I'm in love with this Mexican Pork Stew! Simply, in love! It's hearty and filling, with the perfect combination of flavors to satisfy any craving for Mexican food.
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Now, let me say this: I am certainly not claiming that this is any sort of authentic Mexican Stew or Pozole in anyway. It's not. I simply threw ingredients into a pot during a live cooking show in my Facebook Group, Simply Cooking with Louise, and it was so amazing. The first thing I thought to call it was Mexican Pork Stew, so that is what I named the recipe.
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Perhaps I should have called it Southwestern Pork Stew, because it certainly reminds me of a delicious pork stew with a Southwestern flair.
No matter what you want to call it, I'll bet you'll love it when you call it dinner!
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, you can double the recipe in any size pressure cooker over 6 qts. Do not add the beans until all the other ingredients are in the pot to make sure you don't go above the max fill line. You can add the beans after the PC time and just use the sear/sauté to warm them up in the stew. Your time to pressure will be longer with a full pot, so decrease the PC time to 3-4 minutes and keep the natural release the same. If any of the liquid is spewing out when you do the release, close the vent and wait another few minutes.
Honestly, it's never lasted long enough to freeze for us, but it should be just fine frozen! Let it cool completely before freezing to prevent ice crystals from forming.
Yes, absolutely! You could use chicken in place of the pork and not have to make any changes. You could use beef and as long as you cut it up into small chunks, it should be very tender no matter what type of beef you use. You can even use ground beef.
What is the Best Type of Pork to Use?
Honestly, you can use whatever type of pork you like, but I used a tenderloin because it cooks quickly under pressure and is tender and delicious.
You can use leftover pork chops cut into cubes, leftover shredded pulled pork, or even leftover pork loin or pork tenderloin. As long as the seasonings aren't too overpowering on the pork you cooked, it will work just fine.
If you wanted to use leftover pork that has already been cooked, you can certainly do that, and you can skip the sauté in the beginning since your pork is already cooked. You will also want to add about ¼ cup of additional thin liquid since you won't have the juices from the pork like we do when we use raw pork.
You can add water, chicken broth, or extra pineapple juice and the stew will be just fine.
If you wanted to use a pork shoulder that hasn't been cooked, then you would need to cook the pork shoulder in the spices first. The pressure cook time depends on the size of the pork shoulder and also depends if you cut it up into large chunks or leave it whole.
It usually takes about 90 minutes on high pressure to cook a 3-4 pound pork shoulder whole. If you cut it up into large chunks, you can decrease that time to between 45-60 minutes.
The pork shoulder will give off a lot of juices, so you will want to remove all but ½ cup before making the stew or it will be too liquidy.
If you wanted to use a pork loin that hasn't been cooked, it should cook the same as the pork tenderloin as long as you cut into 1" cubes. I'm not sure if it will be as tender, but you can increase the PC time to 10 minutes and that should tenderize it more.
What is the Thin Liquid in this Recipe?
Whenever pressure cooking, we need thin liquid to produce the steam needed to put the pot under pressure. However, the thin liquid can come from many different things and does not always have to be water or broth.
In this recipe, several ingredients provide the liquid we need to put the pot under pressure. The juice from the crushed pineapple and the fire roasted tomatoes along with the juices from the pork create enough thin liquid to allow the pot to come under pressure.
If you are using already cooked pork that won't release the juices like raw pork does, then simply add ¼ cup of water or chicken stock or extra pineapple juice and it will be fine.
How Can I make this Mexican Pork Stew if I don't have a Pressure Cooker?
You can make this on the stove or in a slow cooker if you don't have a Ninja Foodi, Instant Pot, or other electric pressure cooker, it just takes a little longer!
Stovetop Directions:
Hydrate the dried Ancho chili in warm water for about an hour or so. Don't discard the liquid, you can use it in the stew if you want.
Heat the olive oil in a large stock pot and add in the pork chunks and onions mixed with the seasoning blend. Sauté on high heat for 3-5 minutes or until the pork has browned.
Add in the chipotle peppers in adobo sauce and break them up some. Deglaze the pot with the juice from the crushed pineapple AND 1-2 cups of thin liquid. This can be chicken stock, or a combination of water/chicken stock and juice from the canned corn or the liquid from hydrating the ancho chili.
You need the extra thin liquid because you will have evaporation during the simmering process. I would start out with 1 cup and check on the stew after about 30 minutes and see if it needs more liquid.
Drain the corn & black beans. Add them to the pot along with the remaining ingredients.
Bring the pot up to a boil for about 5-10 minutes, stirring frequently. Reduce the heat to a simmer for about 30-45 minutes. When the pork is fully cooked and tender, the Mexican Stew is done.
Serve & Enjoy!
Slow Cooker Directions:
Cube up the pork and dice the onion. Combine the pork and onion with the seasonings and sauté in olive oil for 3-5 minutes in a frying pan if your slow cooker doesn't have a sauté feature.
Transfer to your slow cooker. Add in the remaining ingredients, plus 1 cup of additional thin liquid. This thin liquid can be from the can of corn and some broth or a combination of water, stock, broth.
You need the extra cup because there will be more evaporation slow cooking than there is pressure cooker. You can always add more liquid towards the end of cooking if it's needed, but I think 1 cup will be plenty.
