Taking a Break from Baking - Green Chile Pork Stew

Green Chile Pork Stew with All the Sides

I saw that New Mexico green chiles were going to be coming to Berkeley Bowl as a special. Apparently, New Mexico is famous for these green chiles and it is hard to find them outside of New Mexico except for this time a year when some stores have them shipped in. I decided that I wanted to make something with these chiles even though I had never used them before. After doing some research I decided on Green Chile Pork Stew. I found that there are few variations including New Mexico as well as Mexican versions. I chose the New Mexican style because they were New Mexico chiles. The main difference I found in the recipes was the inclusion of tomatillos in most Mexican variations of green chile stew/chile verde.

Here is the recipe I came up with. I combined a couple of recipes' ingredients and procedures and this was the result:

New Mexico Green Chile Pork Stew

Ingredients:

18 New Mexico green chile peppers (I used 8 Anaheim, 5 Big Jim, and 5 Sandia peppers) 

3 jalapenos 

2 tbs vegetable oil 

2 1/2 lbs boneless pork shoulder or butt, cut into 1 inch cubes 

salt 

1 medium onion, chopped 

5 cloves garlic 

1 tbs minced, seeded jalapeno 

1 tsp oregano 

1 1/2 tsp salt 

1 tsp ground cumin 

2 tbs all-purpose flour 

3 cups low sodium chicken stock 

Directions: 

1. Roast the peppers by placing them on a baking sheet and putting them under the broiler. Turn them frequently to get an even char all over the peppers. Alternately, roast on an open gas flame, turning them frequently with tongs until all sides are charred black, about 7 to 10 minutes (you can also roast peppers on an outside grill).
2. Place the blackened peppers in a large bowl or plastic bag (s), and let rest until cool enough to handle, about 15 minutes. This will loosen the skins.
3. Peel the skin off the peppers, and remove most of the seeds and the stems. Chop the peppers and set aside.
4. In a dutch oven or large pot, heat the oil over medium-high heat.
5. Lightly season the cubes of pork with salt and, in batches, add them to the pot, cooking until browned, about 8-10 minutes. Once browned, remove pork from the pot and set aside. If there is a lot of fat left in the pot, pour off excess and leave about1/4 cup.
6. Lower the heat slightly, and add the onions, garlic and jalapenos to the pot and cook, stirring, until tender, about 3 minutes.
7. Add the oregano, salt, and cumin, and cook, stirring, for 1 minute.
8. Add the flour and cook, stirring, without allowing to color, for 2 minutes.
9. Add the reserved, chopped peppers, and stir well to combine. Add the chicken stock, stir well, and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 45 to 60 minutes or until the pork is tender.

*We made cilantro-lime rice to eat with the Green Chile Pork Stew. Cook white rice as directed and mix in handful of chopped cilantro, juice of 1-2 limes and salt to taste.

Store bought tortillas, homemade guacamole and canned refried beans rounded out the meal.