I love Mexican cuisine. And if there’s one dish that embodies comfort with every slurp along with some serious flavor (while remaining light), it’s Pozole.
In case you’re not familiar with this classic Mexican staple, Pozole is essentially a hearty stew that usually contains three key ingredients: hominy (white, puffy, soft corn), chiles (usually ancho, guajillo and/or arbol) and a protein of some sort (in this case, pork). It also comes in different varieties of red (which we’ll be doing here) and green.
Any way you ladle it, Pozole is one of the most wonderful things your mouth will experience and is now easier, faster and more convenient than ever to make thanks to the Instant Pot!
Instant Pot Pozole
Yield: 6
Instant Pot Pozole
I love Mexican cuisine. And if there's one dish that embodies comfort with every slurp along with some serious flavor (while remaining light), it's Pozole.
Prep Time
10 minutes
Cook Time
35 minutes
Additional Time
25 minutes
Total Time
1 hour 10 minutes
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 large Spanish or yellow onion, diced
- 1 poblano pepper, seeded and diced
- 4 jalapeño peppers, 2 seeded and diced and 2 roughly chopped with seeds and ribs intact, plus more for garnish (optional)
- 3 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
- 4 cups low-sodium broth of your choice or water (I used low-sodium beef broth for extra flavor)
- 1 teaspoon liquid smoke (optional)
- 3 (15-ounce) cans white hominy, rinsed and drained (NOTE: If you can't find 15-ounce cans, just grab whatever size. It should just be about 3-4 cups of hominy total)
- 2 tablespoons dried oregano (you can use Mexican oregano as well)
- 1 1/2 tablespoons chili powder (optional)
- 4 teaspoons seasoned salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
- 3 pounds boneless country-style ribs or boneless pork shoulder, cut into bite-sized chunks
- 2 bay leaves
- 4 ounces dried ancho, guajillo and/or arbol chiles, tops snipped off with seeds removed so they're hollowed out (See Jeff's Tips)
- 4 cloves garlic, whole
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 (7-ounce) cans diced green chiles with their juices (optional)
Optional Toppings
- Fresh cilantro
- Sliced radish
- Lime wedges
- Shredded green cabbage
- Sliced jalapeños
Instructions
- Add the oil to the Instant Pot, hit Sauté, and Adjust so it's on the More or High setting. Once heated (about 3 minutes), add the onion, poblano, and the 2 diced jalapeños (if using) and sauté for 5 minutes or until slightly softened.Add the minced garlic and sauté for 1 minute longer.
- Add the broth, liquid smoke (if using), white hominy, oregano, chili powder (if using), seasoned salt, cumin, garlic powder, black pepper, and cayenne (if using). Stir well.
- Add the pork, bay leaves and ancho chiles but do not stir. Just make sure the chiles are laying on top of everything in the pot.
- Secure the lid, move the valve to the sealing position, hit Keep Warm/Cancel, and then hit Manual or Pressure Cook on High Pressure for 35 minutes. When done, allow a 15-minute natural release (the pin may have dropped on its own at this point)
- Remove and reserve the ancho chiles and place in a food processor or blender. Discard the bay leaves, and skim off any foam from the surface of the stew, if necessary. Transfer 2 cups of the broth from the pot to the food processor and the 2 roughly chopped jalapeños (if using), whole garlic cloves, and kosher salt. Blend until puréed.
- Place a fine-mesh strainer over the Instant Pot and pour in the pureed chili mixture. Using some force with a wooden spoon or spatula, press the puree into the strainer, scraping it around so all the drippings drip into the pot. Do this for a good 1-2 minutes (really press all that puree through the strainer!). You can then either discard the skin debris that's left in the strainer or save it for infusing olive oil!
- Add the diced green chiles (if using), give everything a stir and let rest for 10 minutes for the flavors to really come together.
- Ladle into bowls and top with the traditional suggestions or how you see fit!
