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If you have never had, nor heard of pozole, it is basically a Mexican soup that has this wonderful corn, and is loaded with super tender pork, a simple stock (in this case a red stock), and is garnished with shredded cabbage, thinly sliced radish, and fresh cilantro. It is a soup to be reckoned with. In a nutshell, it is just plain awesome.

So lets get started on making this wonderful pozole rojo. Rojo by the way means red in Spanish.

Ingredients: [Print this Recipe]

• 2 lbs of pork shoulder, cut into 2 inch cubes
• 6 Guajillo chile peppers, stems and seeds removed
• 4 Chile de Arbol peppers, stems and seeds removed
• 2 cups of boiling water
• 2 large, white onions, diced
• 1 head of garlic, thinly sliced
• 12 cups of water
• 2 cups of chicken stock
• 1 tbsp salt
• 1 tsp white pepper
• 1 tbsp Mexican oregano, crushed with your fingers
• 30 oz can of Hominy, or Mexican corn, drained
• 1 lime, quartered
• 10 radishes, thinly sliced
• 3 cups of green cabbage, thinly shredded
• Fresh cilantro
• Fresh Jalapeno peppers, seeds removed, sliced (optional)
• Tortilla chips or fresh corn tortillas (optional)

Begin by hydrating the peppers. Add the chile peppers to the two cups of boiling water, cover, and set aside for about 30 minutes.

Next, add the pork to your soup pot. Cover with the 12 cups of water, and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to medium. During this time, start skimming the brown foam that comes to the top of your stock, and start discarding that. Continue this process until you no longer have those impurities. Continue cooking the pork for about 2 1/2 hours, until the meat is super tender. Once the meat is cooked, remove the meat with a slotted spoon and place in a bowl. Let the meat cool so that you can handle it with your fingers.

Once the chiles have rehydrated, add them to a blender with about 1 cup of the water that they were hydrating in. Add the two cups of chicken stock to the blender, along with the salt, pepper, and garlic.  Blend until you have a very smooth mixture.

If you have a mesh strainer, now is the time to use it. Your goal is to add the blended chile mixture through the strainer, just in case there are any portions of the flesh from the chile peppers. Strain that directly into the pork stock and give a good stir. You now have the beginnings of your red stock, the rojo in pozole rojo. Give yourself a pat on the back, and carry onward.

Once the meat is cooled, tear it up into manageable bite size pieces and add it to the stock. Toss in the diced onions, as well as the strained hominy. Give it a good stir, bring it to a simmer, cover and let it cook for an additional two hours.

Once the soup is cooked, give a couple of good ladles of the soup into your bowl, and top with the jalapeno slices, radishes, cabbage, cilantro, and lime. Not all of it, just generous serving of each.

To eat, well,  you can probably figure this one out. Get your spoon and tortilla chip ready. Mix the cabbage into the soup, along with some of the radishes and cilantro, and dig in. Every bite is amazing. Tender bites of delicious pork pairs ever so nicely with the subtle heat of the stock. Then you can the tender bites of hominy and the crunchiness of the cabbage and radish. Wow! Comfort in every bite. This batch of pozole can be eaten of the course of a few days, and gets better every day.

Classic, comforting, and truly Mexican, this pozole rojo is worth making. Trust me.

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Lets get started.

Ingredients: [Print this Recipe]

• 4 whole jalapeño peppers, large and firm, stems removed
• 1 tbsp canola oil, to lightly coat the peppers
• 1 1/2 tsp sea salt
• Heavy cast iron skillet

That is it. Three ingredients that when combined, will knock your socks off. Let me also state that these peppers can be hot, so if you are into the hot food, this is great. Remember, the seeds are in there, but if you eat around the edges, you should be just fine.

Begin by adding the peppers to a mixing bowl. Add in the oil, and mix around until you know all of the peppers have been coated with the oil.

Add these to a cast iron skillet, and heat on medium to medium-high heat. As the skillet comes to temperature, begin moving the peppers around in the skillet, making sure all of the sides become roasted. This should take anywhere for 8-12 minutes for them to roast.

