Pork Chile Verde with Posole

It's tomatillo season in Western Washington! Got some? Put 'em to good use in this hearty and oh-so-delicous Chile Verde. This does take at least 2 - 2 1/2 hours to make - but it's one of those where you just get it going in the midafternoon and then you can walk away until dinner time. Worth the trouble and provides great leftovers.

Pork Chile Verde with Posole

1 pound tomatillos, husked and washed
2 lbs boneless pork, cut into 1 ½ inch pieces
1 tsp salt
½ tsp pepper
flour, for dredging
2 T canola oil
1 onion, chopped
2 Anaheim or poblano chiles
2 jalapenos, cored, seeded and chopped
2 green bell peppers, cored, seeded and chopped
3 garlic cloves (or 1 ½ tsp pre-chopped garlic)
1 ½ c canned hominy, drained
½ c chopped cilantro leaves
1 T dried oregano
2 tsps ground cumin
3 c. chicken stock

Salsa

2 plum tomatoes, cored and diced
½ small red onion, chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, cored, seeded, and chopped
¼ red bell pepper, cored, seeded and chopped
1 T chopped fresh cilantro
1 T lime juice
salt and pepper to taste
Liquid hot sauce (optional)

Preheat the broiler. Set the tomatillos or green tomatoes on a rimmed baking sheet and slide them under the broiler. Cook, turning often, for 5 to 8 minutes, or until they are charred. Set them aside to cool.

Chop the tomatilllos reserving all juices.

Sprinkle the pork with the salt and pepper. Dust it with flour.

In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the pork in batches and brown it on all sides. Remove the pork from the skillet and transfer to a soup pot.

Using the same skillet, turn the heat to medium and add the onion. Cook it for 10 minutes, stirring often, until it is soft. Add the Anaheim or poblano chiles and jalapeno and bell peppers. Cook, stirring often, for about 4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute more. Transfer to the soup pot.

Stir in the hominy, cilantro, oregano, cumin, stock and the tomatillos and their juices. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer, partially covered, for 1 ½ hours, or until the pork is tender. Serve hot in deep bowls, with the salsa.

Meanwhile, make the salsa

In a medium bowl, combine the tomatoes, onion, jalapeno, bell pepper, cilantro and lime juice. Ad salt, pepper and hot sauce to taste. Set aside.

When ready to serve, pass the salsa to accompany the pork chile verde.