If you’ve been to Colorado or traveled through Colorado then you would know all about their one staple: A rich gravy like green chile stew that they smother everything with or eat as a soup! Typically made with roasted anaheim chiles, which you can find large roasters selling this green gold on Denver street corners in the fall. Many will leave with laundry baskets full of the amazing roasted green chile that they package for use year around. The beautiful aroma that lingers and sticks to your car upholstery from traveling home from the roasters is coveted in Colorado. Just like the typical “basic bitch” pumpkin spice fall favorite scent; roasted green chile smell is a Coloradoan’s “basic bitch” fall scent.

Everyone has their own recipe or preferences. I’m going to share mine. Which includes roasted bone broth and a dark roux for an even richer flavor & thicker stew. 👌😍😉

Recipe

Total Time: 1 hour and 20 minutes.

1 – 8.5 oz serving = 519 calories, 8g carbs, 34g fat, 29g Protein & 3g natural sugars from tomato & chile.

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs of pork shoulder cubed
  • (Note: I usually simmer with pork bones included. Since moving to Seattle it’s been difficult to find pork with bones. So I’ve made my own rich 24 hour roasted bone broth to include into the recipe.)
• 25 Roasted Green Chiles (Annaheims work best. If you don’t have fresh annaheims can use canned hatch chile)
• 4 tablespoons of rendered fat or butter or high heat oil like avocado oil (+ a little extra if needed)
• 1 tsp of garlic powder
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1/2 cup of Paleo flour or regular flour (if not following keto diet) for dredging pork
• 4 tablespoons of Paleo Flour or regular flour for dark roux
• 1 bulb of garlic (roasted if you prefer)
• 1/2 cup of white/yellow onion chopped
• 14.5 oz can of diced roasted tomatoes. (Try to find one without seasoning or garlic.)
• 2 1/2 cups of chicken or beef bone broth for simmering pork in. (Will share home made version soon)
• 4 additional cups of chicken or beef bone broth for roux (+/-) (room temperature)
• Salt for seasoning
• Optional: Shredded Cheddar Cheese (Use a block and shred at home for less carbs. The pre-shredded cheese has added flour/starch to keep from sticking. )
• Optional: Sour cream,/crème fraiche and cilantro for garnish.

Directions

1. If you’re using chiles that haven’t been roasted: Put oven on broil. Rinse peppers and poke a few holes in them using a fork. Add to a rimmed baking sheet and insert on top rack in oven. Roast until dark brown and blistered. Keep an eye on them as all ovens fluctuate. Take out of oven, flip your peppers and put them back in. Once they are blistered and dark brown remove from oven. Add peppers to a large ziplock/plastic bag to sweat.
2. Cube pork into inch sized portions
3. Mix 1 tsp of garlic powder, 1 tsp of onion powder & 1/2 cup of paleo powder in a large bowl.
4. Dredge pork on flour until evenly coated. Can also add pork and dredging flour to bag, close and shake if that’s easier for you.
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5. Heat up your large cast iron pan on medium heat. Once heated add 4 tablespoons of rendered fat. Can use avocado oil or another high heat oil.
6. Add pork in an even layer to pan. You’re going to want to brown the pork on all sides. No need to cook all the way through. Make sure to stir meat so all sides brown. (About 8 minutes)
7. While watching your pork, remove skin and stem from roasted peppers. Depending on how spicy you want your green chile, remove seeds from all or half. I usually rinse my peppers in the sink or just use my hand to slide off the skin. Add peppers to food processor.
8. Once you’ve tossed your pork and browned all sides. Remove pork with a slotted spoon and add to a large pot. Make sure to reserve brown bits and all fat in cast iron. (We’re going to use to make roux. )
9. Once chiles are clean and added to food processor; add a whole clove of cleaned garlic or roasted garlic. Half cup of chopped white/yellow onion and can of roasted tomatoes with juices to food processor. Add a few pinches of salt and pulse until all one consistency. It will look like a green paste.
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10. Add chile paste to pot with browned pork. Add 2 1/2 cups of bone broth and stir. Cover pot and simmer on low heat. May need to add more bone broth as it cooks. (45 minutes)
11. Make sure that you still have 4 tbsp. of fat in your pan. Add more if you need to. Heat on low. Add 4 tablespoons of your paleo flour and whisk until incorporated with fat. Toast your flour until golden while continuously whisking and scraping. A little bubbling will happen. That’s perfect. Just make sure not to burn your flour, as it will make the dish bitter. Will resemble a dough like texture.
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12. Once golden, turn heat to medium high heat. Slowly add a little bone broth a few tablespoon’s at a time while whisking vigorously. You want to keep adding until your roux resembles a nice thick gravy. You’ll know it’s ready when you lift your whisk and glide it above your pot; soft ribbon lines appear on the top of your gravy. Don’t dump the bone broth too quickly, or your roux will break. Also make sure to use room temperature broth; if it’s too cold it will break.
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13. Keep whisking and scraping adding bone broth little by little when it gets too thick/hard. Your roux will start to darken. It will go to caramel to a nice darker brown. That’s when you know you’re done. (45 minutes)
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14. Once the roux is dark (about 45 minutes), ladle in a full ladle of your green chile stew into the roux and whisk. Continue to ladle in your stew and whisk/scrape until you ladle in about 5 ladles worth of green chile. This will help you can incorporate the roux into your stew.
15. Transfer your roux into the pot of green chile simmering. Make sure to scrape well and mix your stew well. Add lid onto your pot and simmer on low for another 15 minutes.
16. Ladle into a soup bowl, top with shredded cheddar cheese, cilantro and sour cream if you like. I like mine a little simple just topped with a little cheddar. Enjoy.
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You can also use to smother burritos, enchiladas, tamales, cheese fries, chile rellenos, mexican hamburgers (tortilla with cheese, beef patty and refried beans) and many more items.

In a later post I will show you how to make green chile soup dumplings with gooey fontina center. Topped with avocado foam and caviar lime.