New Mexico Green Chile Stew
Pork, potatoes and plenty of roasted New Mexico green chile simmered in broth, the comfort-food bowl behind New Mexico's official question, "Red or green?".
In New Mexico, chile means the state's own long green and red chiles, and the question every diner asks, "Red or green?", is the official state question; Wikipedia says the answer "Christmas" means both. Green chile stew is one of the state's best-known comfort foods: the Santa Fe School of Cooking calls it "one of the greatest New Mexico comfort foods of all time" and makes it with beef, pork or chicken. New Mexico Magazine's version, from Hatch Chile Express in Hatch, uses both beef and pork with potatoes and a pound of roasted Hatch chile.
🇺🇸 This one is American
Pork, potatoes and plenty of roasted New Mexico green chile simmered in broth, the comfort-food bowl behind New Mexico's official question, "Red or green?".
🇺🇸 The original
The Texas bowl of red is chunks of beef simmered with dried chiles and spices until tender. No beans, and in the strict version no tomatoes. See the Texas Bowl of Red (San Antonio Chili con Carne) recipe.
Why it works the kitchen science
Chile goes in last
Adding the roasted chile for only the final 15 to 20 minutes, as the Santa Fe School of Cooking does, keeps its smoky, fresh flavor from cooking away.
Potatoes for body
As they simmer, the potatoes shed a little starch that gives the broth body without flour.
Step by step
- Step 1
Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat and brown the pork in two batches, about 4 minutes per batch.
- Step 2
Return all the pork, add the onion and cook 6 minutes, stirring, until the onion is browned at the edges.
- Step 3
Add the broth and salt, scraping up the browned bits, and bring to a boil. Lower the heat, cover and simmer 1 hour.
- Step 4
Add the potatoes and simmer, partly covered, 30 minutes, until tender.
- Step 5
Add the red bell pepper and garlic and simmer 15 minutes.
- Step 6
Stir in the green chile and cilantro and simmer 15 to 20 minutes more, until the pork is tender and the broth tastes of chile. Taste for salt and serve with warm tortillas.
New Mexico Green Chile Stew
Serves 4 (about 1 1/2 cups each) · about 6 cups · 2 hr 35 min total
Stew
- 1 1/2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 lb boneless pork shoulder (or beef chuck), cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 2 1/2 cups chicken or beef broth
- 2 tsp kosher salt, plus more to taste
- 2 medium potatoes (about 14 oz), cut into 1/2-inch cubes
- 1/2 red bell pepper, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
Green chile
- 1 1/2 cups roasted, peeled and chopped New Mexico green chile, mild or hot (about 8 oz; frozen or canned work)
- 1 tbsp chopped cilantro, or more to taste
Optional add-ins and to serve
- Cooked posole, pinto beans or corn (the school's suggestions)
- Warm flour tortillas
Method
- Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat and brown the pork in two batches, about 4 minutes per batch.
- Return all the pork, add the onion and cook 6 minutes, stirring, until the onion is browned at the edges.
- Add the broth and salt, scraping up the browned bits, and bring to a boil. Lower the heat, cover and simmer 1 hour.
- Add the potatoes and simmer, partly covered, 30 minutes, until tender.
- Add the red bell pepper and garlic and simmer 15 minutes.
- Stir in the green chile and cilantro and simmer 15 to 20 minutes more, until the pork is tender and the broth tastes of chile. Taste for salt and serve with warm tortillas.
Adapted from the Santa Fe School of Cooking's "Classic New Mexican Green Chile Stew with Chef Allen Smith" (serves 8): halved, with the meat rounded up to 1 lb as in New Mexico Magazine's 4-serving version. Two changes, both ours: the school simmers the potatoes 1 to 2 hours from the start, and we add them after the meat has simmered 1 hour so they hold their shape; and the school's ingredient list leaves out the garlic its method adds, so the 2 cloves are our amount. The school's 2 tbsp salt for 8 servings is cut to 2 tsp for 4, to taste. Chile handling is from Colorado State University Extension (see Food safety baseline). santafeschoolofcooking.com. Ingredient list follows the source; the method is in our own words.
Tips
- Roasting your own: char fresh chiles over a flame or under the broiler until the skins blister, steam them in a covered bowl, then peel. Wear gloves (CSU Extension).
- Frozen roasted New Mexico chile is the closest thing to fresh outside the state. Choose mild, medium or hot.
