I was reading about the history of Mexico, and came across some interesting info regarding one of their regional contributions to the world of cuisine. A primary building block, the chili pepper, is the fruit from the plants of the genus Capsicum, a member of the Nightshade family. These peppers originated in the South Americas and have been part of the human diet for at least 6000 years! After Columbus...ahem..."fostered" the trade of plants and animals (and humans and communicable diseases), chili peppers quickly found their way across the globe. Thanks to the capsaicin they contain, chili peppers have long been prized for their many uses: medicinal benefits as a topical analgesic and joint anti-inflammatory, a non-lethal weapon, and crop defense against marauding animals are just a few. Nutritionally speaking, these wonder fruits are chock full of vitamin C, B vitamins, potassium, magnesium, and iron!
The history research led to recipe research. Recipe research made me hungry...and thirsty! Although I love pork green chili, I've never made it myself. So, I went out to grab ingredients and picked up a six pack on my way home. Of course I wanted to pair this meal with a beer that would have some connection to green chili. The liquor store I stopped at didn't have a great selection of Mexican beer and I didn't want to use Corona or Tecate. Since the chili pepper is closely associated with Mexico, and pilsners go VERY well with spicy food, I found a beer that I thought would work well enough: Montezuma's Cerveceria Cuauhtemoc Bohemia pilsner. This beer has a slightly hazy, straw color. The body is light with very a mild floral and slightly spicy character from the hops. The malt build is also quite mild, but the finish is very crisp and dry. Definitely not awesome, but it's an ok "thirsty" beer. In the future I think I'll use Negro Modelo instead.
Let's cook!
Time: Prep time is approx. 5 hours. Cooking time can be as little as 4 hours. If you can wait, 5-6 hours is better.
Servings: Approx. 8 servings
Ingredients:
4 tomatillos halved
3 Anaheims halved
4 jalepenos halved
4 poblanos halved
2 small cans of Hatch green chilies (freshly roasted green chilies would be far better if you have the time- but I didn't)
1 onion cut into quarters
1 whole head of garlic with the top sliced off, exposing all cloves
1 15oz can of diced tomatoes drained
1 pork butt 2-3 pounds, cut into bite size pieces
3 cups chicken broth
1 bottle of beer
5 tbs flour
3 tbs oregano
3 tbs cumin
3tbs chili powder
Salt and Pepper to taste
A few dashes of your favorite hot sauce
A few dashes of your favorite hot sauce
1. Set your oven to 425'. Place all of your halved veggies face down on a lightly oiled roasting pan. Drizzle some more oil over them, and place in oven.
2. Heat a large cast iron pot to medium high heat, and brown the pork pieces in 1-2 tbs of oil. Brown in batches if necessary. Don't crowd the pot, or you won't get a good sear. Once all of the meat is browned, remove to a large bowl.
3. When your veggies are done roasting (you want some good brown color spots), place on a cutting board. Put all tomatillos and approximately 1/3 of your peppers, and chilies in a blender and pulse till very smooth. Roughly chop the rest of the chilies and onion into small pieces. Squeeze out the roasted garlic cloves and chop very finely.
4. Heat your pot to medium and add the chopped onions and garlic. Sprinkle the flour over the onions and garlic, stirring slowly, Cook for 1-2 minutes, then add the broth and beer while scraping the beautiful brown stuck bits off the bottom of the pan. Bring to a boil, stirring till slightly thickened. Drop the heat to a simmer.
5. Drop in your browned pork (I chose to smash and tear the pork pieces before adding them back to the pot), tomatoes, canned green chilies, chopped roasted veggies, and pureed roasted veggies.
6. Add the spices and simmer on low for at least 4 hours (I did for 5), stirring occasionally.
Your pork green chili will be dynamite over rice, eggs, potatoes, or enchiladas. I had it in a bowl garnished with cilantro and with warm corn tortillas for dipping, plus a side of black beans with avocado and sour cream. If you come up with another good use, let me know!
Cheers!
The Drunken Chef
