Chile Verde with Pork

 

NEW MEXICO!  A.K.A. The Land of Enchantment, a truly wild and weird place and by far one of the most beautiful states we traveled through on our road trip this past summer.  The skies looked like a psychedelic water color painting 75% of the day, and the pork was braised until tender in a vibrant, electric green stew.  On first sight, I knew I had to have it.  Inspiration moved me brightly upon our return to the Bay Area, so I put on my bolo tie, donned all my turquoise jewelry, did my best Dennis Hopper impersonation and set to work on this recipe from Serious Eats.  While not exactly true New Mexico Green Chili due to the scarcity of fresh Hatch Green Chiles in California, a mixture of Anaheim and Poblanos did the trick.  Pairs perfectly with the movie "Blue Velvet" and PABST BLUE RIBBON!

Ingredients:

3 lbs trimmed pork shoulder, cut into 1-inch cubes

5 Anaheim peppers

5 poblano peppers

2 lbs tomatillos (about 15), husks removed 

5 whole garlic cloves

2 jalapeño peppers, stems removed, split in half lengthwise (feel free to use more if you'd like some more heat)

3 tablespoons vegetable oil 

2 cups loosely packed cilantro leaves

1 large onion, finely diced

1 tablespoon ground cumin

1 quart chicken stock

Kosher salt

• 
• Directions:
• 1. In a large bowl, toss pork with 2 tablespoons salt until thoroughly coated. Set aside at room temperature for 1 hour. 
• 
• 2. Meanwhile, roast poblano and Anaheim peppers by placing them directly over the flame of a gas stove or under the broiler set on high until deeply charred on all surfaces, about 10 minutes total. 
• 
• Place peppers in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let steam for 10-15 minutes, allowing the peppers to cool to the point where you can handle them. Peel the skins, discard seeds and stems, and roughly chop. Transfer to bowl of food processor.
• 

3. If you didn't use the broiler to roast the chiles, turn it on and set to high. Toss tomatillos, garlic, and jalapeños with 1 tablespoon vegetable oil and 1 teaspoon kosher salt. Transfer to a rimmed baking sheet lined with foil. Broil until charred, blistered, and just softened, turning once halfway through cooking, about 10-15 minutes total. Transfer to the food processor along with any exuded liquid. 

• 4. Add 1/2 of cilantro to the food processor, and pulse mixture until it is roughly pureed but not smooth, about 8 to 10 one-second pulses. Season to taste with salt and pepper. 

5. Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 225 degrees. Heat remaining oil in a large Dutch oven over high heat until smoking. Add half of pork and cook without moving until well browned, about 3 minutes. Stir pot and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until well browned on all sides. Add remaining pork and onions and cook, stirring frequently and scraping up any browned bits from bottom of pan, until onions are softened, about 4 minutes. Add cumin and cook, stirring constantly until fragrant, about 1 minute.

6. Add chicken stock and pureed chilies to pot and stir to combine. Bring to a boil, cover, and transfer to oven, leaving lid slightly ajar. Cook until pork shreds easily with a fork, about 3 hours. Remove from oven and return to stovetop. 

7. Skim off and discard any excess fat. Adjust to desired consistency by adding water or boiling and reducing. Stir remaining cilantro into pot and season to taste with more salt. Serve immediately with warm tortillas, diced onions, sour cream, cheese, cilantro, and lime wedges. Chili can be chilled and stored in airtight container in refrigerator for up to 5 days. Flavor will improve with time! 

8. BONUS ROUND: This recipe makes a metric ton of chili, and unless you are feeding a small village, you'll have a fair amount of leftovers.  Add some canned beans (white kidney or pinto, none of that red kidney nonsense) and some corn kernels for a nice bowl of stew for days to come.