>U Mom Knows Best: Slow Cooker Vegetarian Posole For Christmas

Saturday, December 2, 2017

Slow Cooker Vegetarian Posole For Christmas


   Check out what is on my menu for my Christmas dinner


 I live in New Mexico and we have some food that may be uncommon in other states. Some of the food dishes that we enjoy are green chile, tamales, tortillas, enchiladas, and posole. Some of these items are staples in the house and are enjoyed on a daily basis, like tortillas but others are enjoyed less frequently. I know that most people have heard of tortillas but here in New Mexico, they are preferred over other types of bread. We use tortillas like most people use sandwich bread. My family likes to use tortillas for peanut butter sandwiches! The grocery stores sell more tortillas than other bread products. In fact, New Mexico grocery stores have a bigger selection of tortillas than other types of breads. 



 Tamales and posole are traditional New Mexico foods that are served for special occasions and holidays. These dishes take a long time to make so that may be a reason people serve them mostly at Christmas. Sure you can buy these delicious dishes are many New Mexican restaurants and in the frozen section of the grocery store but they always taste better when homemade. Ingredients for tamales and posole are sold in abundance around the winter holidays. Ingredients like dried corn or frozen posole, red chile, and masa. 

 I like to serve southwestern food at Christmas. Posole and tortillas are common items to serve on Christmas eve here in New Mexico while tamales are a common Christmas day menu item. My family likes to serve the leftover posole with the homemade tamales on Christmas. Some times we make our tamales and other times we buy locally made tamales for Christmas. I have friends who have tamale-making parties as they do take a while to assemble.



 Traditional posole is a soup made with pork and red chile pods. I don't eat meat so I make my posole without the pork but I use plenty of red chile as that is what gives this amazing dish the flavor and some heat. We New Mexicans love spicy food. Red chile is basically green chile that has ripened more. Like green chile, it comes in different heat levels. I like my red chile at a medium level as that gives my food a bit of a spicy kick while my husband prefers hot red chile. 

  My younger boys like medium heat when it comes to chile spice level. The younger boys were born in New Mexico so they like spicy foods and eat plenty of hot salsa. When we visited Chicago, a couple of years ago, and ate at a Mexican restaurant there, the boys said that their hot salsa tasted like ketchup as it had no heat to it. When I moved to New Mexico 22 years ago, I thought that mild green chile and salsa were too hot to eat but it did not take long for my taste buds to get used to the heat of the chiles. Now I like the spicy kick of green and red chile in my food. If you visit New Mexico, make sure to ask for the chile on the side as it may be too spicy for you. Even though I have lived here for a long time, when I visit a Mexican restaurant I ask the server what the heat level of the red or green chile is. The heat can vary day by day in restaurants as they are using fresh chiles.



 Since posole can take a long time to cook, I like to make it in my slow cooker. I start the posole in the morning and let it cook all day so the dried white corn absorbs all the flavor from the spices and red chile. Our Christmas Eve tradition is to make Christmas cookies for Santa and then we enjoy bowls of posole before we attend the Christmas eve service at our church. A package of frozen posole makes a lot of soup so there are always leftovers that we enjoy the next day.

 Now that the boys are older, they are enjoying posole even more and request that I make it year-round. Once the weather gets cold, a warm bowl of posole with a fresh tortilla is the perfect meal. So I start the posole in the morning and by dinner time it is done. The aroma from the posole makes the whole house smell so good. If you can't locate frozen posole where you live just substitute hominy. 



Slow Cooker Vegetarian Posole
 serves 10-12

Ingredients:
6 quarts water
1 2 lb. package frozen Posole
10-12 ounces frozen corn
2 medium onions diced
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1½  tsp. salt
1 14 oz. container Frozen Red Chile

Instructions
Place all ingredients in the slow cooker crock. Place the lid on the crock and cook on high for 4-6 hours, stirring after one hour. Serve with cheese, sour cream, and sliced avocados if desired.

This posole goes wonderfully with tamales. Go Here to get my recipe for Slow Cooker Vegetarian Tamales.



Check out some other recipes that are on my holiday menu.

Chocolate Mint Cream Pie

Green Chile Cheese Bread

Slow Cooker Vegetarian Tamales

What is on your holiday menu?




51 comments:

Masshole Mommy said...

That chocolate mint cream pie sure sounds good. I am sure my whole family would love it.

Sarah Bailey said...

Maybe this Green Chile Cheese Bread does taste like a pizza with lots of cheese and chile for my satisfaction. I must try this now, I am already craving. lol

Jenny @cookeatgo said...

This sounds so good!!!! I need to wrap up my holiday menu, I know the desserts are still up for discussion what is to be made!

Jennifer Gilbert said...

Your recipes look so delicious! I will have to try the green chile cheese bread and chocolate mint cream pie! They sound so good!!!

friendsEAT.com said...

The chocolate mint cream pie has my name written all over it. Thanks for the recipe.

Lois Alter Mark said...

Ooh, that looks delicious. My favorite part of any meal is dessert, of course, and I am drooling over that pie!

Giveaways 4 Mom said...

everything looks so good and i think i gained about 10lbs just reading lol..i cant wait to eat. looks great and thank you for the recipe. deff going to use this for the holiday

Amy Jones said...

