Meat & veggies, meat & veggies, go together like a horse & carriage

In another life, dropping in at a downtown Pik Nik Foods in San Antonio was almost a daily routine.

These hole-in-the-wall convenience stores have kitchens and the cook is always keeping watch over a series of deep, heated serving trays with all kinds of ingredients for tacos to order. One of the standard items is 'pollo con calabasa,' or chicken with squash.

One of the sloppier selections, pollo con calabasa has some soupy water that leaks out of the aluminum foil and makes the brown paper bag sag. But I can live with that!

Mexican food frequently involves mixing vegetables with a meat, or meats with a vegetable. I like to pair a couple of meats, instead of just using one. It makes for a more nuanced flavor.

This dish takes one chayote squash, one poblano pepper and a sliver of cabbage (about 16th section of a head). Chop, chop, chop it all! And throw it in an open pot. Add about a half cup of water, two Knorr Cilantro Mini Cubes for seasoning and some pepper.

Bring this to a boil, stir occasionally and reduce the water until there is barely any left, but don't let it burn.

In a separate pan, drop in your choice of chopped meat sausages (I used two links of Kiolbassa Jalapeño Beef Smoked Sausage from San Antonio), and one link of Mexican chorizo (I used Supremo Pork Chorizo Links from Chicago).

Kiolbassa sausage:

Mash the chorizo and break it up. Stir the jalapeño-infused beef sausage. Once this is all running its grease, toss in the veggies and stir some more. This is a hot dish, spicier than what I usually suggest. If that's a problem for you, replace the poblano with a red or yellow bell pepper.

You should end up with this. The chayote squash looks a little like potato wedges in a photograph, but it tastes like squash. One chorizo link doesn't make much meat for two, and this recipe makes two meals, but that's not the intent. The beef sausage links are what fill you up, and the chorizo adds to the flavor.

I had the first meal with four grilled white corn tortillas. Tortillas come out of the bag semi-cooked. They have too much moisture. I grill them on a comal with a little butter into they have a slight leathery texture to them. That makes them perfect vessels for holding the filling, and they're still soft.

I put the rest in the fridge and had it the following day with an avocado. Costeno cheese was sprinkled lightly on both meals.


Here's the second serving:

Sausages with veggies and avocado

Buen provecho!