Jeffrey's Tips
Ancho chiles are mild like poblanos and some people also like to add in guajillo chiles (medium spicy- just below a japaleño) and/or arbol chiles (on the spicy side). Whatever you do, keep it to about 4-5 ounces and make sure they're all dried. If you DO use arbol chiles, you may want to re-think using any jalapeños so it's not overpowering in terms of spice.
If you prefer chicken instead of pork, I'd suggest using about 3 pounds boneless, skinless thighs or breasts. Same cook time!
Martin A Courtney
Cabbage is traditional. I also use radishes.
This recipe differs from mine, but I look forward to trying this version!
Joan Evensen
Oh, my sweet baby angels! This looks so wonderful & delicious; can’t wait to make this one. Jeff, your recipes keep getting better & better!
Teina
I’ve been looking for a good intapot pazoli recipe. I’m looking forward to trying this one. Is there a reason why the meat is not browned first?
Kara Chevrier
Hey!! Thank you so much for this recipe which I am dying to try. I’m just wondering how mild (or spicy) it is at the very minimum (no seeds and mild peppers) would it be?
Alexis
If I wanted to make a vegan version, of course I’d switch to veggie broth. But I was thinking garbanzo beans (chickpeas) would be a great substitute for the pork. But how much? And dried or canned? I need a bit of guidance with canned/ dried beans in the IP.
Jessica
I would do 3 cans of the canned ones or cook up a pound of them and use that
Prae
if you want a vegan version, you should look into pozole verde, it will be significantly easier to adapt
Brandy
I never leave reviews but I just had to this time! My best friends mom made this growing up and it was one of favorites. I’ve never been brave enough to try to make it myself until I saw your recipe! It was FABULOUS! The smell alone took me back to being 10 again! Thank you so much!!! I cannot wait to try more of your recipes! I’m going to make the sour cream and onion chicken today!
Kalin C
I’m semi-certain I used the wrong dried peppers and my dish has quite a bit of heat but it is DELICIOUS!!! I’m definitely making this part of my monthly rotation.
Kevin
Can’t wait to try this in the next couple of days – looks delish. One question though… how does a New Yorker come to have a Bucky’s hat?
Lynn
All three members of the family confirmed this Instant Pot Pozole was a keeper (which included my 91 year old mom). What a great way to clean out your spices and herbs. LOL The pork was so very tender and tasty.
Thank you Jeffrey for all the work that you put into such wonder recipes and videos as well.
BB
I made this with a few differences……natural leased 40 min. by accident so had no paste after pushing thru drain. So turned out a little thicker stew but delicious. Thank you for all your time you put into these recipes.
Amy
My husband grew up eating his moms/aunts/cousins pozoles so I’ve always been nervous to attempt making it for him. I stumbled across this recipe and let me tell you…he RAVES about it! He asks me to make it all the time. His one request though is I make a bigger batch of it! Can this be doubled if I were to make it on the stovetop? Not sure how that changes cooking times?
Anna
I want to make this for a bigger crowd. I have an 8 quart IP. If I double the recipe, will it fit?
Sean
My friends made this twice in one week, I was there for the second time. It was so good, it’s all I ate for three meals. I’m making it for my family this Friday. I’m a pozole fiend, and this is an absolutely delicious recipe. Thank you!
Danielle
Can this be done in the ninja Foodi pressure cooker?
Cher
I made it in the Ninja, worked like a charm! Tho… I wasn’t too sure I wanted to cook the hominy that long. So I added that later… did anyone think the hominy was over cooked by putting it in the pot so early?
Rose
You may be assuming most people know how to work with fresh jalapeño peppers. You need to add a warning to wear rubber or food-handling gloves. If you have any cuts on your hands, you will feel them BIG time. And whatever you do, do not touch your eyes. I did that years ago (when I didn’t know better) and even flushing my eyes for 15 min. still didn’t remove the sting. I am looking forward to trying this recipe. Thanks for sharing.
Bonny
Y’all. Let me tell you. 5 years ago I moved from San Diego to Charleston and the one thing I miss the most is good Mexican food. This Pozole is so freaking good that I had it for lunch at work all week. Now, you don’t know me, but if you did you would know that this is high praise. I will pass this recipe down to my children. It is that good.
