4ouncesNew Mexican, colorado or guajillo peppers,destemmed and seeded
1/2white onion, quartered
3clovesgarlic, unpeeled
2chipotles in adobo
1teaspoonground cumin
1teaspoonMexican oregano
4tablespoonstomato paste
salt,smoked salt if you have it
3cupschicken broth
FILLING
2tablespoonslard or olive oil
1white onion, chopped
2poundsground venison
2clovesgarlic,minced
1teaspoonMexican oregano
1/2poundqueso fresco,crumbled (optional)
TO FINISH
1/2poundshredded cheese,see above for options
18 to 20corn tortillas
Instructions
SAUCE
To make the sauce, boil the seeded and destemmed ancho and guajillo chiles for a few minutes, then turn off the heat and let them soak. Heat a cast iron pan or comal on medium-high heat and lay down the pieces of onion and garlic. You want to blacken the onion on both cut sides, and get some char on the garlic peel. This process takes about 8 to 10 minutes. Remove the onion and garlic to a cutting board. Peel the garlic.
Put the garlic and soaked chiles into a blender. Roughly chop the onion and add that, too. Add all the remaining sauce ingredients, including about 1 teaspoon of the salt. Puree, adding chicken broth as needed, to make a pourable sauce. In some cases, you'll need to add some water, too. Taste and add salt if needed.
OPTIONAL STEP: I always do this, because it results in a smoother sauce that removes bits of seed and skin, which are undigestible. Push the sauce through a fine strainer with a rubber spatula into a bowl. Set aside.
FILLING
To make the filling, heat the lard or oil in a large pan over high heat. Add the chopped onion and the venison and brown well. This takes about 8 minutes or so, and stir the meat occasionally. When it's mostly browned, add the garlic and oregano and cook a minute or two more. Turn off the heat.
Mix in a ladle or two of the sauce, using it and a wooden spoon to scrape off any browned bits stuck to the pan. Once this cools, add the queso fresco and mix well.
TO FINISH
Preheat oven to 350°F. Pour some oil in a frying pan, enough to float tortillas, and heat the pan over medium-high heat. Get paper towels or a kitchen towel ready. When the oil is shimmering, fry one tortilla at a time in the oil, flipping once or twice, for only a few seconds - you want to see them puff up. They should be very flexible. Do this for all the tortillas, setting them on the towel.
Spread a little sauce on the bottom of a casserole dish.
Set up a station where you can dip a tortilla into the sauce (or paint sauce on both sides of each tortilla with with your fingers or a brush), then grab a bit of the filling (maybe 2 to 3 tablespoons) and roll up the enchiladas. Set each one, seam side down, into the casserole. Fill the dish snugly.
Sprinkle the shredded cheese on top and bake for 30 minutes.
Notes
You can use canned enchilada sauce if you want, especially if you have a favorite. For cheese, I shred queso asadero or queso Chihuahua, but you can use pre-shredded cheese like the "Mexican blend" in supermarkets.