Taqueria Del Sol’s Jalapeño-Cheese Dip
Serves: Makes 2 1/2 cups
Hands On Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes
Ingredients
1 cup whole milk
1 pound (about 4 cups) freshly grated white pasteurized process American cheese (such as Land O’Lakes or Boar’s Head; see Note)
2 to 4 tablespoons diced pickled jalapeños
Diced fresh jalapeños, for garnish
Tortilla chips
Instructions
Bring the milk to a boil in a medium saucepan. Remove from the heat. Stir in the grated cheese and pickled jalapeños. Whisk until smooth, about 5 minutes. Garnish with the fresh jalapeños. Transfer to a fondue pot or small slow cooker if you have one, or serve straight out of the pot if you don’t. Serve with the chips. The dip will keep for up to 1 week, covered and refrigerated. Reheat for a minute or two in a microwave.
About the recipe
“People love our velvety cheese dip and are always asking us for the secret to how we make it. They can’t believe how easy it is when we share the recipe.
The key is in using the right cheese, and here is where it can get a little tricky. We use Land O’Lakes Extra Melt White American Cheese, the product most respectable Tex-Mex restaurants choose for achieving the smooth texture that’s just the right consistency for dipping a chip into. Unfortunately it’s hard to find retail, but other white pasteurized process American cheeses from the deli case, such as Boar’s Head, can come very close. Velveeta is good for queso dips that are loaded with strong flavors like tomatoes and sausages, but because there are so few ingredients in this recipe, there’s nothing to mask those artifical flavors that keep it shelf stable. And don’t be tempted to use a more expensive, natural cheese—the sharper the cheese, the grainier it will be. Be sure to grate the cheese yourself just before using so it doesn’t dry out— commercially pregrated cheese contains cornstarch or some other nonclumping ingredient that prevents it from melting smoothly.
Besides being a great dip, this also makes a delicious sauce for ground-beef tacos and enchiladas.” — Eddie Hernandez
Excerpted from “Turnip Greens & Tortillas” © 2018 by Eddie Hernandez & Susan Puckett. Reproduced by permission of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.