White Chili

One of my favorite things to do is kill two (or more if I'm really good) birds with one stone. Whether or not this philosophy of action is time-saving or efficient, I like to think it is. A one-mile-or-so round-trip walk through the city from my Philly digs allows me to stroll past the farmer’s market at Headhouse Square, the Italian Market, and the Asian grocery stores along Washington Street to gather groceries – a very efficient grocery route if done in one outing.

I visited all of these places last week in order to gather ingredients for this recipe…but I did not follow my own philosophy of action. I went to the Asian market for seitan, limes, and cilantro, and then returned home. I then went to the farmer’s market for poblano and Anaheim chilis…and came home. Finally, I went to the Italian Market for cannellini beans. Not efficient.

With all of these ingredients back at home, along with kitchen staples, homegrown jalepenos, and home-canned yellow tomato sauce (sauce is orangish), I was ready to tackle the white chili recipe from Cooks Illustrated – a magazine that has NEVER let me down, unlike…cough cough…Bon Appètit.

But white chili doesn’t have tomato sauce in it! Nope. And neither does the recipe in Cook’s Illustrated. A few months ago I sat in the car discussing the best use of yellow tomato sauce with the friend who supplied me with the jar. Yellow tomatoes are less acidic than red tomatoes, and it didn’t seem right to waste yellow tomato sauce on a dish that called for the classic acidic red tomato sauce. The only thing we came up with was white chili. (Any other suggestions?) So, I adapted a white chili recipe in a past copy of the infallible Cook’s Illustrated to include the yellow tomato sauce.

The original recipe calls for chicken and chicken stock, but I subbed seitan, and 2/3 of the chicken stock with the yellow tomato sauce, and the remaining chicken stock with vegetable stock. Obviously, not every one is going to have yellow tomato sauce on hand, so just keep with the stock in the original recipe (3 cups), or blend some fresh yellow tomatoes in a food processor.

I never want regular chili again. Really. I’m tellin’ ya, Cook’s Illustrated does not fail - even with me futzing with the recipe! I'm happy to report that I efficiently killed two bowls in one sitting.

White Chili
Adapted from Cook’s Illustrated
serves 6-8

2 (10-ounce) cans seitan, drained and chopped into 1-inch pieces
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
3 poblano chiles, stemmed, seeded, and cut into large pieces
3 Anaheim chiles, stemmed, seeded, and cut into large pieces
2 medium onions, cut into large pieces (2 cups)
3 medium jalapeno chiles, stemmed, seeded, and minced
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons coriander
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 (15-ounce) cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
2 cups yellow tomato sauce
1 cup vegetable broth
3 tablespoons lime juice
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, minced
4 scallions, sliced thinly

• Heat oil in a large skillet or pot over medium-high heat, and brown seitan (about 5 to 10 minutes), and remove from the skillet.
• In a food processor, pulse 10-12 times (1 second each) half of the poblano chiles, Anaheim chiles, and onions until the consistency of chunky salsa. Transfer to a bowl, and repeat with the remaining poblano chilies, Anaheim chilies, and onions. Combine with the first batch. (Do not wash the food processor.)
• Add the minced jalepenos (more or less depending on heat preference - I went with one), chile-onion mixture, garlic, cumin, coriander, and 1/4 teaspoon salt to the skillet, adding more vegetable oil if necessary. Cover and cook over medium heat for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Transfer 1 cup of the cooked vegetable mixture, 1 cup of beans, and 2 cups of the tomato sauce to the food processor and process until smooth.
• Return the mixture from the food processor back to the skillet with the chile-onion mixture, and add the vegetable broth, browned seitan, rest of the beans, lime juice, and cilantro. Cook over medium heat until thickened slightly, about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
• Serve with scallion garnish.