Once you try this recipe for Carne Adovada, you’ll understand why its one of New Mexico’s most celebrated dishes. If you love New Mexico cuisine, you must learn to make this at home. Amazing in flavor, and one of the easiest braised pork recipes you’ll find.
For another New Mexico-inspired pork dish, try this classic recipe for Colorado green chili with pork.
What Is Carne Adovada?
Carne Adovada is a traditional Southwestern and signature dish of meaty dish of New Mexico Pieces of pork roast are marinated for 24 hours in a rich red chile sauce, then slow-roasted in the oven. The result is tender and deep flavored shredded or cubed pork. And possibly the most delicious food I’ve ever eaten. It’s is traditionally served with beans and rice. The sauce is an earthy, spicier, sweeter red chile sauce, than my go-to New Mexico Red Chile Sauce that I use for tamales, enchiladas and burritos. This red chile pork is beautiful as a stand alone dish, and absolutely amazing when used in tacos, enchiladas or burritos.
Why This Recipe Works
It happened sometime between the Cochinita Pibil Enchladas at Bella’s restaurant in Taos and the Carne Adovada Plate at The Shed in Santa Fe, that I knew I had fallen head over heels in love with New Mexico Red Chile Pork. Carne Adovada to be exact.
I’ve had this dish in New Mexico about a dozen times. It’s actually about the only thing I’ll order when traveling there. Aside from a Hatch Green Chile Cheeseburger.
- Pork: Becomes fall apart tender after an overnight marinade.
- Best Chile Powder for Carne Adovada: The #1 thing that makes this recipe work is the use of authentic New Mexico Chimayo Red Chile Powder. There’s nothing like it. A warming spice that’s “hot but it’s not”. It’s divine. And the secret to a good Carne Adovada is using New Mexico ground red chile powder. I find this easier and more flavorful than using dried red chile pods.
- Balanced Sauce: Carne Adovada marinade and sauce is a beautiful robust deeply flavored red gravy that melts around your tongue with a definitive Southwestern blast. Smoky, earthy, slightly sweet, you simply can’t wait to take your next bite.
- Inspiration: This recipe for Carne Adovada is modeled after The Shed’s Recipe, a very popular, famous New Mexican restaurant just off the Plaza in Santa Fe.
- Tested, tested and then tested more. I’ve made Carne Adovada about ten times trying to get it just as I remember from my experiences in New Mexico. I’ve studied many recipes to come up with a final method and flavor result I found to be best.
Carne Adovada vs. Carne Adobada
- Carne Adovada is a dish specific to New Mexico. And should always be made using pork. It’s traditionally braised and simmered in a thick red chile sauce until the meat is fork tender.
- Carne Adobada is a general term Mexican term for meat (pork, beef or chicken) and is commonly grilled or pan fried for tacos.
Ingredients You’ll Need
The Most Important Ingredient: New Mexico Red Chile
I have an arsenal of different red chile powder varieties, purchased from across the state of New Mexico. And I’ve made this pork dish with most of them. What’s beautiful about cooking with New Mexico red chile powders is the ability to choose your heat level tolerance. You can purchase mild, medium or hot. If you’re looking for a mild, a good bet is Hatch red chile powder from the Hatch Valley. But the king of chile powders is New Mexico Chimayo, made from red chiles grown around the village of Chimayo.
- Onions: Yellow or sweet onions for this recipe.
- Molasses: Use regular molasses rather than black strap. Black strap molasses will impart a slightly stronger and bitter flavor to the sauce.
- Chile Powder: New Mexico Chile Powder is a must to make this an authentic Carne Adovada recipe. The heat level is of that chile powder is up to you. I use a medium heat powder. This red chile powder is a single blend rather than chili seasoning which is a blend of seasonings used to make Tex-Mex style chili soups like this recipe for Bison Chili . To learn more take a look at my article Chili vs. Chili.
- Spices: Coriander, cumin, oregano and garlic all go hand in hand in so many New Mexican, Southwestern Recipes.
- Flour, Fat and Chicken Broth: to form that beautiful roux for the red chile gravy.
