Authentic Mexican Chile Verde
This is Chile Verde done right!
Ingredients
- 2 lbs country style spare ribs
- 3 lbs pork shoulder
- salt & pepper, to taste
- vegetable oil
- 10-14 medium tomatillos
- 6-8 Jalapeños
- 1 head garlic
- olive oil
- ¼ tsp cumin
- 1 bay leaf
- flour tortillas
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450°F.
- Remove the paper husks from tomatillos.
- Wash tomatillos and jalapeno peppers under cold water.
- Place 3-4 tomatillos on a sheet of foil. Drizzle with olive oil.
- Create a foil pouch and seal tomatillos inside.
- Do the same thing with the jalapeno peppers.
- Cut the top off the head of garlic and place it on a sheet of foil. Drizzle with olive oil and seal packet.
- Place foil pouches on a cooking sheet and place in the oven.
- Cook for 30-45 minutes or until tomatillos, jalapeño peppers and garlic are soft.
- While tomatillos, garlic and peppers are roasting in the oven, prepare pork.
- Cut spare ribs and pork shoulder into 2 inch chunks. Keep some of the meat on the bones.
- Heat a couple tablespoons vegetable oil in a large heavy bottom pot over medium heat.
- Cook pork in small batches until meat chunks are golden brown. Remove each batch and continue until all the pork is browned.
- When peppers and tomatillos are soft, carefully open all the foil pouches. Remove stems from the jalapeño peppers and place the peppers along with all the juices that are in the foil pouch into a blender.
- Add the roasted tomatillos along with their juices to the blender.
- Squeeze the garlic head with your fingers and add the roasted garlic to the blender. Discard husk.
- Puree until you have a smooth sauce and there are no large chunks left.
- Add the sauce to the saucepan and scrape up any browned bits in the bottom of the pot.
- Add cumin and bay leaf.
- Return browned pork to the pot and stir to combine.
- Increase heat and bring mixute to a simmer.
- Cover pot and reduce heat. Simmer on low, stirring occasionally, for 1 to 1½ hours, or until pork is tender and the meat easily comes off the bones.
- Add water if sauce seems to thick.
- Taste and season with salt.
- Heat flour tortillas in a skillet or over an open flame.
- Serve pork with warmed tortillas and a side of Spanish rice and pinto beans to round out the meal.