I was too busy cooking to take too many pictures, sorry. Also, I'm new to it. As I get used to it, there will be more pictures, I'm sure.
STEAK AND BROWN RICE ENCHILADAS
2 1/2 cups water
1 cup brown rice
1 cup sharp cheese (Robusto from Whole Foods, Cheddar, etc.), in 2 portions
1 8-oz sirloin strip steak
salt
garlic powder
1 pablano pepper
8 flour tortillas
oil or non-stick spray
1 16 oz. jar of salsa (I like Candeleros Wild Autumn Salsa, if you can find it)
Boil the water. Add the rice. Cover the pot, and reduce the heat to low. Simmer for 35-40 minutes until the rice is done.
While this is cooking, take the whole pablano pepper and (if you have a gas stove) put it directly over burner turned to "high." If you have an electric stove/oven, you'll want to use the broiler or a toaster oven set to "broil". Cook for a few minutes on each side, until the outside is completely charred. Remove to cool.
This is the pepper roasting. Again, if you have a gas stove, you can just put it directly on the burner. I wouldn't do this with electric, though. That'd be asking for trouble, since the pepper would likely stick to the electric element and burn quickly in the places touching it. Better to cut it in half and stick it skin-side-up as close to the broiler it as you can get.
Sprinkle the steak with salt and garlic powder. Cook the steak for 3-4 minutes per side, depending on the thickness and size of the steak. This can be done in either a very hot pan or under the broiler. Remove the steak to rest for at least 5 minutes. Longer is fine. Once completely rested, slice thinly against the grain.
Take the charred pepper and run cold water over it, rubbing it with your fingers. This will remove the "skin." Remove the seeds and as much of the inner membrane as you want. (The membrane is where the "heat" in a pepper is, though there isn't a lot in the pablano.) Chop the pepper after all the skin is removed and chop it into small (approx 1/4 inch) pieces.
When the rice is done, put the rice, the pepper, and the steak into a large bowl. While the rice is hot, stir in 1/2 of the cheese. The rice should be hot enough to melt (or at least partially melt) the cheese.
Preheat the oven to 350F. Lightly oil or use the pan spray to give a light coating to a large (8x12 or 9x13 depending on the size of your tortillas) baking disk. I prefer glass for this, personally.
Heat the tortillas until they are very malleable. Evenly divide the rice mixture between the tortillas. Place the mixture toward one side of the tortilla, and roll each into a cylinder. As you roll each one, put it in the baking dish so that it lays against the "short" side of the pan. When all 8 have been rolled and put in the pan, top with the salsa. Sprinkle the other 1/2 cup of cheese across the top.
Put the enchiladas into the oven, and cook for 20-30 minutes, or until the cheese is nicely melted and they are heated through. Serve warm.
