Red Posole (Pozole Rojo)

Even before opening my eyes I knew, it was going to be one of those days weatherwise. The wind howled outside, rattling the glass and shaking the screens on the sliding glass doors. Rain pelted the windows with a rhythmic rat-a-tat-tat fury. Finally awake and out of bed, I marveled at the three-foot surf racing across the lake to pound against our rock breakwater and roll up onto the small gravel beach. This was a perfect excuse to stay warm and dry inside and make one of our favorite comfort-food soups, pork posole (pozole). 

The recipe may look lengthy, but it is a shortcut version with remarkably little hands-on time for the cook. While the meat simmers low and slow in the oven the kitchen smells heavenly, perfumed with Southwest aromas. The aroma alone recalls fond memories of flavorful bowls of posole in New Mexico during SW road trips. More "authentic traditional" posole recipes call for (1) reconstituting and cooking hominy - field corn boiled with slaked lime and dried  - and (2) building an ancho chile puree from dried peppers  that have been toasted, deseeded, soaked and pureed. Not necessary, in my opinion, this quicker version is plenty tasty without requiring a full day of cooking.   

Posole, likened to a soupy stew, is often a celebratory dish in northern New Mexico, offered red, green or Christmas-style during the holidays.

 New Mexico is the only state with an official question—"Red or green?"—referring to the choice of red or green chile. Combining both red and green chile is often referred to as "Christmas". Wikipedia

We don't need a holiday or special occasion to enjoy posole at home. Red/rojo or green/verde, served with an array of garnishes, this soup can make any meal seem like a celebration. Not fond of pork? Try this delicious Green Posole with Chicken recipe instead. Or get creative and develop your own version.

Red Posole (Pozole Rojo)

adapted from a recipe in Cook's Illustrated, Soups and Stews, 2001

6 servings (depending on bowl size and appetites)

1 (3-pound) bone-in pork shoulder roast (or the equivalent in thick cut steaks or meaty neck bones)

Salt and coarse-ground black pepper

2-3 Tablespoons Canola oil

1 large yellow onion, coarsely chopped

2 poblano chiles, deseeded and chopped

3 cloves garlic minced

1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes (low-sodium)

1 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano

1 teaspoon dried cilantro

4 cups low-sodium chicken broth

1+ Tablespoons Chipotle Tabasco or homemade ancho chile slurry

2 15-ounce cans white or yellow hominy, drained and rinsed

Garnish options:

1 lime, cut into wedges

3 radishes, sliced thin

2 green onions, green and white portions, sliced thin

1 avocado, diced

fresh cilantro, roughly chopped

6 jalapeño and sweet mini peppers seeded, sliced thin into rounds

Romaine or iceberg lettuce or cabbage shreds

Pepper jack cheese, shredded

Lime-flavored tortilla chips or fresh tortillas, warmed

Hot sauce or homemade ancho chile slurry

Directions:

1. Place an oven rack in the lower-middle position; heat oven to 300 degrees F. Trim any thick skin and excess chunks of fat from the meat; cut the pork into large pieces of varying sizes along the lines of the muscles. Cut away the bones if using shoulder roast or steaks, but reserve and set aside. Generously season the meat with salt and pepper on both sides.
2. Heat the oil in a large, heavy-bottomed Dutch oven over medium heat. Cook the onions and poblanos until softened, but not browned, 3-5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Use a slotted spoon to remove the onion/poblano mix and set aside in a bowl.
3. Add a single layer of meat and bones to the pot and cook until the pork is no longer pink on the outside surfaces but not crisp and browned. Use a slotted spoon to remove to a bowl and repeat with the remaining meat in several batches as needed.
4. Return the meat and bones to the pan; add tomatoes and their juices, oregano, cilantro, chicken broth, green Tabasco and a generous pinch of salt. Bring to a simmer and skim off any ugly gray scum (while it doesn’t affect the taste much, it looks unsavory). Add the softened onion/poblano mix to the pot; cover and cook in the preheated 300 degree F oven until the meat is tender, typically 90-120 minutes.
5. When the meat is cooked tender enough to shred with two forks, remove the pot from the oven and remove the meat and bones from the pot. Add the drained and rinsed hominy to the broth; cover and bring to a simmer over medium-low heat. Cook until hominy heats through and the flavors blend, about 30 minutes.  
6. While the hominy cooks, use two forks or your fingers to shred the meat into bite-size pieces. Discard the bones and any large strands or chunks of fat. Return the shredded meat to the pot and simmer until heated, about 10 minutes. Taste and adjust seasonings (usually salt and hot sauce in my kitchen).
7. Spoon off any excess fat that arises to the top if you are serving the posole immediately. Or refrigerate and remove congealed fat before reheating at a later time.
8. Ladle the soup into individual warmed bowls and serve immediately with a variety of garnishes.

