Posole With Red Chili Food

POZOLE ROJO (MEXICAN PORK AND HOMINY STEW)

Steps:

• Boil 5 quarts water: Fill a large 10-12 quart stockpot with 5 quarts of water. Set on heat to bring to a boil while you proceed with the next steps.
• Add pork and spices to large pot of boiling water: Once the meat has browned, transfer it to the large stockpot of boiling water. Scrape up any browned bits at the bottom of the pan, and any garlic, and add those to the pot as well. Add the rinsed hominy. Add bay leaves, cumin, and oregano. When you put the oregano in, smoosh together with your hands so that the oregano breaks up more as it goes in. Add a tablespoons of salt. Bring to a simmer, reduce the heat and cook for 15 minutes.
• Add red chili sauce to the pot with the pork and hominy: Add another couple teaspoons of salt. Return to a simmer, lower the heat to just high enough to maintain a simmer, partially covered.
• Cook for 2 to 3 hours until the pork is completely tender: Skim away excess fat. Taste for seasoning and add more salt to taste (you will likely need more than you expect, perhaps a tablespoon or more.) The resulting soup should be rather brothy, as you will be adding a lot garnishes. Add more water if necessary.

POSOLE WITH RED CHILE PODS AND CILANTRO SALSA

Steps:

• Cover the dried posole with boiling water and let stand at least an hour or overnight. Drain, then put it in a pot with rest of the ingredients, except the salsa and avocado. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer, partially covered, until the posole is tender and many of the kernels have opened up or flowered, like popcorn,, about 2 hours. Time can vary a great deal from brand to brand it could be done in 1 1/2 hours or take as long as 3.) Once the posole is clearly tender but not quite done, add 2 teaspoons salt, then season again to taste when finished.
• Ladle the posole into bowls with some of the broth. Stir in a spoonful of cilantro salsa, add some diced avocado to each bowl, then serve with a wedge of lime

POSOLE ROJO

Steps:

• Break the stems off the chiles de arbol and ancho chiles and shake out as many seeds as possible. Put the chiles in a bowl and cover with boiling water; weigh down the chiles with a plate to keep them submerged and soak until soft, about 30 minutes. Transfer the chiles and 1 1/2 cups of the soaking liquid to a blender. Add the smashed garlic and 1/2 teaspoon salt and blend until smooth. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl, pushing the sauce through with a rubber spatula; discard the solids.
• Rub the pork all over with the cumin and 1/2 teaspoon salt; set aside. Heat the vegetable oil in a Dutch oven or pot over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the chopped garlic and cook 2 minutes. Increase the heat to medium high. Push the onion and garlic to one side of the pot; add the pork to the other side and sear, turning, until lightly browned on all sides, about 5 minutes.
• Stir in 2 cups water, the chicken broth, oregano, bay leaf, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 cup to 3/4 cup of the chile sauce (depending on your taste). Bring to a low boil, then reduce the heat to maintain a simmer. Partially cover and cook, turning the pork a few times, until tender, about 3 hours.
• Stir in the hominy and continue to simmer, uncovered, until the pork starts falling apart, about 1 more hour. Remove the bay leaf. Transfer the pork to a cutting board; roughly chop and return to the pot. Add some water or broth if the posole is too thick. Season with salt. Serve with assorted toppings and the remaining chile sauce.

POSOLE WITH RED CHILI

Steps:

