Asado de Puerco

This is a very easy dish and is a bit on the spicy side. So if jalapeños are tough for you to eat, you might want to use only 4 chiles instead of the 7.  This is an authentic Mexican dish that is popular in Northern Mexico. I used, as a base, a recipe from "The Authentic Mexican" cookbook, but I did tweak it a bit. I added the flour and peanut butter to thicken the sauce. The peanut butter gave it a smoother texture and removed some of the heat. Click here to buy the book. This came out just perfect! I made some home made flour tortillas to go with it!

Ingredients:

7 Medium dried New Mexico chiles, stemmed and seeded
3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
1/2 an onion diced
1 tsp. dried oregano
1/4 tsp. cumin
2 tbsp. vegetable oil
1 lb. pork shoulder cut into 1 inch cubes
2 C water
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp. flour
4 tbsp. peanut butter

Directions:
1. Heat a cast iron pan over medium heat and place the chiles on the skillet. Be sure to lay them flat. Toast them on both sides by pressing down on them with the back side of some tongs. Do this for only about 2-3 minutes on each side. You will see them change colors. Then cover them with water and submerge them for about 30 minutes in the water, then drain and reserve 1 cup of the liquid.

2. Transfer the chiles, the reserved water, the garlic, the onions, the cumin and the oregano onto a blender. Blend until smooth.

3. Using the same pan, heat the oil and brown the pork cubes until they have just turned brown. About 8 minutes.

4. Add the puree in the blender to the pan and continue to cook until the sauce turns darker. Be sure to scrape the bottom of the pan to get all the pieces of the pork. Cook for a total time of 5 minutes or so.

5. Transfer the pork and puree mixture to a bigger pot and add 2 cups of water and salt. Bring heat to a low simmer.

6. Whisk in flour and peanut butter.  Simmer over medium heat for 1 hour add more salt if needed. Stir occasionally.

 I hope you enjoy this delicious dish!

Anna