This recipe is inpsired by, and adapted from, carne adovada, a New Mexican red chile and pork dish. I added additional ingredients, like raisins, orange juice, tomato paste, and cinnamon sticks, for a sweeter, more complex product, reminiscent of a mole. If you can’t find a variety of dried chilis, simply use 5.5 oz of what is available, preferably pasilla and ancho chilis. Obviously, using different combinations will change the flavor profile of the marinade, because each chili has its own unique taste, but it will still be delicious! Lastly, this dish, as with most braises and stews, gets more delicious as it sits, making it perfect for weeknight leftovers. Serve with creamy Oaxacan cheese and avocado, tangy sour cream, fresh lime, bright cilantro and pickled red onion, and sweet, crisp corn.
Ingredients
2.5ozpasilla/ancho chilis, seeded
1ozguajillo chiles, seeded
1ozchile negro, seeded
1ozchile costeño, seeded
⅔craisins, soaked
½corange juice
¼ccoconut sugar or 3 Tbsp brown sugar
4tspkosher salt, divided
3Tbspapple cider vinegar, or white
4cwater, divided
6-7lbboneless Boston Butt, pork shoulder, cut into 1 1/2’’ cubes, excess fat removed
4tspkosher salt, plus more to taste
1large white onion, diced
2Tbspneutral oil
8clovesgarlic
1tsptomato paste
1Tbspcumin
1Tbspcoriander
2medium Mexican cinnamon sticks or 3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
2-3bay leaves
Toppings to serve
Sour cream
Cilantro to garnish
Lime
Avocado
Grilled corn
Pickled red onion
Shredded Oaxaca cheese
Instructions
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
Optional: Toasting the Chilies. Heat a large skillet over medium heat. In batches, toast the chilies until fragrant and lightly darkened in color. The texture of the skin will become softer and more pliable as they heat. Transfer to a bowl and repeat, until all chilis are fragrant and toasted. You can also toast the cinnamon sticks for 3-4 minutes, if desired. Allow the chilis to cool slightly before removing stems and seeds inside.
Boil 3 cups of water; set aside. In a large bowl, combine the seeded and stemmed chilis with the hot water. Soak for 30 minutes until the skins have softened—you can place a weighted bowl on top to keep the chilies submerged, or stir occasionally.
Place cut pork into a large bowl and set aside.
Transfer the chilis and 2 cups of the soaking liquid, to a blender, along with the soaked raisins (drained), orange juice, coconut sugar, 2 tsp salt, and vinegar. Blend until smooth. Reserve about 1/2 cup of the puree for serving and 1/4 cup to marinate the pork—in total, you’ll set aside 3/4 cup of marinade.
Add about 1/2 cup of water to the blender and swirl, to clean out remaining marinade. Pour the liquid over the pork, along with 1/4 cup of the reserved chile puree (you’ll still have 1/2 cup set aside after this) and 2 tsp kosher salt. Toss to evenly coat, then cover and place in the refrigerator for 30-45 minutes.
While the pork marinates, add 2 Tbsp neutral oil to a large, heavy bottom, oven safe stock pot, or a 5-7 quart Dutch oven. Heat over medium, then add the onions. Cook for about 10 minutes or until softened, then add the garlic and tomato paste and cook for an additional 3-4 minutes. Add the cumin, coriander, and cinnamon sticks, and cook for 30 seconds or so until fragrant. Add the bay leaves, remaining chile puree, (still reserving 1/2 cup for later), and marinated pork—stir to coat.
Cover and cook for about 2 1/2 hours, or until the pork is fork tender. When the pork is just tender, remove top of the pot, stir, and return to the oven for 75-90 more minutes. Remove from the oven, stir in the remaining 1/2 cup of puree, and allow to cool for about 15 minutes.
Serve warm with cheese, sour cream, lime, avocado, corn, pickled red onion, and cilantro.