As soon as the peppers are fully roasted, carefully move them to the mixing bowl and shower them with the salt, gently mixing. Add them to a serving bowl and have your guests (that like hot and spicy) add one to their plate. You simply eat them whole, starting with the smaller tip, and eating your way down.  These can be served alongside just about anything, and they go perfect if you and your friends are drinking beer.

The flavor, although mildly spicy in my opinion, is really amazing. Something about the salt and the roasted flavor of the chile really get the meal going. Simple, fun, and delicious. What could anyone else ask for? Enjoy.

Maybe some of you have once heard about a Mexican hot dog, and might have questioned it, much like I did. I recall seeing a show on television and they were talking about Mexican hot dogs, somewhere in the southwest portion of the United States. What it ended up being, and don’t get me wrong, it looked great, was a bacon wrapped hot dog, with tomatoes, onions, jalapeno peppers, and a cream sauce. Once again, it looked great, but I had a better idea, and something I thought would be a bit more authentic. I did not want to go with a bacon wrapped hot dog because I had already did this with my corn dog recipe, as well as simply wrapping the hot dogs in bacon and grilling them. Both amazing, but not what I was looking for in what I am calling the Mexican hot dog.

Let’s get started.

(Serves 1)

• 2 flour tortillas, warmed, per serving
• 3 tbsp refried beans, cooked
• 2 roasted jalapeño peppers, seeds and stem removed, sliced
• 1 hot dog, make it your favorite one, cooked
• 1/2 cup of shredded Colby jack cheese
• Sriracha sauce, optional

Begin by preparing all of your ingredients. To roast the peppers, I simply add them to a hot cast iron skillet, turning along the cooking process, until they are nice and blackened on all sides. Then, remove them, let them cool to the touch, and clean them.

Cook your hot dog any way you like. For this particular recipe, I like to steam them until fully cooked, then lightly sear them in the hot cast iron skillet, just for a little color.

To assemble the hot dog, warm the tortillas until they are nice and flexible. You can do this on a skillet, or in a microwave.

Remove one of the tortillas, spread the refried beans on the base of the tortilla, then top with about 3/4 of the cheese, then the sliced jalapeno peppers. Top with another warm tortilla, pushing down just a bit to melt some of the cheese, then top with the cooked hot dog and the remaining cheese.

You want your tortillas flexible at this point in time. If they are not warm and flexible, either add them back to a preheated skillet, covered, or in the microwave for about 15 seconds, until they are nice, soft, and flexible.

Roll the tortilla, until you have the seam side down. The refried beans and cheese will serve as a the glue, keeping everything in tact.

Slice it in half and serve with Sriracha sauce for additional heat.

This Mexican hot dog is creamy, has a nice snap from the hot dog, a bit of heat from the roasted jalapeños, and when taking a bite, just blends all of those flavors into one.  I hope you enjoy.

A torta ahogada is a particular type of Mexican sandwich that is derived from Guadalajara, but can be found, or sought after in other Mexican cities. Typically, the sandwich can be fully submerged in a chili sauce made from chili de arbol, and depending on the the amount of chilies, the sauce can get rather spicy, very much how I like it. When you think of a fully submerged sandwich, you might think like I do, probably not the best way to eat a sandwich, so instead, I simply ladle on a bunch of the sauce in the interior, giving a better approach to eat the sandwich.

As the sauce has a bunch of ingredients, this sandwich is worth making and is great for a party. It is not only fun to make, but it is also a seriously great sandwich to eat.

Let’s get started.

Ingredients for the Carnitas: [Print this Recipe]

• 2 1/2 lbs of pork shoulder, cut into large cubes
• 1 orange, juiced
• 2 limes, juiced
• 5 cloves of garlic
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp cracked black pepper
• 1 tsp cumin powder
• water

Add these ingredients to a bowl, giving a good mix and let marinate for at least 30 minutes.

During this time, begin making the sauce for the ahogada.

