Swap Shop: Guac takes a backseat to avocado sauce
BY SANDY THORN CLARK August 23, 2011 11:48AM
Avocado Sauce is great with grilled meats, Thanksgiving turkey or sandwiches. (Courtesy "Truly Mexican" by Roberto Santibanez)
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Updated: May 9, 2012 9:43AM
Roberto Santibanez, author of Truly Mexican (Wiley, $35), an easy-to-follow cookbook featuring 140 authentic Mexican recipes, is helping today with recipes for Avocado Sauce, Pico de Gallo and Spicy Fresh Pineapple Salsa, requested by L.V. of Bedford Park. And regular Swap Shop contributor Cindy Panayotovich of Chicago shares her mother's recipe for Fried Chicken, requested by P.H. of Chicago.
Like L.V., Santibanez recalls the pastel-green avocado sauce on turkey leftovers after holiday dinners, saying the sauce's richness and silkiness turn the mild meat into something fantastic. The chef also recommends the sauce for "just about any sandwich you can think of, rotisserie chicken, pork loin and grilled steak."
Because the fat and water content of avocados varies, the Mexico City native says you might need to add a little more milk or water to achieve a thick sauce. The goal? To achieve a sauce "that will creep slowly forward when you tip the blender."
More intricate Santibanez recipes are available on his website, robertosantibanez.com.
As for her Fried Chicken, Panayotovich writes, "My mother poured about a ½ inch of Crisco oil into a cast-iron skillet. Her chicken pieces were simply seasoned with salt and pepper and then coated in flour.
"When added to the hot oil [do not crowd pieces], fry chicken on one side 10 to 12 minutes. Important: Leave the chicken alone! Only turn it over once, and fry for additional 10 minutes. Drain on paper towels.
"On occasion, I marinate the chicken in buttermilk for 1 or 2 hours before frying - let excess milk drip off before adding salt and pepper and rolling chicken pieces in flour."
Requests
I haven't been successful trying to make a not-too-sweet blueberry sauce for sundaes. Any recipes?
D.H., Chicago
Please help with a recipe for thick corn chowder.
C.E., Mount Prospect
I'm looking for a recipe for baked apples with raisins and a gooey sauce.
S.P., Chicago
Send recipes and requests to: Swap Shop, Chicago Sun-Times, 350 N. Orleans St., 9th Floor, Chicago 60654 or by e-mail, swapshop@suntimes.com.
All mail must include a daytime telephone number. Sorry, requests can't be answered personally.
