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Mexican
t he

Slow Cooker
Recipes for Mole, Enchil adas,
Carnitas, chile verde pork,
and More favorites

Debor ah Schneider
Photography by Maren Caruso

Ten Speed Press

Berkeley

C ontent s

t h a nk s

vi

In t r o d u c t i o n

U s in g t he S l o w C o o k e r

Soups 11
Mains and Guisados 35
Street Food Favorites 57
Basics, Rice, Beans, and Other Sides 93
Desserts 117
In g r e d ie n t s
Ind e x

13 4

12 9

Sopa de Elote y Calabaza

Fresh Corn and Zucchini Soup u Serves 4 to 6

This easy soup tastes of the very essence of corn. Try to find sweet yellow corn at your market. It contains more starch than white corn, which naturally thickens the soup, and the long simmering in the slow
cooker brings out the corns natural sweetness. Simmering the scraped cobs with the soup gives it even
more flavor, while a final swirl of thick Mexican crema gives it a touch of buttery decadence.
4 ears fresh sweet yellow corn
3 tablespoons salted butter
1 white onion, finely diced
1 teaspoon whole coriander seeds, crushed
2 small zucchini or green calabaza squash,
finely diced (about 2 cups)
6 cups water
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon shredded fresh epazote leaves
To serve
1/ 3 cup heavy cream or Mexican crema

Remove and discard the husks and silk from the

corn and cut the kernels from each cob. You should
have about 3 cups of kernels. Reserve the cobs.
In a 10-inch skillet, melt the butter over
medium-low heat. Add the onion, corn kernels,
and coriander. Cover and cook slowly, stirring

28

occasionally, until the vegetables are softened but

not brown, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a 5-quart
slow cooker.
Add the corncobs, zucchini, water, and salt
to the slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for
6 hours.
Just before serving, remove and discard the
corncobs and stir in the epazote. Taste and adjust
the seasoning. Ladle the hot soup into bowls and
top each with a spoonful of crema.
Variations
Substitute thinly sliced green onion tops or cilantro
for the epazote.
Sprinkle each serving with ground guajillo or
New Mexico chile.

The Me xican Slow Cooker

Pollo en Salsa
Chicken in Tomato-Jal apeo Salsa u Serves 6

This dish is traditionally made with a whole chicken, which is cut into pieces and cooked slowly until
tender. This results in a wonderful flavor, of course, but you can substitute boneless chicken if you prefer,
which will also shorten the cooking time. The chicken finishes by simmering in a fresh tomato sauce, made
medium-spicy with jalapeos. Turn up the heat by using picante serrano chiles, or substitute poblano or
Anaheim chiles for great flavor but little or no heat. Serve with warm tortillas, beans and rice, or roasted
potatoes to mop up all that wonderful sauce. Any leftover chicken, shredded in the sauce, makes an excellent filling for tacos, enchiladas, or tamales.
1 tablespoon fresh lard or vegetable oil
4 pounds chicken pieces (breasts, thighs,
or a combination)
2 cups water
2 teaspoons kosher salt
8 large Roma tomatoes (about 2 pounds total)
4 large jalapeo chiles, stemmed and seeded
1/ 2 white onion, coarsely chopped
4 large cloves garlic
To serve
Chopped fresh cilantro

In a large, heavy skillet, heat the lard over

medium-high heat. Add the chicken pieces and
cook, turning occasionally, until golden on all
sides. In a 5- or 6-quart slow cooker, combine the
chicken, water, and salt. Cover and cook on low
for 4 hours, until the chicken is just tender.
Thirty minutes before the chicken is finished,
combine the tomatoes, jalapeos, onion, and
garlic in a 4-quart saucepan. Cover with water and
bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to
medium and simmer until the jalapeos are barely
tender, about 5 minutes. Drain well, transfer to a
blender, and puree until smooth.

38

Drain the chicken pieces, saving the broth

for another use. Return the chicken to the slow
cooker and pour the salsa over the chicken. Cover
and cook for another 2 hours on low (or 1 hour on
high), or until the chicken is tender but not falling
apart and the salsa has thickened.
To serve, sprinkle the cilantro over the hot
chicken.
Variations
For a quick and easy variation on this recipe,
puree the uncooked tomatoes and other vegetables with 1 cup water or chicken broth and
1 teaspoon salt. Pour over the chicken pieces in
the slow cooker and cook on low for 6 hours.
If you want to make this recipe ahead, cook and
drain the chicken as directed and then refrigerate
the chicken until needed. Thirty minutes before
serving, make the salsa and pour it into a large
skillet. Add the cooked chicken, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes, or until the chicken is heated
through and the sauce has thickened slightly.