Set the slow cooker on high for 3-4 hours or on low for 5-6 hours. When the pork is fully cooked and tender, the Mexican Stew is done. Serve & Enjoy!
How to make Mexican Pork Stew in the Ninja Foodi or Instant Pot
This is a dump and cook recipe that requires very little prep, so it's ready to serve in no time at all.
The Prep
Cube the pork tenderloin into 1" pieces, cut the onion into 1" dice and place in a large mixing bowl. Combine the seasoning blend with the pork and onion.
Drain the liquid from the canned black beans and the canned corn.
Sauté
Add about 1 Tablespoon of olive oil (or any oil you like) to the inner pot and turn the sear/sauté on high. When the pot is hot, add the pork/onion mixture and sauté for 3-5 minutes, flipping the pork over to brown evenly.
If you are using a stainless steel pot, you may want to adjust your heat down one step.
Once the pork is browned, add in the chipotle peppers in adobo sauce and break them up. Or you can cut them into pieces before adding into the stew.
Deglaze the pot with the juice from the crushed pineapple. Make sure to scrape the bottom of the pot to loosen anything that may be stuck to the bottom. Add the remaining can of crushed pineapple to the pot and stir.
Add the drained corn and black beans and the can of fire roasted tomatoes with the juice. Add in the dried Ancho pepper and stir.
Place the pressure lid on and turn the valve to seal. Set the pressure on high for 5 minutes. When the time is up, allow the pot to natural release for 10 minutes, then manually release the remaining pressure.
Stir, Serve, & Enjoy!
Some toppings I enjoy are, chopped cilantro, chopped green onions, tortilla strips, and sour cream.
If you love Stews and Soups as much as I do, check out these other incredible recipes that are made right in your pressure cooker or slow cooker!
Quick Chili
Taco Soup
Slow Cooker Chicken Stew
Chicken Noodle Soup
Mexican Pork Stew
Equipment
- Pressure Cooker
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1½ pounds pork tenderloin
- 1 large Onion
- 1½ teaspoon fine grind sea salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 2 Tbsps Chipotle peppers in adobo sauce about 2 peppers with 1 tablespoon of adobo sauce
- 1 dried Ancho Chili
- 15 ounces canned corn drained
- 14.5 ounces fire roasted tomatoes with the juice
- 15 ounces canned black beans drained
- 20 ounces canned crushed pineapple with the juice
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Instructions
- Cut the pork tenderloin into 1" chunks. Dice the onion into 1" pieces. Mix up the seasoning blend. Combine the pork chunks, onion, and seasonings in a large mixing bowl. Mix to coat the pork and onions with the seasonings.
- Drain the corn and the black beans.
- Heat the olive oil on high sear/sauté and add the pork and onion mixture. Sauté the pork and onions for about 3-5 minutes.
- Add the chipotle peppers with adobo sauce and break them up some. Deglaze the pot with the juice from the crushed pineapple and make sure to scrape the bottom to loosen anything that may be stuck on the bottom of the pot.
- Add the remaining crushed pineapple with juices and stir. Add in the drained corn, fire roasted tomatoes with the juice, drained black beans. Add in the dried Ancho chili. Give a good stir and tuck the ancho chili pepper down in the liquid.
- Put the pressure lid and turn the valve to seal. Set the pressure on high for 5 minutes. When the time is up, allow the pot to natural release for 10 minutes and then relese the remaining pressure.
- Stir, Serve, & Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
About the Recipe Author, Louise Long
Louise is a full-time recipe creator and food blogger @ The Salted Pepper. She has over 30 years of experience with cooking and recipe development. She owned a restaurant for several years and was a full-time RN until retiring to blog full-time.
She published her first cookbook in the Fall of 2018 and is very interested in writing several more.
Louise is also the creator of an online Ninja Foodi Pressure Cooking Course with over 100 instructional step-by-step videos. People absolutely rave about the course and all the value they have received from it.
Louise has several very active Facebook groups that help people with the basics of cooking and learning more about the appliances they love.
Ninja Foodi Pressure Cooker & Air Crisper 101
Ninja Woodfire Outdoor Grill & Smoker
Louise is also a YouTube creator and you can find most of her recipes in video format on The Salted Pepper YouTube channel.
She is very responsive to messages and eager to help in any way she can. Get more Information about Louise & contact information
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Janet Osborn
Excellent stew! Cilantro and a squeeze of lime made it over the top. Making it again soon...
Louise
I'm so glad you enjoyed it!
Brianna
Thank you for the delicious recipe. It made for a quick dinner with leftover tenderloin.
Louise
I'm so glad you enjoyed it!
Sandy
Absolutely love this dish and ALL of your other recipes! You’re recipes have made cooking enjoyable for me. My husbands favorite of yours is the red beans and rice one! Thank you for all of your amazing recipes!
Louise
That's so great to hear!
Michael K
I was in the mood for some good chili and all your previous recipies turned out better than great. Instead of making your other chili recipes I tried this one and WOW, I think you have 'ruined' regular chili for me. The depth of flavors from hints of spicy, smoky, the juicy pork, the pineapple. Wow, simply amazing! I'll definitely be making this again, and don't know if I'll get around to your other chili recipes . Simply DELICIOUS!
Louise
I'm so glad you enjoyed it! That recipe came from a complete mishap and I love it, too!