Blue corn chicken pozole! That’s what I said! I really think my fascination for maiz(corn) of all different colors is because of my dad, Ramiro. Those of you who have been following me for a while know that my dad used to work with corn tortilla machinery. On many occasions he would test out the the big stainless steel tubs and cook dried corn.
What do you mean cook the corn?
Hominy is corn, but it is processed different than maize for tortillas to give it that over sized puffy look. The dried corn is cooked in these huge tubs with a water and calcium hydroxide (cal) solution. This would soften the corn as well as loosen the outer skin of the corn so you could easily rinse it away. Hominy is popular for soups and stews. There are four different colors of maize, white, yellow, blue(black) and even red.
Red , White and Blue!
When I see the flag, I think of my dad. When I see any kind of dried maize, I think of dad. I know he would have had a wealth of information for about all of this. He would get excited to talk about it! I knew when I saw the blue corn that I would prepare pozole and that somehow it would be red, white and blue. White chicken pozole with blue corn and red chile salsa for mixing in. My sister in law, Janet, gave me the inspiration on the 4th of July theme.
Is canned hominy the same as dried?
It’s one of those things. You either prefer the canned hominy or you prefer cooking the dried corn. Two different flavors and textures. I myself prefer the dried once it’s cooked. It has more of a bite to it and definitely has more corn flavor in the end.
My dad, Ramiro Mendez, born in Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico on America’s birthday, the 4th of July. He was proud of both countries and taught us to always be proud of our heritage and to support America as well. That is how we were raised. Thank You Papi. We miss you.
Add Extra layers of flavor to your stock.
I always add carrot, celery, cilantro and peppercorns when I cook chicken for any soup or stock. If I don’t use it for soup, then I use the stock for my Mexican rice or enchilada sauce.
Pozole Blanco de Pollo Con Maize Azul
White chicken pozole with blue corn. Don’t let the simplicity of it fool you. Whether you dress is up or just add a little citrus with crushed chile piquin, it was absolutely delicious!
Blue Corn Chicken Pozole
Ingredients
- 12 oz blue corn for pozole dried pozole
For Chicken Stock
- 2 large bone in skin on chicken breast(about 2 pounds)
- 1/2 large white onion reserve the other half
- 1/2 head of garlic reserve the other half
- 1 stalk of celery
- 1 large carrot
- 2 bay leaves
- 10 peppercorns
- handful of fresh cilantro
- Salt to taste
- 10 cups of water
- 2 tsp Mexican oregano
For Chile Sauce
- 6 Chile California or Guajillo dried red chiles
- 6-10 chile de arbol dried red chiles
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1 cup chicken broth or water
Garnish
- Shredded cabbage
- Radishes sliced
- onion finely diced
- Lime or lemon wedges
- Crushed chile piquin or red pepper flakes
- More oregano crushed
- Corn tostadas or chips
Instructions
- The day before, rinse the blue corn pozole and transfer to a bowl or pot. Cover with a generous amount of water and let it sit overnight.
- Next day, drain the water from the blue corn. Cover with fresh water. Bring up to a boil. Reduce heat slightly, cover partially and continue cooking for 2 to 2 1/2 hours or until the corn is tender.
- In another large pot, add the chicken, 1/2 the onion, 1/2 the head of garlic, celery, carrot, bay leaves, peppercorns, cilantro, salt to taste and 10 cups of water. Heat to medium. When it comes up to a boil, reduce the heat, skim off the top as needed. Cover 3/4 of the way and continue cooking for 45 minutes.
- When the chicken is done cooking, cover it completely and let it sit until the blue corn pozole is done cooking.
- Remove the stems and seeds from the large chile california or guajillo. If the chile de arbol has stems, remove them as well. I leave the seeds in the chile de arbol, but if you want a more mild salsa, remove them. Transfer chiles to a pot. Quickly rinse and drain to remove any dirt. Add 1/2 of remaining onion and 2 cloves of remaining garlic. Cover with water, bring to a boil, then reduce heat. Continue cooking for 10-12 minutes. Remove from heat.
- Drain the water from the softened chiles. Transfer ingredients to the blender. Add 1 cup fresh water or broth, 1/2 teaspoon cumin and salt to taste. Blend on high until very smooth. Taste for salt. If you want to add another level of flavor to this salsa, I would suggest frying the salsa in a little preheated oil for 7-9 minutes. Transfer to serving bowl when ready.
- Once the blue corn is cooked through, remove from heat. Drain out all of the liquid from the corn, making sure you leave at least 2 cups of the pozole broth in the pot.
- Remove the chicken and transfer to a plate. Shred the meat and transfer it to the pot with pozole. Strain out all the solids from the chicken broth and pour broth into pot with pozole. Add the 2 teaspoons of Mexican oregano. Taste for salt and continue cooking for 30 minutes at at medium heat.
- Ladle pozole into serving bowls. Garnish with shredded cabbage, radishes, red chile salsa, oregano, pepper flakes(if you like spicy) and lime.
Notes
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