Filled with pork shoulder, hominy, and a fair amount of heat, pozole is the cozy comfort food that isn’t shy about its flavor. This is the stew you make when you’re looking to feed (and impress!) a crowd, or need a soup that will warm you up in the dead of winter. Don’t let the time commitment scare you: This is a set-and-forget-it recipe that truly rewards you for all of your patience. Here’s everything you need to know to make it the best it can be:
How to make pozole:
There’s no getting around it: Pozole takes time to cook. But it’s truly as easy as bringing water to a boil and letting it simmer away while you go about your day. The longer you let the soup simmer, the better it will be. With time, the meat will turn tender, soft, and buttery, the aromas will deepen, and the color will become as rich as the soup tastes. If you want an even easier, more hands-off version, try our slow-cooker chicken pozole.
The spices:
This pozole is meant to be a little spicy, but adjust the heat to your liking by adding more or less of the chiles. We call for 3 different types of dried chiles here to round out the soup’s complexity with each variety’s distinctive characteristics: Some are smokier, some have more fire in them, and every type adds a layer of savory fragrance. To make sure you are extracting more flavor and less spice, take the extra time to pull out the membrane and seeds inside each chile before soaking.
How to top pozole:
The toppings are essential to pozole: They counteract with the heat, and provide a crunch of freshness in each bite. Sweet cabbage and juicy radish will help cool things off a bit, and if you’d like a pop of green, a fresh herb like cilantro is always a good idea.
Ingredients
- 3 lb.pork shoulder, cut into 2″ pieces
- Kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1large yellow onion, quartered
- 3cloves garlic, sliced
- 4 c.low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 tsp.cumin seeds
- 1bay leaf
- 2dried ancho chiles, stem and seeds removed
- 2dried chiles de árbol, stem and seeds removed
- 2dried guajillo chiles, stem and seeds removed
- 3(15-oz.) cans hominy, drained, rinsed
- Thinly sliced radishes, thinly sliced green cabbage, and chopped fresh cilantro, for serving
Directions
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- Step 1
In a large bowl, season pork with salt and pepper. In a large pot over medium heat, combine pork, onion, garlic, broth, cloves, cumin seeds, and bay leaf. Add enough water to cover pork by 2″. Bring to a boil, then cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and bring to a simmer. Cook, skimming foam off top as needed, 1 hour 30 minutes.
- Step 2Meanwhile, in a medium heatproof bowl, soak chiles in 2 cups boiling water for 30 minutes.
- Step 3Transfer chiles and about 1/2 cup soaking liquid to a blender. Blend until smooth, adding more water as needed.
- Step 4Add chile puree and hominy to pot with pork. Cover and continue to simmer, stirring occasionally, until pork is very tender, about 1 hour 30 minutes more; season with salt and pepper.
- Step 5Top pozole with radishes, cabbage, and cilantro.
- Step 1