All of these sound incredible! I'm especifically craving that Green Chile Cheese Bread after this post

Unknown said...

wow everything looks and sounds so delish. the green chile cheese bread is everything

Lisa said...

I don't use my slow cooker nearly enough. This would be perfect though because my best friend is a vegetarian!

laborders2000 said...

Oh--that chocolate mint creme pie sounds divine! I would love to have one of those.

Karlyn Cruz said...

Chocolate and mint work very well together. This looks like a delicious feast, thanks for sharing this one!

Unknown said...

Those ideas are so great! Everything look delicious and perfect for Holidays!

Elizabeth O. said...

I really appreciate these recipes! It's nice to have vegetarian dishes on the table especially this season.

AiringMyLaundry said...

Oo I'm drooling. Everything looks so amazing. Yum! I love to eat.

Dana Vento said...

I want that mint cream pie, but I'm torn between that and something else. Oh well, I think I better get started on those Green Chile Cheese Breads!

Unknown said...

All these recipes sound delicious! I'd love to try your Green Chile Cheese Bread and the Mint Cream Pie too!

WendyPolisi said...

I'm having a slow cooker for a gift, I know because I peeked. These recipes came just in time!

Anonymous said...

Looks delicious. I'll try one of these and if I get it right, I might just serve one Mexican food during Xmas dinner.

Anosa said...

I love mexican foods and though I do not eat them as much as I would like I still love them. These all look really delicious.

Masshole Mommy said...

This sounds SO good! I cook all the time using my slow cooker, so I will definitley have to try this.

Anna Nuttall said...

This look really tasty and it perfect for this time of year. A nice slow cooker recipe - something I have to show my mum. xx

Janel said...

I've never heard of this recipe before! I love every pork recipe I've ever tried, though! I'll see if hubby will try this one!

Cristina Petrini said...


You never really stop learning. This recipe is completely new to me. Yummy!

The Frugal Free Gal said...

Yum! I need a good and simple recipe. Perfect for this time of year!

Liz Mays said...

Oh delicious! I'd definitely enjoy trying this one out on a cold night. The slow cooker makes it easy!

Marcie W. said...

Tamales are a must have for us around the holidays. I love the idea of making them in the slow cooker!

The Super Mom Life said...

I don't think I've ever tried a posole, but I love tamales! They are my fave!

Stacie said...

These recipes are awesome! I can't wait to try some, especially the green chile cheese bread! YUM!

Laura G said...

I didn't know about posole but boy, do I love tamales. I had no idea it was made in New Mexico too!! I thought it was strictly made in Latin America!

Brianne said...

I use our slow cooker a lot this time of year. The slow cooker recipes in your post are very helpful for the busy holidays.

Mama to 6 Blessings said...

This recipe looks delicious! We are going camping soon, this would be great to make while camping!

Celebrate Woman said...

Tara, I have never made or eaten posole. Such a nutritious meal on its own! Gotta venture out and try.

Mom Knows Best said...

Tamales are big here and my family loves them. We had those for lunch yesterday and today we had posole for dinner.

Amber Killmon said...

What a delicious recipe! I think I'll take a page from your book and take our holiday menu and Jazz it up a little.

Sherry said...

I haven't had posole before but it sounds yummy. My husband loves spicy food especially so he will be enjoying this dish.

Susan (5 Minutes for Mom) said...

I've never heard of Posole before. I can't handle ANYTHING spicy at all... I'm such a wimp.

Agnes Mugo said...

I would like to try out the green chille cheese bread. It must be very tasty. Thank you for the awesome holiday recipes.

Nyxie said...

The Posole looks amazing. I've never heard of it before but I'm fairly certain I'd enjoy it. Also loving your Angel cookies!

Gust si Aroma said...

I've never made this! But it looks so delicious! A must try recipe!

Cristina Pop said...

Wow! That looks so delicious! You're making me so hungry right now!

Why Girls Are Weird said...

Oh my goodness that looks SO GOOD! I totally want to try that. Thanks so much for sharing this with us!

Marie at Complete Literature said...

Your posole looks very different from mine. I would love to try it--it looks amazing. And I am so doing that chocolate mint pie for Thanksgiving this week!

Myah Duque said...

Even though I've never made posole, I've eaten it and it delicious and nutritious. I need to make it!

Alvern said...

Did someone say vegetarian? These are great options for the holiday season and I do like spicy food as well as it helps you keep warm during the winter. Tortillas are so versatile although I never tried it with peanut butter yet.

Mommy Sigrid said...

This is an interesting recipe. I have never had this before. But the ingredients are available here in our locale so I might try making this.

Krystel | Frugal Living said...

I've never had this but it looks delicious. Might have to try it!

Lyanna Soria said...

I don't think I've tried this interesting recipe before. That looks quite delicious though and I'd love to know how it tastes like.

EMILY said...

I have never tried Posole, but I think I would totally like it! I know my husband loves it and this looks easy enough!

Tisha said...

I love a good slow cooker recipe! I've not heard of Posole, but I am interested in learning more. I am hoping to get into cooking more vegetarian meals, so I will be saving this one to try out :)

Tisha said...

I love a good slow cooker recipe! I've not heard of Posole, but I am interested in learning more. I am hoping to get into cooking more vegetarian meals, so I will be saving this one to try out :)

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