Smoked Chile Verde
On April 08, 2025
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This Smoked Chile Verde is incredibly simple to make and off-the-charts delicious. Eat it straight off the bone, or serve it in tacos, burritos, on nachos and so much more. Save this recipe for later, it’s a keeper.
Pulled Pork Chile Verde
Today’s recipe is a pulled pork chile verde that gets cooked low and slow on the smoker before finishing in a tangy, flavorful green chile braise. We’re taking a bone-in pork shoulder (AKA Boston butt), seasoning it up, smoking it to perfection, and then braising it in a trio of green sauces until it’s fall-apart tender.
This pulled pork chile verde is incredible in tacos, burritos, enchiladas, nachos, and sandwiches. I like mine with a squeeze of lime, a warm tortilla, chopped red onions, sour cream, and cilantro. There’s no wrong way to enjoy it. The sky’s the limit.
What is Chile Verde?
At its core, chile verde is a stew made from tender pork or beef simmered in a savory green sauce. That green sauce is built from a base of tomatillos and green chile peppers. You can adjust the heat to your liking, and there are tons of regional variations depending on where you’re cooking or who you’re cooking for.
If you search around, you’ll see it spelled “chile” or “chili.” The “chili” version tends to reference a meat-and-bean stew, while “chile verde” more traditionally refers to the green chile-based sauce. And while beans are usually left out of chile verde, that rich, roasted chile flavor and tender meat are always the stars of the show.
From traditional Mexican recipes to modern American BBQ takes, chile verde shows up in all kinds of ways. This smoked pulled pork version brings that slow-smoked BBQ flavor into the mix in the best way.
Chile Verde Sauce
This pulled pork gets its flavor boost from a simple but delicious combination of three store-bought green sauces:
- 28-ounce can green chile enchilada sauce
- 4-ounce can fire roasted diced green chiles (choose your heat level)
- 12-ounce can salsa verde green tomatillo sauce (I used Trader Joe’s brand)
This trio makes the perfect braising liquid. Just open the cans and pour them over your pork before covering and finishing the cook.
How to Make Smoked Chile Verde
With only 5 ingredients, this smoked chile verde is simple to make and requires little more than seasoning your meat, watching your smoker temp, and giving it a little bit of time.
- Preheat the smoker. Set your smoker to 225 degrees F. For a bold, smoky flavor, go with mesquite wood. For something milder, alder or hickory work great too.
- Season the pork. Pat the pork shoulder dry with paper towels to remove excess moisture or bone fragments. Season generously on all sides with my Signature Beef Seasoning. If you don’t have any on hand, you can grab some in my store. Or, you can mix equal parts salt, pepper, and garlic powder for a simple DIY rub.
- Smoke low and slow. Place the pork shoulder directly on the grill grates and smoke for 8 hours, or until the internal temperature reaches 160–165 degrees F. A reliable meat thermometer is your best friend here.
- Braise in sauce. Transfer the pork to a disposable aluminum pan. Pour all three sauces directly over the pork. Cover tightly with heavy-duty foil, sealing all the edges to trap in the moisture and flavor.
- Crank the heat. Raise your smoker temperature to 350 degrees F and return the pan to the smoker. Cook for another 2–3 hours, until the internal temp of the pork hits 195–203 degrees F.
- Rest and shred. Remove the pork from the smoker and let it rest, covered, for 30 minutes to 1 hour. Then, shred the meat straight into the sauce, discarding the bone, gristle, and any excess fat. Taste and season with additional salt if needed.
Storage and Reheating
If you’ve got leftovers, this smoked chile verde stores like a dream and reheats beautifully. Once the pork cools to room temperature, transfer it (along with that flavorful sauce!) to an airtight container. Place it in your refrigerator, then can enjoy your chile verde for 3-4 more days.
When reheating your chile verde, I’ve found the best results using the grill or smoker. Set your grill to medium-low heat, place the pork and sauce in a foil pan, and heat until warmed through, about 20–30 minutes, stirring occasionally. You can also reheat it on the stovetop in a saucepan over medium-low heat.
Can you freeze chile verde?
Your Smoked Chile Verde is a great make-ahead meal. If you’ve got extra, you can stash some away and freeze it for later. Once again, let the pork and sauce cool completely, then portion into freezer-safe containers or zip-top bags. Lay the bags flat for easier storage. Label with the date and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge, then follow the reheating instructions above. Just like that, fresh chile verde.
More Mexican-Inspired BBQ Recipes
I love a good Tex-Mex or Mexican-inspired BBQ dish. Sometimes you just can’t beat those bold, spicy, sweet flavors. Check out a few more of my favorites when you’re in the mood for something with a kick:
Don’t forget these recipes (plus over 700 more) are all available in the Hey Grill Hey App.
Smoked Chile Verde Recipe
Watch the video below, and let’s make something delicious! I’m all about helping you make better BBQ, feed the people you love, and become a BBQ hero Check out more Hey Grill Hey behind the scenes action on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube!
Smoked Chile Verde
Video
Ingredients
- 1 8-10 pound bone-in pork shoulder (AKA Boston butt)
- Hey Grill Hey Beef Rub
Braising Liquid
- 1 28-oz can green chile enchilada sauce choose mild or spicy based on your flavor preferences
- 1 4-oz can fire roasted diced green chiles choose mild or spicy based on your flavor preferences
- 1 12-oz can salsa verde salsa
Instructions
- Preheat the smoker. Set your smoker to 225 degrees F. For a bold smoke flavor, go with mesquite wood, for a milder flavor, I recommend using alder or hickory.
