Chiles en Nogada is one of Mexico’s traditional chili pepper dishes. The peppers are stuffed with a mixture of dried fruit and meat. It is topped with a walnut sauce, pomegranate seeds, and parsley. The colors in this dish mimic those in the Mexican flag and this dish is popularly prepared for Mexican Independence Day.

Directions for Preparing Chiles en Nogada

For the Stuffed Peppers:

1. Heat the vegetable oil in a sauté pan and add the diced chicken
2. Cook the chicken for five (0:05) minutes and then add the onions
3. When the onions become translucent, add the apples, apricots, pear, cranberries, raisins, and garlic
4. Sauté together for about two (0:02) minutes, then add the tomato paste
5. Stir together and cook for two (0:02) minutes
6. Add the wine and cook for about five (0:05) minutes more or until the chicken is tender
7. Sprinkle sugar, salt, and black pepper over the meat and fruits, then stir well
8. Divide the cooked meat and fruit into four portions and stuff each roasted pepper with one-quarter of the mixture.
   Set aside.

For the Chiles en Nogada Sauce:

1. Heat the vegetable oil in a pan and sauté the shallots. After three (0:03) minutes, add the garlic
2. Cook the shallots and garlic for about five (0:05) minutes
3. Add the wine and cook for fifteen (0:15) minutes until almost all of the liquid evaporate
4. Pour in the heavy cream
5. Simmer for another fifteen (0:15) minutes
6. Add the ground nuts, salt, and pepper
7. Stir well and then turn off the heat
8. Pour two tablespoons of sauce over each stuffed pepper
9. Garnish the peppers with parsley and pomegranate seeds.
   Serve and enjoy.

The origin of the current Mexican cuisine is established during the Spanish colonization, being a mixture of the foods of Spain with native indigenous ingredients. Foods that originated in Mexico are corn, pepper vegetables(together with Central and South America), calabazas (together with the Americas), avocados, sweet potato (together with Central and South America), turkey (together with the Americas), and other fruits and spices. Other Indigenous products are many beans.

National Dish of Andalusia