30 minute Posole

During my “off” week just after Thanksgiving, I picked up a pork loin and gave it the Chili Rubbed Pork treatment in my slow cooker. It made a TON of pulled pork, so I ended up popping a few portions of it in the freezer, one of which was destined to become this super easy 30 Minute Posole.

What is Posole?

Posole, or pozole, is a rich stew, typically made with slow-cooked pork, hominy, green chiles, and lots of delicious toppings. The “posole” I made is definitely not authentic, it’s more of a quickie stand-in for the good stuff. Kind of like ramen you buy in a 15 cent pack versus real ramen. If you want to make real posole/pozole, here is an authentic Mexian Pozole recipe so you can see what it’s really all about.

Using the leftover pork helped my “quickie posole” come together really fast, so this is a great way to take advantage of those leftovers on busy nights. Pork is the typical meat for posole, but if you have leftover chicken or beef I say why not go ahead and use that. I think it would be equally as delicious!

What is Hominy?

Hominy, one of the key ingredients in posole, are large maize grains that have been treated with lye, which softens their outer husk and gives them a wonderfully chewy texture. You can find hominy both dried and canned, like beans, but this quick 30 minute posole recipe below uses the canned version for convenience.

What to Serve with Posole

I would absolutely love this soup with cornbread on the side, so I could crumble the cornbread into the soup and soak up all that wonderful broth! A scoop of cooked rice would also be a great topper for the soup to round out the meal.

Sauce it Up!

I used my homemade red enchilada sauce as a base for this soup, which helped thicken the broth and provide a TON of instant flavor. I kept the toppings for my posole simple to keep costs low, but if you want to splurge I think this soup would be awesome with a little shredded cheddar, pepper jack, sour cream, or avocado. The creaminess of any of those toppings would be an excellent contrast to the spicy broth. There’s a lot of room for customization with this one, so have fun with it!

Love southwest flavored soups? Try my Chicken and Lime Soup, Slow Cooker Tortilla Soup, or Red Lentil Mexican Stew.

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Easy 30 minute Posole

4.88 from 78 votes

Use your leftover pulled pork and a quick homemade enchilada sauce to make this super fast and easy, intensely flavored 30 Minute Posole. 

Author: Beth – Budget Bytes

Servings 6 (1.33 cups each)

Prep 5 minutes mins

Cook 25 minutes mins

Total 30 minutes mins

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Ingredients

• 1 yellow onion ($0.14)
• 2 Tbsp cooking oil ($0.04)
• 2 Tbsp flour ($0.02)
• 2 Tbsp mild chili powder* ($0.30)
• 3 oz. tomato paste ($0.33)
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin ($0.05)
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder ($0.05)
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (optional) ($0.03)
• 3/4 tsp salt ($0.03)
• 2 cups water ( $0.00)
• 3 cups chicken broth** ($0.38)
• 1 4oz. can chopped green chiles ($0.87)
• 1 15oz. can hominy ($1.09)
• 1.5 cups shredded pork, chicken, or beef (pre-cooked) ($2.04)
• 1 fresh lime ($0.33)
• 1/2 bunch fresh cilantro ($0.85)

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Instructions 

• Finely dice the onion, then add it to a large soup pot along with the cooking oil. Sauté the onion in the oil over medium heat for 3-5 minutes, or until it is tender and transparent. Add the flour and chili powder and continue to sauté for two minutes more. The mixture will be fairly dry, so stir continuously to prevent burning.
• Add 2 cups water, tomato paste, cumin, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, and salt to the pot. Whisk the ingredients together until the tomato paste is dissolved. Allow the mixture to come to a simmer, at which point it will thicken.
• Finally, add the chicken broth, shredded meat, diced chiles, and hominy (drained). Stir to combine and then heat through (about 10 minutes).
• Cut the lime into wedges and roughly chop the cilantro. Top each bowl with chopped cilantro and a wedge of lime to squeeze over top.

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Notes

*The chili powder used in this recipe is a mild blend of chile peppers and other spices, but does not include salt.
**I use reconstituted Better Than Bouillon to make my broth.

Nutrition

Serving: 1.33CupsCalories: 177.08kcalCarbohydrates: 17.2gProtein: 12.08gFat: 7.23gSodium: 1277.27mgFiber: 2.5g

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Scroll down for the step by step photos!

How to Make Posole – Step by Step Photos

Begin by dicing one small yellow onion and adding it to a large soup pot along with 2 Tbsp vegetable or canola oil. Sauté the onion in the oil over medium heat until it is soft and transparent. Although 2 Tbsp oil seems like more than needed sauté one small onion, that amount of oil is needed to make the roux in the next step, which provides the thickening power for the soup.

Once the onion is soft, add 2 Tbsp flour and 2 Tbsp mild chili powder. Continue to sauté this mixture for two minutes to toast the flour and chili powder. It may be slightly dry, so stir continuously to prevent burning.

Whisk in 2 cups water, 3oz. tomato paste (1/2 of a 6oz. can), 1/2 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp garlic powder, 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper, and 3/4 tsp salt, until the tomato paste has completely dissolved. Allow the mixture to come to a simmer, at which point it will thicken. This is basically my Easy Red Enchilada Sauce (plus an onion).

Drain one 15oz. can of hominy (golden or white, your choice) and add it to the pot.

Also add a 4oz. can of diced green chiles.

And about 1.5 cups of pre-cooked, shredded meat (I used pork, but chicken or beef would also work).

Finally, stir in 3 cups chicken broth and heat through. And that’s about it! Really fast, really delicious 30 Minute Posole!

Toppings are one of the most fun parts of posole, so I chopped up about 1/2 bunch cilantro and cut one fresh lime into wedges. The lime juice adds a really nice tart/fresh flavor to the broth.

Top each bowl of the 30 Minute Posole with the chopped cilantro and a wedge of lime. Other fun toppings include: shredded cheese, avocado, sour cream, thinly sliced radishes, tortilla chips, or fresh salsa.

And I’ll openly admit, this is my first time eating hominy. It’s DELICIOUS! It has that really nice corn flavor, but the big kernels have a an awesomely chewy texture. They are, without a doubt, my favorite part of this stew.