Carne Adovada (Red Chile Pork Stew)

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 3 lbs pork butt, well-trimmed of fat and cut into 1-inch pieces (or shoulder)
• 2 onions, chopped
• 6 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon flour
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
• 1 cup ground dried new mexico chile powder
• 4-6 cups water or broth

Directions

1. 1

   Preheat oven to 350°.

2. 2

   In a large pot over medium heat, add oil. When hot, add pork pieces to brown (add only enough so the pieces are in a single layer and don't touch each other; you will need to do this in batches). Pork should sizzle the minute it touches the pot; if it doesn't, remove it and wait for the pot to heat up. Cook, undisturbed, until well-browned on one side, about 3 minutes. Turn and brown on all sides. Transfer pork to a large bowl or plate and repeat with remaining batches.

3. 3

   When all pork is browned and set aside, add onions, garlic, and salt to pot. Cook, stirring, until soft, about 3 minutes. Sprinkle with flour and pepper and cook, stirring, until flour smells like pie crust, about 3 minutes.

4. 4

   Add ground chile and stir to combine. Add 3 cups water and bring to a boil.

5. 5

   In a blender, whirl chile mixture until smooth. Return to pot and add another 1 cup water and reserved pork. Bring to a boil, cover, and bake 1 hour. Stir, add additional 1 cup water if stew seems dry, and bake until pork falls apart with a fork and sauce is thick, about another hour.Serve hot.