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This easy pork chile verde recipe features tender, slow-cooked pork loin in a vibrant and flavorful Mexican-inspired chile verde sauce. It’s perfect for a simple yet delicious family meal. Serve it with rice, tortillas, and a dollop of sour cream for a complete, satisfying dish.
Pork loin is a lean, tender cut of meat that’s perfect for slow-cooking recipes like this chili verde and my crock pot pork loin recipe. For more easy ways to cook pork, try this Instant Pot pork loin, my stuffed pork loin, or this juicy pork loin roast.
Chile Verde is one of our favorite dinner recipes that ticks every box in terms of taste, texture, and satisfaction! This Pork Loin Chile Verde recipe pairs juicy, fork-tender pork with a vibrant tomatillo sauce, infused with savory aromatics and authentic Mexican flavors. By slow cooking it in your crock pot, the pork becomes irresistibly tender, soaking up every bit of that tangy, flavorful green salsa. Plus, it’s even better the next day as the flavors continue to meld together—perfect for leftovers or meal prepping!
Why I Love This Chile Verde Recipe
- Easy ingredients. My particular version of this classic Mexican dish is easy and full of flavor. The secret is in using prepared salsa and enchilada sauce, read: store-bought. I also used pork loin, rather than pork butt or pork shoulder (that’s reserved for my amazing pork roast recipe), for the ultimate quick-prep, slow cooker entree.
- Packed with flavor. If you love spicy dishes, this recipe is for you! My delicious pork chile verde is filled with smoky chili heat, aromatic veggies, and tender pork loin pieces. It’s rich, savory, juicy, and an absolute flavor bomb in every sense of the word.
- Made in the slow cooker. What’s better than a set-it-and-forget-it recipe on a busy weeknight? Making this chile verde in the slow cooker means that you can leave it to cook and come back hours later to a wholesome dinner that the whole family will dig into.
What Is Chile Verde?
Chile verde translates to “green chili”, and it’s a Mexican stew traditionally made from pork cooked in salsa verde, a flavorful green sauce made from tomatillos and green chilies. Also called puerco con salsa verde, pork chili verde is a soulful, comforting dinner filled with zing. Making this recipe in the slow cooker is a great way to let the flavors mingle while the pork pieces cook until they’re fall-apart-tender.
Ingredients You’ll Need
For this pork chile verde recipe, you’ll need a mix of fresh ingredients and a few grocery store staples to create a fork-tender dish that’s flavorful and very easy to make. For the full amounts and thorough instructions, please scroll down to the recipe card.
- Oil – Vegetable oil, olive oil, or another neutral-flavored oil, for sautéing.
- Pork Loin – You’ll need a 3-pound, boneless pork loin cut into cubes. Make sure that you’re buying pork loin roast and not pork tenderloin. They aren’t the same thing! Pork tenderloin cooks much quicker and will turn out dry.
- Carrots: These add a subtle sweetness and help build the flavor base of the stew, balancing out the heat from the chiles.
- Yellow Onion: You can substitute with a white onion or even shallots for a milder flavor.
- Garlic: We’re using six cloves of fresh garlic here to add a strong, aromatic flavor. If you’re out of garlic cloves, garlic powder can be used.
- Enchilada Sauce – Use your favorite jar or can of prepared green enchilada sauce.
- Salsa Verde – This recipe uses one cup of salsa verde. You’ll find it in the international aisle or condiment aisle in most major grocery stores. There are lots of brands available, but my favorite is Herdez. Spicy, smoky, vibrant, it’s truly *chef’s kiss*.
- Salt & Black Pepper – To enhance the flavors of the dish.
- Chopped Green Chiles – These usually come in a 4-oz can. Choose a variety that’s spicy or mild depending on your preference.
How To Make Pork Chile Verde in the Slow Cooker
- Sauté. Start by heating oil in a large pot or skillet, and add the pork cubes, carrots, onions, and garlic. Sauté over medium-high heat until the pork is nicely browned on all sides. Afterward, transfer the pork and veggies to your slow cooker.
