Chilorio is a pork dish from the Mexican state of Sinaloa. It is most often used as a filling for tacos, burritos or tamales. While it is similar to my spicy, citrus infused East Coast Carnitas, this chilorio recipe has a mellow, satisfying, more rustic taste.  I guess this is Mexican comfort food in my book. I don’t know how authentic the recipe is but I know it works. Slow cooked pork simmered until tender then made crispy with a quick fry in pork fat and homemade chile sauce.

A few things to keep in mind. Keep the pork covered with liquid during the simmer. Add water if you run short of vegetable broth. Also I run the chile sauce through a colander with small holes to filter the larger bits of chiles that my food processer will not break down. If you have a professional grade processor or blender this will not be a problem. Serve this slightly crispy shredded pork in tacos with refried black beans and Mexican avocado creama for full effect.

INGREDIENTS:

For the pork

• 2 lbs boneless pork roast
• 8 cups vegetable broth
• 1/2 cup rendered pork fat back or bacon fat (you can sub vegetable oil)

For the chile sauce

• 4 dried ancho chiles
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 2 tablespoon fresh Mexican oregano (sub 1 tablespoon dried)
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 1 teaspoon salt

PREPARATION:

1. Place the pork roast in a large pot, cover it with the broth and then cover the pot. Bring to a simmer and cook covered for 2 hours. During the last 20 minutes of cooking time, toss in the dried chiles to rehydrate them. When the pork is done simmering, drain off the liquid but reserve 1 cup. Remove the chiles and stem and seed them after they have cooled to the touch. Pull the pork apart using two opposing forks. The meat should shred very easily.

2. In a food processor combine the rehydrated chiles and the reserved liquid with the remaining sauce ingredients and puree until smooth. Get it as smooth as you can get it.

3. Heat the fat or veggie oil large pan or pot. Fry the pork in the fat until browned and just a tad crispy. Drain most of the fat from the pan and add the blended chile sauce and simmer for 10 minutes or until the sauce thickens and the flavors have melded together.

Serves 8 plus

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