Pozole

by Ellie Ochoa

For the soup

• 4 chicken breasts
• Knorr Chicken Bouillon
• Salt to taste
• Bay leaves
• 1 medium-sized white onion
• 5 garlic cloves

For the Green Sauce

• 3 poblano peppers
• 2-4 jalapeno peppers
• 5 tomatillos
• Cilantro
• Raw Pepitas Seeds
• Oregano

For the Pozole

• 1 16oz can of white hominy

Garnish

• White Cabbage
• Radish
• Lime Juice
• Tostadas

Cooking the Chicken

1. Add the chicken, onion, garlic, bay leaves, and chicken bouillon to a large pot with enough water to cover
2. Bring to a boil and then let simmer for 30 minutes
3. Remove the chicken and let it sit before shredding unevenly

Green Sauce

1. To a saucepan, add a neutral oil and add your tomatillos until a slight change of color
2. After adding peppers until they blister on the skin
3. Place in a Ziploc bag to sweat for 5 minutes
4. Remove the skin of the peppers and the seeds (optional)
5. To the blender, add
   1. Tomatillos and peeled peppers
   2. Cilantro and Oregano
   3. Onion and Garlic (from the broth)
   4. Pepita seeds
   5. Broth

Cooking the sauce

1. To the same pot, add the sauce to the same remaining broth along with the hominy
2. Let simmer for 15 minutes and try for seasoning
3. Lastly, add the chicken back and let it simmer for 15 minutes

Serving

1. To a bowl, add the soup and garnish with cabbage, radish, and extra oregano (optional)
2. Serve with tostadas or bolillo on the side

Being Mexican American, I was born between never feeling fully one thing

Between spices and stories is where I was born

Stories of a place I could never really call home, but it calls me

And spices that transport you home even when you are miles away

Between learning a new language and customs in our kitchen, that did not matter

Remembering a past loved one through recipes

Every bite shared a memory of them

Where borders and distances didn’t matter

Recipes that closed the distance

Traditions that get passed down through food

Pan de Muertos for November

Pozole for the soul when a chill passes through the air

Tamales on Christmas Eve and reliquia for every other special event

In the kitchen, language does not matter

It is remembering resistance, survival, and feeding the future that your parents once dreamt of

Because food isn’t just nutrients, it is memory, love, and much more