Ingredients for the Sauce:

• 20 chile de arbol, stems and seeds removed
• 1/2 cup of cider vinegar
• 3 Roma tomatoes, quartered, pulp removed
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp cumin powder
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1 white onion, roughly chopped
• small pinch of ground cloves
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup of fresh cilantro, leaves and stems
• 1/2 cup of water

Place all of your ingredients in a food processor and pulse until you have a smooth sauce. Feel free to strain the sauce through a fine mesh strainer if you prefer to remove any of the solids. I prefer to leave some of the texture in the sauce. Set aside.

Ingredients for making the sandwich:

• Hard rolls, like an Italian hard roll or a French Batard (You want a hard exterior and a soft interior)
• Pickled red onions (for a quicker pickle, you can add sliced onions to orange juice, with a couple of bay leaves for about two hours)
• Avocado, sliced (optional)

To cook the carnitas, add the marinated pork and the marinade to a heavy pot. Pour in water to just cover the top of the pork. Cover, turn the heat on medium, then uncover in 2 hours. Turn up the heat and reduce all of the liquid, stirring along the way. Continue to cook the pork, getting the exterior a bit browned and crisp. Once the liquid is dissolved, turn off the heat, and poke a fork into it. The pork should fall apart. Resist to try the pork, as you might eat a lot of it!

To make the sandwich, slice your bread lengthwise, making a nice pocket. Do not slice all of the way through.

Stuff the carnitas into the pocket, and pour on the sauce. Top with pickled onions and dig in.

Three words. Nothing like it. Hope you enjoy.

As I waited for the waitress to come by, I noticed one local ordering a dish from behing the glass wall. See the glass wall is where all of their daily specials are located, and the one I noticed this guy ferociously digging into with his tortillas was this plate full of rib tips and a pool of tomatillo sauce. I was hungry, and excited, just watching this guy. I had to order.

So the waitress came by and said “three tacos al pastor, si?”. I smiled politely and said, “No, I would like whatever that guy is eating”. I waited a few minutes and sure enough a plate came packed with rib tips smothered in salsa verde, along with rice, beans, and warm corn tortillas. To say the least, I was extremely excited, and a bit cautious, as it appeared a bit messy, and I knew I had to attack this dish with my hands and tortillas. I inspected every bite, and took in every flavor. Every bite was packed with flavor. The pork, rib tips at that, were super tender and packed with just the right amount of heat from the salsa verde. I could not stop. I loved it so much that I had to try to recreate that dish over the weekend. And that I did.

Ingredients:

• 1 rack of baby back ribs, sliced down the middle (ask your butcher)
• 8 whole tomatillos, husks removed, and rinsed
• 3 whole jalapeno chilis
• 3 whole banana peppers
• 4 cloves of garlic
• 1 cup of fresh cilantro
• 1 medium white onion, cut in half
• 1 cup of chicken stock
• 1/2 tbsp salt, 1 tsp additional
• 1/2 tbsp cracked black pepper
• 1 tbsp canola oil

Begin by heating a large cast iron skillet on medium heat. Once heated, add the tomatillos, jalapenos, banana peppers, garlic, and onion to the skillet. Cook for about 20 minutes, rotating every item in the skillet, until they build a nice char.

During this time, get a medium to large pot out. Heat it on medium heat, and add the oil.

On a cutting board, cut your rib tips into segments, about every third rip tip. Season the front and back of all rib tips with salt and pepper.

Add the ribs to the heated pot and begin browning them. If they all do not fit into the pot, do not worry, just work in batches. Let them cook for about 4 minutes, or longer, per side, then remove to a plate, and continue with the other batch, if necessary.

Your vegetables should be nice and charred by now. Carefully transfer everything, but the garlic to a blender. Remove the shell from the garlic, and place the roasted cloves into the blender. Add about one teaspoon of salt to the blender along with the stock. Place the cap on the blender, cover the top with a towel, and pulse into a nice green sauce.

Add the sauce to the large pot, bring to a medium heat, and begin scraping the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon as you continue to stir. Add all of the rib tips back to the pot, reduce the heat to a simmer, cover, and cook for one hour. Take a peek about mid way through and give another stir. If it begins to thicken a bit, add about 1/2 cup of water, then give a stir, if not, just give a nice stir, cover, and wait.

When you are ready to serve, taste the sauce and adjust any salt should you desire.

To plate, add some Mexican rice to a plate, along with a generous amount of pork and salsa verde, and then add some refried beans. Serve with warm corn tortillas.

If you are looking for a Mexican dish outside of your standard burrito, taco, or enchilada, this is a must. It is not the prettiest thing on a plate, but this one is amazing in itself. Not only that, but you get to eat with your hands, and get some really great assistance with warm, corn tortillas. Enjoy!

The panucho is similar to a salbute, and it is made with masa, cooked on a dry, hot cast iron skillet until slightly puffy, then a slit is made in the tortilla and it is stuffed with refried beans, sealed, then lightly fried.

So on one Sunday morning, I made my fresh tortillas, homemade black beans, and got to work. The result. Well, the result was something amazing. Everything that you would expect from a fresh tortilla but with the hidden surprise of the black beans really made the Yucatan dish worth making.

Ingredients: (serves 6 or more)

• 2 cups masa harina
• 1 1/4 cup of cold water, plus 1 tbsp
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 15 oz can of  black beans
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 small onion
• 1/2 cup of chicken stock
• 1 cup of vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup of shredded chicken, cooked, per panucho
• Your favorite salsa
• Mexican Pickled Onions
• Shredded lettuce
• Tomato, thinly sliced
• Fresh cilantro, optional
• Fresh Avocado slices, optional

I will go out on a limb and say that fresh tortillas beat store bought tortillas any day of the week. Not only that but they are super easy to make, especially corn tortillas. You can buy masa harina from pretty much any grocery store nowadays, and if you want to do it right, you get a tortilla press. Tortilla presses are under ten dollars, but heck, you can use a couple of dinner plates as well. The goal is to flatten the masa into a 4 inch tortilla.

To make the masa, add the masa harina, water, and salt to a mixing bowl. Mix the ingredients with a wooden spoon until smooth. You want the dough to be just a little bit sticky and when formed into a golf ball shape and flattened the edges do not easily crack. If they do, add about a tablespoon more of water to get the perfect consistency.

Form the dough into about 12 balls. Line your tortilla press, or plates with plastic wrap. Lightly press down to form the balls into about a 1/4 inch thick, and about 4 inches in shape.

To make the beans, add the can of beans to a pot. Toss in the garlic, onion, and stock. Cook for about 10 minutes. Toss in a blender to get them into a nice creamy consistency. Set aside to cool.

Heat a large cast iron skillet on medium to high heat. Add one or two tortillas and cook for a few minutes. Flip and cook another minute or so. They should begin to puff just ever so slightly. Remove to a plate. Continue with the remaining tortillas.

Now is the fun part. Take a sharp knife and ever so slightly cut into the tortilla, making a pocket. Think of it like a pita. You are getting your knife into the tortilla, being careful not to go through the other side, and make a big enough, as well as long enough slit so that you can form your beans into the pocket. The knife should be able to insert into the pocket, with about a two inch slit at the top. See my picture below on the cut.

Add the oil to the preheated skillet.

With a small enough spoon begin adding the cooled beans inside of the tortilla pocket. Gently press on the tortilla to move the beans around inside the pocket. You should be able to fill a thin layer of beans on about sixty percent of the interior of the tortilla.

Press to seal at the top of the slit. The beans act like a glue, so that should be easy. Add to the heated oil and shallow fry until they are a light golden brown. These should only take a couple of minutes to cook. Remove and place on plate lined with paper towel, or a wire rack to let any excess oil drain. Keep the tortillas warm either by placing them in a tortilla warmer, or an oven at very low heat, around 200 degrees. Repeat.

To make these panuchos, take a tortilla, top it with shredded chicken, lettuce, tomato, cilantro, and pickled onions. Add salsa or avocado if you desire. The fun part is you can top with any of your favorite ingredients.

Not only was it extremely easy to make, but every bite was pure joy. I hope you enjoy.

Sure enough, I did.

One thing I love about Mexican corn is not only how simple it is, but more importantly the creaminess from the mayonnaise, and the subtle heat from the chili powder. I think I am drooling just thinking about the corn. So I decided to take some of the basics of what I did for the creamed corn and turn it into the flavors I loved so much from Mexican corn, and boy am I glad I did.

Lets get started.

• 3 whole ears of corn, husked, and grilled until nicely charred
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup of cream
• 1 tsp granulated sugar
• 1 tbsp mayonnaise
• 1/2 tsp salt, more to taste
• 1/2 tsp chili powder
• 1/4 cup of cotija cheese, or substitute parmesan cheese
• 2 tbsp fresh cilantro
• 1 lime, cut into wedges

Begin by grilling your corn. Remove the husks, and wash the corn with cold water. Place on a grill, cooking on all sides until nice and charred, but not overly burnt.

Once the corn is cooked, remove them from the grill and let them cool to room temperature.

When they are cooled, take each cob, standing it upright, and run a knife down the the side of the cob cutting off the kernels, cutting as close to the cob as possible. Do this on a baking sheet as the cobs like to fly around a bit. Save the cobs as we are going to save those for a bit more flavor.

Once you have all of the corn cut off the cob, bring a small pot to medium to low heat on the stove. Add the cream and the cobs. If you have to break the cob in half, do that. Let the cobs cook in the cream for about 15 minutes.

Remove the cobs with some tongs, but before doing so, take the back of a knife and run it down the cob, getting as much of the flavor out of the cob, and any remaining cream that got into it.

Once all of the cobs have been removed, add in the butter, corn, sugar, salt, chili powder, and mayonnaise. Give a good stir, and cook until the corn has been heated through. This will only take a few minutes.

Next add in the cotija cheese. Stir, and get ready to eat.

When you are ready to serve, plate in a small bowl, top with some chopped cilantro, a lime wedge, and some additional cotija cheese.

Talk about a creamed corn that rocks in flavor! Try this if you are looking for the best of both worlds. Enjoy.

If you are like me, I often times judge a Mexican restaurant by their table sauce. Whether it be green, or red, or somewhere in between, I am always investigating and dissecting the flavors. Some of my favorite sauce around town has got to be the red sauce from Conejito’s Place, and the green sauce from El Rey. It is that red sauce that I had to master, and I think this is the one, hence why I want to share with all of you.

This one is simply coined my red, and it is one that will knock your socks off in heat and flavor.

Ingredients:

• 4 large roma tomatoes, whole
• 5 serrano chilies, stem removed
• 6 cloves of garlic, whole, skin on
• 1 large onion, halved
• 2 tomatillos, whole
• 2 additional cloves of garlic, raw
• 1 handful of fresh cilantro
• 1 tbsp salt
• 1 tsp white vinegar
• 1 1/2 cup of water

That’s it.

Begin by adding everything but the cilantro, salt, two cloves of garlic, and water to a large cast iron skillet. If you do not have a cast iron skillet, add everything to a large baking sheet.

The goal is to roast all of your ingredients until the skins are charred. The serrano chilies and the garlic will be the quickest to roast, and once blackened, can be removed from the skillet. The garlic can be set aside to cool, while the blackened serrano peppers can go straight into a blender or food processor.

Continue roasting the tomatoes and onions until they get that great char.

Once everything has charred, add everything into the blender or food processor. If you are using a blender, remember you are dealing with hot stuff here and you will want to place the cover on the blender, and a towel, along with your pressure on the top of the cover so it will not explode.

Your blender should now include everything, including the water, cilantro, salt, vinegar, and two cloves of raw garlic.

Pulse about 7-10 times or until your desired consistency.

Pour the salsa into a storage container and let it come to room temperature before serving.

Serve with anything and everything. Something about the heat and garlic really make this salsa stand out from the rest. Hope you enjoy.

The image above is the poblano salsa served with pulled pork stuffed rolls.

Poblano peppers are probably the mildest of peppers, much like a green pepper, and have fairly thick walls, and which are typically roasted, stuffed, and made into chile rellenos. I was probably thinking of chile rellenos when I began thinking of making this salsa, that, or probably making a mole. But let me just say whatever I was thinking, I was on the right track because this poblano salsa with dark chocolate was a really great hit. Not just great for dunking nice tortilla chips in, but also great with eggs in the morning, or spooned over grilled chicken.

Lets get started.

