Oh, y’all. If you’ve never had posole, you’ve gotta make this posole recipe with chilis and pork ribs! I will be making chili a whole lot less now that I know how to make posole. It’s like a chili in terms of flavor and like a bowl of ramen in terms of toppings, and if you didn’t know this about me, I’m all for lots of toppings and condiments.
Now, I want to tell you – I like a quick and easy recipe as much as the next gal, but this one is a project recipe. Most of your time is hands off, but, it’s a project. And you gotta know that going in. But it can be made ahead, which is super helpful for when you make this for your cinco de mayo party!
First, you start with canned hominy. You could make this even more of a project and soak dried hominy over night, but really canned is the way to go. You’ll boil it for 45-60 minutes, until it softens up. If you haven’t had hominy before, the best way I’ve been able to describe it is if corn and beans had a baby.
Then, you’ll add the pork ribs for about 3 hours. Then, you make a quickie chili sauce that gets added to the broth and simmer for another 30 minutes. Then you can enjoy! Or let it cool completely, store it in an airtight container and then reheat when you’re ready (that’s what I did!).
Now, let’s talk toppings! My favorite part. We served up the posole with:
- Avocado slices
- Pickled red onions
- Radishes
- Scallions
- Fresh jalapenos, thinly sliced
- Tortilla chips – so good when they get a little soft from the liquid!
- Queso fresco
- Sour cream
- Pico de Gallo
The posole also makes the most excellent left overs – been enjoying it for a few days of lunch!
Posole with Chilies & Pork
Ingredients
Posole
- 1 15 oz can hominy drained
- 1 medium yellow onion, peeled
- 1 medium red onion, peeled
- 4 bay leaves
- peppercorns
- 5 tbsp salt
- 3.5 lb bone-in pork ribs
- 1 tbsp cumin
- 10 garlic cloves, minced
Chili Sauce
- 2 1/2 oz arbol chiles
- 2 1/2 oz ancho chiles
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 8 cloves garlic
- 1/2 c apple cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 2 tsp salt
Instructions
- Drain hominy from can and rinse.
- To a large pot, add 12 cups of water, peeled onions (whole), bay leaves, peppercorns, 3 tbsp salt.
- Bring to a boil and then simmer until hominy is soft and tender, about 1 hour.
- Cut ribs into 1-2 bones. Sprinkle with 2 tbsp salt and cumin. Place in water with minced garlic.
- Add more water to cover ribs by 1″. Cover the pot and stir occasionally until the pork is falling apart – 2.5-3 hrs.
- Assemble the chili sauce while the posole is simmering.
- Carefully slice the dried peppers and remove the seeds – use gloves! You don’t want to touch your face after touching these peppers without gloves – trust me.
- Place seeded peppers in a large bowl and then top with boiling water to cover. Let the chilies sit for about 30 minutes, until they’re softened. Reserve 1 cup of the liquid before draining.
- Once chilies are softened, add drained chilies to a blender with garlic and onions. Add vinegar, brown sugar, salt, and 1 cup of soaking liquid. Blend until smooth.
- When the pork is cooked through and fall-apart tender, remove the ribs, onions and bay leaves, discarding the onions and bay leaves.
- When the pork is cool enough to handle, remove the meat from the bones, discarding any fat or tendons, and then add them back to the pot.
- Add in blending chili sauce and bring to a boil. Lower heat and allow to simmer for 30 minutes, until flavors are combined.
- Taste and season with salt and pepper if necessary.
- Serve with avocado, scallions, radishes, jalapenos, sour cream, tortilla chips, queso fresco and pickled onions.
