My sisterfriend Durae (boyfriend's brother's wife sounds wayyy too impersonal) is whom I usually have the pleasure of cooking holiday dinners with. Outfitted with a mini farm in her backyard (maybe only 4 or 5 raised beds, but man they know how to produce a harvest!) and an exceptional grocery store down the street (Oliver's 😍), her fresh ingredients, creative taste and well-cultivated culinary skills result in many bowl-licking-good, heartwarming meals.
This year, it was her Pasole. Made on the 23rd of December, probably slow-cooked overnight with garden grown peppers and tomatillos, flavored with homemade hot sauce, her soup was oh-so-good. She served it for lunch on Christmas Eve, while we were both slaving away, starting to pick at the vegetables we were chopping, dipping our fingers in the batter we were making, tummy's rumbling, about to reach for that hour-too-early first glass of wine; everything about it was perfect! Savory, luscious and delectable with a piquant aroma that danced around the kitchen and coaxed you into a second serving. Her Pasole is now and forever a Christmas Eve tradition. As they say, "Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery" and girllll, I hope you're blushing. I was inspired!
And hungry for more Pasole December 28th. My spin on it below:
Verde Chicken Pasole
1.5 - 2 lbs of chicken (I used breasts, but do whatever!)
drizzle of oil/fat of some sort (olive oil is what I used)
1/2 onion (diced, either white or yellow will work)
1 lb of tomatillos (cut into quarters)
2 poblano peppers (diced)
2 jalepeños (de-seeded and diced)
6 smashed cloves of garlic (flattened with the side of the knife)
8 cups of water (or broth if you happen to have any)
1 small head of cauliflower (cut into florets) (paleo "hominy"!)
salt to taste
handful of shredded cabbage
handful of chopped cilantro
handful of thinly sliced radish
diced green onion
2 limes (cut into wedges)
1.5 - 2 lbs of chicken (I used breasts, but do whatever!)
drizzle of oil/fat of some sort (olive oil is what I used)
1/2 onion (diced, either white or yellow will work)
1 lb of tomatillos (cut into quarters)
2 poblano peppers (diced)
2 jalepeños (de-seeded and diced)
6 smashed cloves of garlic (flattened with the side of the knife)
8 cups of water (or broth if you happen to have any)
1 small head of cauliflower (cut into florets) (paleo "hominy"!)
salt to taste
handful of shredded cabbage
handful of chopped cilantro
handful of thinly sliced radish
diced green onion
2 limes (cut into wedges)
- Add onion, tomatillos, all the peppers and garlic to instant pot (or large soup pot)
- Drizzle oil and turn on heat (Sauté function for instant pot, medium heat if using stove)
- Stir well and cook until onions are starting to become translucent
- Add chicken and water
- For the Instant pot - pressure on high until chicken is cooked (12ish minutes)
- For stove top - bring mixture to boil, reduce to simmer and cook til chicken is done (14ish minutes)
- Once chicken is cooked through, remove it from whatever you're cooking in and set aside on a cutting board.
- Remove one cup of the water(now broth. Magic!)/peppers/tomatillos/other stuff mixture
- Blend all the remaining vegetables and liquid til smoothish (immersion blender or regular blender)
- Add the cup of chunky stuff you took out back to the stuff you just blended (texture!)
- Add cauliflower florets (Instant pot steam for 2 minutes or simmer on stovetop)
- Shred chicken with two forks and add back to soup
- Cook together until cauliflower is tender
- Add salt if needed
- Done!
- Top with shredded cabbage, cilantro, radish, green onion and a squeeze of lime!
Took some shortcuts with this one. Definitely wasn't my sisterfriend's slow-cooked overnight, roasted tomatillos and pepper's amazing-ness.
But for less than an hour, this delicious soup 100% satisfied my Christmas Eve cravings!
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