Pork and Green Chile Posole

Ingredients

• 1 pound pork shoulder* trimmed of visible fat and cut into bite size pieces
• 1 tsp. green chile spice blend* or salt/pepper/garlic powder
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil or 1 Tbsp. olive oil and 1 Tbsp. bacon drippings
• 6 cups water / stock*
• 1 pound fresh or frozen posole*
• 6 large garlic cloves, minced
• 1 medium onion, chopped

½ tsp. toasted cumin coriander blend*

• 1 tsp. dried oregano, crushed
• 1 cup mild roasted New Mexico green chile*, chopped
• ½ – 1 cup medium to hot roasted New Mexico green chile (amount depends on heat desired)
• 1/2 tsp. salt or to taste
• 1 tsp. black pepper
• Warmed flour or corn tortillas one to two per person

Directions

1. Cut the pork into bite size pieces and transfer to a large bowl. Sprinkle with green chile spice blend. Toss to coat the pork pieces. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
2. Chop the onion and the garlic.

Heat a large soup pot over medium heat.

1. Heat the oil. When hot, add the pork, onion and garlic. Increase the heat to medium high to brown the meat. Cook and stir for 2 minutes.
2. Reduce the heat to medium. Add the water/stock. Bring to a boil. Add the rest of the ingredients, except for the chile and salt.
3. Reduce to a simmer. Cook for 45 minutes to an hour or until the pork is just at “pull apart tender”.
4. Add the green chile and more water if you think it needs it. Stir occasionally.
5. Cook for another 30 minutes or until the posole has popped and is tender. Be careful not to over stir the posole. With too much stirring you can break it apart and end up with little pieces of posole.

Taste. Add more salt if needed.

1. Remove from heat and scoop into soup bowls.. Serve with warmed tortillas.

Kitchen Notes

1. Pork – Pork shoulder or pork butt is best because it gets nice and tender when cooked with the posole. Pork loin tends to dry out and get tough. However, you could use the loin if you use canned hominy since you won’t be heating the hominy rather than cooking it.
2. Roasted Green Chile – The amount depends on what you have and how hot it is. I like using a blend of mild and medium-hot.
3. Liquid – The pork and posole add quite a bit of flavor to this dish, so using just water yields a very tasty stew. However, two cups of chicken stock never hurts.
4. Posole – Fresh or frozen? Both yield the same result and take about the same amount of time to cook. If you use dry posole, soak it overnight, then cook for 2 hours instead of 1. If you can’t get posole in your area, substitute with canned hominy. See the next note on how to change the recipe if using hominy.
5. Using hominy – Follow the recipe above through step 6. Once you add the liquid, simmer for 45 minutes to an hour until the pork is tender. Then, in Step 7, drain the hominy and add the hominy with the green chile and cook about 20 minutes. Remove from heat and let the stew rest for an hour if possible. This allows the flavors to meld.
6. Amount of Chile – We like a lot of green chile in this dish, so in order to keep it from being too hot, I use 1 cup of mild then add spicier chile to provide the heat and even more green chile flavor. So knowing your chile always helps you know how much to add. Adjust amount accordingly.