Recipe: Vegetarian Pozole
Submitted by: Jenna
Hometown: Virginia, MN
Vegetarian Pozole
Ingredients
Pozole
- 2 tablespoons high heat oil
- 1 red bell pepper, medium dice
- 1 large yellow onion, medium dice
- 2 large carrot, cut into half-moons
- 1 medium zucchini or yellow squash, cut into half-moons
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 1/2 – 2 tablespoons cumin
- 1 tablespoon chili powder (I use ancho)
- 1 tablespoon Mexican oregano
- 24 oz. jar passata (aka strained tomatoes)*
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- 1 can black refried beans
- 1 can pinto beans
- 2 cans white hominy
- 2-3 chipotle in adobo and the sauce from the can (adjust based on the heat you can stand)
Toppings
- Cheddar cheese or cotija
- Cilantro
- Radishes
- Crushed tortilla chips
- Lime juice
*If you use something else you won’t get the same amount of flavor. Your other option is a 28oz can of fire-roasted tomatoes—these have a different consistency though, just an FYI. The leftover peppers in the can be used for a chipotle honey dressing or added to a marinade for grilled vegetables.
Directions
Heat a large dutch oven over a stove (medium heat) or fire. Add the oil, bell pepper, onion, carrot and zucchini. Stir occasionally until browning occurs, roughly 10-15 minutes. Add in garlic, tomato paste, cumin, chili powder and oregano. Stir until tomato paste starts to turn more of a rust color, about 1 minute. Make sure to not let the spices burn.
Add in the fire-roasted tomatoes, strained tomatoes, vegetable broth, refried beans, pinto beans, hominy and chipotle in adobo. Stir occasionally for 45 minutes. The bottom will want to burn, so pay close attention. Take out the chipotle peppers when done. At home, I blend them before putting them in, but this works better for camping.
Ladle the soup into a bowl and add the cheese of your choice, lime juice, tortilla chips and cilantro. The radishes are nice to have on the side.