The recipe prices will vary based on fluctuating grocery costs. Please use what is posted as a guide.
This New Mexico Posole Recipe is a hearty, flavorful pork soup or stew made with New Mexico red chiles, garlic, pork, and hominy. This soup is full of rich and spicy flavor, perfect on those cold nights when you need a warm, comforting meal.
It costs $15.77 to make eight servings of this Pozole recipe. The cost per serving is just $1.97.
For a New Mexican Christmas dinner, serve this Posole alongside these Stacked New Mexico-Style Green Chile Enchiladas.
New Mexico Posole
For me, there are a few places at Christmas-time that I crave being at because they scream Christmas to me. These places include Connecticut, where I grew up, any Christmas Market in Europe, and Santa Fe.
Each place is unique and dear to my heart, and each place has its own Christmas flair that is uniquely its own.
Years ago, I finished my BA in Elementary Education at the University of New Mexico and then stayed and taught middle school history for a few years. Santa Fe was 45 minutes from where I lived, and I loved going there as often as possible.
It’s such a beautiful, unique place and has its very own authentic way of celebrating Christmas. Everything from pathways illuminated by luminaries, chile ristras (chile pepper wreaths), and delicious food like this New Mexico Posole recipe!
When I was teaching middle school in New Mexico, every year right before Christmas break, the PTO would put on a traditional New Mexican feast for the teachers. This was a lunch that I looked forward to every year.
On the menu would be New Mexico-style Enchiladas, Tamales, Biscochitos, and this New Mexico Pozole recipe!
Pork Posole is generally served at the pueblos at Saint’s Day feasts and Christmas and New Year’s gatherings across New Mexico.
Ingredients and Cost
Per Serving Cost: $1.97
Recipe Cost: $15.77
- 1.5 ounce dried New Mexico red chiles – $1.64
- 8 cups chicken stock – $2.48
- 2 pounds boneless country-style pork ribs – $7.94
- 3 Tablespoons vegetable oil – $0.09
- 3 15-ounce cans white hominy – $1.68
- 2 medium white onions – $1.40
- 5 large garlic cloves – $0.25
- 1 Tablespoon fresh oregano – $0.25
- 1 Tablespoon lime juice – $0.04
NOTE: The recipe prices are calculated by using grocery store websites. The actual cost of the recipe will vary depending on what ingredients you already have.
Instructions
- First, microwave the chiles and remove the seeds and stems.
- Next, pour the stock into a bowl with the chiles and microwave for 30 seconds. Then let the mixture sit while the chiles can soften.
- Cook the pork, and then transfer it to a plate.
- Then add the hominy to the pot to cook until it is browned and fragrant. Remove the hominy from the pot.
- Add the remaining oil to the pot and cook the onion and garlic. Puree the onion and chile mixture and add it back to the pot.
- Next, stir in the remaining chicken stock.
- Add in the pork and seasonings and simmer for 75-90 minutes.
- Add the hominy to the pot and simmer for an additional 30 minutes. Skim the fat from the top.
- Shred the pork and return the pork to the pot.
- Finally, squeeze in the lime juice and season with salt and pepper to taste before serving with any desired garnishes.
***Watch the recipe video in the recipe card below.
Storage Tips
SERVE: You can keep the Pozole out for about two hours before it needs to be refrigerated.
STORE: Once the soup is cooled, transfer it to an airtight container. Store it in the refrigerator for 4-5 days.
FREEZE: Once cooled, transfer the soup to a freezer-safe container or Ziploc bag. Freeze for 2-3 months. Thaw the Posole in the refrigerator overnight or at room temperature for 4-5 hours.
REHEAT: Place the soup in a saucepan and heat over medium-high heat until heated through.
Recipe FAQ’s
Either! It’s typically spelled Pozole in Mexico and Posole in border states like New Mexico and Texas.
You pronounce it, “po-zo-le.”
Posole directly translates from Spanish to English as hominy. So it’s basically” “stew of maize kernels,” maize kernels being hominy.
Posole is made with hominy, pork, chile peppers, spices, garlic and garnished with shredded cabbage, radishes, avocados, onion, and lime wedges. It’s the stuff my spicy Christmas dreams are made of!
Traditional red Posole is usually served with shredded cabbage, sliced radishes, diced avocados, white onion, and lime wedges. I’ve even seen it served with sour cream, too. Sometimes it’s served with fresh, homemade corn and flour tortillas for dipping into the soup. SO good!
Um, not exactly. Not going to lie; you’ll have some fat from the pork that pools on the soup. But, of course, you can easily remove it with a fat separator if it’s not your thing. But it’s a once-a-year type of recipe, so I indulge!
Yes! It’s low in calories, fat, and sugar and high in fiber.
In traditional Posole recipes that date back to the Aztecs, you use dried hominy soaked in mineral lime to remove the hominy’s outer skin and achieve this soup’s authentic flavor. Unfortunately, I live in Japan right now, and I can’t get dried hominy or mineral lime to ship to me, so canned hominy it is!
Pozole enthusiasts, please don’t skewer me for using canned hominy! Once I get back to the states, I promise to experiment and test this recipe using dried hominy and mineral lime and post the results here!
