Pork and Chile Stew Gluten Free Recipe

Last year a friend of ours made us his version of this great southwestern dish. His was a little soupy–I like my soups and stews to be a little more substantial, so I came up with my own version of it. It is delicious, has just the right amount of “heat”, and is good with cornbread or corn tortillas. I use whatever cut of pork is on sale at the time. Last week I found the country style bone in ribs for $1.00 a pound, so that is what I used. I cut them up with a butcher knife, and saved the bones to throw in the pot while it cooked.

1.5 lb pork stew meat, cut in 1 inch chunks

2 stalks celery

3 cloves garlic

1 poblano, anaheim, or serrano pepper

1/2 to 2 jalapeno peppers ( how much heat do you like?)

5 medium potatoes

1/2 lb frozen mixed vegetables or 3 carrots

1/2 tsp ground chipotle pepper

2 teaspoons ground cumin

1 teaspoon basil

1/4 tsp black pepper

1/2 tsp salt

4 Tbs olive oil

seasoned salt and meat tenderizer

Put the olive oil in a dutch oven and turn the heat up to medium. Peel and chop the celery, peel and mince the garlic. Cut the peppers open and remove and discard the seeds, then chop them up. Add all the chopped veggies to the dutch oven with the olive oil. Saute until the garlic is tender.

Rinse and dry the pork pieces, then sprinkle generously with tenderizer, and lightly with seasoned salt. Add the meat pieces to the pan with the veggies. Cook until browned on all sides, about 5 minutes. Peel and dice the potatoes and add to the pan. Add the mixed vegetables or carrots. Add in about 5 cups of water and the rest of the seasonings. Bring to a boil, then turn the heat down and simmer for 2 hours.

This is a naturally gluten free meal–there are no ingredients that contain gluten. I forgot to take a picture of it, I’ll try to remember to do that next time I make it. Delicious served with corn tortillas or cornbread. Don’t be afraid to add different vegetables to this soup. I like it sometimes with just potatoes, or sometimes with yellow squash added instead of mixed vegetables. As long as you get the seasonings right, it will be muy bueno!