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Green Chili and Hominy Stew
Green Chili and Hominy Stew
Corn, beans, and chilies are important staples of Indigenous tribes of the southwest. This stew contains a base of onions, garlic, and celery, with roasted chilies, hominy, and pinto beans simmered for an hour. It’s simply seasoned with cumin, coriander, and sea salt. Then at the last minute of cooking, spinach and cilantro are stirred in. This stew is very filling and full of flavor considering that it’s vegan and contains no colonialist ingredients.
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 1 medium onion diced
- 2 stalks celery diced
- 4 cups hominy
- 2 cups pinto beans
- 2 poblano peppers
- 2 fresno chilies
- 1 small green bell pepper
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 4 cups water
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 bunch spinach washed and chopped
- 1/2 cup cilantro chopped
Instructions
- Place the peppers on a wire rack. Broil in the oven for 4-5 minutes a side until the skins have been charred. Peel the skins. Seed. Dice all of the peppers. Set aside.
- Heat up the oil in a large pot over medium high heat. Sauté the onions, garlic, and celery for 10 minutes.
- Add in the hominy, beans, diced peppers, cumin seeds, and ground coriander.
- Pour in the water. Season with salt. Simmer for 10 minutes. Cover. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for an hour.
- Stir in the spinach and cilantro. Cook for a minute, then turn off the heat.
Pueblo Pork Roast
Pueblo Pork Roast
With Pueblo natives being indigenous to the southwest(New Mexico, Arizona, and Mexico), the flavors of this pork roast are definitely represented. The sauce that is made for the roast contains ingredients such as tomatoes, garlic, onions, juniper berries, coriander, honey, chili powder, and chocolate. The sauce is very reminiscent of Mexican mole.
Equipment
- Spice grinder
- immersion blender
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1 medium onion diced
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 4 juniper berries
- 1/2 tsp coriander seeds
- 1 bay leaf
- 4 tomatoes diced
- 1 cup water
- 2/3 cup cider vinegar
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 2 tbsp salt
- 1 oz unsweetened chocolate grated
- 5 lb pork rib roast
Instructions
- Heat up the oil in a sauté pan over medium high heat. Sauté the onions and garlic for 5 minutes.
- Grind the juniper berries and coriander seeds in a spice grinder. Add them and the bay leaf to onions.
- Add the tomatoes, water, cider vinegar, honey, chili powder, and salt. Cover. Reduce the heat to medium low and simmer for 30 minutes.
- Stir in the grated chocolate and continue to simmer for another 30 minutes.
- Pour the sauce into a bowl and allow to cool.
- Using an immersion blender, purée the sauce.
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Pour 3/4 of the sauce over the pork roast. Bake for 45 minutes.
- Baste the roast with the rest of the sauce and bake for another 45 minutes.
Bison Fry Bread Tacos
HISTORY AND CONTROVERSY OVER FRY BREAD
The fry bread links generation to generation, connecting the painful narrative of Native American history. Fry bread can be traced back to the 1860s, created by the Navajo. The U.S. government forced Natives in Arizona to relocate to New Mexico in a 300 mile journey known as “the long walk”. With the land in New Mexico not being sustainable to grow their staples like beans and corn, the government gave the Natives processed flour, processed sugar, and lard; the main ingredients for fry bread.
There are 2 opposing perspectives on fry bread. While many look at fry bread as a symbol of pain, perseverance, and survival that has unified tribes, those that oppose see fry bread as contributing to high levels of obesity and diabetes on Native reservations. It is also looked at as a symbol of colonial oppression. As tasty as fry bread can be, there is no nutritional value whatsoever.
Bison Fry Bread Tacos
If you’ve never had a fry bread taco, you are missing out. A simple dough made of flour, baking powder, salt, milk, and water is rolled out into large disc-like shapes and is deep fried. Then you top the fried flatbread with taco toppings: meat, lettuce, cheese, peppers, tomatoes, sour cream, green onions, cilantro, and salsa.
Equipment
- rolling pin
Ingredients
Fry Bread
- 2 cups flour plus more for bench flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup whole milk
- 1/2 cup water
- vegetable oil for frying
Bison
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1/4 cup onion finely chopped
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 1 lb ground bison
- 2 tsp salt
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 2 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp black pepper
Taco Toppings
- lettuce shredded
- jalapeños sliced
- tomatoes diced
- green onion chopped
- cilantro chopped
- cotija cheese
- sour cream
- salsa
Instructions
Fry Bread
- Mix separately together the wet and dry ingredients.
- Mix the wet and dry ingredients together.
- Lighlty flour a clean workspace. Portion out the dough into 4 equal pieces.
- Roll out each pieces into 8” circular shapes; about 1/4” thick.
- Heat up cooking oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat; about 1/2” deep. Carefully lay one of the fry bread into the oil.
- Fry for 2-3 minutes a side.
Ground Bison
- Heat up oil in a sauté pan over medium high heat. Sauté the onions and garlic for 2 minutes.
- Add in the ground bison. Brown for 8 minutes.
- Season with salt, pepper, cumin, paprika, and oregano.
