New Mexican posole is a warming, chile-spiced stew made with pork and hominy, a type of corn that has been treated to remove its hull and germ. Traditional versions can require a laundry list of ingredients, while “simplified” recipes often rely on flavorless convenience products. We wanted our posole to be streamlined but still maintain the complex flavor that makes this stew so appealing. Toasting dried ancho chiles deepened their flavor, and steeping them in hot broth provided an extra boost.
Ingredients
- ¾ ounce (about 3) dried ancho chiles
- 8 cups chicken broth, plus extra as needed
- 2 pounds boneless country-style pork ribs, trimmed
- Salt and pepper
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 3 (15-ounce) cans white hominy, rinsed
- 2 onions, chopped
- 5 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh oregano
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
How to Make It
- Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Place anchos on baking sheet and bake until puffed and fragrant, about 6 minutes. When cool enough to handle, remove stems and seeds. Combine anchos and 1 cup broth in bowl. Cover and microwave until bubbling, about 2 minutes. Let sit until softened, 10 to 15 minutes.
- Pat pork dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in Dutch oven over medium-high heat until just smoking. Add pork and brown on all sides, about 10 minutes; transfer to plate. Add hominy to fat left in pot and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant and hominy begins to darken, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer hominy to bowl.
- Add remaining 1 tablespoon oil to fat left in pot and heat over medium heat until shimmering. Add onions and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Transfer onion mixture to blender and add softened ancho mixture. Process until smooth, about 1 minute. Add remaining 7 cups broth to now-empty pot, scraping up any browned bits. Stir in onion-ancho mixture, pork and any accumulated juices, oregano, ½ teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon pepper and bring to simmer. Transfer pot to oven and cook, uncovered, until meat is tender, 1¼ to 1½ hours.
- Remove pot from oven. Transfer pork to cutting board, let cool slightly, then shred into bite-size pieces using 2 forks; discard fat. Stir hominy into stew, bring to simmer over medium heat, and cook, covered, until tender, about 30 minutes.
- Skim excess fat from surface of stew using wide, shallow spoon. Stir in pork and let sit until heated through, about 1 minute. Adjust consistency with extra hot broth as needed. Stir in lime juice and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve.