Coming at you on a Wednesday that in true, late-spring-in-Southern-California-style, is gray and overcast and kinda cold.
May and June tend to be chilly months here, affectionately named, May Gray and June Gloom accordingly. So a quick and easy Instant Pot Pork Chili Verde with Cheese stew it is!
I posted this one on Instagram last winter, but the recipe never made it to the blog. Thankfully the weather has given me another excuse to make it and share it with you again.
The Basics on Pork Chili Verde
Chili verde is just how it seems: a rich stew flavored with green chiles (chili verde), tomatillos, onions, and cilantro. Browned pieces of tender pork shoulder make the stew feel more substantial than the ground meat versions of more American-style chili, and you can even shred the meat and use this as a filling for tacos, tostadas, or enchiladas—file that under what to do with leftovers!
Making it in the Instant Pot (or slow cooker; I’ve added instructions for that at the bottom of the recipe) turns this soul-warming stew into an-under-an-hour dinner, which is awesome for weeknights or anytime when cooking isn’t fitting into your schedule.
Instant Pot Pork Chili Verde Needs Only One Extra Thing….
Cheese! Okay, it actually doesn’t NEED cheese but dang pulling those strands of stringy goodness out of each bowl sure does make it seem better.
In all fairness, my husband who can’t eat cheese thinks this stew is pretty fabulous without it (especially because I make it super spicy for him with extra chiles). That’s kinda how I got the idea to add the shredded mozzarella to each bowl instead of trying to mix it into the pot. I knew he couldn’t eat it and didn’t want to make him something separate—no short-order cooking in this house—so I added it to the bottom of each bowl for the kids and myself and left his cheese-less. After ladeling the hot stew over the top, the cheese melted just perfectly adding strings of melty mozzarella to each bite.
All you Instant Pot lovers; what’s your favorite recipe to make in your Instant Pot? Have any tips on how to get the most from this appliance? Please share in the comments!
Instant Pot Pork Chili Verde with Cheese
We're taking your favorite Instant Pot Pork Chili Verde recipe up a notch with handfuls of melty mozzarella cheese in each bowl for supreme chili status.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 1/2 pounds cubed pork shoulder
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon ground white pepper
- 1 pound chopped tomatillos
- 2 chopped Serrano chiles (remove seeds if you'd like it less spicy)
- 1 1/2 cups chopped leeks
- 3 cloves garlic, chopped
- 4 carrots, cut into big chunks
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 1 cup chopped cilantro
- 8 ounces shredded mozzarella
Instructions
Add oil to the instant pot and put on sauté setting. Once oil is hot add pork pieces. Season with salt and white pepper as it browns, stirring occasionally.
Once meat is browned, add tomatillos, chiles, leeks, garlic, carrots, cumin, and broth, stir to combine. Seal instant pot and place on high setting for 50 minutes.
Release steam and uncover pot. Stir in cilantro and season with more salt, if needed.
To serve, place a handful of mozzarella in the bottom of each bowl, ladle the hot stew over the top and serve with tortilla chips and more sliced chiles.
Notes
This can also be made in the slow cooker. Brown the meat on the stovetop then transfer to the slow cooker with remaining ingredients. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours or high for 4.
For the stove top: Brown meat in a large Dutch oven, add vegetables and brown. Add cumin and broth, cover and cook for 2 hours on medium-low. Stir in cilantro and serve with cheese and chips.
