This Slow Cooker Pork Pozole Rojo is so much easier than the stove top version! It uses premium hot sauce, hominy and slow cooked pork to give the best flavor.

Alright,  we’re wrapping up what I am calling “football week” with a hearty Slow Cooker Pork Pozole Rojo recipe that you can make in the slow cooker! I was fairly unfamiliar with pozole until I had it on a trip to Mexico a few years back. Traditionally, pozole is a soup or stew served on special occasions. Think birthdays or religious holidays.

Pozole stew comes in two major varieties, red (or rojo) with a red chile base, or green (verde) with a tomatillo base. This recipe is ROJO (red), baby, and I’m taking a lot of the more arduous stovetop work out with a few ingredient shortcuts and your handy dandy slow cooker!

Slow Cooker Pork Pozole Rojo

This pork pozole may seem like an unusual dish to serve at your gatherings for the big game, but I beg to differ. People love chili, right? It’s spicy, it’s hearty and hosts love it because it’s inexpensive and easy to make.

This pork pozole rojo is spicy, hearty, easy to make, and inexpensive! Consider it a way to expand your culinary horizons while watching the big game!

Slow Cooker Pork Pozole Rojo

I mentioned that I took a few shortcuts here. I took them in the name of less time in the kitchen, and more time with friends and family watching the game! Due to awesome brands like El Yucateco, we have a lot of variety in hot sauces now, and we don’t have to go through the long process of boiling and blending dried chilies! I’ve made this pozole into a true “dump and go” recipe, and you’ve got to love the ease of that for game day!

Slow Cooker Pork Pozole Rojo

I would love to hear what you’re planning to make for your next football party! Let me know in the comments. 

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Slow Cooker Pork Pozole Rojo

Slow Cooker Pork Pozole Rojo

Ingredients

  • 2 to 2.5 lbs boneless pork shoulder, excess fat trimmed and discarded
  • 2 tsp cumin (rub on pork prior to searing)
  • 1 tsp garlic salt
  • 2 tsp vegetable oil
  • 1 large white onion, diced
  • 4 large cloves garlic, diced
  • 8 cups chicken broth
  • 1 25 ounce can hominy, drained and rinsed
  • 2 tsp dried oregano
  • 1 tsp cumin (add to liquid in crockpot)
  • 2 bay leaves, whole
  • 4 guajillo or ancho chile pods, dried
  • ¼ cup El Yucateco Red Hot Sauce
  • Up to ¼ cup El Yucateco Black Label Hot Sauce (optional, for smoky flavor)

For garnish

  • Cilantro, avocado, dried red chili pepper, sliced radish, cabbage, tortillas or tortilla chips

Instructions

  1. Slice pork shoulder into 3 to 4 smaller pieces for quicker cooking. Coat with cumin and garlic salt.
  2. In large skillet, heat oil on medium-high heat. Add pork chunks to pan, sear on each side for 4-5 minutes until light brown and caramelized.
  3. Transfer pieces of pork to crockpot.
  4. To skillet, add onion and garlic. Saute for 5-6 minutes, scraping up any juicy bits left behind by the pork.
  5. Add sauteed onion and garlic to crockpot.
  6. To crockpot, chicken broth, hominy, oregano, cumin, bay leaves, dried chiles, and hot sauce.
  7. Cover and cook on high for 3-4 hours, or low for 7-8 hours, until pork is falling apart.
  8. Fish out chile peppers and bay leaf, discard.
  9. Fish out pork and put on plate. Use two forks to shred, discarding excess fat. Return shredded pork to soup, stir.
  10. Serve with fresh cilantro, avocado or garnish of choice.

Notes

  • If you are concerned about this soup being too spicy, I'd recommend omitting the dried chilies and limiting the hot sauce to just ¼ cup. You can always add more once the pork is cooked!
  • This is not a super spicy dish. It has a nice, slow heat to it. No burn! Of course this is subjective, but my family did not think it was as hot as they expected.

Did you make this recipe?

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Love this recipe? I think you’ll also love this Low Carb Mexican Chicken Soup, and these Adobo Pork Street Tacos!

Slow Cooker Pork Pozole Rojo