- Combine and cook. Next, stir in the enchilada sauce, salsa verde, green chiles, and salt. Cover the slow cooker and cook the chile verde on Low for 6 hours, or until the pork is cooked through and tender.
- Serve! Dish up your chile verde over fluffy rice or warm tortillas garnished with jalapeños, cilantro, and sour cream. We love ours with a squeeze of fresh lime juice. See below for more serving suggestions.
Recipe Tips And Variations
- Use a large enough slow cooker. For this recipe, you’ll want to use a 6-quart slow cooker or larger. If you’re scaling the recipe, make sure that your slow cooker is large enough to fit all the ingredients.
- Don’t overcook. For best results, test the pork for doneness about 2 hours into the cooking time, and at least once per hour afterward to ensure it doesn’t overcook and become dry. Even with a moist, slow cooking process, pork loin can overcook and become dry, grainy, and tough. To avoid this, test the pork with a meat thermometer. Pork is done when its internal temp reaches 145°F. The meat will continue to cook even after you turn off the heat, so you’ll want to turn off the slow cooker just before it hits that temperature.
- Pink pork. It’s always important that proteins are properly cooked, but if you test the pork and find that the temperature is right but the meat itself is still a rosy color, don’t worry. The low and slow cooking method doesn’t blanch the meat quite as much as a high-heat method, so some or all of the pork loin pieces may still be pinkish even when they’re done.
- Adjust the consistency. Once it’s cooked, the sauce should have a gravy-like consistency. If you’d like to thicken it, make a slurry with 1-2 tablespoons of cornstarch and a bit of water. Whisk the slurry into the sauce one spoonful at a time until the stew thickens. To thin out chile verde, add a little water or chicken broth. Taste for seasonings afterward.
- Spice. Depending on the salsa and the green chiles you use, this recipe can range from mild to very spicy. If you select mild salsa and mild chiles, you can expect a dish with just a little spicy kick. If you go with hotter chiles and/or salsa, you can amp up the heat! Some chiles are not marked with a level of spiciness, so add a little at a time and adjust the heat to taste.
Serving Suggestions
A bowl of pork chili verde is a meal in itself, so it doesn’t need much except for maybe warm flour tortillas. Load up servings with seeded and thinly sliced jalapeño peppers, chopped fresh cilantro, dollops of sour cream, and lime wedges. Serve it with refried beans, Spanish rice, my fiesta rice, or this keto-friendly cloud bread. Creamy mashed cauliflower is also an excellent veggie side dish.
My air fryer zucchini corn fritters would make a wonderful appetizer or side. There’s nothing like a cup of Mexican coffee after a filling dinner or a silky and satisfying low-carb chocolate mousse! Or, try this spicy Mexican hot chocolate fudge! If you want to get the meal started with something special, whip up delicious strawberry pomegranate mojitos!
How To Store and Reheat Leftovers
- Store leftovers in airtight containers and keep them in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator before reheating.
- To reheat, place the desired portion in a covered skillet or saucepan over medium heat. Cook until just heated through.
More Mexican Inspired Dinner Recipes
- Slow Cooker Beef Barbacoa
- Carne Asada
- Guajillo Steak
- Instant Pot Chicken Carnitas Tacos
- Slow Cooker Beef Machaca
- Mexican Taco Pasta
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Pork Chile Verde Recipe
Ingredients
For the Pork:
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 3 pounds boneless pork loin roast, cut into cubes
- 3 carrots, sliced into coins or shredded
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 28 ounces green enchilada sauce
- 1 cup salsa verde
- 1 can (4-ounces) chopped green chiles
- ½ teaspoon salt, or to taste
- freshly ground black pepper, to taste
For Serving:
- prepared rice
- warm flour tortillas
- jalapenos, seeded and thinly sliced, for garnish
- chopped fresh cilantro, for garnish
- sour cream, for serving
- lime wedges, for serving
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large skillet. To the hot oil, add the cubed pork, carrots, onions, and garlic; saute until the pork is browned on all sides. Remove the skillet from the heat and transfer the pork mixture to a 6-quart, or larger, slow cooker.
