An easy chicken pozole recipe that’s a healthy Mexican soup with hominy. Make either stovetop or instant pot posole when you want a filling yet light soup you can enjoy year-round.
Mexican chicken posole is gluten-free and dairy-free, yet it’s so hearty and filling.
A printable recipe card is at the bottom of the post
This post may include affiliate links, including links to Amazon products. Read the full disclosure here.
If you’ve never had Mexican chicken pozole, you serve the flavorful and slightly spicy stew with lots of fresh cold garnishes like shredded cabbage, radishes, fresh cilantro, avocado, and green onions. A dairy garnish using either Mexican cotija cheese or Monterey Jack, or a dollop of sour cream is also delicious, yet you can skip it to keep in dairy-free.
Be sure to check out our other Mexican food recipes including instant pot Mexican shredded chicken, Mexican street corn salad, bacon and cream cheese stuffed jalapeno poppers, or sugar-free skinny margaritas!
MEXICAN CHICKEN POZOLE
If you’re been wondering how do I make pozole? This chicken pozole recipe will teach you how easy it can be, whether you’d prefer to make instant pot posole or make it on the stovetop. Either way, pozole with chicken is a fabulous and healthy alternative to much of the Americanized cheese-laden Mexican recipes many are used to.
I first tasted chicken posole at my parent’s house many many years ago, (they’ve always called it posole and not pozole). I was intrigued with the very first bite! Such a light and refreshing soup yet it was so hearty, filling, and delicious.
IS IT CALLED POZOLE OR POSOLE?
Pozole is a hearty Mexican soup made with hominy and often with pork. Substituting chicken for the pork is a popular pozole variation. Pozole is the Hispanic word for hominy, which is also the traditional spelling, yet many people in the US also refer to it as posole soup.
We use the terms pozole and posole interchangeably in the recipe since people refer to it in different ways.
If you’ve never used or even heard of hominy, it’s basically dried corn that gets soaked in a lime or lye solution that softens helps to soften the corn.
INGREDIENTS FOR POZOLE
Other than the canned hominy, all of the ingredients for this chicken pozole recipe are simple and easy to find. If you aren’t sure where to find hominy at your grocery store, look in the Mexican foods section or it could be in the canned vegetable aisle near canned corn.
- 4 c chicken broth
- 1 onion
- 3 garlic cloves
- 2 lb chicken, breasts or thighs cut into 5-6 oz pieces
- 1- 25 oz can hominy, drained
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 2 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp cumin
- 2 Tbsp lime juice, fresh
- dash of hot pepper sauce
- 1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
- 1 jalapeno, chopped (optional)
Traditionally, pozole soup is made with pork. Substituting pork in the chicken posole recipe would also work, be sure to cut the pork meat into small pieces or cubes to keep the cooking time the same.
Garnishes
- Fresh cilantro
- Shredded cabbage
- Sliced radishes
- Cotija cheese or shredded Monterey Jack
- Lime wedges
This is a list of garnishes for Mexican chicken posole my family always served with this dish. Other great additions would be tortilla chips, sour cream, or avocado.
INSTANT POT POSOLE
Instant pot posole is our favorite way to cook chicken pozole soup! There’s no need to pre-cook the chicken, you simply add everything in the pot and let it pressure cook for 10 minutes.
With pressure cooker posole I’d still allow 45-60 minutes to make the dish from start to finish. Although it’s just a 10 minute cook time under pressure, add the cold chicken broth, hominy, and canned tomatoes will make it take a bit of time to come to pressure.
Turn a pressure cooker to Saute High, once the pot is hot, add the olive oil. Cook the diced onion until soft, and then add the garlic, cumin, oregano, and jalapeno (if you’re using one). Stir for one minute.
Add a little chicken broth to the bottom of the pot to scrape up the bits on the bottom of the pot. Press the Cancel button on the pot to stop the pot from cooking the ingredients. Turn the pot to Manual (some models call this Pressure Cook).
Add the chicken broth, hominy, tomatoes, lime juice and chicken pieces.
Pressure cook the chicken posole ingredients for 10 minutes and then do a natural release 5 minutes. When the pin drops, open the pot, give the pozole soup a stir and add salt and pepper to taste.
Ladle the chicken pozole into soup bowls and then add the shredded cabbage, radishes, cheese, and green onion. Other garnishes you can add include sour cream, tortilla chips, or guacamole.
Enjoy!
HOW TO MAKE POZOLE ON THE STOVE
Bring water to boil in a Dutch oven or large soup pot. Add the chicken, cover the pot with a lid, and simmer the chicken until it’s cooked through. This will take about 12-13 minutes.
Remove the chicken from the broth and set it aside.