- Like most stews, it is better the next day.
The rules people argue about
What the sources agree on, what they don't, and what is just a good story.
- Green, not red. Documented: "Red or green?" is New Mexico's official state question (Wikipedia, citing the New Mexico Secretary of State). The year is Disputed: state-symbol sources say a 1996 memorial, while one account says it was signed in 1999.
- Only Hatch chile counts. Disputed: Kenji López-Alt describes New Mexicans who insist on Hatch chiles; the Santa Fe School of Cooking simply says roasted green chile and allows canned.
- Beef, pork or chicken. Documented: the Santa Fe School of Cooking allows all three; New Mexico Magazine uses beef and pork together.
- Potatoes. Documented in both recipes.
- Posole, beans or corn. Documented as optional (Santa Fe School of Cooking).
- Green chile stew is New Mexico's official state dish. Folklore: we found no such designation. Chile is one of the state vegetables (Wikipedia).
- "Christmas" (red and green together) was coined by a Santa Fe waitress. Folklore: Wikipedia credits Martha Rotuno at Tia Sophia's; we did not check its source.
Every other chili
Texas Bowl of Red (San Antonio Chili con Carne)
Big cubes of beef chuck braised for three hours in a purée of toasted whole dried chiles, with no beans and no tomatoes.
Chile Colorado (Northern Mexican Red Chile Beef)
Beef and potatoes stewed in a smooth guajillo chile sauce thickened with a little flour, the Chihuahua way, and spooned into warm flour tortillas.
Chili con Carne with Beans
The American home classic: ground beef, kidney beans and tomatoes simmered two hours with chili powder, cumin and a little heat.
Cincinnati Chili (Three-Way to Five-Way)
A thin, cinnamon-and-allspice-scented meat sauce ladled over buttered spaghetti and built up in "ways" with beans, onion and a mound of finely shredded cheddar.
Chile Verde with Pork
Pork shoulder braised for hours in a chunky purée of charred poblanos, tomatillos, garlic and jalapeño until it falls apart.
White Chicken Chili
Shredded chicken and creamy white beans in a light, green-chile broth of poblano, Anaheim and jalapeño, finished with lime, cilantro and scallions.
Frito Pie
Homemade beef chili ladled straight into a split-open bag of corn chips and topped with cheddar and chopped onion; eat it with a fork, right out of the bag.
Three-Bean Vegetarian Chili
Pinto, black and kidney beans simmered with crushed tomatoes, toasted cumin seeds, red pepper and corn, finished with lime and cilantro.
30-Minute Weeknight Beef and Bean Chili
Ground beef, kidney beans and lightly blitzed tomatoes with chili powder, cumin and a little chipotle, on the table in about 30 minutes.
Fast-Food Style Chili, Inspired by Wendy's
A mild, beefy, tomato-heavy chili with kidney and pinto beans, onion, celery and green pepper, simmered low and slow like the drive-thru favorite. Inspired by, not official.
Meatballs of the World
Italian-American Meatballs
Big, tender meatballs braised for an hour in red sauce over spaghetti. The one most Americans grew up with.
Pallottine (Abruzzo Meatballs)
Tiny meatballs, smaller than a marble, tossed right through square spaghetti alla chitarra. No bread at all.
Swedish Meatballs (Köttbullar)
Small, soft meatballs browned in butter, in a cream sauce made from the same pan, with lingonberry jam on the plate.
Danish Frikadeller
Pork meatballs shaped with a spoon and fried slowly in butter, crusty outside and soft in the middle.
Königsberger Klopse
German meatballs that are never fried: poached, then served in a creamy white sauce with capers.
Spanish Albóndigas in Almond Saffron Sauce
The tapas bar classic: small meatballs in a golden sauce thickened with fried almonds and bread.
Mexican Albóndigas with Chipotle and Mint
Soft meatballs with rice and fresh mint inside, simmered in a smoky tomato and chipotle broth.
Izgara Köfte (Turkish Grilled Meatballs)
Small, flat meatballs kneaded hard, rested cold, and charred on a hot grill pan.
Lion's Head Meatballs
Big, soft pork meatballs, stirred into a sticky paste, fried to set, then braised in a savory sauce.
Chicken Tsukune
Japan's chicken meatball: kneaded sticky, grilled on skewers, glazed with sweet soy tare, dipped in egg yolk.