Author: Jane Simon Ammeson

“Fritos are a San Antonio delicacy, invented by Gustavo Olguin, who sold the recipe to the owner of a local confectionery shop for one hundred dollars during the Great Depression,” writes Josef Centeno and Betty Hallock in Ama: A Modern Tex-Mex Kitchen. “That guy then created the chip empire known as Frito-Lay. Frito pie, also a San Antonio delicacy, is the stuff of rodeos—usually a bag of the cornmeal chips split open along one side and stuffed with chili and cheese. The version served at Bar Amá is layered with carne guisada, baked in a small cast-iron casserole so the cheddar topping gets warm and bubbly, and garnished with crema, onions, and cilantro. Rather than a portable snack, it’s more like a sit-down meal to share.”

Centeno is the owner of Bar Amá, a Tex-Mex restaurant in Los Angeles as well as others including the Michelin-starred Orsa & Winston, both part of The Josef Centeno Group. His menu offerings at Bar Ama are inspired by his childhood food memories and the cooking of his great grandmother, Amá.

Carne Guisada Frito Pie

Serves 4

• 4 cups [240 g] Fritos corn chips
• 1 cup [260 g] carne guisada (page 63)
• 1 1/3 cups [135 g] grated cheddar cheese
• 1/4 cup [60 g] crema Mexicana or sour cream
• 2 Tbsp finely diced red onion
• 2 Tbsp finely chopped fresh cilantro leaves

Heat the oven to 350°F [180°C].

In each of 2 small baking dishes or ovenproof casseroles, layer 1 cup [60 g] of the corn chips, 1/4 cup [65 g] carne guisada, and 1/3 cup [35 g] cheddar cheese. Add another layer of chips, carne guisada, and cheese. Bake in the oven until the cheese is melted, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and top each dish with 2 Tbsp crema, 1 Tbsp onions, and 1 Tbsp cilantro. Serve immediately.

Carne Guisada

Centeno describes carne guisada as his “bowl of red.” Except that he never eats it in a bowl but instead, always in a flour tortilla.  

“Like chili con carne, this stewed beef is made with chunks of beef and dried chiles and spices, and it also contains tomatoes,” he explains. “But unlike chili con carne, it isn’t served with a bunch of other ingredients and garnishes. Tucked into a flour tortilla, it needs nothing else—just straight up carne guisada.”

Serves 6 to 8

• 2 ancho chiles
• 4 Tbsp [60 ml] olive or avocado oil
• 2 1/2 to 3 lb [1.2 to 1.4 kg] boneless short rib, trimmed and cut into 1 1/2 in [4 cm] cubes
• 1 large onion, finely diced
• 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
• 5 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 serrano chile, stemmed, seeded, and finely chopped
• 1 Tbsp dried Mexican oregano, preferably Oregano Indio
• 1 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tsp chile powder
• 1 fresh bay leaf, or 2 dried
• Fresh black pepper
• 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
• 3 cups [720 ml] beef broth
• 1 cup [340 g] crushed San Marzano tomatoes

Using tongs, toast the ancho chiles over the open flame of a gas burner until slightly softened and fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Stem and seed the chiles and tear them into pieces. Set aside.

Heat 2 Tbsp of the oil in a Dutch oven or another large heavy-bottom pot over medium-high heat. When the oil shimmers, add the beef and brown it on all sides, 10 to 12 minutes.

Add the remaining 2 Tbsp of oil to the pot. When the oil is hot, add the onion and salt and cook over medium heat, scraping up the browned bits of meat at the bottom of the pot, until the onions are soft, about 5 minutes.

Add the garlic, serrano, oregano, cumin seeds, chile powder, bay leaf, and several grinds of black pepper and cook until fragrant, 30 seconds.

Add the toasted chiles to the pot along with the flour and stir until incorporated. Add the beef broth and tomatoes and bring the mixture to a boil.

Reduce the heat to low and simmer, partly covered, stirring occasionally, until the meat is tender and the sauce is thickened, 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Taste and adjust the salt. Store, covered, in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Vanilla Bean Semifreddo with Dulce de Leche

“This is an easy version of vanilla ice cream,” says Centano, “which we make at Bar Amá with cream and crème fraîche—no ice-cream maker necessary! We use it for raspados of shaved ice and hibiscus syrup, for fried ice cream, or to serve drizzled with dulce de leche or chocolate sauce.”

Serves 6 to 8

Vanilla bean semifreddo

• 6 egg yolks
• 1 1/2 tsp dark brown sugar
• 1/2 cup [100 g] granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 cups [360 ml] heavy cream
• 1/2 cup [120 g] crème fraîche
• Seeds of 1 vanilla bean
• Dulce de leche
• One 14 oz [420 ml] can sweetened condensed milk

make the semifreddo: Put the egg yolks, brown sugar, and granu­lated sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Mix on medium-high to high speed until the mixture is pale yellow and fluffy, about 8 minutes. Set aside.

Combine the heavy cream, crème fraîche, and vanilla seeds scraped from the bean in a clean bowl, and with a clean whisk attachment, or a hand mixer with regular beaters, whip until soft peaks form.

Carefully fold the whipped cream mixture into the egg mixture. Pour into a container, cover, and freeze for 6 hours or overnight. Any leftover ice cream will keep in the freezer for up to 1 week.

make the dulce de leche: Peel the label off the can of condensed milk and put the can in a large pot. Add enough water to the pot so it comes within 2 fingers of the top. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Lower the heat to medium-low and cook for 6 hours, checking the water level, and adding more as needed to keep the pot filled. Remove the can with tongs and set aside to cool overnight at room temperature.

Serve the semifreddo with a drizzle of the dulce de leche. Store any remaining dulce de leche in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 1 month.

Reprinted from Ama by Josef Centeno and Betty Hallock with permission by Chronicle Books, 2019