be cubed and dried two days ahead and held in a paper bag at room temperature.
• •The fruit-and-nut sofrito can be cooked one day ahead and refrigerated. Warm it gently before combining with the bread.
• •The poblanos can be roasted, peeled, and sliced one day ahead, stored in the refrigerator covered.
• •The full relleno is best assembled and baked the day of the meal. Once mixed with broth and egg, it should go into the oven within an hour or the bread loses its structure.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 330g)