My dear friend Matthew shared his spicy verde pork stew recipe which I post for you today. "I learned this recipe from an NMSU horticulturalist and desert preservationist while working in the Jornada, camping just a few minutes outside of Hatch. This was our camp meal on Thursday nights before we headed back into Las Cruces or flew home from El Paso for the weekends.
This recipe is all about smoky depth mixed with bitter acidity of hatch green chili peppers. It is not spicy, but if you want it to be, add another type of pepper such as jalapenos. It uses a pressure cooker to make a quick green Chile pork stew, but this recipe supplies alternatives for using a stove-pot or slow cooker."
Kitchen Utensils:
A 4-6 qt pressure cooker (preferred), or a stove pot, or a slow cooker plus a skillet for sauté.
A large bowl, large cutting board, large knife and meat fork for prep.
A ladle is best for serving and can be used to stir the pot. Tongs can be helpful in moving the pork shoulder around.
Ingredients:
• 12 -15 “Hatch” green chilies. Or 4 cans of green chiles, try to get the Fire Roasted ones
(or Anaheim works if you add a jalapeno)
• 1 Dash liquid smoke, preferably mesquite (to taste)
• 1 cup tomatillo salsa or salsa verde, roasted preferred.
• 2 lbs pork shoulder, bone in
• 2 tablespoons of any neutral oil
• 1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
• 5-8 whole garlic cloves (to taste)
• 2 minced garlic cloves
• 6 cups chicken broth, or chicken bouillon dissolved in water
• 1 teaspoon oregano, preferably Mexican Oregano
• 1 teaspoon salt (to taste) or use chicken salt for extra flavor
• 3 bay leaves
• 2 large potatoes, diced 1/2-inch
• 4 carrots, diced ½ inch
Directions:
1) Roast the peppers until the skin turns dark brown and begins to crack. Place them in a plastic bag to finish steaming.
a. Instructions on how to roast with an oven broiler: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lvp6aoH0_cs
b. You can also use a gas grill, gas stove burner, or air fryer to roast
c. You can also use cans of “Fire roasted” green chiles to skip this step.
2) Trim most of the fat from the pork shoulder and discard it.
3) With 1 tbsp oil, brown the pork with bone in on all sides in the pressure cooker.
4) Add ½ cup broth to deglaze the bottom of the pressure cooker and release the pork shoulder from the bottom. Add the bay leaves and 5 cups whole garlic to the broth.
5) Set the pressure cooker lid on, for high pressure at 30 minutes. (Alternatively, you can slow cook it for about five hours until the pork is tender, if you do not have a pressure cooker. )
6) While the pork is cooking in the pot,
a. chop the onion, and remaining garlic in separate piles
b. Peel and roughly chop the green chiles, potatoes, and carrots, placing them into a bowl
7) Once the pork cooked tender, remove it to a cutting board. Drain any excess fat off of the top of the cooking liquid and discard it.
8) Pour the de-fatted pork broth along with the softened garlic cloves and bay leaves, from the pressure cooker into the bowl of potatoes, green chili, and carrots. Add the remaining broth which should cover the carrots and potatoes.
9) Place the onion and remaining 1 Tbsp oil in the bottom of the pressure cooker to sauté, until translucent.
10) While the onion cooks, quickly roughly chop the pork into bite sized chunks and remove the bone. It may still be a little pink, but do not worry about that.
11) Add the chopped garlic with the onions to the pot and stir for 10-20 seconds, then quickly add the potatoes/carrots/broth/garlic/bay leaves mixture, oregano, salt, and stir to deglaze the pot.
12) Add the cut pork to the pot and pour the salsa or any remaining green chiles over it. Add a dash of liquid smoke. Mix to combine.
13) Slow cook until the potatoes are tender, about 20-30 minutes.
Variations:
"I like this to have a pure clear pork broth to showcase the nice bright green chili color. If you like a nutty, thicker background liquid, make a traditional flour medium roux in a separate pan and add it to the sauteed onions before the potatoes and carrots.
A popular on-the-go style lunch is to eat the solids in a pan-fried burrito the next day. If you do this, make sure not to take the liquid, then add some combination of roasted green chiles, beans, scrambled eggs, bacon, or cheese. Grill in a pan or panini press to heat it through and crisp the tortilla."
Suggested sides:
The best sides to go with the hot green chili pork stew are cold dishes with some acidity, including guacamole green salad, grilled tomatoes, elote-style corn, fresh oranges, or southwestern-style coleslaw.