Rainy Day Pozole

[Robert-R]

I was going to man-up & cook this outside... but it rained for the first time since May - real hard... 2.75" total.
So this was a kitchen cook.

Got some nixtamal from my favorite tortilleria.

& some surtido para pozole from the Mexican supermarket. I believe it's a mix of pig knuckle, shank, butt & chunks of fat.

3 quarts water to a pound of nixtamal (some salt/chopped garlic, too), 2 quarts water to the puerco (chopped onion, also) & some heat gets things going.

Skimmed the froth off the meat.

Stemmed & seeded some anchos (real nice ones, too - soft & sticky... kinda like raisins). Ended up with 2 1/2 ounces net.

Put them in hot water for 20 - 30 minutes.

Pureed them in the water.

& strained the mixture.

Several hours later, when the nixtamal & meat were tender, removed the meat, separated bones/fat & chopped it.

Took the broth from the meat.

 

[Robert-R]

Added it & the strained chilies to the nixtamal.

& let things simmer for another hour.

So... a bowl of pozole...

& some crumbled Mex oregano, chopped onion, radish slices, cilantro... Time To Eat!!!

¡Fue grandioso!

 

[Cliff Bartlett]

Perfect for a rainy day Robert! Excellent looking cook. Boy, first the fire and now the rain, mud and slides. Be careful down there!

 

[Robert-R]

Thanks, Cliff.

We're fortunate in that the natural disasters haven't affected us or anyone we know.

 

[Dustin Dorsey]

Killer cook!

 

[Phil Perrin]

That looks amazing! I've always wanted to try pozole. Got any left?

 

[JeffG]

I had to google pozole, does Nixtamal = the same thing as Hominy?
Perfect rainy day comfort food Robert..Ill take a bowl or two.

 

[Tony R]

Well done!!

 

[Mike in Roseville]

Nice job. I don't usually make "red" posole anymore (wife prefers "green"), but like how you strained the mixture. That's a critical step.
I've even done it with various chili powders before (in a pinch) with a great result too!

 

[Clint]

I had an old friend who loved hominy, I tried it once 20 years ago probably not far from straight from the can, and didn't think much of it. Seeing this post makes me want to try it again!

"Nixtamal is an Aztec word to describe corn that has been partially cooked and soaked with calcium hydroxide, otherwise referred to as cal or lime. Calcium hydroxide is simply the dust that results from scraping a limestone rock. The Aztec would grind corn against the limestone found in the riverbeds, and hence discovered the benefit of the interaction of this natural element with corn. The process of nixtamalization was first developed in Mesoamerica where maize was originally cultivated. There is no precise date for when the technology was developed, but the earliest evidence of nixtamalization is found in Guatamala’s southern coast, with equipment dating from 1200-1500BCE.

Nixtamal can be ground into masa (a corn dough) for making tortillas or similar patted disk (finely ground) or tamales (coarsely ground), or can be kept in its whole form to make pozole, otherwise known as hominy."

very interesting!

 

[Rich Dahl]

Didn't have a clue what pozole was, now I want some. Great cook Robert.

 

[Barb D]

WOW!!! That looks fantastic and I'm sure it tasted the same also. Great job Robert.

 

[CaseT]

Love pazole! Yours looks great!

 

[ChuckO]

Wow Robert, that's hitting it out of the park. Nicely done, nicely DONE

 

[Mark B]

Beautiful soup !