Soup Challenge 3: Elliott Townsend (Cowboy Star) - El Borrego
Hi all! This week's Soups with Chef's challenge was with Elliott Townsend, CDC of Cowboy Star Butcher Shop & Restaurant, located in downtown San Diego. C Star also happened to be my very first food photography client years ago so needless to say they hold a special place in my hungry little steak loving heart. When planning our soup lunch, I asked him where he wanted to go and all he told me was "Well we'll be at El Borrego on Sunday anyway so you should meet us there." I laughed and realized that he was not messing around when it came to introducing me to his favorite soup in San Diego.
His lovely wife, Kelly, also happens to be a very talented chef and they regularly frequent the City Heights staple, ordering pozole verde and huitlacoche quesadillas. Huitlacoche (whee-tla-KOH-cheh) is a fungus that grows on ears of corn. It's a delicacy in Mexico and tastes similar to mushrooms. The green pozole came with a side of chicharrones, radish, cabbage and one corn tostada. For those that aren't familiar with pozole, it is a Mexican soup or stew that can be white, green or red and generally has pork, hominy and seasoned with chilis. It's also similar to menudo, another hominy stew from Mexico, but menudo is generally made with cow stomach (tripe). I'm a big fan of both so I was ready to eat! It's also been said that these stews are good "cures" for hangovers and let's just say this lunch was planned with some perfect timing after Saturday night *dry heaves after thinking about it again*.
I ask everyone the same question, "Why here, why this soup?" Elliott made it simple for me. "This place has been around for 12-13 years and I just love the food here. I love their style of pozole because they use pipian (pumpkin seeds) to add a layer of flavor." Elliott has been a customer for 4 years and ordered a large Jamaica agua fresca to wash down the delicious stew. My first thoughts when trying the pozole after adding the garnishes were excitement for a green stew. I myself grew up eating red menudo most weekends so the flavors of pork and the spicy nuttiness of the pipian broth mixed with the crunch of every garnish together was like a little happy dance in my mouth. I am a huge fan of chicharrones so getting a delicate crunch was something I really loved about this soup. El Borrego is definitely a spot to pop that pozole cherry if you haven't tried it before or if you just want something hearty without too much spice. Order a beer if you are really in need of some hair of the dog.
The broth's unique flavor made me feel like I was in middle school again, visiting my best friend while her mom made us soup to eat after playing outside until dark. Familiar flavors with their own distinct approach to comfort food. Food from your best friends house! Thank you Elliott and Kelly for the experience and letting me hang with you at your regular spot. Until we are hungover again, cheers.
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