One of my favorite dishes ever is New Mexican-style posole with pork and a deeply flavored red broth. What I love so much about it is the hominy. I start with dried hominy and soak it overnight then simmer it for hours until it pops a little like popcorn. It has the best texture and corny flavor.

Sometimes I just want the hominy without the posole, so today I made a corn chowder-like soup using hominy instead of corn. I recently got to visit a Trader Joe’s in Pennsylvania where I picked up a jar of elote corn seasoning, which seemed like a great way to flavor a Mexican-style corn chowder. This chowder was fantastic and definitely something I don’t want to forget, which is why I’m putting it down here!

If you can’t get a hold of the TJ elote seasoning, I would mix up some sugar, salt, chili powder, cumin and dried cilantro and maybe add in some Tajin, which is easier to come by.

Hominy Chowder

Ingredients:

• 8 oz. dried hominy, soaked overnight in water
• 2 strips bacon, diced
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 onion, chopped finely
• 1 carrot, cubed
• 2 celery stalks, chopped
• 3 fresh Anaheim peppers
• 1 orange or yellow bell pepper (or 6-8 mini bell peppers)
• 2 tablespoons Trader Joe’s elote seasoning
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 bay leaf
• 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 6-8 cups chicken stock
• 2.5 cups rotisserie chicken pieces
• salt and pepper to taste

For garnish:

• sour cream
• grated monterey jack cheese
• fresh cilantro

Directions:

Set your oven to broil. Chop off the stems of the peppers, and make one slice down the side of each, discarding seeds and pith. Press each pepper flat and place skin-side up on a baking sheet. Broil until the skin is black and blistered. Remove from oven and cover with foil until cool to handle. Remove the skins and discard, then dice up the peppers and set aside.

Heat the bacon in a dutch oven and brown, but do not make it crispy. Add the butter, onion, carrot and celery and cook till onions are soft, about 7 minutes. add the peppers, elote seasoning, cumin, bay leaf and garlic and cook until garlic is fragrant, about 1 minute.

Add 6 cups of stock and the hominy. Cover and bring to a boil. Turn down heat and simmer for 3 hours or until the hominy is tender. Add more stock when needed as the hominy will absorb it as it cooks.

Twenty minutes before serving add the chicken bits and salt and pepper to taste. Simmer till chicken is super tender and falling apart.

Ladle chowder into bowls and to each add a big dollop of sour cream, stirring to combine. Top with shredded monterey jack and chopped cilantro.