This was a delicious version of Huevos Rancheros with a pork and hatch chile that stole the show. Cookinginvictoria's process of building flavors and textures gives the chile a well-rounded depth of flavor. From the roasted ribs and hatch chiles, braised pork and aromatics, emerges a rich, smoky, and spicy chile. And if that wasn't good enough, you're instructed to top a warm tortilla with the chile, along with perfectly poached eggs, queso fresco, and a little cilantro for freshness. The eggs pair brilliantly with the spice from the chiles and the meaty pork. This dish is worth every ounce of energy you will put into it. Note: Take cookinginvictoria's advice and only add two-thirds of the chiles to start with to monitor the heat. I love spice and mine was plenty hot without adding the remaining third.

This recipe was inspired by my maternal grandmother, an amazing woman, and a real mentor to me in the kitchen. She taught me so much through her love of food and cooking. She loved preparing full meals for her large extended family, which she did until she was ninety years old. I can't recall a single conversation with her that didn't begin with us both discussing what we had cooked (and eaten!) that day.

Many of the dishes that my grandmother cooked celebrated her Mexican heritage. As a child, I remember her making homemade flour tortillas on her immense gas stove, which was a novelty to me at the time. Everyone else I knew, including my mother, cooked on electric ranges. My grandmother also made red chile enchiladas, posole, and tamales. But her most acclaimed dish (at least to me, my sister and my cousins) was her pork green chile, made with Hatch chiles. This is not fancy food by any means, but simple and rustic Tex-Mex home cooking. Many years ago, I asked her for the recipe. She told me about the ingredients in the dish, but she didn't give me any real measurements -- it was a little bit of this, a little bit of that. I'm not sure she ever really measured ingredients -- she was an intuitive cook.

Over the years, I have made my own version of her green chile. It is not quite my grandmother's recipe, but I like to think that if she were here, she would recognize it. When my grandmother made her green chile, she mostly used pork chops. I like to use two different cuts of pork -- stew meat from the hip or shoulder of the pig and side ribs for a richer, more porky flavor.

When my grandmother made this dish, she would bring a steaming bowl of green chile to the table, and we would eat it like a stew. She would serve plenty of her homemade tortillas for sopping up the delicious juices as well as rice and pinto beans on the side. When I make this dish for my own family, I like to stuff flour tortiillas with black beans, chopped avocado, diced tomatoes, julienned radishes, grated Cheddar cheese, and chopped cilantro. I then make smothered burritos and top each stuffed tortilla with lots of green chile. Another great way to use this chile (green chile is truly versatile!) is to make huevos rancheros. Eggs and chile are one of my favorite food combinations. I love how a soft egg yolk tastes when it melds with spicy aromatic, porky green chile. Served with a soft tortilla to absorb all of the chile's juices, this is the kind of breakfast, brunch or dinner that to me is truly sublime.
The Rancheros (Green Chile with Pork):

4-8 Hatch chile peppers
1 pound pork side ribs on the bone
1 pound pork stew meat (cut from the hip or shoulder), cut into 2-3 inch pieces
1/4 cup flour
2 tablespoons butter
6 teaspoons canola oil
1 large, sweet onion, roughly chopped
4 cloves garlic, finely minced
3/4 cups diced tomatoes, preferably fresh or fire-roasted
3/4 cups chicken broth
2 1/2 cups water
1/2 teaspoon Mexican dried oregano
1 teaspoon salt

The Huevos (Eggs):

4-8 Eggs (If you are making brunch or dinner, count on two eggs per person. However, if you are making a light lunch, one egg per person is the perfect portion size.)
Water for poaching eggs
1 tablespoon white wine or cider vinegar
1 handful of roughly chopped cilantro (about 1/4 cup)
1 handful grated Queso Fresco cheese (about 1/4 cup). Feta or a hard goat cheese will also work.
4 flour tortillas (one per person), plus extra for serving at the table