Green Chile Mac & Cheese

INGREDIENTS

ROASTED SALSA VERDE:

• 1 lb tomatillos, peeled and washed

• 1 poblano pepper, cut in half and seeded

• 1 serrano pepper, stemmed

• ¼ large white onion

• 3 garlic cloves

• Canola oil

• Juice of 1 lime

• Salt to taste

GREEN CHILE MAC & CHEESE:

• 1 lb spiral or elbow macaroni

• Salt

• 1 stick of butter (8 TBS)

• ½ cup flour

• 2 cups half and half

• 2 cups whole milk

• 8 oz Monterrey Jack cheese

• 8 oz Gruyère cheese

• 8 oz American cheese

• ½ cup chopped green chilies (canned or fresh)

• 2-3 cups shredded chicken (optional)

• 1 tsp ground mustard

• 1 tsp cumin

• 2 cups roasted salsa verde

• Green onions, chopped (for topping)

• Cilantro, chopped (for topping)

GO FOR IT

ROASTED SALSA VERDE:

1. Sprinkle tomatillos, poblano pepper (skin side up), serrano pepper (skin side up), white onion, and garlic with canola oil and then broil for 10 minutes before turning everything but the peppers and broiling for additional 5 to 10 minutes (or until everything is nicely charred)

2. Peel skin off poblanos and then place roasted vegetables into a food processor or blender along with lime juice and salt, then blend together until smooth

3. Taste and add salt or more lime if needed

GREEN CHILE MAC & CHEESE:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F while you bring a salted pot of water to a boil for the macaroni (boil macaroni to package specifications when water reaches boiling, then drain and set aside as you work on the following steps)

2. As oven and water heat up, heat up butter over medium heat in a large sauce pan or dutch oven until melted

3. Once melted, add flour and whisk together until it appears as wet sand, then slowing add in half and half and milk, whisking over medium heat until the mixture thickens (you will easily be able to notice when this happen, usually no more than 5 minutes)

4. Add in cheese and stir until all melted together (save some cheese to top everything before placing in oven later)

5. Add in chilies, chicken, ground mustard, cumin, salsa verde and stir to combine

6. If using a dutch oven, you can now add macaroni directly into the pot and combine. If not, place macaroni in a large baking pan and pour cheese mixture over macaroni and stir to combine

7. Place Mac & Cheese into the oven and bake until cheese on top is melted and slightly charred

8. Serve in bowls, topping with green onions, cilantro, and more green chilies if desired

NOTES:

I’ve given you a recipe for salsa verde here but feel free to use some store bought stuff if you want if there’s one you really like. However, I would suggest adding only 1 cup at first, then tasting and seeing if you want more. Kenji’s recipe called for just 1 cup but with all the other ingredients I couldn’t taste the salsa as strongly as I wanted so I added another cup for a taste that I found to be intoxicating. It’s up to you how much you want, though.

I used a cheap store bought rotisserie chicken and shredded up the meat for this recipe. Again, Kenji called for 2 cups but I wanted more chicken and added a 3rd cup. I would again suggest you start out small and taste before adding more. You can always add more. You can’t take anything out once it’s in, though. You could also leave the chicken out altogether for a vegetarian version of this recipe.

To have some diced green chilies, I roasted up a whole poblano pepper, peeled the skin, then diced it all up. Half a cup here was just about 1 whole pepper. I also roasted 2 peppers and used the extra one to add as a topping before serving. Like I said, canned peppers will work well too if you don’t want to go through the roasting process.

The biggest change I made was in the cheese sauce. Kenji used evaporated milk and eggs with no flour to form his base. However, I wanted to make a proper rue for my base and went in that direction. It’s a bit more work but I like the extra creaminess I get out of this method. I also threw mine into the oven to bake a bit because I like a little burnt cheese on top but this can be skipped if not wanted.