Step 1

In a large Dutch oven, combine the pork butt, with half of the white onion (roughly chopped), half of the head of garlic, 1 tablespoon of salt and enough water to cover pork. Cover and cook at a low simmer for 2½ to 3 hours, until pork is tender. At this time, you can fry up the potatoes and reserve them until you get to the end of the recipe.

Step 2

While the pork is cooking, preheat your oven to 400ºF. To roast, on a shallow baking sheet, combine tomatillos, all peppers, half of onion and remaining garlic (with skins on). Roast for 10 minutes on one side, turn and roast for another 10 minutes. Remove from heat, cover with a clean kitchen towel and let cool for 30 minutes.

Step 3

When vegetables are cool enough, peel and seed the large peppers. Slice the New Mexico peppers and poblano peppers into strips (set the poblanos aside). In the blender, combine New Mexico peppers, 2 jalapeños, onion, garlic (peeled), tomatillos, cilantro and about 1 cup of broth (once pork is done). Blend until smooth, taste for salt.

Step 4

In another large pot, preheat 2 tablespoons of oil to medium heat. Add the sauce from the blender, stir well, cover and keep at a low heat while you shred, chop or cut pork into larger chunks. Add the pork, stir well to combine, add another 3 cups of pork broth, taste for salt. Add the cumin, smoked paprika, granulated garlic and 1 teaspoon pepper, bring to a boil, lower heat and slowly add the masa harina slurry. Cook, stirring often for another hour. Ten minutes before serving, fold in the cooked potatoes, poblanos (rajas) and cilantro. Serve with rice, beans and warm tortillas. To serve more like a stew, top with homemade croutons or tortilla strips.

Step 5

I like adding red or white potatoes to my pork chile verde. The cilantro is nice to add towards the end of cooking time.

Step 6

This photo is from when I was visiting my familia in Mexico. I prepared a pot of pork chile verde in my tia’s cazuela.