This chile verde is chunks of pork in a green tomatillo sauce, all simmered together until the meat is fall-apart tender. A Mexican classic that’s packed with flavor and makes for a unique and unexpected dinner option.
I love to make my family’s favorite Mexican dishes at home such as chicken tacos, beef enchiladas and this super flavorful chile verde. Add your favorite toppings and you’ll have a hearty meal that everyone is sure to enjoy.
Whenever I go to my local Mexican restaurant, I have to order the chile verde. That super tender meat in zesty sauce just can’t be beat! You can enjoy chile verde on its own, or use it as a filling for burritos, tacos and enchiladas.
What is chile verde?
Chile verde is a Mexican style stew that’s filled with chunks of tender pork in a sauce made of roasted tomatillos and assorted chiles. The pork is slow cooked in the sauce until tender. This dish originated in Mexico and has become common in America.
How do you make chile verde?
This recipe starts with chunks of pork, which are cooked in a pan until golden brown. While the pork is browning, prepare the sauce by broiling tomatillos, poblano peppers and jalapeno peppers until they’re soft and blackened. Remove the skins from the peppers, then place them in a blender along with the tomatillos, cilantro and chicken broth. Puree the sauce mixture until smooth. Saute onions and garlic, the place the pork, vegetables and sauce all together to simmer. Cover the pot and place it in the oven. Bake the chile verde for 2-3 hours or until the pork is tender. Add fresh cilantro and other toppings, then serve and enjoy.
Tips for the perfect dish
- For this dish, you’ll want to use a cut of pork that’s well marbled. Some good options include pork shoulder or boneless pork country ribs.
- The green sauce can be made up to 2 days before you plan to make the dish. Sometimes I even make a double batch of the sauce and freeze some for later use.
- This dish is written to be mild on the heat scale. If you prefer a spicier stew, leave some of the ribs and seeds in the jalapenos.
- Pork stew stays fresh in the refrigerator for up to 4 days and can be frozen for 2 months.
- Leftovers make a great filling for burritos or tacos, and can also be spooned over nachos or wrapped inside tortillas to make enchiladas.
Flavor Variations
This chile verde is fabulous as-is, but you can add other ingredients to customize the flavors to your tastes.
- Toppings: Serve your meal with an assortment of toppings such as sour cream, sliced radish, avocado, tortilla strips and chopped cilantro.
- Veggies: Feel free to add some veggies to the dish such as carrots, potatoes or zucchini.
- Protein: While pork is the traditional choice for chile verde, you could also use beef stew meat or diced chicken thighs.
More Mexican recipes to try
Chile Verde Video
Chile Verde
Ingredients
For the pork
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 3 pounds pork shoulder cut into 1 inch pieces
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 onion peeled and diced
- 1 tablespoon garlic minced
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano Mexican oregano if possible
For the sauce
- 1 1/2 pounds tomatillos husks removed
- 4 poblano peppers cored and halved lengthwise, seeds and ribs removed
- 2 jalapeno peppers cored and halved lengthwise, seeds and ribs removed
- 1 cup cilantro leaves
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 2 cups chicken broth
- cooking spray
- toppings for serving such as sour cream, cilantro and tortilla strips
Instructions
For the pork
- Heat the oil in a large oven safe pot over medium heat.
- Season the pork pieces with salt and pepper.
- Place half of the pork in the pot. Cook for 3-4 minutes on each side or until browned.
- Remove the pork from the pot. Repeat the process with the remaining pork.
- Return all the pork back to the pot. Discard excess fat, leaving 1 tablespoon of fat in the pan.
- Add the onion to the pan and cook for 4-5 minutes or until softened. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Season the vegetables with salt and pepper.
- Stir in the cumin and oregano.
For the sauce
- Preheat the broiler. Coat a sheet pan with cooking spray.
- Place the tomatillos, poblano peppers and jalapeno peppers on the sheet pan.
- Broil for 5-7 minutes or until vegetables are tender and charred.
- Place the peppers in a plastic bag and seal. Let the peppers sit in the bag for 4-5 minutes. This will make the skins a lot easier to remove.
- Take the peppers out of the bag and peel off the skins.
- Place the tomatillos, peppers, cilantro, salt, pepper and chicken broth in a blender. Blend until smooth.
For the stew
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
- Pour the sauce into the pot with the pork and onions. Stir to combine.
- Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cover the pot and place it in the oven.
- Cook for 2 1/2 - 3 hours or until pork is tender.
- Place the stew into bowls. Add toppings as desired, then serve.
This was delicious! I used pork shoulder and trimmed off as much fat as I could but it was still tender. Served with sliced avocado, shredded cheese, onion, tomato, shredded Iceburg lettuce and topped with some crispy jalapenos (from a bag). My husband also had white rice but I don’t think it is needed
Amazing! Took some time, but totally worth it.
Is this sauce freezable? I have an abundance of tomatillos and poblanos and this would be a perfect way to preserve them!
Yes it can be frozen!
I just bought the ingredients for dinner tonight and it looks really delicious. I do have a question though. Are the tomatillos and poblanos spicy? My husband and kids are sensitive to spicy, but I love spicy. I know the jalapeños are, but they can handle just a smidge if it’s a little spicy. Not full on spicy though so I would not add the jalapeños in there unless it’s for myself. I can’t wait to try it!
My kids ate this dish with no issues, poblanos and tomatillos are mild just be sure to remove all the seeds and veins from the poblanos!
My pork didn’t turn out crispy brown like yours, and now that I’ve cooked it in the sauce I’m not sure I can fix that with the broiler — any recommendations?
If you wanted to strain it out of the liquid you could broil the pieces, then mix them back into the sauce.
Yummy! My husband inhaled the pork and took it for lunch the next day.
I made this pock meal tonight, and I must admit it was so delicious. Well, everything is gone, no leftovers. I am going to make it again, for sure.
Yummy! This is so delicious! My husband loves this recipe! It was a big hit here at the house!
This chile verde pork recipe is so delicious! Love the flavor and kept in some jalapeno seeds for an extra kick!
There is nothing like homemade Salsa Verde. the Chili is fantastic but I love using Salsa Verde even with just tortilla chips
I prefer green suace over red and this chile Verde recipe is great to have on hand when I want one of my favorite restaurant dishes at home.
This recipe is great!! Although I just seared the pork and the other ingredients in my instant pot and ended up pressure cooking it in it as well for 12 minute. If you want some extra flavor add cooked bacon and boiled pinto beans to the soup once everything is finished cooking! I am definitely making this again.
Mmm this is so good! Loved the flavors of the pork! the whole family enjoyed it!
We had this last night. I was anticipating some leftovers for lunch today… but, everyone went back for seconds! This was delicious. Will definitely make again!
This is SO good!! A new favorite dinner at my house!
This chile verde is looks incredibly delicious!
Such a great combo of flavors, they all blend so well and this made for a delicious family dinner!