- Season the pork. Using a paper towel, wipe down your pork shoulder to remove any excess liquid from the packaging or bone fragments from the meat. Season on all sides with my Signature Beef Seasoning or equal amounts of salt, pepper, and garlic powder.1 8-10 pound bone-in pork shoulder (AKA Boston butt), Hey Grill Hey Beef Rub
- Smoke the pork. Place your seasoned pork shoulder directly on the grill grates. Close the lid, and smoke for 8 hours or until the internal temperature of your meat reaches 160-165 degrees F.
- Make the braise. Remove the pork from the smoker and place in disposable aluminum pan. Pour all ingredients for the braising liquid over the pork. Cover tightly with a large sheet of heavy duty aluminum foil and seal all edges.1 28-oz can green chile enchilada sauce, 1 4-oz can fire roasted diced green chiles, 1 12-oz can salsa verde salsa
- Increase the heat and finish smoking. Increase the heat on your smoker to 350 degrees F. Place the pork shoulder back on the smoker for 2-3 hours. Cook until the internal temperature of the pork reaches 195-203 degrees F.
- Rest the pork. Remove the pork from the smoker and allow to rest for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
- Shred, serve, and enjoy! Remove the aluminum foil, and shred the pork straight into the liquid, removing the bone and any gristle or excess fat. Taste and season with additional salt, as needed. This meat is versatile and can be eaten like a stew, served in burritos, tacos, on nachos however you like.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
**I originally published this post in October 2019, but recently updated it with more information and helpful tips. However, the recipe remains the same.
Awesome. How can you go wrong? Smoked pork shoulder with a tangy spicy green chili sauce. Smoked chile verde pulled pork tops the charts. Just made it today. And will do it again. Nachos, tacos, burritos or even just eaten straight out of the pan, it is a tasty versatile recipe.
We have been making this pork chili verde since you posted it and it is very very good. So simple, but the flavor is off the charts. We smoke a lot of different things, most things really, but this is one of our favorites. We are retired, just the two of us left here, so it takes us a while to get through an entire pork butt – so we pressure can this and it is as good out of the jar as it is off the smoker. I usually tweek recipes a lot, I have not tweeked this one at all and always fight the urge, it is that good – as written.
This looks great. How do I make it in my oven?
The recipe will work as is. You’ll just miss out on the smoky flavor.
We have made this several times over the last couple years, getting ready to make it again. We follow your recipe to the letter, if our butt weighs more, we add more sauces. We used to freeze it but now we pressure can it in pint jars, works real well doing that. This recipe is very good, one of our favorites.
I know the whole point of this recipe is to smoke your own pork, but I had some smoked pork leftovers from a butcher shop, and wanted to do something more interesting with them than more smoked pork BBQ sandwiches. The chili verde additions really made the smoked pork sing. You can eat it in a burrito, or as nachos, or just by itself. I will definitely be making this again! Delicious and different.
If you’ve got the time to roast your own tomatillos, onions, garlic, and chiles, I totally recommend it! I used two Costco pork sirloin roasts rubbed with green chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, salt and pepper and smoked as discussed in this recipe. Meanwhile I charred several poblanos, jalapeños, and Anaheim chiles, peeled and seeded and set aside. Then do the same with garlic, yellow onions and tomatillos. Combine in a blender with a small can of low sodium chicken stock. Once the roasts reach a temp between 155-165, move to the croc pot ( or covered pan as described in the recipe)to braise. Once the meat temp reaches 205 its done!! Shred the roasts and serve with charred tortillas, lime wedges, cilantro and sour cream. Salud!
I tried the recipe as its and love it. However, I very much like your contribution. I will try to let you know how it goes.
Hello Susie! You are awesome! Love everything you do! Regarding the Chile verde pulled pork, I went off the reservation a little bit. Used SPG but also added Chile de arbol and Mexican oregano to the rub! Then I also placed the butt in a roster with foil in my over and placed the cover on it. I also finely chopped 3 Serrano peppers and added them to the rostef hatch chiles. Also used El Pato green enchilada sauce. My wife loved it as well as I did. Can’t wait to share this with all other members on my family on a special occasion! It was that good.
OK so I don’t normally leave reviews on recipes, in fact I think this is the first one. I made this for the first time last year when I had garden fresh tomatillos and was looking for something to use them on. I’ve made it at least 6 times since then, it’s by far the best pulled pork I’ve had. I have one on the smoker now after my grocery store had Pork Butts 50% off and I bought 3 all with the intent to make this recipe. Simple, with few ingredients but packs a powerful bite. I’ve made Burritos, Burrito Bowls, Tacos, Nachos. I even made a dip with the drippings: Cream Cheese spread on the bottom of a casserole pan, Pulled Pork drippings (With some pulled pork obviously) over that, then some cheese, I used provolone the first time, but may look to get oaxaca cheese the next time. If anyone has any other recipes for this I’d love it because there’s no way it wouldn’t be good while using this pork! Thanks Hey Grill!
Hello ! Just wanted to say thank you for all your help grilling! Second, could you do this recipe with a pork loin instead of a shoulder. I understand the timeline would be different, but following the same process?
The loin is too lean of a cut to shred like this. You can do it but it won’t work nearly as well.
I’ve made this recipe a few times and it is absolutely fantastic! I use salt, pepper, and garlic powder for rub, a jar of jalepeno salsa verde, and about a cup of 505 Southwestern flame roasted hatch green chiles from a jar. Amazing flavor!
Can I treat a pork cushion the same as a shoulder? Possibly with a higher final temp to compensate for the more muscular cut? Waiting for pork shoulders to go on sale around here. Thanks.
Cushion will work, but probably not as well as shoulder. It’s a much leaner muscle.