Peace and Love in the Kitchen

Posole is a pre-Columbian soup made with pork, chilies, posole corn, onions, and garlic. Corn  was a sacred plant in ancient Native American cultures as well as a staple in their diets.  In pre-Columbian times, posole was a communal meal that was made with the meat from a live sacrifice to the gods. Today, we make it with pork or sometimes chicken.  In Mexico and New Mexico, posole is traditionally served during the holidays.  It is a meal for giving blessings.

Note:  When I passed this historical food fact onto my friends, they immediately fired back the question, “By the way, we haven’t seen B. (my husband). Where is he?”  “He had to take a last minute business trip to California” , I said.  Later, after tasting the posole, we all agreed that he sure tasted good.

For most of us, posole is unfamiliar.  Corn posole is just not something you find in any grocery store.  The braised shredded pork and chilies ring lots of bells but the final composition is new territory for many. The stew is thick. The combination of deep red chili heat, moist braised pork and corn posole make every bite taste earthy and ancient.  You can eat it with fork, a spoon, or wrapped inside a warm corn tortilla.

Posole was a new dish for my old friends.  They loved it; they raved about it.  Now they want the recipe. The consensus was that posole is the perfect thing to serve during The Holidays, at New Years Eve or New Years Day.  One of them plans to make it for her Super Bowl party.

Note:  While posole is not difficult to make, it is best made 2 days before you plan to serve it.  This gives the flavors time to marry. Serve with warm corn tortillas and an assortment of garnishes: shredded cabbage, diced avocado, and sliced radishes.

Note:  Authentic posole is made with posole corn which you can buy dried or frozen online. Click here. Hominy is a fine substitute and is available at most grocery stores.  Take note that hominy is a different kind of processed corn and lacks the earthy flavor of corn posole.

Note:  My grocery store sells guaillo chiles in bags displayed with the dried mushrooms.  The anchos are in the produce section.  If your store doesn’t carry them, order them online.

Note:  Pork butt is fatty.  Don’t worry about it when you begin.  A good bit of the fat is picked out from the meat after it is cooked while you shred it.  The rest will melt and rise to the top of the stew.  Skim it off or lay a paper towel gently on top.  The towel will soak it up.  Repeat until it’s all gone.

Tip:  You will be working with chilies when making the sauce.  Wear gloves or wash hands with soap and water when you are done.  DO NOT touch your face especially do not rub your eyes.  It will burn like a mother.

Tip:  Don’t be intimidated by making fresh red chili sauce.  It is not hard.  For a video demonstration, click here. (The sauce made in this recipe is slightly different from the video, but the gist of it is the same.)

CORN POSOLE

2 cups dried posole, cooked according to package instructions or 2 (29 oz) cans white hominy, drained.

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 tsp salt plus more for seasoning

freshly ground black pepper

5 lbs boneless pork shoulder or butt, cut into large chunks

1 onion, finely chopped

12 cups water

6 guajillo chiles, stemmed and seeded

2 ancho chilies, stemmed and seeded

1 cup chile soaking water, strained

1/2 medium yellow onion, quartered

5 cloves garlic

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 tsp dried Mexican oregano or 1 Tbsp fresh minced

1 tsp ground cumin

1 shake Tabasco sauce

1 tsp salt

3-4 limes cut into wedges

1 bunch fresh radishes, stemmed and thinly sliced

1 bunch green onions, white and green parts, thinly sliced

cilantro, coarsely chopped

2 avocados, chopped

Fresh Corn tortillas

1.  COOK POSOLE:  Cooking dried posole is like cooking dried beans.  Follow the directions on your package.  Usually, you soak it overnight in cold water and then drain and cover it with water plus three inches. Bringing it to a boil, and then lower heat to simmer until the kernels soften and begin to pop open, about 1 hour.  If you are using canned hominy, all you need to do is drain and rinse it.

2.  COOK SOUP:  In a Dutch oven, heat oil.  When hot, add pork in batches if necessary so the pieces do not touch when they cook.  Sear pork until brown on all sides, about 2 minutes per side.  Remove seared pork to a plate when done, cut into 2-3 inch pieces and cover to keep warm.  Add onion and garlic and saute until tender, about 5 minutes.  Add pork back to the pot and then add water and salt.  Bring to a boil over HIGH heat.  Lower heat and SIMMER uncovered for 1 hour skimming off any scum that rises to the surface.  Cover and SIMMER until pork is falling-apart-tender, about 1 hour more.  Ladle soup into a strainer set over a large saucepan removing meat to a plate and then pressing down on the vegetables to extract as much of the broth as possible.  Discard vegetables. Skim off as much fat from the broth as possible.  When meat is cool enough to handle, shred it, removing and discarding as much fat as possible.  Add shredded meat back to the broth.  Bring strained soup back to a SIMMER while you make the red chili sauce.

3.  MAKE RED CHILE SAUCE: Fill a medium saucepan with water and bring to a boil. When water boils, remove from heat and add chilies. Weight the chilies down with a plate or water-filled glass so the chilies are not floating.  Soak until the chilies are soft, about 30 minutes.  Remove chilies and then strain water reserving 1 cup of it.  Put chilies, 1/2 cup of the soaking water, onion, and garlic in a blender and puree until smooth, about 2 minutes.  Strain the mixture through a sieve into a large skillet. Add olive oil,  remaining 1/2 cup chile soaking water, oregano, cumin, Tabasco, and salt and stir.  Bring sauce to a SIMMER and cook 3-5 minutes.

4.  COMBINE:  Add chile sauce and posole to soup and stir to combine.  Simmer over MEDIUM heat for 30 minutes.  Stir in lime juice.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.

5.  SERVE:  Posole should be served with a choice of several garnishes for each diner to add themselves.  Set out bowls of lime wedges, shredded cabbage, sliced radishes, chopped green onions, and chopped avocados.

“PUMPKIN” CAKE WITH PECAN STREUSEL AND WHIPPED CREAM

Adapted from Sunday Suppers at Lucques:  Seasonal Recipes from Market to Table by Suzanne Goin with Terry Gelber