Here's a fun video to start!
We wanted to make a traditional Southwestern dish during our time in New Mexico.
Y'all, I'm just gonna say it right now, we pretty much killed it.
This Chile Verde recipe is incredible - we tweaked a classic recipe from Saveur magazine. We had to make some substitutions based on the ingredients we could find.
Super easy to make on the stovetop in one pot, this recipe just takes some time to cook. But that's what gives it the succulent flavor of a Georgia O'Keefe painting! A wonderful combination of sweet, savory, and moderate spice, this dish is perfect for making on the road.*
CHILE VERDE
Thick pat of coconut oil
1 lb. of cubed pork shoulder
Salt & pepper
4 oz. ground breakfast sausage
1 tbsp. ground cumin
0.5 tbsp. green chile powder
1/4 cup scallions
6 tomatillos, husked, rinsed, finely chopped
1 medium yellow onion
1 serrano pepper, stemmed, seeded, finely chopped
1 green hatch chile, stemmed, seeded, finely chopped
1 green bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, finely chopped
1 cup chicken stock
1 can green enchilada sauce
Roughly torn cilantro leaves for garnish
It definitely wasn't hard to find peppers. What you need to know about the Southwest is that it's basically a giant pepper festival. Peppers are sold by the side of the road. The grocery stores have mountains of peppers: green hatch, serrano, jalapeno, bell. Dried peppers, fresh peppers, roasted peppers, ground peppers, pepper sauce, pepper powder. It's like all the peppers got together and decided, "Let's have a giant pepper meet-up! Let's all buy pepper timeshares in the desert; it's too cold here!!" Many of the grocery stores even roast the peppers themselves. I think this normally occurs near the deli in the vicinity of the towers of stacked boxes of peppers.
First, cut all the veggies! Make sure to wash your hands carefully after cutting hot peppers; don't touch your eyes, whatever you do, while chopping.
Season pork with salt and pepper to taste, then toss with flour.
Add pork slowly in batches and cook in coconut oil over medium heat for just a few minutes until brown! Hear that sizzle! Then remove from heat and set aside in a bowl. Now, brown the sausage in the same pot that you previously cooked the pork in. Again, just a few minutes until brown.
Remove the sausage and put it in the bowl with the pork.
Now things are going to start getting crazy. Put all the veggies you've chopped into the cooking pot, along with cumin and green chili powder. You're going to wonder if you've ever smelled anything so good and your mouth is going to start watering just a little bit; it's ok, that's totally normal at this stage. Cook until soft, for about 15 minutes.
Now put that sausage and pork back in the pot with the veggies! Add the chicken stock and enchilada sauce.
Cook it all together for about 30 minutes, until pork is soft and tender. Throw some cilantro on top and enjoy!! We served our chile verde with tortilla chips and paired it with a fine imported beer, Tecaté. Nom, nom, nom!
*Warning: This dish may make your entire trailer smell like an onion and may attract bears if prepared deep in the forest. We can't be held responsible.