August Celebrates Chiles en Nogada, a celebrated dish in Mexico!

Chiles en Nogada is a celebrated dish especially in Puebla but can be found in many other states, like Guanajuato.  They are roasted poblano chiles stuffed with picadillo (a mixture of minced meat, mostly beef and pork, fruits and spices) bathed in nogada, a walnut cream sauce and garnished with pomegranate seeds and parsley.  It is a festive dish typically served in the month of September to celebrate Independence Day (September 15 - 16) because the colors of the dish are said to resemble the colors of the Mexican flag, green, white and red.   But it is in August that the pomegranate trees are prolific!  And how ironic that this dish is about independence from Spain and many of the ingredients came from the old world.

Above is the massive kitchen with its walls lined with Talavera tiles at the Ex-Convento de Santa Rosa in Puebla.

According to Puebla legend, and there are many, it was the Augustine nuns from the Convento de Santa Rosa who were called upon to prepare a special feast for General Agustin de Iturbide who was the commander in charge of the Mexican War of Independence when victory was achieved.  He later became Mexico's first emperor.   After signing the treaty that gave Mexico its independence, he stopped in Puebla on his way to Mexico City from Veracruz for a celebratory dinner in his honor.  

In Spanish, the word for Pomegranate is Granada.  Love the sound of that. 

If in San Miguel de Allende this month or next, visit Gombos Restaurant.  They make one of the best Chiles en Nogada in town!