Pork – Page 10 – Writing With My Mouth Full

North Carolina-Style Pulled Pork

The Dr. called it dedication to my meat. When a friend asked me if I was interested in going out on Saturday, I had to decline. I said I was going to be busy smoking and roasting an eight-pound pork shoulder. I don’t know why that sounds funny, but it does, because I think I’ve come a long way from cooking small dishes. Now I’m roasting a part of a pig with a bone as large as my arm. What’s even funnier is that my friend reacted nonchalantly because I know she’s heard something similar from me before. I don’t think I can say anything anymore that would surprise the people who know me so well.

The recipe looked easy enough. It’s from an article written by Dana Bowen in The Times. All I had to do was buy a tin can of hickory-wood smoking chips from Zabar’s uptown and a large piece of pork from Bayard Meat Market that fit in my tote bag. I love my barbeque, I really do, and if I can produce a good version at home, I’ll be happy. Almost six hours later, I was; the entire family was. Serve with toasted rolls and of course, pickled scotch bonnet peppers.

Ingredients:
1 8-pound pork shoulder, bone-in
3 tbsps of hickory-wood smoking chips
2 cups of cider vinegar
1 tbsp red pepper flakes
1 tbsp white sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup ketchup
salt and pepper

1. Massage pork with salt and pepper. Scatter the smoking chips at the bottom of the roasting pan. Place the pork on a rack and then on the roasting pan. Cover with two long pieces of aluminum foil, folding them together tightly and forming a closed tent. Make sure there is room for the smoke to circulate between the pork and the foil. Place on stovetop and turn on the heat to medium and smoke pork for 45 minutes. Turn off the heat and rest, covered, for 5 minutes.
2. While pork is smoking, preheat oven to 300Âº. Whisk the rest of the ingredients in a bowl to make sauce. Season to taste, cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
3. Uncover the roasting pan and transfer it to the oven. Cook for 40 minutes per pound, or about 4 hours, turning the pork over every hour until a meat thermometer inserted into the middle of the pork reads 190Âº.
4. Remove pork from the oven and rest on a large cutting board for 20 minutes or until cool enough to handle. While still warm, pull meat away from bones and shred chunks of meat into long strands into a bowl. Chop crustier bits into smaller pieces and add to the bowl. Season with some of the sauce and mix well.

Lemongrass-Rubbed Pork Spare Ribs

The couple of days we had TV access while in Nicaragua, I watched a few shows that originally air in the South Pacific. Surfing the Menu features two hot boys who travel, surf and cook. I saw the episode shot in Otago and Canterbury in New Zealand where they roasted pork ribs on the bone. I scribbled on the back of my printed itinerary and promised the Dr. that I will make them for him when we return to the city.

Back in Manhattan, I stopped by the Bayard Meat Market in Chinatown and bought two racks of pork ribs for about $10 to keep my promise. The result? Succulent pork ribs good for four people and even better with pickled scotch bonnet peppers.

Ingredients:
2 racks of pork ribs
2 lemongrass stalks, smashed, 1 stalk sliced in an angle and in small pieces
5 cloves ginger, minced
a small knob of ginger, peeled, thinly sliced
a small bunch of thyme
peanut oil
1/2 cup maple syrup
2 tbsps hoisin sauce
1/4 cup honey
salt and pepper

1. Marinate the roast. Rub the roast with salt and pepper. Make small incisions all over the roast using a small knife and insert the garlic, ginger and lemongrass slivers in them. Rub the roast in peanut oil and place it in large glass pan with leftover ginger, lemongrass, garlic and the thyme. Marinate overnight.
2. When ready to cook, preheat the oven at 350Âº. Take the roast out and let sit in room temperature while making the baste. In a bowl, mix maple syrup, hoisin sauce and honey. Set aside.
3. Place the roast, bone side down, in a large roasting tray, and roast for about 20 minutes, turning over halfway. Using the other lemongrass stalk as a brush, baste every few minutes. Cook until you can insert a knife in the roast and the liquid that comes out is clear.

Pork Chops With Rye-Bread Stuffing

In 1959, The New York Times published a recipe using pork chops. Because pork chops are an inexpensive cut of meat, it was then “dinner on the cheap.” Everything is expensive nowadays but three thick chops are still affordable at $9 from Dom’s in SoHo and a knob of rye-bread from Balthazar only cost me $3. I didn’t have caraway seeds for the stuffing so I grounded some fennel and cumin seeds to substitute. It was also a good time to use the parsley I planted last year because it’s been growing like crazy on my window sill. I didn’t seal the pork pockets with toothpicks after stuffing them but they held together nicely and didn’t fall apart. I boiled some pasta during the last few minutes of cooking, tossed it with the pork chops fat and served it with these delicious chops.

