Recipe: Summer Posole with Cilantro Salsa

Summer Posole with Cilantro Salsa

For the posole:
1 pound dried posole
1 large white onion, finely diced
3 plump garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano, Mexican if possible
6 large green New Mexican chilies
Sea salt

For the salsa and garnishes:
1 bunch scallions, including a few inches of the greens, finely chopped
1 cup finely chopped cilantro
1 jalapeno, seeded and minced
1 teaspoon cumin seeds, toasted in a skillet, then ground
Pinch sea salt
1/4 cup light olive or vegetable oil
1 avocado, diced into chunks
4 corn tortillas, slivered
1 cup thinly sliced green cabbage
1 lime, quartered
Warm tortillas for serving

Put the posole in a large soup pot with the onion, garlic, oregano, and a gallon of water. Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer until tender. This can take as long as 3 hours, so check the pot occasionally and add water as it boils away. The posole will swell considerably, and the kernels will split open.

While the posole is cooking, roast the chilies then place them in a bowl and cover with a plate to steam for 15 minutes. Slip off the skins, pull out the seeds and chop. Add the chopped chilies to the simmering posole along with 4 teaspoons salt. Continue cooking until the posole is completely tender. Taste for salt.

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

To make the salsa, combine the scallions, cilantro, chile, cumin, and salt in a bowl. Stir in the oil, add water as needed to thin, and add the avocado.

Toast the tortilla strips in the oven until crisp, or fry them in vegetable oil.

To serve, stir the salsa into the posole and garnish with a nest of cabbage and tortilla strips and a wedge of lime. Accompany with warm tortillas.