Cut the top off the chile pods and remove the seeds and stems. Rinse the chiles in a large mixing bowl and drain. Cover the rinsed chile pods with very hot water and let sit for 20 minutes to soften.
Place the softened chiles on baking sheet and toast in a 300 degree the oven for 5 minutes. They don't need to be completely dried out, just toasted enough to bring out the flavor of the roasted chile. Remove from oven and let cool for about 5 minutes.
Heat the vegetable oil in a large sauce pan over medium high heat. Add the garlic and onion and saute until the garlic is just browned. Don't let it go too long or it'll burn and taste bitter.
Add half the chiles to a blender or food processor and puree along with 2 cups warm water and 1 tsp of salt until smooth. Add them to the sauce pan with the garlic and onion. Repeat with the other half of the chiles and the chile pequin (if using).
Bring the sauce to a boil on a medium-high heat and continue cooking for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. The sauce will thicken a bit but should remain fairly thin. Remove from heat and let cool until room temperature.
Remove the the larger pieces of fat from the pork and cut the pork into 3/4 inch to 1 inch cubes. Stir the pork into the chile sauce. Transfer to a large enough bowl, cover and let marinate overnight in the refrigerator.
The next day, preheat your oven to 300 degrees. Use a non-stick cooking spray and coat a large baking dish to prevent sticking.
Add the marinated carne adovada with sauce to the baking dish. Cover tightly with foil and bake for 3 hours, stirring once at 90 minutes into baking. Remove foil (to thicken sauce) at 2 and a half hours.
When 3 hours is up, it's time to eat. I recommend serving it with hot flour tortillas along with refried beans and my homemade Spanish rice.
Photograph: J. Kenji Lopez-Alt
Ingredients
Directions
Cut the top off the chile pods and remove the seeds and stems. Rinse the chiles in a large mixing bowl and drain. Cover the rinsed chile pods with very hot water and let sit for 20 minutes to soften.
Place the softened chiles on baking sheet and toast in a 300 degree the oven for 5 minutes. They don't need to be completely dried out, just toasted enough to bring out the flavor of the roasted chile. Remove from oven and let cool for about 5 minutes.
Heat the vegetable oil in a large sauce pan over medium high heat. Add the garlic and onion and saute until the garlic is just browned. Don't let it go too long or it'll burn and taste bitter.
Add half the chiles to a blender or food processor and puree along with 2 cups warm water and 1 tsp of salt until smooth. Add them to the sauce pan with the garlic and onion. Repeat with the other half of the chiles and the chile pequin (if using).
Bring the sauce to a boil on a medium-high heat and continue cooking for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. The sauce will thicken a bit but should remain fairly thin. Remove from heat and let cool until room temperature.
Remove the the larger pieces of fat from the pork and cut the pork into 3/4 inch to 1 inch cubes. Stir the pork into the chile sauce. Transfer to a large enough bowl, cover and let marinate overnight in the refrigerator.
The next day, preheat your oven to 300 degrees. Use a non-stick cooking spray and coat a large baking dish to prevent sticking.
Add the marinated carne adovada with sauce to the baking dish. Cover tightly with foil and bake for 3 hours, stirring once at 90 minutes into baking. Remove foil (to thicken sauce) at 2 and a half hours.
When 3 hours is up, it's time to eat. I recommend serving it with hot flour tortillas along with refried beans and my homemade Spanish rice.
