Posole Rojo

Ingredients

• For the chile sauce
• 3/4 cup dried chiles de árbol
• 4 or 5 dried ancho chiles
• 2 garlic cloves, smashed
• For the posole
• 2 lb pork tenderloin, trimmed of all visible fat and cut in half
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 tablespoon avocado oil
• 1 large white onion, chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 8 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 2 cups water
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano, preferably Mexican
• 1 bay leaf
• 3 cans (15 oz each) white hominy, drained and rinsed well
• Potassium chloride salt substitute, a pinch to taste (optional)
• For serving
• Shredded green cabbage
• Thinly sliced radishes
• Diced white onion
• Lime wedges
• Dried oregano, crumbled between your fingers

Steps

1. Break the stems off the chiles de árbol and anchos and shake out as many seeds as you can. Put the chiles in a bowl, cover with boiling water, and weigh them down with a plate. Soak until soft, about 30 minutes.
2. Move the chiles and 1 1/2 cups of the soaking liquid to a blender, add the smashed garlic, and blend until smooth. Push the sauce through a fine-mesh strainer with a spatula and discard the solids.
3. Rub the pork all over with the cumin. Heat the avocado oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat and cook the onion until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the chopped garlic and cook 2 minutes.
4. Turn the heat to medium-high. Push the onion and garlic to one side and sear the pork on the other side, turning, until lightly browned all over, about 5 minutes.
5. Stir in the water, broth, oregano, bay leaf and 1/2 to 3/4 cup of the chile sauce, depending on how much heat you like. Bring to a low boil, then lower to a simmer. Partly cover and cook, turning the pork now and then, until tender, about 3 hours.
6. Stir in the hominy and simmer uncovered until the pork starts falling apart, about 1 hour more. Remove the bay leaf.
7. Move the pork to a cutting board, chop it roughly and return it to the pot. Thin with a little water or broth if it's too thick. Taste, and add a pinch of salt substitute only if it needs it.
8. Serve with the cabbage, radishes, onion, lime and oregano, and the rest of the chile sauce on the side.