Calling Kevin K. - Ancho Chipotle Sundried Tomato w/Goat Cheese Chicken


 
LarryR

LarryR

TVWBB Diamond Member
Kevin and or others, I had this dish at a restaurant called Saltgrass on the San Antonio River Walk. One of the best chicken dishes I've ever had. The skinless chicken breast was grilled, platted, sauced and then topped sparingly with goat cheese. It was awesome! Any thoughts on how to recreate this sauce? I know I'm not giving you much to work with here but I was hoping you could point me in the right direction.
 
Wow. No, not much to go on. I can copme up with something for you but the likelihood of it being the same is pretty remote. Still, it might give you something to work with and you can play with it.

If you want to go that route, let me know: texture; overall flavor profile; any specific flavors that stood out - and anything else you can think of.
 
Saltgrass is a chain here in Texas.

One is not too far away. I'll try to stop by and check out the menu and see if I can get more info.
 
Travis, good idea.

Larry, try looking up the menu online and see what the discription says. That should give some more info on how to recreate it. I took a look and did not see a dish like you mentioned.
 
Kevin K., yea I know, not much to work with, I'll do the best I can to describe it. Not overly spicy, med heat, not much chipotle if I had to guess. ****, wish I could describe the flavor, should have written all this down after I dined their back in April, maybe a little sweetness in it too if I remember, honey?

Consistency was similar to a bordelaise, not thin but not thick.

About a tablespoon of crumbled goat cheese on top after it was sauced. It's not much Kevin, I know.

KevinJ, unfortunately it's not on their on-line menu, I had to call them to find out the name of it.
 
Okay. I'm thinking about this. I'm on the road so cooking in my head only. I'll have something for you later tonight or tomorrow. (Juggling a few other things as I type.) I pretty much have the ingredients and flow down but want to play with it a bit longer. Soon.
 
I have only 'cooked' this in my head. Adjustments might be needed. Again, I have no idea what the sauce you had consisted of but this should at least give you a starting point. Criticize at will and I can help you figure out any problems or adjustments.

3 dried ancho chiles

1 onion, half of it minced, half of it diced

1 tablespoon rendered bacon fat (drippings); strained

1 small tomato, peeled, seeded and chopped

1/2 canned chipotle chile in adobo

3/4 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained and finely chopped, oil reserved

2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed

1/4 teaspoon dried rubbed sage

pinch cumin

pinch cinnamon

2 cups low-salt chicken stock, or 1 can of same, plus another cup of so, if needed

salt

white pepper

couple pinches sugar

honey

apple cider vinegar


Soak ancho peppers in very hot water for 25 minutes, plate-weighted to keep them submerged; drain well; remove stems and seeds; chop.

Heat a medium skillet on medium-high heat. Add the bacon fat. Sauté chopped chiles, the chipotle and the diced half of the onion in the pan until tender, about 7-8 minutes. Add the chopped tomato and cook a couple minutes longer till softened. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly. Purée this mixture, adding a little of the stock as you go - enough to help the purée occur - till very smooth. Force through a strainer into a bowl; discard solids in the strainer; reserve.

Wipe out the pan and reheat it. Add a tablespoon of the reserve oil from the sun-dried tomatoes. Add the minced half of the onion and cook 2 minutes. Add the sun-dried tomatoes and cook 4 minutes more. Add a splash of the stock (maybe a couple tablespoons), the sage, cinnamon, cumin, and a little white pepper, and cook till the stock has reduced to nothing and the dried tomatoes are quite tender. Add the garlic and cook till very fragrant, stirring, about 45 seconds.

Add the reserved ancho purée to the pan and bring to a strong simmer. Reduce the heat to low and simmer gently for several minutes, 7 or so anyway. If the sauce over-reduces add a little more stock to restore consistency. Add the couple pinches of sugar and stir well allowing to dissolve completely. Taste and adjust salt. Adjust pepper.

Remove the sauce from the heat and add a little honey, a teaspoon at a time, till just slightly flavored. Reserve, keeping warm, covered, till service.
 
Thanks Kevin! SO is out of town next weekend so I'll have a chance to play in the kitchen. I'll let you know how it goes.
 
Kevin, I'm going to run to the Mexican market and give this a shot either today or tomorrow depending on how my projects go. A couple of questions, 1) Am I using any of the Adobo from the can of chipotles or just what's on the chili when I remove it from the can? 2) Approximately how much sauce do you think this will make and how long do you think the sauce will hold in a refrigerator for? I'm only cooking for myself this weekend so I'm going to have some leftover. Thanks again for your help!
 
Depending on how much you might thin it (e.g., of you use additional stock you might add) or thicken it (through reduction), you should have 3.25 to 4.25 cops. It will keep a week easily in the fridge, but a sauce of this type freezes well and will keep indefinitely.

The chipotle quantity is 1/2 of a canned pepper (not 1/2 can - just to be clear). Allow it to drain back into the can but whatever is clinging to it don't worry about. Have the sauce available should you want to add more to taste. (For storage, purée the canned peppers with the adobo then pack in a small container or Ziploc and freeze. For use, scrape off what you need by using a spoon (thaw a few minutes first, if needed); storage in the freezer is indefinite.)

The texture of my version will not be like chimichurri, though it will have some texture. Whether it has the flavor you're seeking I have no idea, but it should give you a jump-off point.

Let me know how it goes.
 
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