Every so often I want an excuse to make a pot of beans. This turned into an excuse to make some beans, because that was the logical accompaniment to some Chile Colorado; besides, I wanted to actually use my food processor.
Ingredients
Chile sauce
- 3-4oz dry California or New Mexico chiles
- 6 cloves garlic
- 12oz beef (or preferred) stock (I use Better than Bouillon)
Carne
- 2lb boneless pork shoulder, 1" cubed
- 1 1/2 Tbsp cumin, 1 tsp coriander, 1/8 tsp achiote, & a dash of cinnamon, ground
- Bay leaves
- Salt, garlic powder and chili powder (or chile powder & sazón) for resting
- 2 Tbsp Lard/bacon grease
Equipment
- Dutch oven
- Food processor (or blender)
- Electric kettle
- sieve or mesh strainer (optional)
Preparation
- Cube the pork shoulder, then toss in the blended salt, garlic powder and chili powder. Set aside to rest while finishing the rest of the dish.
- Boil a pint or so of water; a kettle’s useful for this step. Pull the stems, clear the seeds and strip out the ribs of the peppers, then put them in a heat-safe bowl. Once you’ve stripped all your peppers, pour the boiling water over them and rest a small plate on them to keep them under the water. Cover the bowl to retain heat, and leave it for 15 minutes.
- Peel garlic, pour off the water from the peppers, transfer them into the food processor, add garlic cloves and stock, and start blending. (Optionally, strain for solids.)
- Preheat the oven to 275°F. Heat lard in a dutch oven over medium-high heat, and add pork in batches. Give it time to sear before flipping, and build up some color on the meat before simmering.
- Once all the meat’s browned, toss in the spices, stir to combine, and add the chile sauce. Bring to a simmer.
- Lid the pot, then braise for 3 hours or until near falling apart.
Notes
I loved serving this with a batch of mildly spiced beans and rice, but I gotta try it in different contexts now. Pork shoulder just worked amazingly well.