I could smell it as soon as I opened the car door in the Central Market parking lot. There is nothing quite like the aroma of fresh chiles roasting in the late summer heat. I love August in Austin for the twin green chile festivals hosted by Central Market and Chuy’s, and this celebration of nature’s most perfect fruit is now upon us.
The chiles are shipped in fresh from the chile harvest in Hatch, New Mexico and roasted on site. Central Market sells them by the pound, and Chuy’s creates a special Green Chile Festival menu that runs from mid-August to mid-September.
Each year, I buy several pounds of chiles from CM to freeze and use throughout the year. Use? Hah! I usually just eat them straight with a bit of salt or wrapped in a tortilla when I’m feeling industrious. Then we eat at Chuy’s at least once a week until we’ve tried all the green chile specials and gone back for seconds of our favorites. So far, nothing has topped the green chile tortilla soup of 1996 or the Charlie Brown chicken (crusted with pumpkin seeds) of 2003.
So, yesterday it began. While selecting my bags of roasted chiles, the clerk informed me that for $22 I could get a whole case, roasted while I waited and would save a ton of money and get more chiles. How could I refuse?
Now, my freezer is full of small baggies of chiles and all day I ate chiles. Next week, Chuy’s starts up, and I wonder what delights they’ll have cooked up for us this year.
I’ll keep you posted.
James Brush is a teacher and writer who lives in Austin, TX. He tries to get outside as much as possible.
A case of chiles! Yikes! 🙂
I can’t wait — will Chuy’s take reservations for next week?
[…] The Unbearable Spiciness of Green I’ve managed to fit my green chile reserve into the freezer by giving away several pounds and eating several more pounds of this perfect fire and my wife’s car smelled of fresh roasted chiles for about a week after buying the case, but now and for the next few weeks, I rely on Chuy’s to get my fix. […]
[…] Coyote Mercury’s author James Brush and Austinist’s Sam Armstrong share their love for the Twin Green Chiiles Festival. The festival is hosted by Central Market and Chuy’s. The chiles are shipped fresh from Hatch, New Mexico during the harvest. The chiles are then roasted on site and sold by weight in Central Market and Chuy’s, along with several other restaurants, creates a special menu to highlight them. […]
[…] Tonight I found a way to prepare them that matches my palette: It’s all in the toppings. Instead of going the sweet or bland route, we topped baked yams with hatch green chiles, a small amount of butter, sea salt, pepper, and chile powder. […]
[…] Last week, I made Larry’s Roasted Chile-Roasted Tomato Gazpacho, even though those things aren’t quite in season. I’d never made gazpacho before, but it turned out quite well and gave me something to do with some of the green chiles that are still filling up my freezer. […]
[…] managed to fit my green chile reserve into the freezer by giving away several pounds and eating several more pounds of this perfect fire. […]
[…] Last week, I made Larry’s Roasted Chile-Roasted Tomato Gazpacho, even though those things aren’t quite in season. I’d never made gazpacho before, but it turned out quite well and gave me something to do with some of the green chiles that are still filling up my freezer. […]