- Pork Loin Roast: Using a pork loin roast, gives us a leaner option, one where the meat will stay in more of a chunk form, nice and tender as it soaks up all of the beautiful flavor from this rich red chile sauce.
Mexican Oregano is preferred for this recipe. It's peppery, grassy, earthy flavor is a good compliment for Mexican Food. If you don't have Mexican Oregano, substitute Marjoram. Known for its aroma and delicate flavor, its related to Mexican oregano and will bring a sweet undertone to any recipe.
Recipe Ingredient Swaps
- This recipe calls for thick rich molasses. If you don’t have molasses on hand, use 1 Tablespoon brown sugar. Dark and light will work. Honey is also a good replacement for molasses.
- What if I can’t find New Mexico Chile Powder? I prefer Chimayo Chile Powder. If you simply can’t get your hands on any type of New Mexico Chile Powder, I’d use a very good quality Ancho Chile Powder or dried ancho chiles.
- If you don’t have cider vinegar, use sherry vinegar, red wine vinegar, white vinegar, or white wine vinegar. Balsamic vinegar is discouraged as it would change the flavor profile of Carne Adovada.
- Oil: Use either a mild flavored olive oil.
Step by Step Instructions
- Step 1: Cut the pork loin roast into bite sized pieces. Heat a skillet over medium high heat, add oil and brown pork in batches as to not overcrowd. Overcrowding the chunks of pork will steam them as opposed to searing them. Make sure to get a good sear on the outside without cooking through. That sear adds flavor. Remove to a plate and set aside.
- Step 2: In the meantime make the rich red chile sauce.
How To Make The Red Chile Sauce, New Mexico Style
- Step 3: Heat a 3-6 quart Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the butter and when melted, saute the onions until tender. This should take about 5 – 7 minutes.
- Step 4: Then add the flour and stir well. Cook for a couple of minutes until flour is just starting to toast.
- Step 5: Add the chicken broth and stir well. Cook for a few minutes to thicken the consistency of gravy.
- Step 6: Add the Chile Powder, cumin, coriander and oregano. Stir to blend spices.
- Step 7 and 8: Stir to combine until blended.
- Step 9: Add the seared pork back into the sauce.
- Step 10: Stir the sauce and pork together, cover and marinate in the refrigerator overnight, or for a least 2 – 3 hours.
- Step 11:Oven Baked Carne Adovada: Bake covered at 350 degrees for 2 – 3 hours, or until pork is tender. Don’t over cook, pork can become dry. Stir in vinegar and molasses, cover and let steep for about 15 minutes.
What To Serve It With – Traditional New Mexico Side Dishes
Many times I like to simply serve it with a warm flour tortilla or toasted New Mexico Blue Corn Tortillas. Carne Adovada is traditionally served with , Mexican Green Rice, Cowboy Beans, or a simple Southwestern salad. When I ordered Carne Adovada and Rancho de Chimayo in Chimayo, they served it with a simple tossed salad drizzled with their Spicy Ranch Dressing.
Want to keep it lower carb? Switch out the rice for this recipe for Southwestern Sauteed Mixed Vegetables.
Popular Ways To Serve It
I’ve seen Carne Adovada listed on restaurant menus offered as:
- Carne Adovada Breakfast Burritos
- Stacked Enchiladas
- Carne Adovada Tacos
- And even offering it topped with a fried egg for a hearty breakfast entree.
Tips For Success
- Pat the pork dry before searing. To get a nice golden brown crust on the pork, the dryer the meat, the better the sear.
- Don’t over crowd the pork while searing. Leave some space around each piece of pork to allow air to flow on all sided of the pieces. Over crowding the meat will cause it to steam and the texture will be compromised.
- Spicy or Mild: New Mexico Chile Powder can be hot spicy. Chose a chile powder labeled mild.
Make Ahead, Storage, and Freezing
- Make Ahead: The traditional method to make Carne Adovada is to marinade the pork in the red chile sauce overnight. An important step bring the flavor profiles together.
