Chili Colorado
5 dried Ancho chiles
2 dried pasilla chiles
2 dried guajillo chiles
3 cups chicken stock
2 pounds boneless pork shoulder, cut into 1/2 " pieces
Vegetable oil
6 cloves garlic, finely minced
2 bay leaves
1 Tablespoon ground cumin
1 to 2 teaspoons chopped fresh sage
1 to 2 teaspoons chopped fresh Mexican Oregano (if you have Italian oregano that's ok too)
5 cups chicken stock
Salt and Pepper to taste
Take the dried chili's and remove the stems and seeds. You want soft pliable chiles, like a dried raisin. If they are dry and brittle they are too old and will be flavorless. (Throw those out.)
Bring the chicken stock to a boil then cover your chiles with it in a large bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let steam for about 30 minutes until the chiles are plump and tender.
Next you put the soaked chiles and all the soaking liquid into a blender and puree until very smooth.
Season your cubes pork shoulder with salt and pepper. In a large dutch oven pan, heat a couple of Tablespoons vegetable oil over medium heat. Add 1/2 of the pork shoulder and brown all sides. You want to do this in two batches. If you over crowd the pan, the meat will steam instead of get a good brown caramel color on it. Remove the first batch to a bowl and do the same with the rest of the cubed pork.
Add all the pork back into the pot, and add the garlic, bay leaves, cumin, chopped sage and oregano. Stir that around over medium heat until very fragrant (about a minute)
Next, add the 5 cups chicken stock and simmer uncovered for about an hour. Then add the chile puree and simmer another 45 minutes or until the meat is very tender and your sauce is a rich thick mahogany red color.
Season with more salt and pepper to taste.
You can serve this in a bowl with tortillas on the side. I like to garnish with diced avocado and a bit of plain cole slaw mix. you can also serve along side some Mexican rice. We like to use the tortillas like scoops by breaking off a small piece and scooping into the chili colorado... sooo goood.
