A traditional Mexican pozole or posole is a stew made from beans, hominy, and meat. Slow-simmered in a soupy broth, a pozole is traditionally served on Christmas eve, and you can trace its roots back to the ancient Aztecs! This rich and hearty dish is so flavorful and delicious, and the best part is there were no pigs harmed! Don’t worry. The white Mexican hominy gives the stew a nice meaty chew!
Hominy, if you don’t know, is dried corn, or maize, treated with lime to help soften the tough outer shells of the kernels, making them easier to digest. Furthermore, in Mexican cooking, hominy is ground down to make masa flour.
If you’ve been following my blog for any amount of time, you know that Mexican food is my favorite food. I’m pretty sure I could eat it every day. I love the addition of diced raw onions, avocado, and cilantro as a garnish. You could also add vegan sour cream if you’re feelin’ it. This pozole is made in a red sauce (Rojo), but you can use tomatillos and have Pozole Verdes if you’d like.
I made my pinto beans in my instant pot, and they were ready in 50 minutes. You can soak your beans overnight and make them according to your package directions, or you can use canned beans. I prefer to make my own and generally keep 5 lb bags of beans in my pantry. I’m not too fond of the metallic taste of canned beans, and I like to control the texture myself. However, I did use canned hominy for apparent reasons. They are great the day you make them, and they are even better the next day!
Tag me if you make it and let me know how you like it!
XO–
Steph
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Mexican Pozole (Rojo)
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
- Yield: 6 cups 1x
- Diet: Vegan
Description
Warm and hearty, this Mexain Pozole will likely become a staple in your weekly winter rotation! Double the recipe, and you can store this in the freezer for up to 2 months.
Ingredients
PInto Beans:
- 1/2 pound dry pinto beans (about 1 cups), or 2 cans of no salt added pinto beans
- 3 cups vegetable stock, or filtered water* ( see note)
- 1 white onion, diced
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
Pozole:
- 1 (28 oz.) can of White Mexican Hominy
- Cooked pinto beans
- 3 whole dried guajillos chiles, stemmed and seeded
- 2 whole dried ancho chiles, stemmed and seeded
- 1/2 white onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 jalapeno seeded, and diced
- 2 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano
Garnish:
- Chopped onion
- Diced avocado
- Minced cilantro
- Sliced radish
- Hot sauce
Instructions
- If using dried beans, add beans to a bowl and rinse. Sift through beans to remove any grit or broken shells. At this point, you can either soak beans overnight to make on the stovetop (follow package directions) or add to an instant pot with 6 cups vegetable stock, onion, bay leaves, and salt and pepper—Cook at high pressure for 50 minutes. Let pressure reduce naturally, about 10 minutes. Set aside.
- While pinto beans are cooking, add chilies, onion, and garlic to a small pot of boiling water. Use enough water to cover the chilies. Reduce heat and simmer until chilies and onions have softened about 7-8 minutes.
- When chilies are done, carefully add all ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth. If the sauce is too thick, add stock or water to thin. It should have a paste-like consistency. In a colander, strain sauce into a bowl.
- Carefully add pinto beans (do not drain), hominy, chili paste, and remaining ingredients in a medium stockpot. ** (See note)
- Simmer covered on medium-low for 20-25 minutes until hominy softened but still firm.
- Remove lid and taste for seasonings.
- Ladle Pozole into a serving bowl and garnish.
- Enjoy!
Notes
*I like to use a flavorful stock to make my pinto beans, but if you use water, I recommend adding a teaspoon of garlic and onion powder to your beans!
**You can also finish the pozole in the instant pot by skipping the stockpot and cooking using the saute function. I didn’t do this because I like to control my heat. But this is a viable option.