- Refrigerator: Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Freezer: Carne Adovada freezes well. I like to use a zip-lock style freezer bag. Squeeze out the air and seal well. Lay flat in the freezer to optimize freezer space. Be sure to use a Sharpie to label with ingredient and freeze date.
- Reheat. Let the Carne Adovada thaw in the refrigerator overngith. Gently reheat stove top. I’m not a fan of reheating meat dishes in the microwave. It simply compromises the texture of the pork.
FAQ’s
Some recipes call for the king of braised pork cuts, a pork shoulder roast. A more flavorful cut of meat, and perfect for shredded pork dishes, I found it to return a more “shredded” version than what I was looking for. And being a fattier cut, the sauce was greasier, which meant taking time to strain off the fat before serving. That’s a pain. I suggest a pork loin roast for this recipe.
There's a splash of vinegar in this recipe, but why? Vinegar is magic. And in my kitchen, it's as important as salt and pepper. Plain and simple, a splash of vinegar can brighten, balance and sharpen your food.
No. Carne Adovada is made with pork and simmered in a New Mexico Red Chile Sauce. Chile Colorado is traditionally made with beef and simmered in a thick tomato based sauce that can include red chiles or red chile powder.
I’ve never done this, as my Dutch Oven seems to be the perfect pot for this recipe. Once the pork is seared and marinated overnight, you can add the ingredients to a crock pot and cook low and slow until pork is tender. Like any dish of this nature, 8 hours on low or 4 hours on high. With that said, I prefer this method for oven baked carne adovada.
New Mexican Carne Adovada Recipe
I hope you give this recipe for Carne Adovada a try. It’s actually an easy fix for big return on flavor. The key to the unique balance end result flavor is adding vinegar and molasses at the end of the cooking time.
Explore More Southwestern New Mexico Recipes
And if you love Mexican food as much as we do, don’t miss my Mexican Food Category. You’ll find lots of exciting dishes including the most popular Southwestern on my site for this New Mexico Specialty Stacked Enchiladas.
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New Mexico Carne Adovada
Ingredients
- 2 ½ pounds Pork loin roast cubed
- salt and pepper to taste
- 3 Tablespoons neutral oil canola or vegetable oil
- For the gravy
- 3 Tablespoons Butter
- 3 Tablespoons Flour
- 2 Tablespoons Chimayo Chile Powder Add more if you want more heat
- 2 ½ cups Chicken Broth
- 1 large onion chopped
- 2 cloves garlic chopped
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon coriander ground, dried
- 1 teaspoon Oregano Preferably Mexican
- 1 Tablespoons Molasses Not Blackstrap
- 2 Tablespoon Cider Vinegar Sherry Vinegar is a good choice here.
Instructions
- Cut pork loin roast into large bite sized pieces. Salt and pepper to taste.Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add oil. When oil is hot, add pork pieces and brown on two sides. Cook in batches as not to crowd the pork. The pork will brown better.
- Remove pork to a plate.
- Heat a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add butter. Once butter bubbles and bubbles start to subside, add onions. Cook onions, stirring, until just starting to soften, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and saute until fragrant. About 1 minute.
- Add flour and cook, stirring constantly for two minutes. Add chile powder, chicken broth and cook stirring, until gravy starts to thicken. Add cumin, coriander and oregano. Cook for 1 minutes for flavors to blend.
- Remove from heat and add browned pork.
- Stir well, cover and place in refrigerator to marinade overnight. Or for at least 2 – 3 hours before cooking.
- Heat oven to 350 degrees.
- Cook 2 – 2 ½ hours or until pork is tender.
- Remove pork from oven and stir in molasses and vinegar.
- Place the lid back on the pot and let it steep for about 15 minutes.
- Serve with lime wedges. Serve with rice, hominy or beans, flour tortillas or all. You can also top with a dollop of Sour Cream and some fresh diced sweet onions.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Authentic New Mexico Carne Adovada … It’s What’s for Dinner
Why Trust My Recipes? I am a Culinary School Graduate and a lifelong student of home cooking. I hope to inspire you try to cook as often as you can. I’ve been cooking for 50 years, and my recipes are tried and true tested and tested and then tested again before published. To read more take a look at my About Page.
