Dry Fideo In Chile Guajillo Sauce With Crumbled Goat Cheese

By Abigail Garcia

Fideo seco (dry fideo) is a “must starter” if you eat at a fonda or restaurant in Mexico. It istraditionally made with tomato sauce, but chipotle and guajillo sauces are also very popular. Usually you would pour some sour cream over it, but I love the way it tastes with crumbled goat cheese. This recipe is so easy and fast to make, since the “fideos” cook very quick. I hope you enjoy!

Yields 4 servings

Preparation Time: 45 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

Sauce: Makes about 2 cups

• 3 guajillo chiles,about 1 oz, stemmed and seeded
• 1 pound plum tomatoes,or about 4 or 5 tomatoes,
• 1 garlic clove, peeled
• ¼ cup white onion,roughly chopped
• ¼ teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon Kosher or sea salt, or to taste
• 1 tablespoon olive oil

Pasta:

• 1 package (6.3 oz or similar) of fideo (you can find it at Latin American grocery stores)
• ½ cup of crumbled goat cheese
• Chopped parsley to garnish

Directions:

1. On a hot pan or comal,over medium low heat, toast guajillo chiles for about 20 seconds per side. Be careful not to burn them or they will taste bitter.
2. Place toasted chiles in a sauce pan that is filled with hot water, along with the tomatoes and the garlic clove and simmer for about 10 minutes, until the guajillo chiles are softened and tomatoes are cooked through.  Place the chiles, tomatoes and garlic in a blender with about ½ cup of the cooking liquid, along with the onion, oregano, cumin and salt and blend until smooth. Strain the sauce. Reserve some of the cooking liquid in case you need more later.
3. Heat the oil in a sauce pan, over medium high heat. Pour in the sauce (be careful because it will jump a bit) and simmer for about 12-15 minutes, or until the sauce begins to thicken. Reserve.
4. In another pan, over medium-high heat, put a tablespoon of oil and toss the pasta until it begins to brown a little, add the sauce and let it simmer covered for 5 minutes (most of the fideos cook in this time, but you can double check the cooking instructions in the package), or until the fideos are done and the sauce has been absorbed. You must have a dry pasta sauce, not a soup. If you need more liquid, add a tablespoon at a time of cooking liquid until pasta is cooked through.
5. Taste for seasoning and add more salt if needed. Place in a plate and sprinkle crumbled goat cheese and parsley over it.