If you’ve never heard of this dish before, know that it’s some serious comfort food that’s hearty, meaty, and somewhere between a soup and a stew. It’s a very traditional and easy Mexican and New Mexican Christmas dish. It’s red from the reconstituted and pureed dried New Mexican chile peppers.
Cook’s Tools and Ingredients:
- mixing bowls
- large heavy-bottomed pot
- wooden spoon
- immersion blender
- New Mexico dried red chili
- hominy
More Mexican Recipes
- The Best Restaurant Style Refried Beans
- Chicken Enchiladas with Green Chile Cream Sauce
- Cheesy Green Chile Cornbread
- Easy Mexican Rice
- Chicken Tortilla Soup
- Slow Cooker Salsa
- Shredded Beef Enchiladas
- Chile Con Queso
New Mexico Posole Recipe
Ingredients
- 1.5 ounce dried New Mexico red chiles (about 6 chiles)
- 8 cups chicken stock
- 2 pounds boneless country-style pork ribs
- Salt and pepper
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 3 15-ounce cans white hominy rinsed and drained well
- 2 medium white onions chopped
- 5 large garlic cloves minced
- 1 Tablespoon minced fresh oregano
- 1 Tablespoon lime juice
GARNISHES:
- shredded green cabbage
- diced avocado
- sliced radishes
- chopped white onion
- lime wedges
FOR SERVING:
- heated corn or flour tortillas
Instructions
PREP CHILES:
- Place chiles on a paper towel-lined microwave-safe plate. Microwave on HIGH for 60-90 seconds, or until puffed and fragrant.
- Once the chiles are cool enough to handle, remove the seeds and stems.
- Pour 2 cups of stock into a medium microwave-safe bowl. Add the chiles, cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and microwave for 30 seconds or until bubbling.
- Let the mixture sit for 15 minutes so the chiles can soften.
PREP AND COOK PORK:
- Use paper towels to pat the pork dry and season all sides with salt and pepper.
- Add 2 tablespoons of the vegetable oil to a heavy-bottomed pot and heat over medium-high heat until shimmering and small wisps of smoke are coming off the oil.
- Cook until the pork is brown on all sides, about 10 minutes. Transfer the pork to a plate.
COOK HOMINY:
- Add the hominy to the pot and cook, constantly stirring, until the hominy is fragrant and it begins to darken in color, about 3-4 minutes.
- Transfer hominy to a bowl.
MAKE SOUP BASE:
- Add the remaining 1 Tablespoon of oil to the pot and heat over medium heat until the oil shimmers.
- Add onion and cook until softened and beginning to brown around the edges, about 5 minutes.
- Add the garlic and stir, and cook until fragrant, about 30-60 seconds.
- Use an immersion blender or blender to puree the onion mixture and the chile mixture. Then add the onion-chile mixture back to the pot.
- To the pot, add in the remaining 6 cups of chicken stock and stir to combine.
ADD TO SOUP AND SIMMER SOUP:
- Add the cooked pork, oregano, ½ teaspoon of salt, and ½ teaspoon of pepper, and bring it to a boil over medium-high heat.
- Reduce the heat to low and simmer, covered, until the meat is tender, 75-90 minutes.
- Remove the pork from the pot and place it on a plate.
- Add the hominy to the pot and simmer, covered for 30 minutes.
TO FINISH:
- Use a spoon to skim the fat from the top of the soup.
- Shred the pork, discard the fat, and return the pork to the pot and cook until the pork is heated through, about 1 minute.
- Turn the heat off and squeeze in the lime juice.
- Season the Posole with salt and pepper to taste.
GARNISH AND SERVE:
- Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with shredded cabbage, diced avocado, sliced radishes, chopped white onion, and lime wedges (all optional).
- Serve.
Gina says
If I were to replace the pork with chicken, would you recommend using chicken thighs and prepare recipe as written? Thank you.
Jillian says
Yeah, I’d use chicken thighs.
Vicki says
Can’t wait to try this! I live in Albuquerque,New Mexico ! I’m the only one in the house that eats Posole . My husband loves Mexican food but unfortunately Mexican food doesn’t like him. Any way to make smaller amounts or freeze some?
Thanks for the recipe and any help you can give me!
Jillian says
Since you’re going to the trouble of making the soup, I wouldn’t make a small quantity; I’d freeze it. There’s a section called “Storage Tips” in the post above, and I mention how to freeze this recipe. Enjoy! 🙂
Valerie Lewis says
Made this for the first time and it turned out so good! Awesome recipe
I took pic’s
Loretta Robledo says
Being from New Mexico my grandma and mom’s posole recipe was simple, the night before a pork roast or pork chops were cooked in a crockpot. The next morning shred the pork and place back in crockpot with frozen or dried posole and salt. If you want a calorie conscious posole add water till crockpot is full if not use soup from the pork. Cook on high for at least 6 hours, I cook mine for at least 8 hours, the soup should be thick. Eat with prepared chile from pods. We usually eat with chile con queso and tamales. It’s a mexican tradition to eat with lime, onions and oregano.
lbo says
NO microwave heat the chile on a skillet. Its literally like 3 minutes or less