Patti Mitchem’s Pork & White Bean Chili
With tender pieces of pork, white beans, sweet squash, and corn, this Pork & White Bean Chili is a hearty, deeply flavorful winter dish.
Patti Mitchem’s Pork & White Bean Chili
Photo Credit : Kristin TeigThis Pork & White Bean Chili takes some time, but if you soak the beans ahead of time (or use canned beans), you can pull it together without a lot of fuss. And it’s well worth the effort. With tender pieces of pork shoulder, white beans, sweet squash, and corn, this chili is a hearty, deeply flavorful winter dish. It’s served sprinkled with crumbled feta cheese and chopped cilantro.
Ingredients
2 teaspoons plus 1 teaspoon kosher or sea salt
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
2-1/2 pounds pork shoulder (“pork butt”)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large onion, diced
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon cumin seeds (or 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin)
1 can (28 ounces) diced tomatoes with juice
3 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 medium-size butternut squash (about 2 pounds), peeled and chopped into small 1/2-inch chunks (about 1 pound flesh total)
4 fresh poblano or Anaheim chiles, roasted and chopped, or 2 4-ounce cans green chiles, drained and diced (see “Note”)
6 cups canned white beans (drained and rinsed) or presoaked dried white beans (see “Note”)
2 cups frozen corn
Dash hot sauce, to taste (optional)
Garnishes: 1 cup feta cheese, crumbled, or grated Monterey jack, and 1 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 325°. In a small bowl, stir together 2 teaspoons of salt, plus pepper, allspice, and cloves. Trim any excess fat from the pork; then cut lengthwise into slabs about 1½ inches thick. Sprinkle all over with the salt mixture.
Put the oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. When hot, add 2 or 3 slabs of pork (don’t crowd the pan) and brown well on both sides; then transfer to a plate. Repeat with the remaining pork. Drain all but 3 tablespoons of the oil from the Dutch oven, and add the onions, garlic, cumin, and remaining teaspoon of salt. Cook until the onions are translucent, about 6 minutes. Add the tomatoes (and soaked dried beans if using), pork, and broth; cover, and transfer to the oven to cook until the meat is very tender, 90 minutes to 2 hours.
Remove the pot from the oven and transfer the meat to a cutting board. Chop the meat, or shred it using two forks; then return it to the pot and set it over medium-high heat. Add the squash, stir well, and cook 10 minutes. Add the chiles, beans (if using canned), and corn. Add a dash of hot sauce, if you like. Bring to a simmer, cover partially, and cook until the squash is tender and the flavors are combined, about 20 minutes. Taste for seasoning.
Serve in bowls topped with some cheese and cilantro.
