In my opinion, the most sustainable way to incorporate organ meats into our diet and lifestyle is to create meals that we love using these foods. The kinds of meals that our kids will later consider comfort food. The kind that they ask me to make for them on their birthdays. And while I used to scorn hiding organ meats in meals; I now consider them just another dish. Stuffed Poblanos with Extra Goodness is just one more nutrient-dense meal that my family loves.
Comfort Food
I started serving organ meats to my kids when they were young. I learned about these ‘sacred’ foods when my now 13-year-old son was two years old and I had an infant in arms. At the time, I felt like I was late. That the kids had missed so much. That I didn’t know about these foods during pregnancy and was still emphasizing all the plant-based foods I believed were the pinnacle of ‘healthy.’
At that time, feeling so late and feeling like I had missed so much – I couldn’t have imagined that offal would eventually be comfort food in our home. Organs were still bloody and a bit repulsive to my clean plant-leaning sensibilities. But ten years later, these foods are indeed standard fare. Menudo is one our favorite foods, and a popular birthday request. My husband leans towards Deviled Kidneys for his birthday. And these Stuffed Poblanos were another birthday request in the past year. A flavorful ground meat dish with enough complexity for easily adding organs.
My belief is that the most sustainable way to incorporate these foods into our diet is to create meals that our families enjoy. Meals that we come back to again and again because they nourish us in the most profound way. We enjoy the food, the good company, and how we feel the next day. In those early years, I could only have dreamed that my kids would not only be familiar with the sacred foods, but also that they would enjoy and request them.
Stuffed Poblanos
Sometimes it’s hard to see how well it can go. But going well is always an option, especially if we keep experimenting and working to ensure that it will work out. And this recipe is a perfect example of showing up again and again. It’s a recipe that has been adapted so many times that its origin is completely indistinguishable from the dish that we’ve come to know and love in our own home.
We added chicken liver to this dish, but nearly any organ could be slipped into a dish as flavorful as this one. I hope that you enjoy Stuffed Poblanos with Extra Goodness as much as we do!
Stuffed Poblanos with Extra Goodness
Notes
I often make a double batch of this so we have plenty of leftovers. Reheated, the ground meat mixture makes a popular breakfast in our home with an egg on the side.
Ingredients
For the dish
- 12 poblanos, roasted, peeled and seeded
- pomegranate seeds (optional garnish)
- a few extra raisins or pine nuts (optional garnish)
For the meat
- a dollop lard
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1 lb ground pork
- 2 t salt
- 1/2 t allspice
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme (or 1t dried)
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 cinnamon stick
- an 18oz jar diced or pureed tomatoes
- 1/4 pound chopped chicken livers (or other offal)
- an apple, cored and chopped
- 1/4 cup raisins
- 1/4 cup pine nuts
For the sauce
- 1/8 cup (soaked and dehydrated) almonds
- 1/4 cup (soaked and dehydrated) walnuts
- 8oz or 1 stick of butter, room temperature, in 1T slices
- pinch of salt (if using unsalted butter)
Instructions
For the meat
- Add the lard to a heavy-bottomed pot on medium-high heat to coat the bottom of the pan. Add the ground beef and pork meat, along with the salt, allspice, thyme, bay leaf and cinnamon stick. Mix well and break up the ground meat while cooking for 6-8 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low and add jar of tomatoes. Cook for another 20 minutes, stirring often. When nearly done, add chopped chicken livers and apple pieces. Mix well, cooking for another 3-5 minutes. Turn off heat, add final ingredients - the raisins and pine nuts - and let rest.
For the sauce
- In the meantime, prepare the sauce by adding almonds and walnuts to your blender or food processor. Blend well until you have something resembling nut butter. Then add butter - one tablespoon at a time (with optional salt) - and continue blending. Reserve in a jar.
For the dish
- Open the pobanos from one side one at a time and fill with ground meat mixture. Reserve on a platter or casserole dish until all poblanos have been filled. To serve, add a drizzle of sauce over each poblanos and a pomegranate or raisin/pine nut garnish. Enjoy!
I love your recipes! I’ve been a Wapper for a long time but never came across so many delicious ways to prepare offal. Thank you! When are you going to publish a cookbook?
Hi Nancy, Thank you so much for the support and encouragement!! Maybe 2025 will be the year 😉