Pozole Rojo
Pozole (or posole) is a traditional Mexican soup or stew that can be made several ways, depending on the region of Mexico: Rojo 'red' pozole, Verde 'green' pozole and Blanca 'white' pozole representing the colors of the Mexican flag. Pozole can be made with pork or chicken or even a combination of both.
Hominy is a dried corn and a main ingredient in this recipe and can be found with the canned corn in most markets. I don't recommend substituting corn, it's just not the same. You could also increase the amount of vegetables and use vegetable stock for a vegetarian pozole. The chiles we used are each about 3-4 on the heat scale of 10 - so lots of rich smoky flavor without too much heat.
I made mine on a Sunday when I was home all day, but this is also a recipe that would work well in slow cooker. A little bit of prep work and add the ingredients to the slow cooker. After 7-8 hours on low, shred the meat and return it to the cooker and serve with the garnishes.
There are actually restaurants or 'pozolerias' in Mexico that only serve pozole. It is a very hearty soup and makes a wonderful filling meal.
- 2 pounds lean pork shoulder
- 1 quart low sodium chicken stock
- 6-8 cloves of garlic, peeled
- 1 teaspoon Mexican Oregano
- 1 medium yellow onion, quartered
- 3-4 medium tomatillos, husked, washed, and quartered
- 2 plum tomatoes, quartered
- 1 Dried Ancho Chiles, seeds and stem removed
- 2 Dried Guajillo Chiles, seeds and stem removed
- 1 can (15 oz) white hominy, drained and rinsed
- 4 corn tortillas, cut into strips
- Salt and pepper to taste
- In a large stockpot or dutch oven, add the chicken stock, 1/2 of the garlic, and the pork
- Add enough water to cover the pork completely
- Add Mexican Oregano and bring the stock to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer until the meat is tender - about 3 hours
- Once the meat is cooked - preheat the broiler of the oven
- Put remaining garlic, tomatoes, tomatillos and chiles on a baking pan - drizzle with a little olive oil and salt/pepper
- Put the baking pan under the broiler just until the veggies start to char - about 7-8 minutes
- Set aside to cool while assembling the remaining ingredients, then turn oven down to 350 degrees
- Take the pork out of the stock and shred meat with a fork - return to stock
- Add the hominy to the stock
- Put the cooled vegetables in a blender and blend until smooth - add mixture to stock
- Stir to combine all the ingredients and bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer about 30 minutes
- While the soup simmers, arrange the strips of corn tortillas on a baking pan lined with parchment paper and bake in the oven about 10 minutes until they are slightly crispy
- Serve soup with tortilla strips and garnish with Mexican Oregano. Other popular garnishes are lime wedges, sliced radishes or chopped onions