SRC: Green Pozole with Chicken

For November's Secret Recipe Club post I was assigned Lynne Daley's blog Cafelynnylu, and what fun I've had exploring the recipes and admiring her photography. Indeed, so much fun that it was difficult to choose just one recipe. I tried to ignore the tempting sweets and focus on a few of the savory selections. Chipotle Cheese Baguettes were tasty, the accompanying Chipotle Butter was awesome, and the Pistachio, Mango and Blood Orange Terrine is still on my must-try list. In the end, the Green Pozole with Chicken was voted our favorite taste treat. The basic broth, whether made with chicken, turkey or the more traditional pork, offers a mellow blend of flavors that provide a nice bowl of soup. It's the handfuls of toppings that add crunch and zest to transform this soup into something beyond special. Oh yes, pozole is that good.  

Pozole (or posole) is a go-to favorite in cool weather, its tantalizing aroma draws crowds of taste testers seeking an early sample. If you have the time, prepare pozole the slow-cook way, it can make a difference. Soak dried hominy overnight and then simmer it gently  for an hour or two to bloom and soften. Roast/grill the fresh tomatillos and peppers for extra flavor. Use fresh bone-in chicken thighs with skin for even more flavor. OR, if you're in a bit of a hurry, substitute some canned hominy and chicken broth, even deli roast chicken meat and some mild canned chiles. (I'm not a fan of canned tomatillos, I think they taste a bit tinny, but that's just me.) Either way, be prepared for a tasty bowl of comfort. Top your bowl of pozole with a squeeze of lime and a generous handful of "accompaniments" to suit your taste. Do experiment with the toppings, go a little crazy, and enjoy a delicious bowl of pozole. 

Note: I omitted pan-roasted fresh pumpkin seeds and jalapeños from my sauce recipe, but you can find Lynne's original recipe at cafelynnylu 

Green Posole with Chicken

9 cups water


1 small bay leaf


1 large white onion, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced


6 garlic cloves, chopped


2 teaspoons salt


3 lb chicken thighs





1 lb tomatillos, husked and washed

1 large poblano chile


3/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro


1 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano, crumbled


2 tablespoons vegetable oil


2 (15-oz) cans white hominy, rinsed and drained



Suggested accompaniments: sliced radish, avocado chunks tossed with lime juice, shredded cabbage, chopped white onion, lime wedges, red or orange sweet pepper chunks, chopped cherry tomatoes
 and fresh cilantro. Tortilla chips or toasted tortilla pieces and shredded pepperjack cheese are also favorite toppings.

Cook chicken: 


Bring to a boil in a large heavy covered pot 8 cups water, bay leaf, half of onion, half of garlic, and 1 teaspoon salt. Reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes. Add chicken and poach at a barely bubbling simmer, uncovered, skimming off any foam, until just cooked through, about 15-20 minutes. Transfer chicken to a cutting board to cool. Strain broth through a fine-mesh sieve into a large bowl, discarding solids, and reserve. (Skim fat from top of broth as it cools, if you wish.) When chicken has cooled enough to handle, use your fingers to remove skin and bones, pulling meat apart into small chunks and coarse shreds.



Make sauce while chicken cools:
 

Roast the poblano, tomatillos and remaining onion under the broiler, browning on all sides. Remove the stem, seeds and membrane strands from the poblano. Purée in a blender with 1/4 cup cilantro, oregano, remaining garlic, and remaining 1 teaspoon salt.

Heat oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot over medium high heat until hot but not smoking, then add purée (beware, it will splatter and steam). Cook, uncovered, stirring frequently, until thickened, about 10 minutes. Stir in 1 cup reserved broth and simmer 5 minutes. Stir in shredded chicken, hominy, and the remaining cups reserved broth and simmer, partially covered, 20 minutes. 

Taste and adjust seasonings as needed. (I added a few splashes of Green Tabasco here, but you could offer hot sauce on the side instead.) Stir in remaining 1/2 cup cilantro and serve pozole in deep bowls with accompaniments. 

Now, click on the link below to see the rest of this month's Secret Recipe Club posts. Really. Do it now.