Little Chile Renellos

I am not too sure how these originated or where, but what I do know is that they are delicious. There are a few different versions of these you can find in New Mexico, some are savory, and some are sweet, some contain meat and others are just chile and cheese. The renellos I am going to talk about today consist of ground beef, chile and cheese.

What you need:

Ground Beef (any type of meat will work)
Green chile, chopped and seasoned (salt, and garlic)
Cheese
Onions, finely chopped
Eggs
Flour
Baking Powder
Pepper, to taste
Oil
Evaporated milk 4 cans (12 oz)

How you make them:

Sautee onions in frying pan until they start to become clear
Cook ground beef, season with salt, pepper, garlic (remember to strain grease from pan & meat)
In a food chopper blend cooked ground beef until finely ground (three pulses of a chopper should be plenty)
In a large bowl combine ground beef, onions, chile and cheese - mix until combined
Add 1 cup of flour to meat mixture, you want the mixture to start sticking together, but you don’t want to change the color of the meat
In a shallow pan add 3 eggs, 4 cans of evaporated milk, baking powder, garlic powder and pepper (mix well, add flour until you get a thick corndog batter consistency)
Begin to make small balls with your meat mixture (keep in mind you will be dipping them in batter so don’t make them to big)
Once you have 5 or 6 meat balls test your oil, drop a little batter into the oil to ensure the temperature is right for frying
Batter your meatballs and throw them in the fryer, leave on one side for about 2-3 minutes and then turn. Once they are golden brown remove from oil and let dry on paper towels to catch excess grease
Repeat the process until you have used up all your meat

These are best served warm, but plenty eat right out of the fridge. You can keep them in your fridge for a week, in the freezer they will last up to a year.

Tips:

I cook mine outside with an electric skilled to keep my house from smelling like grease