Chile Verde
Category
main course
Cuisine
Mexican
Servings
8
Prep Time
30 minutes
Cook Time
3 hours
This is one of my favorite comfort foods. Tender pieces of pork are braised in a tangy tomatillo and jalapeño sauce Serve this with rice or tortillas and leftovers make a great enchilada filling.
Author:Fiona Kennedy
Ingredients
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2 lbs. tomatillos, papery husks removed and rinsed well
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6 whole peeled garlic cloves
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2 jalapeńo peppers
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1 yellow onion, papery skin removed and sliced in half
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1 bunch cilantro
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4 Tbs. Fajita seasoning (7124), divided
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2 Tbs. vegetable oil
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3 ½ pounds pork butt, cut into 2-in. cubes
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1 ½ -2 cups low sodium chicken stock
Directions
Heat oven to 450F. Lightly coat a sheet pan with vegetable oil. using a small knife, make 2 small slits in the stem end of 6 tomatillos and insert 1 garlic clove in each tomatillo (this prevents the garlic cloves from burning). Place the tomatillos on the baking sheet, stem side down. Add the jalapeños and the onion halves, cut side down, to the sheet pan. Mist the vegetables with vegetable oil and bake them for 25-30 minutes, or until the tops of the tomatillos are browned. Transfer contents of the sheet pan to a blender and add 1 Tbs. Fajita seasoning and the cilantro. Blend until smooth.
Reduce oven temp to 325F. Heat oil in a large dutch oven over medium heat. Season pork with remaining Fajita seasoning. Add about half of the pork to the pan, making sure not to crowd the pan, and gently brown the pork on all sides. You are just looking to lightly brown the pork cubes so that we don’t burn any or the aromatics in the seasoning blend. Transfer the browned pork to a large bowl and repeat with remaining pork.
Return the pot to the stove and increase heat to medium-high. Pour the tomatillo mixture into the pot and use a spatula to scrape up any browned bits on the bottom of the pot. Add the pork and pour in enough chicken stock so that the liquid just barely covers the pork. Bring mixture to a simmer and place a piece of parchment paper directly on the surface of the pork, cover with the lid and place pot in the oven. Cook mixture about 2 ½ -3 hours, or until pork is tender. Serve with rice or tortillas.