Posole recipe, tips and tricks - what you got?

[sbornia]

I picked up a bag of blue corn at the Santa Fe market a few months ago. The farmer said it would be good for posole, which I've never made before. Lots of recipes on the Web, but I trust you all far more.

Steve G. and any other Southwest cooking fans, what advice can you share?

Thanks!

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[Peter Polack]

Try contacting Patrick O'Grady, former VeloNews contributor. He's always cooking up such dishes and photographing them for his blog, which is worth following for the laughs and funny cynicism. E-mail address is at the bottom of the page.

[Shinomaster]

I watched my ex girlfriends dad (from New Mexico) make it once.. I believe he just boiled cubed pork, quartered onions, and then the corn.. what was interesting was how it was garnished with hot red chili Colorado and served with flour tortillas.

[spopepro]

Hmm... it's hard to tell for sure, but those don't appear to have been limed and hulled. It's possible to diy that, but I'd recommend against it.

I've had good success with this recipe. The book it's from is excellent, even just as a read. You should make some posole and consider buying it.

[sbornia]

Hmm... it's hard to tell for sure, but those don't appear to have been limed and hulled.

Good eye - they have not been limed, which I didn't really understand when I bought them, but now do after reading up on the dish. The farmer said they'd require a bit more cooking, and would retain a more chewy texture since they had not been processed.

I'll take a look at the book for sure, thanks.

It looks like there are many, many different approaches to making posole. Most recipes call for canned hominy that's already been precooked to some extent; in contrast, I think I'll need to soak mine overnight, then cook it for another hour or three prior to putting it in with the rest of the ingredients.

[Shinomaster]

The recipes really seem to vary and it likely depends on if it's from the American southwest or Mexico.

[Dmoeny]

I grew up in the SW. You appear to have what people called chicos, which is just dried corn. We usually added those to a pot of beans. For posole, you want some that have been treated with lime. Anyway, here's my recipe, as learned from my ex mother in law, who'd been making it for probably 50 years before she taught me. Soak the posole for a few hours or overnight. Trim out something like a pork shoulder, cover with water and pressure cook with the posole till the both are cooked (20-30 min, usually). Remove pressure, add a minced clove or 2 of garlic, salt, pepper, mexican oregano and coarse ground New Mexico chile to taste. Simmer for awhile until everything comes together, then serve in bowls with raw minced onion, oregano and extra chile to taste. Some add radishes and or cilantro to the mix, but do whatever makes you happy.

The perfect winter meal.

Dave