Items Tagged With Southwest

Many ranchers in the arid Southwest rely on wells for water, tapping deep into aquifers below the ground.  Expanding urban centers pull water from the Colorado River as well as their own aquifers, but even this water is not enough to sustain the rapidly growing population of these cities in the desert.  While Las Vegas and Phoenix grow exponentially, the ranchlands around them are often tapped for their underground aquifers leaving less water to sustain an agricultural future on this land.  The argument made for tapping the ranchland water is economic, while reasons why the soil of grasslands, however arid, should be sustained by minimal grazing are overlooked.

In the mid-eighties, growing cities like Scottsdale, Arizona started buying ranches just to have the rights to that piece of land's aquifer.  They called it water ranching.  Water ranching was outlawed in Arizona in the early ‘90s after enough protest from ranchers and small communities who didn't want to see their water supplies completely depleted.  In Nevada, however, Las Vegas has recently been in the process of obtaining water rights to aquifers below ranches in the Northern part of the state.  Although it seems like there is enough to go around, no one really knows how much water is in the aquifers.  If they disappear, the land could turn into a dust bowl.  Droughts in the already dry Southwest have been persistent in the last fifteen years, lessening the precipitation going back into the land to stabilize plants and provide water to wildlife, not to mention the growing cities, irrigated fields, and livestock.

When there is a drought, fewer cattle can be allotted to a section of land (private or public), making it even more difficult to economically sustain ranching in those areas.  When ranching is no longer economically sustainable, the land will be sold into development.  Condos and sprawling ranchettes use much more water than grazing herbivores.  If this trend continues, the remains of ranching will prove to be one of the most sustainable forms of land use in the Southwest.  Cows, in a well-managed rotational grazing program, can benefit and improve the land, recycling plants and water back into the dusty soil and creating strong roots that will stabilize it. Holistic range management is a way to use the given water resources of the Southwest properly and mimic the natural habitation of the land.   

How do you think we should address water use in the Southwest?  Do you live there or have any stories to share with us?  

Above photo:  Grand Canon, Colorado River by William Bell, 1871-1873

Southwest cuisine has been influenced by Mexico and also all the fresh produce that is available in the region. In New Mexico they are famous for the wide array of chili peppers and their cuisine reflects this chili culture for this reason I choose the truck stop favorite Christmas-Style Machaca Burrito which is named for the colorful green and deep red chili sauces that are served over this delicious beef burrito.  This recipe is based on a Saveur recipe; it is possibly the most difficult recipe I have made for the Grass-fed party. With that said, the chili sauces were fascinating to make and I now know how to make them. I actually froze the left over Chile Verde sauce because I want to use it on hot wings for the super bowl. The slow cooked brisket was just delicious and I recommend this for any burrito recipe you have.

Full Ingredient List
3 lbs. trimmed La Cense Brisket
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1/2 cup olive oil
3 cups Beef Stock
6 cloves garlic, finely chopped
4 medium onions, chopped
2 tablespoons flour
2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/3 cup ancho chili powder or new Mexican chili pepper
6 large poblano peppers, roasted, cored,
peeled, seeded, and chopped (roast in oven at 500 degrees for 10 minutes)
6 plum tomatoes, cored and chopped
Juice of half a lime
6 large flour tortillas
3 cups grated Monterey jack cheese or cheddar cheese
2 cups thinly sliced iceberg lettuce or romaine hearts
1 small red onion, chopped

Machaca Burrito Filling:

Ingredients:
3 lbs. trimmed La Cense Brisket
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 cups Beef Stock
2 onions, minced
2 garlic clove, minced
3 tomatoes, roughly chopped
2 large poblano peppers, roasted, seeded and chopped.
Juice of half a lime

Preparation: Season the brisket with salt and pepper. In a large skillet brown the brisket over a medium heat for 15 minutes (brown all over).  In a Dutch oven place one tablespoon of olive oil and sauté one clove of garlic and one minced onion, until soft about 7 minutes. Add browned brisket to the dutch oven; deglaze the pan used to fry the brisket with the three cups of beef broth, making sure to scrape off any bits on the bottom of the pan. Add the beef broth to the dutch oven and cook on a low heat for three hours.  Let cool, using your hands separate the brisket into pieces like the picture above, separate the beef from the broth. Reserve. (you will be using 1 1/2 cup of the beef broth for the Chile Verde.

Sauté one garlic and one onion in one tablespoon of olive oil for about five minutes add hand shredded beef and brown, add one cup of beef broth, three chopped tomatoes, juice of one lime and 2 roasted poblano peppers let simmer for 20 minutes.

Chile Colorado
Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 garlic, minced
1/3 cup ancho chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
½ teaspoon Mexican oregano
1 tablespoon flour
1 ½ cup water

Preparation: In a medium pot sauté the onion and garlic in the olive oil about 6 minutes.  Add flour, then chili powder, cumin and oregano and then water, whisk thoroughly until smooth bring to a boil and reduce, season to taste and then cover and set aside.

Chile Verde

Ingredients:
1 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium onion, chopped
1 tablespoon flour
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
4 large poblano peppers, roasted, cored,
peeled, seeded, and chopped(roast in oven at 500 degrees for 10 minutes)
1 1/2 cups Beef Stock(reserved from brisket)

Preparation: In a medium pot sauté the onion and garlic in olive oil about 6 minutes. Add flour, mix and add ground cumin and oregano. Add beef stock and whisk, add peppers and let simmer for 5 minutes. Puree in blender and set aside.

To assemble the burrito, warm flour tortilla in a large skillet, place cheese on the tortilla and then some meat.  Fold as you would a burrito, and dress the burrito with lettuce, chopped onions and tomatoes and chili sauces! Enjoy!