pozole

{{Infobox food

| name = Pozole

| image = Green_pozole,_dressed_(29161841908)_(cropped).jpg

| image_size = 250px

| caption = Pozole verde at a restaurant in Mexico City (2018)

| alternate_name =

| country = Mexico

| region = Central Mexico

| creator = Nahuas

| course =

| type = Soup

| served = Hot

| main_ingredient = Hominy, meat (usually pork or chicken), chile peppers, seasonings

| variations = Blanco, Verde, Rojo

| calories =

| other =

}}

Pozole ({{IPA|es|po'sole|Pozole1.ogg|}}; from {{langx|nah|pozolli}}) is a traditional soup or stew from Mexican cuisine. It is made from hominy with meat (typically chicken or pork), and can be seasoned and garnished with shredded lettuce or cabbage, chili peppers, onion, garlic, radishes, avocado, salsa or limes. Known in Mesoamerica since the pre-Columbian era, the stew is common across Mexico and neighboring countries, served both as a day-to-day meal and as a festive dish.

Description

Pozole can be prepared in many ways, but all variations include a base of cooked hominy in broth. The broth is most commonly made with chicken or pork, but vegetarian preparations exist. When the broth is meat-based, pieces of the meat used to make the broth are usually served in the final dish; vegetarian versions substitute beans for the meat.

The three main types of pozole are blanco (white),Cookpad: [https://cookpad.com/es/recetas/98940-pozole-blanco Pozole Blanco] verde (green), and rojo (red). Pozole blanco—"white pozole"—is the preparation without any additional green or red sauce. Pozole verde—"green pozole"—adds a rich salsa verde based on green ingredients, possibly including tomatillos, epazote, cilantro, green chiles (typically jalapeños or serranos), or pepitas. Pozole rojo—"red pozole"—is similar, but using a salsa roja made from one or more dried or smoked red chiles, such as guajillo, piquin, or ancho, and usually tomato.

Pozole is commonly served accompanied by a wide variety of toppings, particularly raw vegetables. Common toppings include chopped onion, shredded cabbage, sliced radish, avocado, limes, oregano, tostadas, chicharrón, and chiles.{{cite web|url=https://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/posole_rojo/|title=Authentic Pozole Rojo (Red Posole) Recipe|last=Bauer|first=Elise|date=2011-10-08|website=Simply Recipes|access-date=2019-05-13}}

Regional customs

Pozole is also considered a festive dish. In Mexico and in New Mexico, pozole is typically served on New Year's Eve to celebrate the new year.{{cite web | author=Anonymous | last2=Seibert | first2=Sandra | author3=Anonymous | last4=Pharo | first4=Christine | author5=Anonymous | author6=Morethanbeefandtaters | author7=Anonymous | last8=G. | first8=Pauline | last9=M. | first9=Monica | title=Posole Rojo | website=Food Network | date=2016-11-16 | url=https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchen/posole-rojo-recipe-2119122 | access-date=2019-05-13}}{{cite web | title=Red Posole with Pork | website=Epicurious | date=2017-05-30 | url=https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/red-posole-with-pork | access-date=2019-05-13}} Pozole is frequently served as a celebratory dish throughout Mexico and in Hispanic communities outside Mexico. Other occasions for serving pozole include Mexican Independence Day, birthdays, Christmas, and other holidays.{{cite web|url=https://www.facts-about-mexico.com/mexican-pozole.html|title=Mexican Pozole|website=Mexico|access-date=2019-05-13}}

