Calito Recipe

Calito is a hamburger gravy with a little Latin twist. Some people add tomatoes but this is my recipe. As much as I love tomatoes I think it has no business in calito. It's super easy to make and my family loves it! It's wonderful with some biscuits, bread and butter or my favorite home made tortillas. It usually will cost less than $10 for all the ingredient and serves about 4-6 but all the ingredients are usually things that you have laying around the kitchen.

Serves 4-6

2 tbsp olive oil
2-3 large potatoes chop into small pieces
1 lbs ground beef
1/2 and onion
1 garlic clove
1 10 oz can of green chilies (or about 6-8 fresh hatch chili is best but if you can't get it used canned chilies)
1 tbsp chili powder (or more if you want it spicier)
11/2 tbsp flour
2 tbsp beef bouillon
2 tbsp corn starch
1 tbsp paprika
1/8 tsp cumin
2 1/2 cups of water
1 tsp of lime juice
Salt and Pepper to taste
Cheddar cheese or Mexican blend cheese optional.

Warm olive oil in the pan, when warm add potato.
In separate pan brown hamburger and add chili powder, cumin, paprika and 1 tbsp of flour to hamburger meat while browning. Once hamburger is no longer pink add chilies, garlic, and onion, mix with hamburger along with to 1/2 tbsp of additional flour. Cook until onion is soft and transparent.
In a measuring cup add corn starch, and beef bouillon, mix well with fork, add 2 1/2 cups of cold water to powder mixture, mix well with fork. (If using bullion cubes add 2 cubes to 1 cup boiling water in one cup and cornstarch and 1 1/2 cups of cool water in another. If you add hot water to cornstarch it will clump so be sure to keep boiling water separate from the cornstarch.)
Add hamburger pan contents to the potato pan and mix thoroughly. Pour in beef bullion and cornstarch contents of measuring cup and add lime juice.
Turn the burner temp on high.
Once the water mixture is bubbling turn heat to low, cover, and let simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring frequently.