Main Ingredients:

See below ingredients and instructions of the recipe

Cooking Preparation of the Recipe:

1/2 lb (1 heaped cup) lentils,
-brown if available
1/2 sm White onion
Sea salt to taste
PORK:
1 lb Boneless stewing pork, cut
-into 1-inch cubes
Sea salt to taste
SEASONING AND FINAL COOKING:
5 sm Chilies anchos, cleaned of
-veins and seeds and
Lightly toasted
1/4 lb Tomatoes, broiled
1 Garlic clove, peeled and
-roughly chopped
1/4 ts Dried oregano, Mexican if
-possible
1 Whole clove
1 1/2 Inch cinnamon stick
1 tb Melted lard or safflower oil
1 md Plantain (about 8-oz),
-peeled and cut into
1/4 Inch cubes
2 Thick pineapple slices,
-peeled, cored, and cut into
Small triangular wedges

Serves 4 to 6

LENTILS:

Run the lentils through your hands to make sure there are no stones or
other foreign bodies in them. Rinse them in two changes of water and put
into a pan. Add onion, salt to taste, and enough water to come about 2
inches above the surface of the lentils. Set over medium heat and bring to
a fast simmer. Continue simmering until the lentils are quite soft - about
3 hours, depending on their age. Keep a pan of near-boiling water on the
side, ready to add if necessary.

Put the pork pieces into a pan; add salt to taste and water to cover. Bring
to a fast simmer and continue simmering until the pork is tender but not
soft - about 25 minutes. Strain, reserving the broth, and set broth and
meat aside.

Cover the dried chilies with boiling water and leave to soak for about 15
minutes, until the chilies have softened and become fleshy. Drain and put
into a blender with 1 cup of the reserved pork broth, the broiled tomatoes,
garlic, oregano, clove, and cinnamon; blend until smooth, adding more broth
only if needed to release the blades of the blender.

Heat the lard in a small frying pan, add the blended ingredients, and fry
over medium heat, stirring and scraping the bottom of the pan, until
reduced and well seasoned - about 4 minutes. Add to the lentils and add
the pork, remaining broth, plantain, and pineapple; simmer together for
about 30 minutes. Adjust salt and add water if necessary. The mixture
should be like a thick soup.

The Art of Mexican Cooking

Posted by Jim Vorheis.

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