Used pure New Mexico Dixon medium hot chili with bit of brown sugar, dash of OJ instead of vinegar, Honduran cumin, Mexican oregano, bacon fat to sear dried pork. Absolutely let this meld overnight in fridge then baked low and slow.
This is my family’s offering at an Annual Labor Day Regatta and Potluck gathering. They rave over my pork green chili, but I love changing things up. So armed with this Chili Adovada and Avocado wedges, we hope for a fine September 2026 Gathering with Friends.
Thanks so much for your note Marilyn and taking time to rate the recipe. Enjoy!
Second time making this! I always double the recipe. I’m trying it a bit different the second time. I will make it all in the morning and then braise late in the afternoon.
Hi Lea Ann,
About 2 years ago I asked about the rice and beans recipes, have you found the brand name of the canned beans yet? Also in the comments you mention to add 2 tbsp tomato paste to the rice as it is cooking and further down in the comments you say to add 2 tbsp seasoning mix to the rice; is it 2 tbsp of each to the rice or do I use the whole seasoning pkt and just add the tomato paste?
Also can the Carne adovada be cooked in sauce in the crockpot?
Thanks Katherine
Loved this recipe. I unfortunately used less pork and thus the ratio of pepper to meat was a bit higher than my wife preferred. Modified that the second time. This is one of our go to taco fillings.
I LISTION TO BOOKS AND KEEP BUSY, WHO IS MAUD DIXON AND SING THEM HOME, I’LL CHECK OUT MARTIN MARTIN, SOUNDS GOOD. M
We enjoyed this in Nogales Mexico on our honeymoon decades ago. We’ve eaten and made it many times. The main thing we found in NM style is using bay leaf in the recipe/marinade. It truly sets it off.
Thanks for the recipe. I’m glad I found your site. Formerly of NM, now in Texas, a fan.
This is one of the best dishes we’ve made, simply delicious. It’s become a regular menu item.
The flavor was fabulous, thanks for sharing Lea Ann
Love this recipe! Quick question though! In the directions at the top it says to add the molasses before cooking, but in the directions at the bottom it says to add after cooking. I have been doing it after cooking, but I’m wondering if it really matters?
Hi Angie. I made this recipe about 15 times before publishing to get it to taste just like I wanted it. I probably did it both ways. I think adding it at the end keeps the sugars from burning if the sauce gets too hot. I’m saying add it ad the end.
After scouring the internet for a copycat adovada recipe from our favorite Mexican restaurant, I think I’ve finally found the one that is most authentic! Made it today in the crock pot – delicious!
Hi and thanks for the above recipe. Once I have had a chance to make it, I will offer my comments. I like the tip regarding vinegar, I finish almost all of my savory recipes with fresh lemon juice, similar effect. Can you direct me to a recipe for the rice you show on the plate with the prorogued? It looks delicious.
Good Morning Lynne and thanks for your note.
That rice: I buy a package of Mexican rice seasoning from a local market. It’s the best ingredients I’ve found to make Spanish Rice. My goal one of these days is try to recreate it and post the recipe. And what makes it especially good is adding two tablespoons of tomato paste to the cooked rice along with the seasoning.
Please let me know how you like the Adovada and a review would be fabulous.
Let me know if you have any other questions.
Lea Ann
Cooking On The Ranch
Spanish rice is very easy.
1/4cup white rice per person. (I usually make 4-6 servings
1- 8o.z. can tomato sauce
1 can chicken broth
1/2 frozen pea and carrots
1/2 onion diced
2 til so of butter.
Melt butter in skillet. I’m mid/high heat. Add onion and cook until onions are clear. Add dry rice and Brown. Once browned add chicken broth and tomato sauce. Add pea and carrots. Cook until rice absobs all the liquid.
Easy
Your recipes always inspire me to new levels! Love the layers of sweet, savory and spicy flavors in this dish, and it’s positively gorgeous!
The spice profile in this dish is splendid! I love that you use molasses as the sweetener!