View source for Pozole

{{Short description|Mexican hominy and meat soup}}
{{About|Pozole, the soup|the drink|Pozol}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2015}}
{{Infobox food
| name             = Pozole
| image            = Green_pozole,_dressed_(29161841908)_(cropped).jpg 
| image_size       = 250px
| caption          = Pozole verde at a restaurant in Mexico City (2018)
| alternate_name   = 
| country          = [[Mexico]]
| region           = Central Mexico
| creator          = [[Nahuas]]
| course           = 
| type             = [[Soup]]
| served           = Hot 
| main_ingredient  = [[Hominy]], [[meat]] (usually [[pork]] or [[Chicken as food|chicken]]), [[chile pepper]]s, [[seasoning]]s
| variations       = Blanco, Verde, Rojo
| calories         = 
| other            = 
}}

'''Pozole''' ({{IPA|es|po'sole|Pozole1.ogg|}}; from {{langx|nah|pozolli}}) is a traditional [[soup]] or [[stew]] from [[Mexican cuisine]]. It is made from [[hominy]] with [[meat]] (typically [[Chicken as food|chicken]] or [[pork]]), and can be seasoned and garnished with shredded [[lettuce]] or [[cabbage]], [[chili pepper]]s, [[onion]], [[garlic]], [[radish]]es, [[avocado]], [[Salsa (food)|salsa]] or [[Lime (fruit)|lime]]s.  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.

== Description ==

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 [[bean]]s for the meat.

The three main types of pozole are ''blanco'' (white),<ref name="blanco-recipe22">Cookpad: [https://cookpad.com/es/recetas/98940-pozole-blanco 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 [[tomatillo]]s, [[Dysphania ambrosioides|epazote]], [[cilantro]], green chiles (typically [[jalapeño]]s or [[serrano pepper|serranos]]), or [[pumpkin seed|pepitas]]. ''Pozole rojo''—"red pozole"—is similar, but using a [[salsa roja]] made from one or more dried or smoked red [[Chili pepper|chiles]], such as [[Guajillo chili|guajillo]], [[Pequin pepper|piquin]], or [[Poblano|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]], [[Lime (fruit)|limes]], [[oregano]], [[tostada (tortilla)|tostada]]s, [[chicharrón]], and chiles.<ref name="Bauer 2011">{{cite web|url=https://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/posole_rojo/|title=Authentic Pozole Rojo (Red Posole) Recipe|last=Bauer|first=Elise|date=2011-10-08|website=Simply Recipes|access-date=2019-05-13}}</ref>

== Regional customs ==
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">{{cite web | author=Anonymous | last2=Seibert | first2=Sandra | author3=Anonymous | last4=Pharo | first4=Christine | author5=Anonymous | author6=Morethanbeefandtaters | author7=Anonymous | last8=G. | first8=Pauline | last9=M. | first9=Monica | title=Posole Rojo | website=Food Network | date=2016-11-16 | url=https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchen/posole-rojo-recipe-2119122 | access-date=2019-05-13}}</ref><ref name="Epicurious 2017">{{cite web | title=Red Posole with Pork | website=Epicurious | date=2017-05-30 | url=https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/red-posole-with-pork | access-date=2019-05-13}}</ref> Pozole is frequently served as a celebratory dish throughout Mexico and in Hispanic communities outside Mexico. Other occasions for serving pozole include [[Independence Day (Mexico)|Mexican Independence Day]], birthdays, Christmas, and other holidays.<ref name="Mexico">{{cite web|url=https://www.facts-about-mexico.com/mexican-pozole.html|title=Mexican Pozole|website=Mexico|access-date=2019-05-13}}</ref>

