Mexican smoked chile marinade

1 Servings

Ingredients

Quantity Ingredient
1 cup Fresh orange juice
¼ cup Fresh lime juice
5 Canned chipotle chilies; minced plus
1 tablespoon Chipotle juice (see note)
4 Cloves garlic; minced (4 tsp)
1 teaspoon Freshly grated orange zest
2 teaspoons Dried oregano
1 teaspoon Cumin seeds
2 tablespoons Wine vinegar
½ teaspoon Freshly ground pepper
½ teaspoon Salt

Directions

Chipotles (smoked jalapeño peppers) add character to this fiery seasoning which is often used with pork, but works equally well with other meats, poultry, and seafood.

Combine the orange juice and lime juice in a saucepan and boil until only ½ cup liquid remains. Place this and the remaining ingredients in a blender and purée to a smooth paste.

Spread this paste on the food to be marinated. Marinate seafood for 2 hours, poultry for 4 hours, and meat overnight, turning once or twice.

Marinated food may be sautéed on the stove top, broiled on a charcoal grille, or roasted or broiled in the oven.

Makes 1 cup of marinade, enough for 1½ to 2 pounds of seafood, poultry or meat.

Note: Chipotles have a unique smokey flavor and are frequently sold canned in tomato paste, but you may also find them dried. If you use dried chipotle chilies for this recipe, soften them in hot water for a few minutes, drain slightly, and add 2 Tbsp of tomato paste.

source: High Flavor Low-Fat Cooking by Steven Raichlen, 1992.

I've used this to marinate cut up pieces of boneless chick breast, then stir-fried them in a wok and put them in small freezer bags for use in other recipes. (These chipotle chicken pieces even make a wild addition to pizza topping.)

I have no idea how this marinade would work on portabellas, but it might give you some place to start experimenting.

Posted to CHILE-HEADS DIGEST V4 #169 by The Old Bear <oldbear@...> on Oct 23, 1997

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