Add the hominy, tomatoes, oregano, cumin, jalapeno, lime juice, and dash of hot pepper sauce to the chicken broth in the pot.
Bring it to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer the soup mixture stirring often until it’s slightly thickened.
In the meantime, after the chicken cools, shred it.
Stir the shredded chicken into the pot, along with the fresh cilantro, and additional salt and pepper, if desired. Heat until the chicken is warm again.
Ladle the chicken pozole into soup bowls and then add the shredded cabbage, radishes, cheese, and green onion. Other garnishes you can add include sour cream, tortilla chips, or guacamole.
More Mexican Recipes
- Fish taco bowls
- Instant pot taco chicken
- Homemade taco seasoning
- Instant pot Mexican corn (elote recipe)
- Slow cooker taco soup
If you enjoyed this post, be sure to follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest!
And be sure to pin the recipe for later on Pinterest so you can easily get back to it!
V V V
We’d Love to Hear From You!
Have questions or feedback? Please ask questions or post feedback on the post comments.
Tap That Recipe Review Star! Be sure to leave a review after you make the chicken pozole recipe or just tap the star rating you’d give the recipe!
Show Us Those Photos! Be sure to upload your instant pot posole recipe photos on the Pinterest pin and/or tag us on Instagram at @wholelotta.yum! We LOVE featuring reader recipes!
Chicken Pozole Recipe (Instant Pot Pasole + Stovetop)
An easy chicken pozole recipe that's a healthy Mexican soup with hominy. Make either stovetop or instant pot posole when you want a filling yet light soup you can enjoy year-round.
Mexican chicken posole is gluten-free and dairy-free (if you skip the optional cheese garnish).
Ingredients
- 4 c chicken broth
- 1 onion
- 3 garlic cloves
- 2 lb chicken, breasts or thighs cut into 5-6 oz pieces
- 1- 25 oz can hominy, drained
- 2- 15 oz cans Mexican tomatoes (Ro-tel)
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 2 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp cumin
- 2 Tbsp lime juice, fresh
- dash of hot pepper sauce
- 1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
- Â 1 jalapeno, chopped (optional)
- salt and pepper
- OPTIONAL GARNISHES- cilantro, shredded cheese, sliced radishes, shredded cabbage
Instructions
INSTANT POT POSOLE
Turn a pressure cooker to Saute High, once the pot is hot, add the olive oil. Cook the diced onion until soft, and then add the garlic, cumin, oregano, and jalapeno (if you're using one). Stir for one minute.
Add a little chicken broth to the bottom of the pot to scrape up the bits on the bottom of the pot. Press the Cancel button on the pot to stop the pot from cooking the ingredients. Turn the pot to Manual (some models call this Pressure Cook).
Add the chicken broth, hominy, tomatoes, lime juice and chicken pieces.
Pressure cook the chicken posole ingredients for 10 minutes and then do a natural release 5 minutes. When the pin drops, open the pot, give the pozole soup a stir and add salt and pepper to taste.
Ladle the chicken pozole into soup bowls and then add the shredded cabbage, radishes, cheese, and green onion. Other garnishes you can add include sour cream, tortilla chips, or guacamole.
STOVETOP
Bring water to boil in a Dutch oven or large soup pot. Add the chicken, cover the pot with a lid, and simmer the chicken until it's cooked through. This will take about 12-13 minutes.
Remove the chicken from the broth and set it aside.Â
Add the hominy, tomatoes, oregano, cumin, jalapeno, lime juice, and dash of hot pepper sauce to the chicken broth in the pot.
Bring it to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer the soup mixture stirring often until it's slightly thickened.Â
In the meantime, after the chicken cools, shred it.
Stir the shredded chicken into the pot, along with the fresh cilantro, and additional salt and pepper, if desired. Heat until the chicken is warm again.
Ladle the chicken pozole into soup bowls and then add the shredded cabbage, radishes, cheese, and green onion. Other garnishes you can add include sour cream, tortilla chips, or guacamole.
Recommended Products
As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.
-
Scanwood Olive Wood Utensil Spatula Spoon Ladle 3 Piece Set 12 Inch - Crock Pot Artisan 7 Quart Enameled Cast Iron Round Dutch Oven, Sapphire Blue
- Instant Pot Duo Evo Plus 9-in-1 Electric Pressure Cooker, Slow Cooker, Rice Cooker, Grain Maker, Steamer, Saute, Yogurt Maker, Sous Vide, Bake, and Warmer|6 Quart|Easy-Seal Lid|14 Programs
Nutrition Information
Yield 8 Serving Size 1Amount Per Serving Calories 335Total Fat 10gSaturated Fat 3gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 6gCholesterol 123mgSodium 944mgCarbohydrates 16gFiber 3gSugar 3gProtein 42g
Leave a Reply