Pozole
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Pozole ({{#invoke:IPA|main}}; from Template:Langx, meaning 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.
DescriptionEdit
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),<ref name="blanco-recipe22">Cookpad: Pozole Blanco</ref> 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.<ref name="Bauer 2011">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Regional customsEdit
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.<ref name="Anonymous Seibert Anonymous Pharo 2016">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Epicurious 2017">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> 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.<ref name="Mexico">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
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.<ref name="Cocking 2017">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Butel 1994">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
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.<ref name="LAT">Template:Cite news</ref> The Hopi people make a variety called noquivi (Hopi: nöqkwivi), using lamb or mutton rather than the traditional pork.<ref name="HT">Template:Cite news</ref> 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.<ref name="RJ">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
HistoryEdit
Pozole was mentioned in the 16th century Florentine Codex by Bernardino de Sahagún.<ref name=":1">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.</ref> 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,<ref name=":0"/> 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.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name=":2">Template:Cite journal</ref>
GalleryEdit
- WhitePozoleDF.JPG
White pozole
- Hominy (maize).JPG
Cooked hominy
- Dried Maize Mote from Oaxaca.png
Dried hominy can be used for pozole, but it must be soaked and cooked.
- New Mexican Blue Corn for Posole.jpg
Dried New Mexican blue posole field corn
- Pozole.jpg
Pozole topped with sliced avocado
- Pozole verde estilo Guerrero.JPG
Green pozole, cooked in Guerrero State fashion
- Posole in Zihuatanejo.JPG
Green pozole, with condiments, served in Zihuatanejo (Guerrero)
- 2015EncuentroChilenero004.JPG
Red pozole, served in Mexico City
- Street Food Oaxaca.jpg
Red pozole, served in Oaxaca de Juárez
See alsoEdit
- Fricasé
- List of maize dishes
- List of Mexican dishes
- List of soups
- List of stews
- Menudo (soup) – a similar dish made with tripe
- Mexican cuisine
ReferencesEdit
Template:Mexican soups Template:Mexican cuisine Template:Corn