It’s official! I hereby declare it is high time for a yummy in my tummy Lightning-Fast Red Chicken Pozole; Master Punxsutawney Phil’s predictions can be summarized in just three words: “Yup, still winter”!
The weather has gone full-blown bipolar on this front, with some tundra-worthy subzero days absurdly intermingled with regular “heat waves”. You call it “Polar Vortex”, we call it “Winter”; period, blank, blank!
The world’s premier groundhog spoke. We listened. We listened real hard because there is no time like winter for a good Caldo (which are a kind of stew) and they, my friends, superabound in Mexican Cuisine.
It is safe to say that Pozole is a super star in the realm of Caldos. It is prevalent, with slight variations, in many different states in Mexico. Vegetarian, pork-based, chicken-based, shrimp-based, red, green, colorless, you name it!
So, if you’ve ever had pozole and loved it but despaired of ever making it because trying to find the special corn the recipe calls seemed way too complicated well, I say, despair no more. If you use the canned maiz pozolero (Mexican-style hominy) you will have your pozole ready to eat in no time.
This recipe would be great for a family gathering but if the proportion of ingredients is too large for you, just split it by half. You can use pork instead of chicken, or even make it a vegetarian dish using a blend of mushrooms instead.
P.S. El Gringo has heartily given his Royal Seal of Approval to this dish and that has to count for something!
P.S.#2 I would be remiss if I didn’t suggest you give this tasty Green Posole (Pozole Verde) a try!
Ingredients
- 1 6 lbs 9 oz can of Mexican-style hominy (reserve the liquid)
- 3 chicken breasts, cooked, skinned and shredded
- 6 Guajillo chiles, deveined and seeded
- 1 onion, divided, 1/2 finely chopped and 1/2 for the chile sauce
- 4 garlic cloves
- 2 TBSP olive oil
- 8 cups chicken broth
- 1 cup of water
- 1 TBSP oregano plus more for garnish
- 5 black pepper corns
- Bunch of radishes, thinly sliced for garnish
- Sliced Romain lettuce for garnish
- 4 Mexican limes, quartered for garnish (optional)
- Ground chile for garnish (optional)
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Soak the chiles in very hot water for 20 minutes. Using a little bit of the liquid from the chile soaking process in the blender chiles, half onion, garlic cloves, peppercorns and tablespoon of oregano until smooth. Pour through a strainer into a saucepan, add olive oil and cook over low heat until it changes color, about ten minutes.
- In a large pot empty the contents of the hominy can, both kernels and liquid, mix with chicken broth, cup of water, Guajillo chile sauce and shredded chicken and bring to a boil. Simmer for 15 – 20 minutes.
- Serve and garnish with sliced radishes, lettuce, chopped onions and sprinkle some oregano and ground chile on top. Squeeze some Mexican lime juice into the bowl if you’d like. Enjoy with tostadas or tortilla chips.
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