File:2015EncuentroChilenero005.JPG

Pozole is a typical dish in various states, such as Nayarit, Sinaloa, Michoacán, Guerrero, Zacatecas, Jalisco, and Morelos. Pozole is served in Mexican restaurants worldwide. It is also popular in the cuisine of New Mexico where it is known as posole, and is a common dish among the Puebloan Indigenous peoples residing along the Rio Grande.{{cite web | last=Cocking | first=Lauren | title=A Brief History of Pozole, Mexico's Take on Traditional Stew | website=Culture Trip | date=2017-02-12 | url=https://theculturetrip.com/north-america/mexico/articles/a-brief-history-of-pozole-mexicos-take-on-traditional-stew/ | access-date=2019-05-13}}{{cite web | last=Butel | first=Jane | title=Sacred Stew : Posole, a Native American corn dish, is served at pueblo festivals, but it can also be sampled in restaurants around Albuquerque | website=Los Angeles Times | date=1994-12-11 | url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1994-12-11-tr-7859-story.html | access-date=2019-05-13}}

In the Southwestern United States, a type of field corn (posole corn) is used that differs from hominy. It is considered to be more flavorful and has a firmer texture than hominy which tends to be softer and mushier than posole.{{cite news |last1=Butel |first1=Jane |title=Sacred Stew : Posole, a Native American corn dish, is served at pueblo festivals, but it can also be sampled in restaurants around Albuquerque |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1994-12-11-tr-7859-story.html |access-date=3 January 2024 |publisher=The Los Angeles Times |date=11 December 1994}}

The Hopi people make a variety called noquivi (Hopi: nöqkwivi), using lamb or mutton rather than the traditional pork.{{cite news |last1=Manus |first1=Mihio |title=Native American Day at Hopi High |url=https://www.hopi-nsn.gov/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/9-17-2013_Vol.21No18.pdf |access-date=3 January 2024 |volume=21|issue=18 |publisher=The Hopi Tutuveni |date=17 September 2013}} It is often made from dried blue corn posole kernels; green chiles and juniper berries (instead of bay leaves) are added to the stew. This variety of posole is also prepared by the Puebloan people of New Mexico.{{cite web |title=Blue Corn Posole Stew |url=https://www.rimjournal.com/recipes/mains/posole.htm |website=Rim Journal |access-date=3 January 2024}}

History

File:Pozole Codex Magliabecchi.png depicts pozole.Pozolli. (n.d.). Nahuatl dictionary. Retrieved 28 August 2012, from http://whp.uoregon.edu/dictionaries/nahuatl/index.lasso]]

Pozole was mentioned in the 16th century Florentine Codex by Bernardino de Sahagún.Bernardino de Sahagún, Florentine Codex: General History of the Things of New Spain (Translation of and Introduction to Historia General de Las Cosas de La Nueva España; 12 Volumes in 13 Books ), trans. Charles E. Dibble and Arthur J. O Anderson (Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press, 1950–1982). Images are taken from Fray Bernardino de Sahagún, The Florentine Codex. Complete digital facsimile edition on 16 DVDs. Tempe, Arizona: Bilingual Press, 2009. Reproduced with permission from Arizona State University

Hispanic Research Center. Since maize was a sacred plant for the Aztecs and other inhabitants of Mesoamerica, pozole was made to be consumed on special occasions.

According to research by the Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia (National Institute of Anthropology and History) and the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, on these special occasions, the meat used in the pozole may have been human.

Possible archeological evidence of mass cannibalism may support this theory, and there is widespread scholarly agreement that the Aztecs practiced cannibalism in the context of human sacrifice and warfare, though the social and dietary significance of such acts is disputed.

While some authors such as Marvin Harris suggest that human flesh was a significant part of an aristocratic diet, others argue that there was not sufficient human flesh available to be a major source of proteins and that its consumption was chiefly a status symbol.{{cite news |title=Opinion: To Aztecs, Cannibalism Was a Status Symbol |url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B0DE7DE1F3DF935A35752C0A961948260 |work=The New York Times |date=January 6, 1987}}{{cite journal |last1=Ortiz de Montellano |first1=Bernard R. |title=Aztec Cannibalism: An Ecological Necessity? |journal=Science |date=12 May 1978 |volume=200 |issue=4342 |pages=611–617 |doi=10.1126/science.200.4342.611 |pmid=17812682 |jstor=1746929 |bibcode=1978Sci...200..611O |s2cid=35652641 }}