Looking for a delicious and hearty dish to warm you up on a chilly winter night? Look no further than this green chili recipe! Made with tender chunks of pork, spicy green chilies, and a blend of flavorful and delicious spices, this dish is sure to become a new favorite.
Whether you serve it with rice or tortillas, or enjoy it on its own, this green chili recipe is the flavor to satisfy your hunger and warm your soul. So gather your ingredients and get ready to cook up a delicious and comforting meal!
What is Green Chili?
Green chili, also known as Chile verde, is a traditional dish in Mexican cuisine. Green chili is also a popular dish in the southwestern United States, especially in states like Colorado and New Mexico.
It is typically made with diced or shredded pork that is simmered in a flavorful broth made from green chiles, garlic, onions, and spices. The green chilies used can be either fresh or canned, and can vary in spice level depending on the type of chilies used. It can be eaten as a stew or as a topping on tacos, burritos, and other Mexican recipes.
Ingredients in Green Chili
- Olive oil – divided for roasting veggies and for cooking pork tenderloin
- Poblano peppers – fresh hatch peppers (more traditional) can be hard to come by so grab some poblanos instead, which taste fairly similar.
- Jalapeno pepper – feel free to leave some seeds in if you like an extra kick
- White onion – quartered for roasting
- Garlic – no need to pre-mince before roasting. You’ll cut them up after roasting.
- Pork tenderloin – traditional recipes use pork shoulder but I’m cutting down the cooking time by using pork tenderloin instead.
- Chicken broth/stock – see notes below on making recipe vegan (substituting stock and pork)
- Tomatillo salsa – also called salsa verde (try my homemade recipe here!). A hack since fresh tomatillos aren’t widely available
- Canned hatch chiles – In a 4 oz can. Available in most grocery stores (whole foods and trader joe’s both carry them). You can also buy them here.
- Corn kernels – Feel free to use fresh or frozen (no need to thaw). You can also use canned hominy instead if you can find it.
- Dried herbs + spices – oregano, cumin, salt and pepper
- Fresh cilantro – feel free to leave out if you don’t like cilantro
- Lime – juice from 1 lime + more for toppings (see below).
How to Make This Green Chili Recipe
STEP 1: ROAST VEGGIES
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Place poblano peppers, jalapeno pepper, white onion and, garlic cloves on a baking sheet. Drizzle with 1 tbsp of oil and sprinkle with salt. Roast for 15-20 minutes or until peppers and onion are golden brown and soft. Remove from oven and allow to cool.
STEP 2: CHOP VEGGIES
Dice peppers and onion and mince garlic into bite-sized pieces and set aside.
STEP 3: COOK PORK
Heat a large dutch oven or pot on the stovetop over medium-high heat and add remaining tablespoon of olive oil. Add pork pieces to dutch oven and brown on all sides (about 3-5 minutes). Note: pork will not be cooked through, you are simply browning.
STEP 4: ADD VEGGIES + SIMMER
Stir in chopped veggies, chicken stock, tomatillo salsa, can of hatch chilis, corn, oregano, cumin, salt and pepper to dutch oven. Bring to a boil and then lower to a simmer and cook, uncovered for 40-50 minutes or until pork is breaking apart and chili has thickened. Using two forks shred up pork tenderloin along the side of the pot (or remove completely and shred on a cutting board before adding back in). Add in cilantro and lime juice.
Serve immediately with optional toppings (see below).
What To Serve with Green Chili
Sour cream/Greek yogurt – add a scoop of sour cream (or greek yogurt) to your bowls!
Lime wedges – For an additional zesty zing!
Cheddar cheese – Or any other preferred cheese.
Tortilla Chips – store-bought or homemade. Crush into bits of make strips if using homemade.
Avocado – sliced or diced onto your bowls.
Cilantro – Add extra cilantro or skip from your green chili recipe entirely.
Make it Vegan
This green chili recipe can easily be made vegan or vegetarian by substituting the chicken broth for vegetable broth and replacing the pork with a can of rinsed and drained black beans.
Storage + Reheating
Storage– you can store your leftover green chili in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Reheating – reheat your leftovers in the microwave or on the stovetop, as desired.
Freezing – you can also store your leftover green chili in the freezer. Divide into an airtight container, label and then store in freezer for up to 3 months. Let thaw overnight in fridge or for several hours on the counter. Reheat in microwave or stovetop, as desired.
More Chili Recipes
Green Chili Recipe
Looking for a delicious and hearty dish to warm you up on a chilly night? Look no further than this green chili recipe! Made with tender chunks of pork, spicy green chilies, and a blend of flavorful spices, this dish is sure to become a new favorite.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Cook
- Cuisine: Mexican
- Diet: Gluten Free
- 2 tbsp olive oil, divided
- 3 poblano peppers, seeded + halved lengthwise
- 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded + halved lengthwise
- 1 large white onion, quartered
- 4 garlic cloves, peeled
- 1 1/4 lbs pork tenderloin, chopped into 1 inch pieces
- 4 cups chicken stock
- 1 cup tomatillo salsa (salsa verde)
- 1 x 4 oz can hatch green chiles
- 1 cup corn kernels (or hominy), fresh or frozen (no need to thaw)
- 1 tbsp oregano
- 1 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1 cup cilantro leaves, chopped
- juice, 1 lime
- optional toppings: sour cream or greek yogurt, shredded cheese, crushed tortilla chips, avocado, lime wedges, cilantro
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
- Place poblano peppers, jalapeno pepper, white onion and, garlic cloves on a baking sheet. Drizzle with 1 tbsp of oil and sprinkle with salt.
- Roast for 15-20 minutes or until peppers and onion are golden brown and soft.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool.
- Dice peppers, onion and garlic into bite-sized pieces and set aside.
- Heat a large dutch oven or pot over medium-high heat and add remaining tablespoon of olive oil.
- Add pork pieces to dutch oven and brown on all sides (about 3-5 minutes). Note: pork will not be cooked through, you are simply browning.
- Add chopped veggies, chicken stock, tomatillo salsa, can of hatch chilis, corn, oregano, cumin, salt and pepper to dutch oven. Bring to a boil and then lower to a simmer and cook, uncovered for 40-50 minutes or until pork is breaking apart and chili has thickened.
- Using two forks shred up pork tenderloin into smaller pieces along the side of the pot (or remove completely and shred on a cutting board before adding back in).
- Add in cilantro and lime juice.
- Serve immediately with optional toppings.
- Store in fridge for up to 5 days. See instructions above for freezing.
Keywords: Green chili, green chili recipe
JOIN THE THM NEWSLETTER
Join 20,000+ members of the THM Community to get access to exclusive recipes, healthy lifestyle tips and behind-the-scenes news from our team!