Tracey
I have an awesome recipe for a weeknight chicken pozole that we love, but thought I would give this a try while hubby was watching Super Bowl. I thought that it would be very spicy with all the peppers, but OMG, this is FREAKING DELICIOUS! It has such a deep flavor, so yummy. And the family loved it. Thank you!
bKay
So very good made exactly as written! Can’t wait to try out your other recipes.
Jen
This recipe was absolutely delicious, and will definitely be making it many more times in the future! Side note to the folks who aren’t skilled chefs, it will take at least 45 minutes to rinse/dice/chop/de-seed, etc. All in all it took about 3 hours. It was totally worth it though!
Jeffrey
I definitely don’t think 45 minutes of prep will be the case for most people. But I’m thrilled you enjoyed the recipe!
Monica Villasenor
It took me less than 10
Mins of prep!
Jeffrey
Perfect!
Bobbi Green
Jeffrey, we LOVE this recipe, but with all due respect, I agree with Jen’s comment. There is absolutely NO WAY you can clean and dice peppers, onions, and garlic, open cans, rinse/drain, measure herbs, cut pork, and prep dried ancho chiles in ONLY 10 minutes!!! Not everyone has 10 sous chefs. 😉
Kimberly
Jeffrey, your Mexican dishes taste so authentic (I’m Hispanic, so I’m speaking from experience) that I can’t help but wonder if there’s a little tiny bit of Hispanic hidden in with your Jew heritage! Lol! Especially with how much you love to spice up your recipes!! This pozole is scrumptious! And much easier to make! Thank you!❤️
Jeffrey
I love this! And if there is Mexican in my
blood, it would be a welcome surprise to me!
A Plazola
This is one of my families favorite recipes. The only problem is there Is never enough. Any tips on converting it to either a crock pot or on stove recipe?
Niki Maas
Hi Jeffrey,
My sister roasted a pork something (so delicious) so we already have the cooked meat. What differences in cooking would it take to make this soup?
Can’t wait to try it!!
April L Ballinger
how long to cook with a bone in pork roast?
Daniele K
This is quite different from my mother’s recipe (she grew up in Albuquerque, NM) I grew up eating, but it looks SO delicious. Thank you for the recipe
Trish
WOW! Just made this tonight and it is excellent. Made as written. Tastes as good as what we get in Mexico. Well done!!!!
Jeffrey
So glad!
Oliver
This recipe was absolutely delicious. I used chicken thigh instead of pork, and it still came out amazing.
The technique of cooking the peppers on top, then running through the processor, and straining was a stroke of genius.
I will be stealing that to amp up a lot of other recipes.
Raymond
This is one of the best versions I’ve had or made. I use it all the time with my own variations and it’s perfect. everybody loves it. it’s similar to my grandmother’s but has a couple extra steps that just, do it. thank you for sharing this recipe.
Jeffrey
You’re so welcome!
Lori
This was delicious! Thanks!
I made it with chicken breast cut into large bite-size pieces. Pressure cooked for 7 min with 7 min natural release and the chicken was completely cooked through.
Carie M Carney
OMG I made this with all arbol chilies and it is Way Too Hot! I tried adding rice and sour cream and cheese but it is still way too hot. Can you think of anything else I could do to save this batch? Thanks for your help!
Jenny B
I made it and received rave reviews from family and friends and was told this was the best pozole they had ever tasted. thank you for the awesome recipe!
Jeffrey
Couldn’t love this more!
Melinda Sandberg
LOVE this recipe!!!! Made if for Superbowl, it was gone! Made it AGAIN the next day, gone!!! Finally found one that all my people love! Thank you!
Jeffrey
Now THIS is what I love to hear!
Danny Juckes
That video has to be the Whitest description of how to make Pazole I have ever heard. Haha.
Jeffrey
Ah, but it’s dang good and deserves a place amongst the best of them 😉