Ingredients:

• 3 large poblano peppers, washed
• 5 cloves of garlic, skin on
• 2 serrano chile peppers
• 1 roma tomato
• 1/4 cup of dark chocolate, grated
• 1 1/2 cup of water
• 1 tbsp salt

I am a big believer in cast iron, so if you have a large cast iron skillet, get it out, and place the poblano peppers, garlic, tomato, and serrano chile peppers. If you do not have a cast iron skillet, you could lightly oil them and place on a baking sheet under a broiler and begin roasting them.

You want everything blackened for the most part. The serrano peppers will roast first, then the garlic, tomato, and then the poblano peppers. Once all sides of the vegetables are roasted, simply remove them and get them into a blender or food processor. Please remove the skins of the garlic before placing them in the blender.

Once the poblano peppers have charred, remove them and place them in a paper bag, or ziplock bag. This will allow them to steam a bit so you can easily remove the outer skin. It is important that you do that. So after about ten minutes of being in the bag, remove them, and carefully remove the skin. Take your thumb near the stem of the poblano and push in, pushing back the stem and exposing the seeds. Remove all of the seeds and discard the stem. Do this for all of the poblano peppers.

Once all of the vegetables have been added to the blender, add in the dark chocolate. Put the cover on the blender and give it a quick pulse.

Next add in the water and salt. Cover and pulse about 8-10 times, or until you desired consistency. Place in a jar, seal, and store in the refrigerator to chill.

When you are ready to serve, remove from the refrigerator and serve however you like. It can pretty much go with anything, but is really great with chicken, chips, or eggs.

I gave a jar to one of my neighbors and he said he loved it. I loved it. My wife loved it. It must be good. Try roasting these poblanos and let me know what you think. Enjoy!

Growing up, I would watch my dad make his chili. He had it down to a science, and as my standard chili recipe probably does not steer to far from my dad’s recipe, there are just times you want to do something different to a chili, and that is what I love about it. So, as I often do, I think about what ingredients could offer the same comfort of a traditional chili, but make it different, and that is when I decided to make a green pork chili, or what others often refer to as chili verde.

The simple ingredients yield maximum flavors, and really make this chili comforting and extremely delicious.

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs of pork loin
• 5 tomatillos, wrapper removed, cut in half
• 1 small onion, halved
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• 2 jalapeno peppers, halved
• 3 poblano peppers
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 4 cups of chicken stock
• 2 tbsp honey
• 1/2 lime, zest only
• 1 cup of corn kernels
• 1 cup of pigeon peas, drained
• salt
• black pepper
• tortilla chips (optional)
• sour cream (optional)

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Begin by taking one tablespoon of your olive oil and coat your pork tenderloin. Generously season your pork with salt and pepper. Place the pork onto a baking dish and place into the oven for about one hour and 45 minutes. Remove from the oven, and let it rest.

Now, increase your oven temperature to 450 degrees. Take your tomatillos, poblano, onion, and jalapeno peppers, and coat with the additional tablespoon of olive oil. Place on a lined baking sheet and put it into the preheated oven for about 12-15 minutes or until you have a nice char on the vegetables. Remove after you have charred the vegetables and let them cool.

Remove the outer skin from the poblanos, and slice open to remove all of the seeds. Remove the stems from both the jalapeno and poblano peppers.  If you want less heat, remove the seeds from the jalapeno peppers, otherwise leave them in.

Place the onion, peppers, tomatillos, honey, zest, and garlic into a blender or food processor. Add about 1 cup of the stock to the blender, then pulse everything down until you have a green sauce. You want to remove all of the chunks.

Add this to your soup pot and add in the additional chicken stock. Toss in the corn and pigeon peas. Bring to a boil. During this time, take your pork loin and cut it into bite sized pieces, placing those in the pot. Give a good stir, cover, and reduce the heat, cooking for about 10 minutes or until everything is cooked through.

When you are ready to serve, add a bit of tortilla chips to the bottom of a soup bowl, ladle in the chili verde, and top with a dollop of sour cream.

What you end up with is a delicious bowl of chili, packed with just the right amount of heat, and great texture from the corn and pigeon peas.