Keep On Brining - Cider Pork Roast

Since the brine worked out so well on the chicken, I had to consider other meats to experiment on... mwah ha ha!



This is a pork shoulder with the fat rind still on.

Boil 2 c water with 1/2 c kosher salt and 1 tsp mustard seeds. Stir until salt is dissolved, about 3 minutes. Cool and add 4 c apple cider.

Soak meat with brine and black peppercorns in refrigerator at least 5 hours; overnight is best for thick cuts like this.  You will want to start the brining early because the roasting stage takes about 5 hours.

Remove from brine, transfer to foil sheet on grill.

Cook with fat side up on low heat (I only turned on the two burners at the far sides and left the two middle ones off so the heat would be indirect).  This takes about 3 hours before the temp is about 140F.

Flip roast over so fat side is down.  Spread top with a mixture of brown sugar, cumin, black pepper, and cayenne pepper.

Keep heat low for another 2 hours or so, until temp at bone is 160F.

Allow roast to rest on platter for 10 minutes, then hack off some slabs and enjoy!

Easy Way to Cassoulet

Comfort Food Season is drawing to a close, as the weather (finally!) turns warmer. One final entry under that category is my version of the traditional French cassoulet, which is meant to be a heavy, savory, stick-to-your-ribs dish.  Fans of traditional French cooking will notice that my recipe doesn't take a dozen steps and several days to complete :) 

I think it's pretty tasty though...and gluten free!

Start with 1lb lamb - steak or tips - sprinkled with mint, rosemary, garlic, and black pepper.  Bake on a greased cookie sheet, loosely covered with foil at 325F for 1 hour.  If you don't like lamb, substitute pork loin chops and only bake for 40 minutes.


Next, add to the same baking sheet:
1lb pork breakfast sausages
carrots
onion

Bake covered with foil for 30 minutes, then uncovered for another 30 minutes.

Chop meat and spread in roasting pan with veggies.

Top with:
3 cans drained navy beans
1 c beef or veggie bouillon
1/2 c red wine or cooking wine
a bay leaf or two

Bake 1 hour uncovered, stirring occasionally.

Serve with garlic bread.

Then take a nap... :)

make-your-own Moo Shu Pork!

 I love Moo Shu, and wanted to find an easy way to make it at home.  You might not be able to use the Express Lane with this many ingredients, or you can just be one of "those" people who do it anyway.

 1. In large saute pan or wok, cook 1# ground pork or turkey. Drain, and remove to bowl.





2. In same pan, saute whatever mushrooms you like in 1 tsp olive oil until moisture has evaporated.  Put them in the bowl too.  I used sliced shittakes and one drained can of straw mushrooms.

3. Back to that same pan again - saute one sweet bell pepper, sliced thin, and one package of shredded cabbage with 1 tsp garlic and 2 tsp ginger.

 4. Prepare sauce:
     3 tbsp hoisin sauce
     2 tbsp soy sauce
     1 tsp sesame oil
    

 5. Stir sauce, meat, and mushrooms into pan with veggies.

6. Serve with plum sauce and warmed tortillas (unless your store has the rice wraps that restaurants use).



Variation ideas:

  scrambled egg
  peanuts
  bean sprouts
  shrimp
  tofu

Crockpot Pulled Pork!

I absolutely LOVE pulled pork sandwiches.

LOVE them.

New England winters are too cold to grill meat at the right temperature, but I can't possibly go 6 months without pulled pork...

What to do?


Trusty crock pot to the rescue!!

 For a better finished texture, use a pork butt roast instead of a loin cut.

Throw entire roast into crockpot.

Add one large bottle of your favorite bbq sauce and one can of cola.

Cook on low at least 6 hours.  I start it when I leave for work and it is ready to shred when I get home.

Remove roast from liquid.  Discard liquid - it will have blobs and floaty things and isn't good to use.

Shred meat, removing bones and stretchy bits.

Stir in enough fresh bbq sauce to make the meat sticky enough for sandwiches.

Serve with hamburger rolls and cheese.

Mabon Celebration: Stuffed Acorn Squash

Harvest Home has arrived, and with it the last of summer's bounty. The squash symbolizes rebirth, and is the last of the Three Sisters to be harvested.  We are now ready to settle in for the cold dark months ahead, which means indulging in comfort foods like buttery, rich acorn squash!






The key to acorn squash:

In order to get a good cooked texture, the squash must steam inside. the easiest way to accomplish this is to cut in half, scoop out the seeds, and bake in a baking dish with the cut sides down at 350 for 20 minutes. Then flip them over and bake face-up with foil covering the pan for another 20 minutes.  Squashes are now ready to stuff!

I chose to stuff them with a mixture of cooked ground pork, apples, and wild rice. (Gluten Free!)

They are also good as a side dish when brushed with butter and brown sugar instead of stuffing.

After stuffing, bake for another 20 minutes uncovered.






Give thanks, and enjoy!

It's Barbecue Season: Smoked Pork Roast

Smoked pork roast can be done in a smoker, or on the grill with a few smoking chips. Soak the wood chips in water for an hour, then strain them out and place in an aluminum can with holes poked in the sides. Cover top of can with foil and set deep into the charcoal or next to the gas burner. *

This 5 lb loin roast was rubbed with spices and olive oil, then smoked on low heat for 4 hours with hickory wood chips.  Baste with barbecue sauce every hour.  Pork should be cooked to an internal temperature of 160F.

Grilled veggies are easy with aluminum foil! Place veggies on a greased double-layer of foil.  Top with another greased double-layer, then fold the edges tightly to seal.

Summer veggie bake: zucchini, yellow squash, red bell pepper, and onion, with olive oil and salt and pepper. 

Soft veggies only need about 30 minutes on low heat, flipping once.

Slow cooking a pork roast is so rewarding because the meat turns out so juicy compared to other cooking methods.  Spend only a few minutes on prep, then just turn and baste hourly.  Check with a meat thermometer, then carve and serve with extra barbecue sauce. 

*(more on smoking next time)

I didn't eat the onions, but they add a lot of flavor so I cooked them in anyway. Garlic is an appropriate substitute.