Pork Belly

After an initial experiment with pork belly-to-bacon that went good-not-great, I was determined to learn my lessons and treat that most excellent of meats with the care it deserves. This was not simple, but it was totally worth it.

Procedure

1. Take pork belly, wash and pat dry
2. Put belly in a brine - I won't go over it again here, but a basic not-too-salty brine is recommended (bourbon and maple don't hurt - I added onion powder and fried garlic to this one [with excellent results]) - and put in the fridge for five days to a week. Either a sealed Ziploc or airtight tupperware will do.
3. When ready to smoke, remove from brine, rinse and pat dry.
4. Smoke for three hours; remove and let cool.
5. At this point it makes a great bacon (I used one for this purpose), but there's also a highly recommended second step.
6. Heat oven to 250 degrees.
7. Put pork belly in covered Dutch oven or Pyrex container, and cover with either pork stock or water (if, for some reason, you don't have pork stock - which you should)
8. Let simmer in oven for three hours
9. Remove from oven and set pork belly aside; reserve stock either for later or add to simmering broth for ramen or other soup. Not surprisingly, it adds a deliciously smoky, creamy wondrousness to any soup.
10. When soup is ready - or maybe a pork bun, or really anything - heat a cast iron skillet to medium-high. Don't be shy! 
11. Drop the belly in the pan with tongs and spatula at the ready to prevent from sticking. It will sizzle something wonderful.
12. Cook for about a minute on each side to crisp up the belly proper
13. Set aside, slice and serve with soup or direct application to mouth.
14. Enjoy! 

Verdict

Well, just amazing. Really.

Smokeout Menu - 3 September 2011

Long time no blog!

In commemoration of tomorrow's smoke-out, I'll actually be making an effort to document what gets made. Some old favorites, some new jacks – should be a grand old time.

No-Knead Rolls

Tired of spending $3 a pack on rolls, and with enough experience and confidence in my bread making, I decided to actually make the rolls this time. I'd just started a batch of the Sullivan Street no-knead bread and found a roll recipe almost the same, so tripled the ingredients and set up two bowls to rise over the next 18 hours. Via Fabulous and Delicious:

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 C. warm water
• 1/4 Tsp. dry active yeast
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 1/4 Tsp. salt
• 1/2 Tsp. sugar
• 3 C. flour
• cornmeal for the baking pans

Procedure

 

• Add all ingredients (except the cornmeal) to a bowl and mix with a spoon until the ingredients are decently mixed. The dough is going to be very sticky. 
• Once mixed, cover the bowl with a towel or saran wrap and let the dough sit for 12 hours. (I've done as little as 8 hours with success.) After the dough has sat for at least 8 hours (ideally 12), it will be bubbly and at least doubled in size. 
• 
• Place a generous amount of cornmeal on a baking sheet to keep from sticking while baking.
• To prepare the rolls, place a 1/4-1/2 cup of flour on a plate or counter top. 
• Separate the dough into 8 pieces; take each piece of the dough and roll/dust the outside with the flour, then mold the piece of dough into a round shape and place it on the baking sheet.
• Once all the rolls are made and placed on the baking sheet, let them sit for 30 minutes to 1 hour so they may rise some more.
• Place broiler plan in the oven and heat to 425 degrees. 
• Bake the rolls on the middle/top rack for 25-30 minutes or until they are golden on the outside and sound hollow when tapped on top. 
• Remove from the oven, and let them cool on rack

Verdict

Delicious!

Pulled Pork

Via Alton Brown, my stand-by recipe.

Ingredients

Brine:
    •    8 oz. molasses
    •    12 oz. pickling salt
    •    2 quarts water
    •    6-8 lb. Boston butt

Rub:
    •    1 Tsp. whole cumin seed
    •    1 Tsp. whole fennel seed
    •    1 Tsp. whole coriander
    •    1 Tbsp. chili powder
    •    1 Tbsp. onion powder
    •    1 Tbsp. paprika

Procedure

1. Combine molasses, pickling salt, and water in large pot
2. Add Boston butt making sure it is completely submerged in brine, cover, and let sit in refrigerator for a minimum of 8 hours. 12 hours is ideal.
3. Place cumin seed, fennel seed, and coriander in food grinder and grind fine. Transfer to a small mixing bowl and stir in chili powder, onion powder, and paprika.
4. Remove Boston butt from brine and pat dry. Sift the rub evenly over the shoulder and then pat onto the meat making sure as much of the rub as possible adheres.
5. Place butt in smoker and cook for 12 hours
6. Remove from smoker and set aside to rest for at least 1 hour; pull meat apart with 2 forks

Verdict

Just amazing.

