Debbie's Chili Verde

     Chili Verde can be such an intense project! I remember when I made it a few years ago, and I went ALL OUT, I tried to find the most authentic recipe I could! I bought the tomatillos and roasted, peeled, and sliced every single one of those sticky monsters. I dredged the meat, seared it, and cooked it all good! It took forever to do, which normally I don't really care about, except for the fact that for some reason I decided to it would be no problem at all to start this great endeavor late at night. I don't know what I was thinking... clearly, it was a sign that I was still in college, cause it's only been a few years, and I already have a hard time staying up past 10pm.

     Now, I have some good friends that make some great Chili Verde, course they always used to prepare it at home and then bring it over, so I never actually got to see them prepare it. It took a LOT of begging and pleading to get the list of spices that they use in their Chili Verde in order to make mine... but finally Mike caved!

     Well, now I have the pleasure of enjoying lunch with my boss some days, and that sometimes includes eating the scrumptious food his wife makes. A few weeks ago, Grant had an appointment Thursday night, and I had a lot of work to get done, so I decided to stay at work late. At 7 my boss and his wife were ready to eat and forced to me eat with them... which wasn't really that hard to do, anyone who offers me food is not going to be denied! And what a feast she made, salad, chicken fajitas with all the toppings, AND chili verde! It was all so good, I asked for the recipe, and I could NOT believe my ears as I heard that this chili verde only had 4 ingredients! I made it last weekend to see if I could achieve the tastiness she had. Of course I spruced things up a bit by adding some extra ingredients, but with only 4 ingredients, it was still outstanding for an easy chili verde! So, without further ado, I will share this recipe with you!

Ingredients
-4 thick lean Pork Tenderloins (the ones I used were very thin, and didn't make enough)
-1 28oz can Las Palmas Green Chile Enchilada Sauce (the yellow can)
-1 tbsp crushed Garlic
-1 tsp Cumin

*1/2 c. Chicken Broth (optional, I was afraid I wouldn't have enough sauce, but I had A LOT, so this step is unnecessary)
*1 tsp powdered Coriander (which is Chinese parsley, or Cilantro, it has a different taste from the seed, with a citrus note. This is currently my favorite seasoning to use!)
*Salt and pepper (Alert: do NOT make the mistake I did by adding salt. While I only added 1 tsp, it was WAY too much. Pork is already salty, I don't know what I was thinking)
*Dash of Paprika and Cayenne

While Debbie used tortillas, I prefer my Chili Verde with white rice. I made extra when I made the Island Teriyaki Chicken Stir-fry, so I just heated that up.

The best part about this recipe: Crock Pot!

My Crock Pot is a scorcher... even on low. So while Debbie had her pork tenderloin cooking all day on low, I cooked mine for 4 hours on low instead.

Directions
     Pour the enchilada sauce, garlic, and desired seasonings in the Crock Pot. I probably wouldn't use the Chicken Broth again, simply b/c I had enough sauce and didn't to add extra liquid, but if you want. Mix the sauce together and add the tenderloins. Set your Crock for low for 8 hours, depending upon the heat of your pot.
     The pork was very tender, so use a large serving spoon to transfer the chops  from the Crock to a large bowl and shred the pork. (I retardedly used tongs and just smooshed the pork up before I could get it to the bowl). I used a serving fork to just smoosh the pork and it shredded perfectly. Add the desired amount of sauce to the bowl and mix together. Pour over rice, done!

So easy! So good! And for a dish with barely any ingredients and barely any time invested, it still manages to taste like Chili Verde.



Verdict: 4/5

Grant said it was too salty... which I agree. Do NOT add salt to this dish. I barely added any, and it was too late. Let people add salt on their own. Grant and I both like salt a lot, and it was overwhelming. The vegetables I cooked with this dish were super good. I forgot to start them when I was ready to serve the dish, so I quickly sliced the zucchini very thinly, and added them to a hot skillet with a tbsp of olive oil. I added an 8oz container of sliced mushrooms. I added a dash of Lemon Pepper, Garlic Powder, and salt and put the lid on to help them cook fast. I don't like my veggies to be mushy, so they were done cooking in about 10 minutes and dinner was served!