Pork Green Chile
It is officially soup season. The tops of the mountains have had a dusting of snow for some time now, my windshield is frosted over each morning and I’ve busted out the crock pot. I love making soup; there is so much room for creativity and experimentation. It is also a great way to use up leftover groceries that may be going bad.
I am especially proud of this recipe. When I heard that the hatch chiles had arrived at Whole Foods, I knew I had to make green chile with the pork shoulder my mom gave me from her 1/2 of a pig that she gets from a local farmer. I had my recipe in mind, but spent quite some time looking for it online. After a while, I realized that I already knew what I wanted to do and that I didn’t need validation from a recipe. Who would have knew, my recipe turned out to literally be the best green chile I have ever eaten. I chose to puree all the ingredients at the end, which gives the chile a nice texture and ensures that you get that delicious pork flavor in every bite; but you can keep the pieces of pork larger if you desire. The amount of chiles in this recipe makes a moderately spicy chile. If you want a more mild chile, reduce the number of chiles.
This chile is great for all sorts of dishes. My favorites are green chile smothered burritos or enchiladas, or just a large bowl of it with avocado and bread to dip. This recipe makes a large batch that is great to freeze.
Pork Green Chile
Ingredients
- 6 to matillos large diced
- 1 1/2 lb roasted hatch chiles seeds removed and chopped
- 1 can diced tomatoes
- 1 1/2 yellow onion
- 6 large cloves garlic
- 2 lb pork shoulder cut into large chunks
- 1/4 C minced cilantro
- 2 T cumin
- 1 T salt
- 1 T black pepper
- 3 C chicken stock
- 2 limes juice & zest
Instructions
- Season the pork with half of the cumin, salt and pepper.
- Sear the seasoned pork on all sides, over high heat in a small amount of canola oil.
- Remove the pork from the pan and reduce the heat to medium. Add the tomatillos, chiles, canned tomatoes and onion.
- Once the pan is deglazed, add the garlic and cook for about 2 minutes.
- Add the pork, veggies and remaining ingredients to a crock pot. Cook on low for 6-8 hours.
- Once the chile is cooked, use a buerre mixer to blend the soup.(Note: If you would like larger chunks of pork in your chile, blend the veggies with the chicken broth separately before adding them to the crock pot to cook.)
