Pork and poblano stew

My most recent issue of Better Homes & Gardens arrived recently and I’m not gonna lie, I was a little hesitant to even open it. The recipes! I wouldn’t be able to make them! But the lure of BH&G is just too much and so imagine my surprise when I opened the issue and found two Whole30-compliant recipes that needed no tweaking whatsoever. (Let’s ignore the entire section dedicated to Cooking With Beer! (Assholes).)

We made this pork and poblano stew on Sunday night and it was so very good, I do believe we will keep it in the repertoire for future, actually-cool weather Sunday nights.

If you want the real, step-by-step recipe, with proper amounts and measurements, I would encourage you to pick up the October issue of BH&G, but if you’re cool with a “here’s what I did-ish” recipe, then please, read on. (I doubled this from the BH&G version, FYI. Feel free to cut in half if you don’t like leftovers.)

There is stew under all that avocado, promise.

What You’ll Need

A big hunk of pork loin (1lb. or more) cut into 1″ cubes
2 medium or 1 large or many small onions, sliced
A couple cloves of garlic, minced
2 red bell peppers, cut into 1″ slices
2 poblano peppers, cut into 1″ slices
3 cups of chicken stock (I used beef, but you could also use vegetable if you don’t eat meat, oh wait)
2 cans (14oz. each) diced tomatoes
1 TBSP. chili powder
1 cinnamon stick
The zest of one orange
The juice of half an orange
Some salt and pepper and olive oil

What You’ll Do

– Brown your meat in olive oil for like 5 minutes, set aside
– Saute your onions, garlic, and peppers for about 10 minutes
– Add stock, diced tomatoes, cinnamon sticks, and let simmer on low for however long you want, the longer the better
– Sometime in there, maybe after an hour, add the pork, orange zest, and orange juice
– Let it hang out on simmer for a little while longer
– Add salt and pepper to taste throughout cooking (the recipe called for neither, but I thought it needed both)
– Enjoy with a hunk of crusty bread, or, if you’re us, a giant glass of water and Dexter on the TV

Verdict

Delicious! I never really use cinnamon or orange in my cooking, but this recipe really knocked me upside the head with the thought that I totally should. Cinnamon and orange: Not just for breakfast anymore!