There are two kinds of foods I’ll always adore.
One is any jumble of stuff from a big pot. Jambalaya. Chili. A hearty soup. Chicken and dumplings. My mom’s Sierra Chicken Stew.
The other is Mexican food. If I ever had to choose my last meal, it’d be Mexican.
So you can imagine how I feel about posole, a hearty Mexican stew.
ah-aaaahhh! (Angels singing.)
The stew itself is pretty simple. A thick green chile/tomatillo or red chile/tomato base studded with chunks of tender meat and hominy. But then it gets gussied up with toppings. Lettuce, onions, radishes, cheese, cilantro, tortilla chips—any or all. It’s kind of a culinary mullet—yep, I used the phrase “culinary mullet”—warm, soulful, and nurturing in the bowl, with a party of fresh, flavorful goodies on top.
I created a pork posole recently for the National Pork Board. Still hungry for it, I made another batch, with chicken, for New Year’s Day.
Chicken Posole Verde (here’s the recipe) would be perfect Superbowl food, kept warm in a crockpot or on the stovetop, with toppings nearby.
But really, it’d be perfect all winter long, when a big pot of anything warm and hearty is so, well, heavenly.
