Description
Pozole Rojo is a traditional Mexican soup featuring tender, slow-simmered pork, hominy, and a rich, smoky red chili sauce made from ancho, guajillo, and chile de arbol peppers. This hearty and flavorful dish is typically garnished with fresh toppings like cabbage, radishes, onion, cilantro, lime, and served with crunchy tostadas and optional avocado and Mexican crema for an authentic and satisfying meal.
Ingredients
Scale
Meat and Broth
- 3 pounds bone-in pork butt, chopped into 2-inch pieces (save the bone)
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt (for searing pork)
- 10 cups water
- 1 large onion (yellow or white; roughly chopped)
- 10 cloves garlic (smashed and left whole)
- 3 tablespoons roasted chicken bouillon base
- 3 large bay leaves
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt (or sea salt; use less if using table salt)
Chili Sauce
- 6 dried ancho chiles
- 8 dried guajillo chiles
- 3 dried chile de arbol (or more for extra spice)
- 1 tablespoon oil (divided)
- 2 cloves garlic (left whole)
- 1 quarter white onion (roughly chopped; save the rest for garnish)
- 2 and 1/2 teaspoons oregano (preferably Mexican oregano)
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt (or sea salt)
- 4 cups water (for soaking chiles)
Remaining Soup Ingredients
- 4 cups hominy, drained (approximately from two 25-ounce cans)
- 1 teaspoon white vinegar
Toppings and Garnishes
- 2 limes, cut into wedges
- 1 (10-ounce) package angel hair shredded cabbage
- 10 radishes, very thinly sliced
- 3/4 white onion, finely diced
- 1 cup cilantro, chopped
- 10 tostadas (or tortilla chips)
- 1 sliced avocado (optional)
- Mexican crema or sour cream (optional)
Instructions
- Prepare Pork: Begin by sourcing a 3-4 pound bone-in pork butt. Have it butchered into 2-inch pieces, reserving the bone. Trim off large fat strips and measure about 2 and 1/2 pounds of cubed pork plus the bone for the soup. Freeze any extra meat.
- Sear Pork: Heat a large stockpot or 6-quart Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Sprinkle pork pieces evenly with 1 and 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt. Add 1 tablespoon vegetable oil and sear pork pieces in batches without crowding, about 1-2 minutes per side, until browned. Sear the meat on the bone as well if it has significant meat.
- Make Broth: Return all browned pork meat and the bone to the pot. Add 10 cups water, roughly chopped onion, smashed garlic cloves, 3 tablespoons roasted chicken bouillon base, bay leaves, cumin, and 2 teaspoons kosher salt.
- Simmer Soup: Bring to a boil over medium-high heat (about 20-30 minutes). Once boiling, reduce heat to low or medium-low to maintain a gentle simmer. Cover and cook for 1 and 1/2 hours if using bones; if no bones, simmer 2-3 hours for flavor.
- Skim Foam: Every 30 minutes, uncover pot and remove protein scum and accumulated fat from the surface using a spoon for a clear broth.
- Prepare Chiles: Remove stems, seeds, and veins from ancho, guajillo, and chile de arbol peppers, discarding seeds and stems. Place chile flesh in a dry 12-inch skillet.
- Toast Chiles: Drizzle 2 teaspoons oil over chiles and toast over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until aromatic and lightly browned, about 1-2 minutes. Avoid burning.
- Add Veggies to Toast: Remove skillet from heat briefly and add 2 whole garlic cloves and 1/4 chopped white onion. Stir and return to heat briefly to toast garlic and onion.
- Simmer Chiles: Add 4 cups water to skillet and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium, simmer for 20 minutes, keeping chiles submerged and softening.
- Blend Chile Sauce: Let chile liquid cool slightly, then transfer mixture to a blender. Blend gradually from low to medium-high speed about 60 seconds until smooth.
- Strain Sauce: Pour blended chile sauce through a fine mesh strainer back into the skillet, pressing solids to extract all sauce. Discard solids.
- Season Sauce: Add oregano and 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt to sauce, bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Finish Soup: Once pork is nearly tender and broth is flavorful, skim any remaining scum from soup. Add 1 teaspoon white vinegar and the prepared chili sauce to the soup pot.
- Add Hominy: Drain hominy thoroughly and stir into the soup. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce to medium-low to simmer for 1 to 1 and 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally. For thicker soup, simmer uncovered; for thinner broth, keep lid on.
- Prepare Toppings: Just before serving, cut limes into wedges, thinly slice radishes, finely dice remaining white onion, chop cilantro, and slice avocado. Place shredded cabbage in a serving bowl.
- Warm Tostadas: Arrange tostadas on a baking sheet and warm under broiler for 2-3 minutes, watching carefully to avoid burning.
- Serve: Ladle pozole into bowls, leaving space for toppings. Let each person garnish with cabbage, radishes, onion, cilantro, lime, tostadas, avocado slices, and Mexican crema or sour cream as desired. Enjoy!
- Optional Sides: Serve with cilantro lime cucumber salad or a fresh fruit salad for a complete meal experience.
Notes
- Use bone-in pork for richer flavor, but boneless can work if necessary.
- Remove all seeds and veins from chiles to avoid excessive bitterness and spice variation.
- Regularly skim foam and fat during simmering for a clear, clean broth.
- If broth looks cloudy or unappetizing after cooking, continue to skim and strain to improve clarity.
- Broth simmers longer with bones to develop deeper flavor; cook longer if boneless.
- Adjust chile quantity to your preferred spice level; chile de arbol adds more heat.
