Let me tell you, prior to making this recipe, I had never had pozole before. And now, it’s one of my all time favorite dishes that I’ve ever made. I was seriously craving this Mexican stew for days after we had it. AND I did it in the Ninja Foodi. It was nice to have a tender stew in just over an hour. With pork shoulder, poblano pepper, hominy, and a ton of delicious toppings, I’m sure this pork pozole verde will easily become one of your new family favorites too.
Cooking Supplies and Special Ingredients
The main appliance you’ll need to cook your pozole is either an Instant Pot or a Ninja Foodi. You could also use basically any 6 quart electric pressure cooker. My 8 qt Ninja Foodi deluxe is my absolute FAVORITE kitchen appliance. I use it so much! You can buy it here. If you’re looking for a cheaper option though, this Instant Pot Duo Crisp is also a great appliance.
In terms of ingredients, one of the key ingredients of pozole is hominy. If you’ve never had hominy before, you can find out more about what hominy is here in this Huffpost article by Julie Thomson, “What The Hell Is Hominy, Anyway?” But most stores carry this ingredient in the international or Hispanic foods aisles. If you can’t find it in your local grocery store, this is the brand that I used in mine.
Another ingredient that I use as one of the spices is this Goya brand adobo seasoning. There are about a million varieties of this seasoning, but the one I get is “with pepper.” This seasoning is made up of salt, garlic, pepper, oregano, and tumeric. A little goes a long way in this stew!
The Making of Pork Pozole Verde
The first step to making this delicious Mexican stew is I cube and trim the large fatty pieces from my pork. I don’t want to get rid of all of the fat because it provides a lot of flavor, but nobody wants to bite into a slab of fat either. Then I fully cover the pork in seasonings. I mean I lay the seasonings on THICK. Nobody wants a bland pozole. Then I brown the pork on all sides in the foodi and add my onion, poblano, and garlic.
After getting the pork browned and the veggies softened, I add my hominy, beans, salsa, cilantro, broth and bay leaves. Then it’s time to seal the pressure cooker and let the magic happen!
While the pozole is cooking, I get my garnishes ready, which are arguably probably one of the most important elements of the dish. Here are some great ideas for toppings for your pozole:
- Sliced radishes (this is one of the most traditional toppings)
- Shredded cabbage
- Sliced limes
- Diced onion
- Jalapeños
- Cotija cheese or queso fresco
- Cilantro
- Tortilla chip strips
After the timer goes off, I allow the pozole to naturally release for 20 minutes. After the pressure releases, I skim off as much of the fat from the top as I can so that it’s not greasy. I also make a cornstarch slurry with the juices from the stew and boil for 5 minutes before serving to thicken it up a bit.
Pozole Recipe
Chunky Pork Pozole Verde in the Pressure Cooker
Equipment
- Pressure cooker
- Ninja Foodi
- Instant Pot
Ingredients
Pozole
- 3 lbs boneless pork shoulder, cut into 1 inch chunks, large fatty chunks discarded
- 1 tbsp adobo seasoning
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tbsp Italian seasoning
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 cup red onion, diced
- 1 poblano pepper, seeds removed and diced
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 16 oz jar mild salsa verde
- 1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped
- 1 15 oz can white beans, drained
- 1 25 oz can Mexican style hominy, drained and rinsed
- 3 cups chicken broth
- 3 bay leaves
- 2 tbsp cornstarch
Garnishes (Optional but Recommended)
- Sliced radishes
- Diced onion
- Sliced limes
- Jalapeños
- Cotija cheese or queso fresco
- Shredded cabbage
- Tortilla chip strips
- Cilantro
Instructions
- Season pork on all sides using all seasonings except bay leaves. Mix well to ensure all of the pork is well covered.
- Heat oil over high heat using the saute setting in the electric pressure cooker of your choice (Instant Pot, Ninja Foodi, etc.)
- Add pork and sear well on all sides, approximately 4-5 minutes.
- Add onion, poblano, and garlic, stirring until softened, 5-7 minutes.
- Add all remaining ingredients except for cornstarch and mix well. Put the pressure cooking lid on and make sure the vent is set to sealing. Pressure cook on high pressure for 35 minutes.
- After the timer goes off, allow the pressure to naturally release for 20 minutes, then quick release any remaining pressure.
- Skim off excess fat and oil at the top of the pozole.
- Combine cornstarch with 1/4 cup of the juices from the stew to make a slurry. Turn the pressure cooker back to the saute mode on high. Pour in the slurry and mix well using a whisk. Boil for 5 minutes stirring frequently until slightly thickened, then turn off the heat.
- Serve with garnishes of your choice and enjoy!
Doesn’t it look amazing?! Ugh, I’m craving it again after typing this up! I hope you all enjoy this recipe as much as we did. For more recipes, feel free to check out my recipes page here, the recipes I’ve linked farther down, or subscribe to Growing Up Garlicky for weekly updates. Also, if you try this recipe and want to let me know your thoughts, please leave a comment and a rating down below! I’d love your feedback! Thanks so much!
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