• Garnishes.
• Chopped avocado, fresh cilantro, and white onion; thinly sliced cabbage, jalapeños, and radishes; lime wedges.
• Ingredient Info.
• New Mexico chiles are sold at Latin markets, specialty foods stores, and some supermarkets. Look for dried hominy at natural foods stores and ranchogordo.com.
• Preparation.
• Red Chile Purée.
• Preheat oven to 400°. Rinse and dry chiles; place in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet and roast, turning occasionally, until puffed, fragrant, and a slightly darker red, 5-6 minutes. Let cool.
• Wearing gloves, use scissors to stem and halve chiles lengthwise. Discard seeds for less heat. Transfer to a medium saucepan and cover with 6 cups water. Add onion and garlic; season with salt. Bring to a simmer. Cook until chiles are soft, 25-30 minutes.
• Drain chile mixture, reserving liquid. Purée mixture and 1 1/2 cups liquid in a blender until smooth, adding more liquid if needed for a sauce that can coat a spoon. Strain through a medium-mesh sieve into a medium bowl. DO AHEAD Purée can be made 5 days ahead. Cover; chill.
• Posole.
• Season pork shoulder and ham hocks with 1 tablespoon salt. Rub garlic, chili powder, and cumin all over pork; set aside. DO AHEAD Pork can be marinated 1 day ahead. Cover and chill.
• Drain hominy. Transfer to a large heavy pot; add 12 cups water. Stud each onion with 1 clove; add to pot with 2 tablespoons salt and bay leaves. Cover; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, covered and stirring often, until hominy begins to soften, about 1 hour (hominy takes longer to cook than pork, so give it a jump start).
• Add pork shoulder and ham hocks to hominy; pour in water to cover by 1 inch. Cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally and adding more water as needed to keep ingredients submerged, until hominy is tender and pork is very tender and falling apart, 2-2 1/2 hours. Remove onions, bay leaves, and hocks. Discard onions and let hocks cool slightly; pick meat from bones and discard any cartilage, skin, and fat. Return meat to pot and stir in 3/4 cup red chile purée. Season to taste with salt and more red chile purée, if desired.
• Divide posole among bowls. Serve with remaining red chile purée and garnishes.

NEW MEXICAN POZOLE

Steps:

• Drain soaked hominy and put in large soup pot. Cover with water and bring to boil. Let simmer briskly for 1 hour.
• While hominy is cooking, make red chile purée: Toast dried chiles lightly in cast-iron skillet or stovetop grill, just until fragrant. Wearing gloves, slit chiles lengthwise with paring knife. Remove and discard stems and seeds. Put chiles in saucepan and cover with 4 cups water. Simmer 30 minutes and let cool. In blender, purée chiles to a smooth paste using some cooking water as necessary. Purée should be of milkshake consistency.
• Season pork belly and pork shoulder generously with salt and pepper. After posole has cooked 1 hour, add pork shoulder, pork belly, onion stuck with cloves, bay leaf, garlic and cumin. Add enough water to cover by 2 inches, then return to a brisk simmer. While adding water occasionally and tasting broth for salt, simmer for about 2 1/2 hours more, until meat is tender and posole grains have softened and burst. Skim fat from surface of broth.
• Stir in 1 cup chile purée and simmer for 10 minutes. Taste and correct seasoning. (At this point, posole can be cooled completely and reheated later. Refrigerate for up to 3 days.)
• To serve, ladle posole, meat and broth into wide bowls. Pass bowls of diced onion, lime wedges, cilantro and oregano, and let guests garnish to taste.

RED CHILE POZOLE

Steps:

• Heat a large Dutch oven or pot over medium heat. Add 2 tablespoons olive oil, then onion, celery and garlic. Cook 3 minutes, stirring occasionally, then add the zucchini. Cook 5 more minutes, until zucchini is slightly softened, then remove from heat. Transfer vegetables to a plate and reserve.
• Return pot to medium heat. Add remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil, then Protein Starter. Using a wooden spoon, break apart into pieces about 1/2-inch big. Cook 8 to 10 minutes or until Protein Starter is lightly golden. Add ancho chile, adobo sauce, ground cumin, and chile powder. Cook 2 more minutes, breaking up ancho chile with spoon.
• Add vegetable broth, hominy, bay leaves, oregano, and reserved vegetable mixture. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, then reduce to medium-low heat and cook 10 to 12 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Season with kosher salt, if desired.
• To serve, top with cilantro leaves, diced avocado, and radishes. Serve with lime wedges and tortilla chips, if desired.