From my Grandma’s Kitchen ... “Fideos Secos”

Serves  4

 

This recipe reminds me so much of my abuela, my grandma. The way she taught me how to cook, you know. No specific quantities, no times or measurements; for her the way to cook was to understand how ingredients behave, and to "read" them.

Fideos secos, or "dry noodles" is a great combination of European and Mexican cooking. It’s a really homely recipe; nothing fancy, but perfect comfort food for a broken heart or a 'bout of the flu.

This dish can also be cooked as a vegetarian meal, simply replace the chicken broth for vegetable broth.... um, and obviously, remove the chicken too.

What you will need:

Chicken breasts                                                   4
Carrot                                                                1
Fresh cilantro (coriander)                                     1 handful
Thyme                                                                1 handful
Sea salt                                                               around a dessert spoon
Potato                                                                1
Bay leaf                                                              1
Black pepper                                                       4 kernels
Chillies                                                               2 fresh, or a tea spoon of chilli paste
Onion                                                                 ½, cut into  2 pieces
Garlic                                                                 2 cloves
Tomatoes                                                            4-5
Pasta Capelli d'angelo,
Or the thinnest pasta you can find                         ½ a packet

The other night I did this for my husband -it's one of his all-time favourites- but we didn't have any angel pasta, so I just used spaghetti. It worked fine, but I find the thinner pasta holds the flavour much better, and gives the meal its comforting texture.

Sour Cream                                                        4 tablespoons
Cheese (Tussers, Gouda or Cheddar)                     a handful, grated.
Pecorino Romano cheese                                     about a quarter of the milder cheese
Avo                                                                    1, cut into rounds.

Boil the chicken in water with the carrot, one of the pieces of onion, coriander, thyme, salt, potato, bay leaf and black pepper. Once the chicken is cooked through, remove the breasts and let them cool down before shredding the meat. I find your fingers work best, but raking a fork across the grain of the meat works well too, especially if you're in a hurry and can't wait fir the chicken to cool. Sieve the broth.

In a pan or baking tray, blacken the tomatoes, the other piece of onion, fresh chillies and garlic. The tomatoes will start to dance and sizzle. Remember to turn the ingredients over once a side is partially blackened. Don't blacken the chillies if you're using the paste, just add it to the blender. When you blacken chillies, we call it "torear" or bullfighting them. Bullfighting chillies improves the flavour, but also makes them a lot hotter! Once the ingredients are blackened, throw them in a blender with some salt, coriander and a squirt of water.

Break the pasta up and fry it with about a tablespoon of olive oil until it is a little bit golden, (and here I can still hear grandma, "be careful not to burn it, don’t stop moving it... you will know it’s ready when the pasta sounds like sand"). Add the blended mix (grandma again, “wait until the mix has changed colour from light red to bright orange... and when you push the pasta to the side you see very little liquid and the bottom of the pan”). Add 2 cups of the chicken broth, stir in the shredded chicken, and let it cook further.

Once it’s cooked (once there is very little liquid at the bottom of the pan) add some dollops of sour cream and cheese to the top, and grill it in the oven until it’s golden. Decorate with the rounds of avo and some coriander; serve immediately.

¡Buen provecho!

LOLA