posole mio

The annual Tausworthe Winter Holiday Celebration is discussed elsewhere among these pages, describes other posole recipes that are offshoots of this one, my original. It is basically a descendent of the posoles one finds in villages along the Rio Grande River in New Mexico during the Christmas rush, which is principally red or green chile and pork, chicken, or sometimes tripe (menudo), with broth or stock. My principal additions are indicated by an asterisk (*).

I can’t tell when I scribbled down this recipe, but it had to be about 1990. I remember a visit from my New Mexico outlaws^* around that time, when I fixed this posole dinner for them. Except for the pork, everything else came of a can or bottle.

There were no leftovers.

• 2 lb pork, cubed
• 1 oz olive oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, diced
• 1 (15-oz) can diced tomatoes
• 1 (15-oz) can yellow hominy
• ½ cup frozen corn
• 2 serrano chiles, seeds removed, diced
• 1 (4-oz) can mushroom stems and pieces*
• 1 (4-oz) can roasted mild green chile
• 2 tbsp mild red chile powder
• ½ tsp leaf thyme
• 2 oz jar pimiento, chopped*
• 2 tsp chicken bouillon powder*
• 1 qt chicken stock
• ½ cup dry white wine *
• 1 package gelatin*
• 4 corn tortillas, cut up
• ½ cup black olives*
• ½ cup fresh cilantro, chopped

In a large stew pot, brown the pork in the olive oil, add the onion and garlic, and cook until the onions soften. Add the cans of tomatoes and hominy, the frozen corn, Serrano chiles, mushrooms, green and red chiles thyme, pimiento, bouillon powder, and chicken stock. Sprinkle the gelatin on the wine in a bowl, stirring until dissolved; then add it to the pot. Add the cut up tortillas and olives to the pot.

Bring to a simmer and retain it for about one hour, until the pork is tender and the tortillas have melted and thickened the stew. Add more water if the stew seems too thick.

Serve in decorative bowls and top with cilantro.