Ingredients:
3 bone-in 1-inch-thick pork chops, sliced to form a pocket
a small knob of rye-bread, thrown in a blender or food processor to crumb
1 medium onion, roughly chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp fennel seeds, grounded
1 tsp cumin seeds, grounded
a small bunch of parsley, roughly chopped
1 egg, lightly beaten
3 tbsps butter
3/4 cup chicken broth
salt and pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 350Âº. In the meantime, make stuffing. In an ovenproof pan, melt 2 tablespoons butter over medium heat and sautÃ© onion and garlic until softened, about 5 minutes. Add to a large bowl with the bread crumbs, fennel and cumin, parsley and egg. Season with salt and pepper. Mix with a fork until well combined.
2. Season both sides of the pork chops with salt and pepper. Fill the chops with the stuffing. Arrange in the same ovenproof pan and bake, covered, for 45 minutes, turning them over gently after 25 minutes.
3. Switch the oven to broil, move up the oven rack and brown the chops for 3 minutes per side, uncovered. Transfer to a serving platter and keep warm.
4. Set the pan on the stove over medium heat and add remaining butter and broth. Reduce the pan juices to a thick glaze. Simmer, scraping up the pan drippings, until thick enough. Season to taste. Strain over the pork chops.

Related post/s:
Where to get pork chops and rye bread

Bacon-Wrapped Scallops

I’m not sick of bacon just yet. The third yield from my first shipment of bacon became dinner. This would be awesome with some mashed potatoes on the side.

Ingredients:
6 pieces of large scallops
6 slices of bacon

1. Season scallops with salt, pepper and paprika. Wrap each scallop with a piece of bacon.
2. Using a skillet, sear each bacon-wrapped scallop until bacon is crisp and golden brown. Sear the side where the bacon ends first. Using tongs, gently turn them and cook the other sides. To make sure the bacon stays closed, sear the end again for the last few seconds. Remove to a paper towel-lined plate. Serve on a different plate after 1 minute.

Turkey Bacon Avocado Portobello Sandwich

Talk about a quick lunch with bacon. I was hungry but I didn’t want a limp and sorry-looking sandwich. I wanted something filling, semi-healthy, and of course, robust. (I think robust is a good word to describe this sandwich.) The only shortcut I took here is to buy a few slices of honey-roasted turkey from the grocery deli. Using one loaf of French bread, this recipe fed two hungry people.

Ingredients:
4 slices of honey-roasted turkey breast
4 slices of bacon
1 avocado, halved, pitted, thinly sliced
1 portobello mushroom
1 bunch of arugula, rinsed and patted dry
French bread, halved, toasted

For onion relish:
1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
1/8 cup dark brown sugar
1/4 cup red-wine vinegar
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

For aïoli:
1 egg yolk
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tsp Dijon mustard
2 tbsp sherry vinegar
oil, salt, pepper

1. Make onion relish. In a saucepan, boil the onions in water until soft. Remove from heat and drain. Return to the pot and add brown sugar, red-wine vinegar and balsamic vinegar. Simmer in low fire until liquid is thick–I had this simmering until I was ready to assemble the sandwich. Stir occasionally.
2. In the meantime, roast portobello mushroom. Preheat oven to 400º. Place mushroom, pleats side up, on a baking sheet. Drizzle some olive oil and balsamic vinegar on mushroom and roast until soft. When cool to the touch, slice and set aside.
3. Cook bacon. Using a skillet, cook about 4 slices of bacon until crisp. Remove to a paper towel-lined plate. Set aside.
4. Make aïoli. In a blender, purée yolk, garlic, mustard and sherry vinegar until smooth and creamy, 2 minutes. Slowly drizzle olive oil into running blender until completely emulsified, about 2 minutes. If aïoli gets too thick, add a small amount of warm water, 1 tsp at a time. Season with salt and pepper and cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
5. Assemble sandwich! Lay toasted bread halves on a chopping board. On one half, spoon the onions and top with the meats and vegetables. Drizzle with aïoli. Top with the other half and hold together using a toothpick.