Long, slow cooking time creates deep flavour in red pozole dish | Canada Voices

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In an unassuming Regina strip mall, chef Elizabeth Aparicio is most often in the kitchen or talking to patrons in the dining room of the comfortably stylish Homestead Bar à Vin, where the traditional dishes she learned growing up in Veracruz draw enough people to sell out their regular week-long Mexican-themed pop-ups.

“For me, pozole is about celebration,” Aparicio says of the hearty stew so deeply embedded in traditional Mexican cuisine, having been prepared since the time of pre-Hispanic civilization. For Aparicio, mom to a busy three-year-old and aunt to two teenage nieces, pozole is a comforting part of family gatherings. “It’s a dish we often serve for parties,” she says. “It will often take the combined efforts of my mom and my older brother to cook it, hanging out, drinking, with the occasional argument about who cooks better in the family.”

Pozole rojo, or red pozole, is made with pork, hominy and blended chilies, and while it requires some time on the stove, it isn’t as labour-intensive as the flavour of the finished dish may suggest. All of the cuts of meat benefit from a long, slow cooking time – if you like, simmer the pork, water, onion and bouquet garni in the slow cooker on low for four to six hours before adding the remaining ingredients and cooking for an additional half-hour or so. Aparicio suggests using all pork shoulder for a more economical version.

“I often think back to my mom and my older brother making pozole,” says Aparicio, “and of my mom teaching me how to make it. I’m looking forward to teaching my son to carry on the tradition of bringing family and friends close together in celebration.”

Red Pozole

Pork ribs are added to the pot bones and all, for added flavour. An assortment of fresh, crunchy toppings create a delicious contrast to the rich, soft, mildly spicy soup.

• 5 dry pasilla peppers
• 15 dry guajillo peppers
• 10 garlic cloves, divided
• 2 tbsp dry oregano, divided
• Salt to taste
• 1 lb (500 g) pork shoulder, cubed
• 1 lb (500 g) pork ribs, separated into ribs
• 1/4 lb (150 g) pork belly, cubed (optional)
• 1/2 yellow or white onion
• 1 small bunch fresh thyme
• 1 lb (500 g) cooked or canned hominy, drained

To serve:

• Shredded lettuce
• Finely diced onion
• Thinly sliced or diced radish
• Dry chili flakes
• Dry oregano
• Lime wedges
• Corn tortilla chips

Remove and discard the stems and seeds from the pasilla and guajillo chili peppers, add enough boiling water to cover by about an inch and soak until they’re soft. Blend the peppers (with their soaking liquid) along with five of the garlic cloves and 1 tbsp dry oregano until smooth. Strain through a sieve and set the sauce aside, reserving the solids.

In a deep pot, bring about six litres of water to a boil with salt to taste and half an onion. Add the pork shoulder, ribs and belly. Make a bouquet garni (a small bundle of herbs in cheesecloth, tied with kitchen string) with a small bunch of fresh thyme, 1 tbsp dry oregano and the remaining five garlic cloves and add it to the pot.

Reduce the heat to a simmer, cover loosely and cook for about an hour, until the pork is just tender. Add the drained cooked hominy and the strained chili-pepper sauce and continue to cook until the meat and hominy are very tender, another half-hour or so. As it cooks, fry the reserved chili-pepper solids in a tablespoon or two of vegetable oil for three to four minutes, and add it to the pot as well. Remove the bouquet garni and onion half.

Serve the pozole garnished with lettuce, onion, radish and a pinch of chili flakes and oregano, with lime wedges and tortilla chips on the side, if you like.

Serves about eight.