[[File:2015EncuentroChilenero005.JPG|thumb|right|250px|Red pozole with common accompaniments (including lime, shredded lettuce, and sliced radish) (Mexico City, 2015)]]
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 [[New Mexican cuisine|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">{{cite web | last=Cocking | first=Lauren | title=A Brief History of Pozole, Mexico's Take on Traditional Stew | website=Culture Trip | date=2017-02-12 | url=https://theculturetrip.com/north-america/mexico/articles/a-brief-history-of-pozole-mexicos-take-on-traditional-stew/ | access-date=2019-05-13}}</ref><ref name="Butel 1994">{{cite web | last=Butel | first=Jane | title=Sacred Stew : Posole, a Native American corn dish, is served at pueblo festivals, but it can also be sampled in restaurants around Albuquerque | website=[[Los Angeles Times]] | date=1994-12-11 | url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1994-12-11-tr-7859-story.html | access-date=2019-05-13}}</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">{{cite news |last1=Butel |first1=Jane |title=Sacred Stew : Posole, a Native American corn dish, is served at pueblo festivals, but it can also be sampled in restaurants around Albuquerque |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1994-12-11-tr-7859-story.html |access-date=3 January 2024 |publisher=The Los Angeles Times |date=11 December 1994}}</ref>
The [[Hopi|Hopi people]] make a variety called noquivi ([[Hopi language|Hopi]]: ''nöqkwivi''), using lamb or mutton rather than the traditional pork.<ref name="HT">{{cite news |last1=Manus |first1=Mihio |title=Native American Day at Hopi High |url=https://www.hopi-nsn.gov/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/9-17-2013_Vol.21No18.pdf |access-date=3 January 2024 |volume=21|issue=18 |publisher=The Hopi Tutuveni |date=17 September 2013}}</ref> It is often made from dried [[blue corn]] posole kernels; [[green chiles]] and [[Juniper berry|juniper berries]] (instead of bay leaves) are added to the stew. This variety of posole is also prepared by the [[Puebloans|Puebloan]] people of New Mexico.<ref name="RJ">{{cite web |title=Blue Corn Posole Stew |url=https://www.rimjournal.com/recipes/mains/posole.htm |website=Rim Journal |access-date=3 January 2024}}</ref>

== History ==
[[File:Pozole Codex Magliabecchi.png|200px|thumb|left|This drawing from page 22 of the [[Codex Magliabechiano]] depicts pozole.<ref name=":0">''Pozolli.'' (n.d.). Nahuatl dictionary. Retrieved 28 August 2012, from http://whp.uoregon.edu/dictionaries/nahuatl/index.lasso</ref>]]

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 [[human cannibalism|cannibalism]] may support this theory,<ref name=":0"/> and there is widespread scholarly agreement that [[Cannibalism in the Americas#Aztecs|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 [[protein]]s and that its consumption was chiefly a status symbol.<ref>{{cite news |title=Opinion: To Aztecs, Cannibalism Was a Status Symbol |url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B0DE7DE1F3DF935A35752C0A961948260 |work=The New York Times |date=January 6, 1987}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{cite journal |last1=Ortiz de Montellano |first1=Bernard R. |title=Aztec Cannibalism: An Ecological Necessity? |journal=Science |date=12 May 1978 |volume=200 |issue=4342 |pages=611–617 |doi=10.1126/science.200.4342.611 |pmid=17812682 |jstor=1746929 |bibcode=1978Sci...200..611O |s2cid=35652641 }}</ref>

== Gallery ==
<gallery mode="packed">
File:WhitePozoleDF.JPG|White pozole
File:Hominy_(maize).JPG|Cooked hominy
File:Dried Maize Mote from Oaxaca.png|Dried [[hominy]] can be used for pozole, but it must be soaked and cooked.
File:New Mexican Blue Corn for Posole.jpg|Dried New Mexican [[blue corn|blue posole field corn]]
File:Pozole.jpg|Pozole topped with sliced avocado 
File:Pozole verde estilo Guerrero.JPG|Green pozole, cooked in [[Guerrero]] State fashion
File:Posole in Zihuatanejo.JPG|Green pozole, with condiments, served in [[Zihuatanejo]] (Guerrero)
File:2015EncuentroChilenero004.JPG|Red pozole, served in [[Mexico City]]
File:Street Food Oaxaca.jpg|Red pozole, served in [[Oaxaca de Juárez]]
</gallery>

== See also ==
{{portal|Food}}
* [[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]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

{{Mexican soups}}
{{Mexican cuisine}}
{{Corn}}

[[Category:Maize soups]]
[[Category:Mesoamerican cuisine]]
[[Category:Mexican soups]]
[[Category:Mexican stews]]
[[Category:Native American cuisine]]