Slow Cooker Pozole with Navy Beans (Slow Carb, Easy Method)

This is my lazy-day pozole. Traditional pozole requires rehydrating dried chiles and making a rojo sauce from scratch. This version uses ancho powder for the same smoky flavor with almost no prep. Navy beans stand in for hominy to keep it slow carb compliant. Everything goes in the slow cooker, and six hours later you have a rich, deeply flavored stew. It’s even better the next day.

Quick Summary: The easiest version of slow carb pozole: dump ingredients in the crockpot and cook low for 6 hours. Uses ancho powder instead of rehydrated dried chiles and navy beans instead of hominy. Smoky, rich, and hands-off. Slow carb and 4-Hour Body compliant. Prep: 20 min | Cook: 6 hours (slow cooker) | Serves: 5

Jump to: RECIPE | Brief History | Ingredients | Dried Anchos vs Powder | Slow Carb Modification | FAQ

This post may contain affiliate links, and you can read our disclosure information here– 

Is It Posole or Pozole?

The word posole derives from pozolli, the Nahuan word for hominy. And not surprisingly – when prepared traditionally – hominy is one of the major components of this popular Latin stew.

Nahuan is an ancient Aztecan language, giving you a major clue as to the origins of this dish – Mesoamerica. If you research this dish, you will see it referred to as both posole and pozole.

Both spellings are considered correct, with posole being the older version. Whether you spell it with an ‘s’ or a ‘z’, this dish is a well-loved comfort food across Mexico and Central America.

When Is Pozole Served?

Traditionally this dish is served for celebrations. You will find it on the table at Christmas, New Year’s, Mexican Independence Day, or any occasion reserved for merrymaking.

In some regions of Mexico it is traditional to serve this ultimate comfort food every Thursday or Saturday. It is so delicious people crave eating it weekly. You might be surprised and find it becomes a regular menu item in your house too!

While popular in home kitchens, you can also find pozole on the menu of most Mexican restaurants throughout Latin America any day of the week. Some elevate it with their own little twist and others serve it as a straightforward home-cooked meal.

Ingredient List:

The following photo shows you all the ingredients you will need for this recipe. For details on measurements, see the recipe below.

If you don’t really care about the carb level of hominy, try this more traditional pork pozole rojo recipe.

Or try this alternative version of a slow carb pozole that uses garbanzo beans in place of hominy and sears the pork ahead of time.

Dried Ancho Chiles vs Ancho Powder

Dried Ancho Peppers

Dried ancho peppers are frequently used by Mexican cooks in making posole. Dried ancho peppers are found in most Mexican and Latin grocery stores.

Since they can’t be used straight from the package however, you must first reconstitute them by soaking them. Once they have become pliant, you need to carefully clean and seed them. Both of these steps can be time consuming and are a bit of a pain when you want to get straight to cooking.

Ancho Powder

If you want to save time and still keep the wonderful flavor profile of the ancho peppers, ground ancho chile is the key. Just be sure to get “fresh” ancho powder from a reputable spice vendor.

Sometimes dried spices have been languishing on the grocery store shelf or the warehouse for so long that the distinctive spice has lost its punch.

You can usually find ground ancho chile at Mexican or Latin grocery stores. The turnover of ingredients you buy there will be more frequent and you might be surprised to find other wonderful ingredients with which to experiment.

If you like your pozole with more heat, try substituting powdered chipotle for the ancho spice powder. The smoky flavor you’d get with ancho powder still comes through, but you’ll be pleasantly surprised with the extra kick.

Or, if you don’t want the smoky flavor just go with you favorite chile pepper powder.

TIP: All your dishes will taste best if your spices are fresh. It may be tempting to purchase a large quantity of a particular spice because it is cheaper per ounce, but if you can’t use that quantity up in approximately one year the spice will begin to lose its potency.

Navy Beans and the Slow Carb Diet

Slow carb diets allow beans as a protein source that won’t derail weight loss. Substituting white beans or garbanzo beans for the hominy is therefore a modification that works for slow carb diets without losing the delicious flavor of posole.

Legumes and beans have a lot of fiber and protein and because of this they are considered a “slow carb” that can offer a form of energy that will not spike your insulin levels like a refined carb.  

You don’t need beans with every meal however, in fact too many beans can stall your diet, as they are fairy dense in calories.

An in-depth study on longevity in regions across the world, known as the Blue Zones longevity study, found that the one diet component that all of the various cultures shared was beans.

This common thread among the Blue Zones, along with Tim Ferris’s slow carb diet recommends beans as a healthy way to get in recommended amounts of protein.

A keto diet, on the other hand, does not include beans.

If you want to make pozole and stay keto compliant, you could make pozole without hominy or beans (a pork and chile stew essentially) and garnish with a lot of cabbage and radish. It will change the texture of posole more so than beans, but it is still a tasty alternative.

A similar slow carb version of pozole using garbanzo beans rather than navy beans is this Seared Pork Pozole with Garbanzo Beans.

If you want to celebrate with pozole and are not following a slow carb diet this traditional version of pozole rojo is excellent.

How to Make Slow Cooker Pozole

The full instructions are in the recipe card below. In short: Whisk together cumin, oregano, ancho powder, and cocoa powder. Add to slow cooker with chopped onion, garlic, chicken broth, salt, and navy beans. Cut pork shoulder into chunks (sear first for deeper flavor if you have time) and add to the pot. Cook on low for 6 hours until pork is tender. Serve with traditional garnishes: radishes, cabbage, lime, cilantro, avocado.

Customizing with Garnishes

One of the best parts of this dish for many is the variety of side garnishes that are laid out on the table for people to customize their preferred flavor enhancements.

Depending on the occasion where you are serving posole, you can make the layout of the garnishes as fancy or simple as you choose. You could put your accompaniments on a Lazy Susan and let people spin to their favorite toppings.

More Latin American Celebration Dishes

This Camarão (pumpkin with shrimps) is a centerpiece dish from Brazil that is full of incredible flavor and ever-so-beautiful

And herald in Summer with this popular Mexican street food of fruit and veggies sprinkled with Tajin

FAQ

If you enjoy all types of Mexican food, check out this category of ALL Mexican recipes, where you will find over 40 Mexican recipes, from casual, to low carb, to fancy.