Vegan-But-Great Refried Beans

Ingredients

• 2 c. pinto or black beans
• 6 c. veggie stock
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 medium onion, minced
• 1 poblano (or large jalapeño and small spicy) pepper
• 1 Tsp. ginger powder
• 2 Tsp. tumeric powder
• 1 Tsp. chili powder
• 2 Tsp. salt
• oil

Procedure

1. Heat generous amount of oil to medium-high in deep, heavy pan or pot - cast iron is the best, or non-stick
2. Add garlic, fry until fragrant and then add onions, and fry until translucent
3. Add pepper and combine, stirring until pepper begins to soften
4. Add spices and mix together well
5. Add beans, mix all together
6. Add stock, stir, and raise heat to high; bring to boil
7. Keep pot at a low boil for quite a while (at least an hour), adding more water when necessary
8. When beans have softened, use a potato masher to pound them to a paste; add more water and oil if necessary to cohere, and lower heat to medium-low
9. Continue cooking, stirring, and adding water – having a bit stick to the bottom isn't bad if you can scrape it up and avoid burning
10. When it reaches your desired level of consistency, remove from heat and serve with soft corn tortillas
11. Enjoy!

Verdict

Delicioso!

Bánh Mi Saigon Bakery

Bánh Mi Saigon Bakery, formerly a sandwich shop in the back of a jewelry shop, now a sandwich shop with a jewelry counter in the front, is pretty much exactly what I'm looking for in terms of Bánh Mi. Bread has a good crust on it but also chewy inside, with just-enough-but-not-too-much shredded carrots, vermicelli, sliced cucumber and jalapeños. And then there's the pork: delicious, candy-tasting wonderful pork, crystallized almost. Just perfect, and at $3.75 a helluva deal for a great lunch. Iced coffee was nice enough but not the best.

Pork Soup

LALLI BLAH BLAH makes an excellent suggestion. Note especially step 8:

8. Cut the meat up. It will fall apart and the platter will look like a big delicious mess-pile. Cut the skin, which should be crunchy, into chip-sized pieces and serve them in a separate dish, so you can see which of your friends are smart and which don’t know how to live.

That's correct. The same lesson applies if you inadvertently leave gizzards inside a chicken or turkey while smoking it.

Thanksgiving: The Cookening

Like with any successful feast-y meal, any successful very large blog post requires serious prep work. And so it's 9:30 Thanksgiving morning and here I begin the chronicling of this year's meal, the first one that I've really cooked for. Posting draft early and will update throughout the day.

Menu

Booze:

• Mead: LG is bringing this, and it's like liquid joy when mulled. Mead!
  
• Wine:
  

1. René Barbier Catalunya Mediterranean Red: dry, a little spicy with some nice acidity, and without some of the rawness that I find Spanish reds have sometimes. Another excellent deal from Mariakakis' at $5.99.
2. La Terre California Merlot: another Mariakakis' special - $4.39 a bottle for all of the La Terre varietals! - AC says, "It's good, I like it." LG says - "It doesn't really have an aftertaste - it swallows well."
   

• Horseradish schnapps: my first foray into liquor-infusion gets its debut tonight. I took a nip last night just to test it and it's quite pungent and refreshing. Directions below, and more recipes for infusing here. Plus, when chilled it makes an amazing digestif - dangerous, actually. Goes down reeeeaaaallllly smooth.
  

Horseradish Schnapps

1. Wash, peel and slice a small piece of horseradish root.
2. Put the slices in a clean glass jar with tight-fitting lid.
3. Cover the root slices with clear, unflavoured vodka - 40% alcohol content (80 proof).
4. Let steep for 1-2 days in a dark place at room temperature,
   18-20°C (64-68°F).
5. Shake lightly and taste from time to time. Must not get bitter.
6. Strain and filter your infusion into a clean glass bottle or jar with tight-fitting lid.

