red or green?

Hi all-- I'm actually posting this to recommend a frozen chile supplier in New Mexico, called New Mexico Connection, http://www.newmexicanconnection.com/. If you're a diehard chili-head you've probably already heard of them or dealt with them. They supply frozen fire roasted chilies in five and ten pound packs, shipped Fed Ex to your house.

I'm endorsing them because I've just had a fantastic customer relations experience with them. I bought five pounds of green Big Jim chilies that Fed Ex delayed-- they arrived FIVE days late. NMC sent a replacement the day the chilies didn't arrive on schedule, but the original five pound lot that eventually arrived was still good-- not frozen, but very cold with some ice crystals left. The cold packs in the box were still partly frozen, despite sitting in Sacramento Friday-Sunday. In other words, great product AND great service.

Five pounds is $65 delivered, but it's real flame roasted New Mexico Big Jims (or other peppers if you want more heat), and unless you want to travel to New Mexico, this is just about the only way to get the real thing in mid-winter. They also ship red peppers and a variety of other specialty products, like real corn posole.

Mike's green chili pork:

2 lbs boneless pork country style spareribs, cut into 3/4 inch pieces
2 lbs thawed flame roasted Big Jim chilies, skins removed, seeded, and diced
3 canned chipotle chilies, minced with a tablespoon or so of adobo
3 roma tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 medium yellow onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp rendered fat (I use duck fat when I have it, bacon fat or lard work fine)
16 oz chicken stock
1 tbsp all purpose flour
1 tsp Mexican oregano
1 tsp freshly crushed/ground cumin
salt to taste

Melt fat over high heat in a sturdy pot and brown the meat well. Add the onions and brown slightly. Add minced garlic and flour. Stir constantly to distribute the flour and suspend it in the fat. Cook for a minute or two, continuing to stir. Add diced chilies, chipotle and adobo, tomatoes, Mexican oregano, salt, and crushed cumin. Stir to mix. Add the chicken stock. Bring to a boil and then simmer, covered, for 30 min., stirring occasionally to prevent scorching. After half an hour, remove the lid and adjust the heat to continue simmering while reducing slightly, another 30-60 minutes. The pork should be falling apart tender-- if it's not, cook longer. There will still be chunks of pork, but some will break down and become shreds. The chili will have a thick soup/stew consistency.

Serve with freshly warmed flour tortilla's (get uncooked ones and heat on a griddle, not those nasty pre-cooked tortillas!), maybe a side of rice and beans. I also LOVE this over fried eggs and corn tortillas, diner style.