Pork, Black Bean, & Plantain Enchiladas with Tomatillo Salsa

To borrow from a former sports TV show, these are the BEST DAMN ENCHILADAS, PERIOD. I thought they were interesting when I saw them in my favorite magazine (which Chris marks with Post-its when it arrives every month), Cooking Light, but I had no idea of how good they'd really be.

This is not the simplest or fastest recipe, but I have two shortcut suggestions that will make these a bit easier and more feasible for weeknights: jarred tomatillo salsa and using refried beans rather than hauling out the food processor. You'll probably spend about 45 minutes, hands-on time.

Here's the original recipe in case you want to make your own tomatillo salsa, but again, I don't personally think it's necessary if you have a good ready-made brand.

Step one: Buy a plantain about 10 days before you want to make these. It needs to blacken.

Go on. I'll wait.















Step two: Now, you gather the rest of the ingredients to go with your lovely, soft, blackened plantain.

Pork mixture:
**Hey Texans-- HEB store brand Roasted Salsa Pork Tenderloin is the ideal for these enchiladas!

1 (1-pound) pork tenderloin, trimmed  
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons canola oil

Combine cumin, oregano, 1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper, and salt; rub evenly over pork. Heat a large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Add 2 teaspoons oil to pan, and swirl to coat. Add pork, and cook 5 minutes, browning on all sides. Place pan in oven, and bake at 350° for 20 minutes or until pork is done. Remove pork from pan; let rest 15 minutes. Cut pork into 1/2-inch pieces.


Black bean mixture:

**For a shortcut on step two: Saute the onion & garlic, and then stir in a can of fat-free refried black beans. This will save you from needing the food processor at all, and therefore less clean up.

 1 teaspoon canola oil
2/3 cups chopped onion

1 garlic clove, chopped
1 15 ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained; or 1 15 ounce can of refried, fat free black beans
1/3 cups fat-free, lower-sodium chicken broth

Preheat the oven to 350. Place skillet over medium heat. Add 1 teaspoon canola oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add the 2/3 cup onion; cook for 3 minutes or until tender, stirring frequently. Add the chopped garlic and cook for 30 seconds, stirring constantly. Add the cup of broth, and cook for 1 minute, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Add black beans; cook 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Cool slightly. Place black bean mixture in blender. Pulse 15 times, scraping occasionally until mixture is a thick puree.



Plantain mixture:

2 teaspoons canola oil
1 blackened plantain, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
1 teaspoon brown sugar
Cooking spray

Heat a medium nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the remaining 2 teaspoons oil to pan; swirl to coat. Combine remaining 1/8 teaspoon red pepper, brown sugar, and plantain in a medium bowl, tossing to coat plantain. Add plantain mixture to pan; sauté for 3 minutes or until golden brown, stirring frequently. Cool slightly.


Assembly:

12 (6-inch) corn tortillas
1 jar of good quality tomatillo (green) salsa
1 1/2 cups (or 6 ounces) shredded pepper jack cheese

Combine pork and plantain mixture in a medium bowl. Spread 1/3 cup tomatillo mixture in the bottom of a 13 x 9–inch glass or ceramic baking dish coated with cooking spray. Heat tortillas briefly in microwave to make them pliable.

In each tortilla, spread about 1 1/2 tablespoons black bean puree down the center, and add about 2 tablespoons pork/plantain mixture and 1 tablespoon cheese; roll up. Place seam-side down in baking dish. Pour remaining tomatillo mixture over filled tortillas and sprinkle with remaining cheese.

Bake at 350° for 25 minutes or until cheese melts and filling is thoroughly heated.

Top with lots of sour cream and jalapenos, and enjoy!