Meat:

• Rack of pork: I went to the Carrboro Farmer's Market special Tuesday edition determined to get myself a pork shoulder for long, slow roasting - the good folks at Cane Creek thought they had one but after 15 minutes of searching couldn't find it. However they did recommend a half-rack of pork which looked, well, delicous [that's it below, marinating], so I was sold.
  

Bacon-crusted rack of pork

Rack of pork, marinating in bacon, mustard and caraway seeds

Ingredients

• 4 ounces sliced bacon, chopped
• 3 tablespoons yellow mustard seeds
• 2 tablespoons caraway seeds
• 1/2 small jar bacon drippings
  
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger
• One half-rack pork
  
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

1. In a food processor, combine the bacon, mustard seeds, caraway seeds and bacon drippings
   
2. Set the pork rack on a large rimmed baking sheet. Spread the bacon paste over all but especiallythe meaty side of the rack and refrigerate overnight.
3. Preheat the oven to 400°.
   
4. Bring the roast to room temperature and season all over with salt and pepper.
   
5. Set the pork in a roasting pan, fat side up. Roast in the upper third of the oven for about 1 hour and 15 minutes
   
6. Transfer the roast to a carving board and let rest for 10 minutes. Carve the roasts and serve.

Rack of pork, just after roasting

Rack of pork, just after roasting

Veggies:

• Salad with walnuts and cranberries: AC's specialty
  
• Roasted potatoes, sweet and otherwise, and onions: pretty standard; gonna quarter them, salt, pepper, roast
• Collard greens: with garlic and some red pepper flakes in... butter.
  
• Brussels sprouts with walnuts: a very solid favorite - one of the two preparations I often use

Brussels Sprouts with Walnuts

Ingredients

• 1 pound Brussels sprouts, base and outer leaves trimmed, and halved
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup thinly sliced shallots
• 1 tablespoons minced garlic
• 1/2 cup roughly chopped walnuts
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan

Directions

1. Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil and add the Brussels sprouts.
2. Cook until crisp-tender, about 5 minutes; drain.
3. In a large saucepan, melt 3 tablespoons of the butter over medium-high heat.
4. Add the shallots and garlic, and cook for 1 minute.
5. Add the sprouts in 1 layer and cook until golden brown, about 5 minutes.
6. Remove from the pan.
7. Add the remaining 1 tablespoons of butter and when melted, add the walnuts and cook, stirring, until golden and fragrant, about 2 minutes.
8. Add the lemon juice, salt, pepper, and sprouts, and stir well to coat and warm through.
9. Transfer to a serving bowl and sprinkle with the Parmesan. Serve immediately.

Starch:

• Mac'n'cheese: TG is making - AC got really excited the other week when a bunch of friends mentioned that they ate mac'n'cheese for Thanksgiving and decided we must
  
• Spanikopita: LG is bringing - apparently a psuedo-tradition for her, and no complaints here
• Biscuits: AC brings the dough

Dessert:

• Pumpkin pie: verrrry excited for this, which TG is making
• Chocolate and clementines! LG brought these as a bonus - superb!

Result:
WIN.
More later, but - a great dinner.

Allen & Son Pit Cooked Bar-B-Q

After several trips to Allen & Son that ended without a verdict - due to their being unaccountably closed - a call ahead today confirmed that not only was it open but that the special was BBQ pork chops. And so off we went, and were not disappointed.

After only a few minutes' deliberation, I settled on the special, pretty sure that I'd never had BBQ pork chops before. They didn't disappoint. Incredibly tender and with the flesh pink not from undercooking but from something in the cooking itself, they were coated with a slightly thicker and fuller version of Allen & Son's vinegar-heavy (natch) BBQ sauce and, while they didn't quite fall off the bone, there wasn't any problem separating the flesh. The sides delivered, too - sweet and savory yams with copious brown sugar and cloves; butter-soaked peas and pearl onions; and deep-brown hushpuppies, just a bit sweet. The tea was sweet-but-not-too-much, and perfectly refreshing. And the whole package - including an innocuous palate-cleanser of iceberg lettuce, Bac-O, flavorless carrots and tomato salad - was, as the special, $6.80.

Hard to beat, and I've finally had my fix of excellent NC BBQ.