- Stir in the enchilada sauce, salsa verde, green chiles, salt, and pepper; cover the slow cooker and cook on LOW for 6 hours, or until meat is tender and internal temperature registers at 145˚F. Use an instant read thermometer, and start checking for doneness around the 4-hour mark.
- Remove cover, stir, taste for salt and pepper, and adjust. Let it rest for 10 minutes.
- Garnish with jalapenos and cilantro.
- Serve it over prepared rice or tortillas with sour cream and lime wedges.
Equipment
Notes
- Avoid Overcooking: Use a meat thermometer to avoid dry, overcooked pork. Pork is cooked through when its internal temperature reaches 145°F.
- Adjust Sauce Consistency: Add a cornstarch slurry if you need a thicker sauce. For a thinner sauce, use water or broth. Taste and adjust the seasonings afterward. One tablespoon of cornstarch to two tablespoons of water will make a small amount of slurry — just whisk it all together until it’s smooth, then stir it into the sauce.
- Spice: The spiciness of this recipe varies based on your choice of salsa and green chiles. Mild selections yield a gentle kick, while hotter options increase the heat.
Nutrition
Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.
How many does this serve? Could it be frozen?
This makes about 10 servings, and yes, you can freeze it for up to 3 months.
Can you use Boston butt instead of pork loin
Hi! You absolutely can, even though I think this recipe was better with loin. Pork loin and pork shoulder have different textures and flavors so it’s generally not a good idea to swap them out in recipes. You can, however, grab my recipe for pork shoulder – it is delicious. ๐ https://diethood.com/braised-pork-shoulder/
This may be a stupid question but, how spicy is this dish?
Hi!
Not stupid at all! I like a little spicy, but not too much, so I always choose mild salsas. For this recipe, depending on the salsa and the green chiles you add, it can range from mild to very spicy. If you select a mild salsa verde and mild chiles, you can expect a dish with just a little spicy kick.
I hope this helps.
Hi, could you use pork chops instead of pork loin? Thoughts on that?
You can, but pork chops will cook up much faster than the pork loin, so this should be done within 2 to 2.5 hours. If the pork chops are boneless, it may be done in less than that. If you have a meat thermometer, use it to check for doneness; pork is cooked through when the internal temperature registers at 145หF.
Question about this comment. I thought pork chops are basically the pork loin so it’s the same cut of meat as the recipe. If the recipe has you cut the pork loin into cubes, why would pork chops, which should be in larger pieces, cook faster?
Hi! While pork chops do come from the pork loin, they are typically cut thinner, which is why they cook faster than a whole pork loin or larger cubes of pork. I hope that makes sense. ๐
Got it. Our pork chops tend to be on the thicker side. So yes, makes sense if you use thin ones.
do you cut the meat after it comes out of crockpot?
Hi!
You cut it up before cooking. If you scroll down to the recipe card, you’ll see the second ingredient says, “3 pounds boneless pork loin roast, cut into cubes”.
Hubby loved it. I cut the meat in pieces, floured and brown. Thank you.
That’s great! I’m very glad you and your husband enjoyed it! Thank YOU! ๐
Can you make this in the oven or on the stove if you donโt have a crock pot? If so what temperature is equivalent to low in a slow cooker?
Hi!
Yep, you can definitely make it in the oven. If you want to go the low and slow route, cook it at about 200หFahrenheit. A slow cooker’s HIGH setting is the same as 300หF in the oven.
I made this once and it was delicious. I want to make it again for tonite but wonโt have the 6 hours to slow cook. Can I make this in the instant pot?
Hi!
Yeah, that will work. For pork loin in the IP, you can follow the instructions that I have here: https://diethood.com/instant-pot-pork-loin/
Delicious!! I added pasilla pepper. This is one of my favorite dishes and this recipe hits the spot. Even the fiance who doesn’t care for Verde sauces loved it! Will be making this again for sure!
That’s great! I am very glad you enjoyed it! Thank you for chiming in! ๐
Delicious recipe!! In the crock pot as we speak for the 2nd time in making this ymmyness!! Thanks so much! ๐