Chili Verde Pork

We hosted supper club last weekend and I made this Chili Verde Pork, along with Tortilla Soup, for our "South of the Border" themed dinner. I'm planning to make this again for the community pool closing party, which means I'll need to scale this to feed about 150 people (and borrow several crock pots from neighbors!).

Chili Verde Pork

Chili Verde Pork

Prep time: 45 minutes
Total time: 4 hours
Servings: 20+

INGREDIENTS

8 fresh poblano chile peppers

3 pounds fresh tomatillos, husks removed

4 fresh jalapeno peppers

2 yellow bell peppers, seeded and chopped

1 bunch cilantro leaves, coarsely chopped

1 pork butt (6 to 8 pounds), cubed

¼ cup vegetable oil

2 large yellow onions, chopped

7 tablespoons brown sugar

6 cloves garlic, minced

½ tablespoon sea salt

freshly ground pepper, to taste

1 tablespoon ground cumin

DIRECTIONS

1. Broil the poblano peppers until the skins start to blister and blacken. Turn them over and do the same for he other side. Place the poblanos in a zippy bag to sweat and set them aside.


2. Broil the tomatillos until they begin to blacken. Turn them over and do the same for the other side. Put the tomatillos into a blender—be sure to include any tomatillo juices from the pan.


3. Peel and seed the poblanos and add them to the blender along with the yellow bell peppers, the jalapenos, and the cilantro and give it a whirl until pureed. (I do this, and cube up the pork, the night before.)


4. Heat oil over high heat in a large stock pot or frying pan (the high sides of the stock pot helps to minimize oil spatter) sear the pork in the vegetable oil until golden brown. Remove the pork and place in a crock pot.


5. Reserve 2 tablespoons oil in the pan and saute the onions and garlic until onions are tender. Season with salt, pepper, and cumin, then add the mixture to the crock pot and add the tomatillo puree.


6. Carefully give it a stir (my crock pot was brimming—I even had to remove some liquid part way through the cooking) and set the crock pot on low for at least 4 hours.