Pozole Rojo

Step 1

Bring 12 cups of water, along with 2 tsp salt, to a boil in a large soup pot or dutch oven. Add the pork shoulder chunks and neck bones to the boiling water (all the pork should be submerged in the water), and let it simmer. Skim any foam and impurities off the top until you get the clear broth. (This will take about 10-15 minutes.)

Step 2

Add 10 garlic cloves, mashed to a paste, to the pot along with 1 quartered onion, oregano, cumin, chicken bouillon, and black pepper. Simmer, covered, for 1.5 hours. Check periodically to make sure pork is submerged under water.

Step 3

Meanwhile, bring a medium pot of water to a boil, add chili peppers to the water. Boil for 3-4 minutes. Turn off the heat, and allow chilis to soak for 20-30 minutes.

Step 4

Place the rehydrated chilis, ¼ onion, 2 large garlic cloves, ½ teaspoon salt, 2 corn tortillas (torn) and 1½ cups chili soaking broth into a blender or food processor. Puree until very smooth.

Step 5

Once the pork is tender after simmering, take it out and shred it into chunks of your desired size. Discard the bones. Remove bay leaves and any onion remnants from the broth.

Step 6

Add the prepared chili sauce to the broth. (We like to strain the sauce through a fine-mesh sieve into the pot for smoother pozole). Add shredded pork back into the pot along with drained hominy, and cook for 30-40 minutes. Taste and adjust the salt or chicken bouillon.

Step 7

Ladle the pozole into the bowls, making sure each bowl has both types of pork meat. Top with all the garnishes and serve with with lime wedges and warm corn tortillas or Mexican rice.