The Me xican Slow Cooker

Elotes
Simmered Fresh Corn with Epazote, Chiles, Butter, and Lime u Serves 4

Mexican farmers cultivate more than three hundred distinct varieties of corn, so its no surprise that corn
forms an integral part of the everyday Mexican diet. Fresh corn is a popular street treat, served from pushcarts that are often just cauldrons of boiling water on wheels. The earthy-sweet flavor of the corn shines
through the messy, delicious combination of butter, lime, salty cheese, creamy mayonnaise, and a sprinkle
of mild chiles.
4 ears fresh corn
2 tablespoons salted butter
1 tablespoon kosher salt
3 sprigs fresh epazote
To serve
Melted salted butter
Mild ground chiles, such as guajillo or
ancho chile
Crumbled cotija cheese
Lime wedges
Mayonnaise

Shuck the corn and cut each cob into 3 pieces or

leave whole. Combine the corn, water, butter, salt,
and epazote in a 5-quart slow cooker. Cover and
cook on low for 2 1/2 to 3 hours, stirring once. The
corn may be held on warm for up to 2 hours more.
To serve, drain the corn thoroughly. Pile the corn
on a warm platter and drizzle with the butter.
Sprinkle with a little of the ground chiles and
cotija cheese. Serve with limes and and a small
bowl of mayonnaise on the side.

Basics, Rice, Beans, and Other Sides

113

Pan y Chocolate
Mexican Chocol ate Bread Pudding with Bananas u Serves 6 to 8

This addictive bread pudding is a favorite at my SOL Cocina restaurants. The moist, cake-like pudding is
studded with bananas that have been sauted in brown sugar, and it is infused with the warm flavors of
cinnamon, allspice, and cardamom, which flavor the Ibarra Mexican chocolate. Cracking the lid toward the
end of the cooking time allows the pudding to firm up. You probably wont have leftovers, but if you do, be
sure to refrigerate them; its just as good cold.
3 tablespoons vegetable shortening
3 cups milk
11/ 2 cups granulated sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/ 2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 disk Ibarra Mexican chocolate, broken
into pieces
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
4 large eggs, beaten
2 tablespoons salted butter
2 ripe but firm bananas, peeled and diced
2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
8 cups cubed firm white bread
To serve
Vanilla gelato
Fresh strawberries

Using half of the shortening, grease the bottom,

corners, and halfway up the sides of the slow
cooker insert. Line the insert with an 18-inch
piece of aluminum foil, smoothing it carefully into
the corners and against the sides. Grease the foil
with the remaining shortening.
In a 2-quart saucepan over low heat, heat the
milk, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt until the
milk is steaming, but do not allow it to boil. Turn
off the heat and stir in the Ibarra chocolate and
11/2 cups of the chocolate chips. Stir with a whisk

until the chocolate has melted. Let cool to lukewarm, then whisk in the beaten eggs.
While the milk cools, melt the butter in
a 10-inch skillet over medium heat. Add the
bananas and brown sugar and saut for several
minutes, until the bananas are glazed.
Place the bread in a large mixing bowl. Add
the chocolate mixture, the sauted bananas, and
the remaining 1/2 cup chocolate chips. Stir well.
Pour the bread pudding into the cooker, cover,
and cook on low 4 to 4 1/2 hours, or until puffed
and firm. For the last 30 minutes, open the lid a
small crack to let excess steam escape. Uncover
and let cool in the insert for 30 minutes. Serve
from the cooker, or unmold onto a plate: Run a
rubber spatula around the edges to loosen. Grasp
the ends of the foil and lift out of the insert. Turn
upside down, peel off the foil, and turn right side
up onto a serving plate. Serve warm or cold, with
a scoop of gelato on top and the strawberries
alongside.
Variation
If you have access to a Mexican panadera, you
can make this dessert with churros instead of
bread. Reduce the sugar to 1/ 2 cup and eliminate
the cinnamon.

Desser ts

123

Copyright 2012 by Deborah Schneider

Photographs copyright 2012 by Maren Caruso
All rights reserved.
Published in the United States by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group,
a division of Random House, Inc., New York.
www.crownpublishing.com
www.tenspeed.com
Ten Speed Press and the Ten Speed Press colophon are registered trademarks of Random House, Inc.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Schneider, Deborah.
The Mexican slow cooker / Deborah Schneider ; photography by Maren Caruso. 1st ed.
p. cm.
Includes index.
Summary: "Packed with authentic south-of-the-border recipes that require minimal active
cooking time, The Mexican Slow Cooker presents more than 65 recipes for classic and innovative dishes"
Provided by publisher.
1. Electric cooking, Slow. 2. Cooking, Mexican. 3. Cookbooks. I. Title.
TX827.S353 2013
641.5'884dc23
2012008978
ISBN 978-1-60774-316-3
eISBN 978-1-60774-317-0
Printed in China
Design by Chloe Rawlins
Food styling by Kim Kissling
Prop styling by Ethel Brennan
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
First Edition

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