Archive | March, 2011

Spicy Pork with Asparagus and Chile

30 Mar

I’m convinced that the latest issue of Bon Appetite may have been written especially for me. In it, they navigate the restaurant scene in San Fransico (which I am currently making summer travel arrangements for), share the recipe and feature the Red Hook Lobster Pound food truck in DC (that I recently visited), celebrate the traditions of Greek Easter, disclose the beauty of the Country Ham and shine light on Spring’s most attractive veggies. As I flipped through, I had no idea where to start. Luckily Jeb’s request to learn Asian cooking quickly took me to their recipe for Spicy Pork with Asparagus and Chiles. The photo in the magazine completely outshines my attempt at photographing this dish. I leave ground meat photography to the pros – feel free to buy a magazine to check it out (it is worth it).

I made a couple adjustments to the recipe. I was informed by the butcher at Harris Teeter that “they do not grind pork.” She also couldnt tell me what cut of meat their ground pork is. All things suspect. I’m not sure where they have their pork ground, but the mystery ground pork in the case is run through the grinder one more time than you need. So, skip that step. I purchased a pork tenderloin (you can do a pork loin too) and ground it myself. It is really is simple – just freeze the meat for about an hour, cut it into one inch cubes and then run it through the food processor about 3 or 5 pulses. Check the meat with your hands and see if it is coarsely ground (somewhere in between cut in cubes and ground like hamburger meat). I had more than 12 ounces of meat so I adjusted the seasonings a bit. I also skipped the Chinese rice wine because I didnt have it.

I must admit that I’m no pro at Asian cooking – and this turned out to be exceptional. A great recipe to start experimenting with Asian flavors. Just remember – there is no such thing as homecooking police. Experiment, make mistakes and learn from them. What’s the worst that could happen? Calling for Chinese take out?

Spicy Pork with Asparagus and Chile

Ingredients

  • 3 tablespoons soy sauce, divided
  • 1 tablespoon Shaoxing Chinese rice wine or dry Sherry
  • 2 teaspoons cornstarch
  • 12 ounces ground pork (preferably coarsely ground; sometimes labeled chili-grind)
  • 3 teaspoons Asian sesame oil, divided
  • 12 ounces thin to medium asparagus spears, trimmed, cut on extreme diagonal into 1/2- to 3/4-inch pieces
  • 1 red jalapeño chile, minced with seeds
  • 1 tablespoon minced peeled fresh ginger
  • 2 tablespoons oyster sauce
  • 1 teaspoon honey
  • 2 green onions, thinly sliced on diagonal

Whisk 1 tablespoon soy sauce, rice wine, and cornstarch in medium bowl. Add pork; toss to blend. Heat 2 teaspoons oil in heavy large wok or deep skillet over high heat. Add asparagus, chile, and ginger. Toss until asparagus is crisp-tender, about 3 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer asparagus mixture to plate. Add remaining 1 teaspoon oil to wok. Add pork mixture and stir-fry until browned, using spoon to break up pork into small pieces, 2 to 3 minutes. Return asparagus mixture to wok. Add remaining 2 tablespoons soy sauce, oyster sauce, and honey; stir-fry until pork is cooked through, adding water by tablespoonfuls if dry, about 2 minutes. Add green onions; toss to incorporate. Season to taste with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

 

Bachelor Cooking Class: Bringing it Back to Basics with Rice

28 Mar

My good friend Jeb recently bought a new home with a spacious kitchen and a even more spacious refrigerator (you could hide at least two bodies inside it). If you know Jeb, you know that the only thing inside that big ole fridge of his – are pizza boxes and beer. So for his birthday I decided to have him over for a little cooking lesson. Jeb’s favorite foods are ginger and potato chips, so I thought a lesson in stir-fry would be fitting. And while we were chopping chili peppers and ginger root, I realized that Jeb probably needed a quick lesson in rice before we got any farther.

I can only make two points about rice. Both are important to me – only one is crucial.  

1. The secret to good rice is – buying good rice. I buy long grained special basmati rice in bulk at Costco – and I think it makes all the difference. I recommend sharing it with a friend – as 20 pounds of rice can last you nearly a lifetime (and is completely insane plus embarrassing for a single person).

2. When I told Jeb that if he wanted one cup of rice he needed two cups of water. He asked, “what if I want two cups of rice?”  It is a 2 to 1 ratio – and I tend to be scant on the water so it isnt too wet.

 

Spring on Mendenhall Part 5

24 Mar

Muscari on Mendenhall

Spring on Mendenhall Part 4

23 Mar

Foy House Cherry Tree

A stolen branch brings new life to my kitchen!

“Break open a cherry tree and there are no flowers, but the spring breeze brings forth myriad blossoms.” Ikkyu Sojun

Spring on Mendenhall Part 3

22 Mar

McNaught House Daffodils

Cooks Illustrated Mexican Carnitas

21 Mar

I’ve posted a variety of different pulled pork recipes – from Pulled Pork BBQ in Chilly Chicago to a very early post on pulled pork tacos. This is just another variation on an inexpensive, labor intensive and delicious cut of meat – the Boston Butt! This time around, in an effort to prove that Food Lion is cheaper than Harris Teeter (it is), I went to West Market Street Food Lion and purchased a 4 pound pork shoulder  and all the fixings for less than $30 dollars! Of course, I did have many of the seasonings at home and my friend supplied the beer to go with this wallet friendly meal. When I came home, I realized that this piece of meat was less butchered than usual. I felt like Julie Powell in Cleaving (minus the whole divorce and affair predicament) with a big knife removing thick pig skin from the meat and hacking it into cubes. I must admit, it was quite rewarding (double bonus)!

This recipe is quicker than the other pulled pork recipes that I’ve posted and simpler  - bringing out the natural flavors of the pork. I love the subtle hint that the orange leaves too. I served the pork with flour tortillas, sliced radishes, shredded monterey jack cheese, fresh cilantro, red onion, sliced avocado and fresh lime slices. The tacos were delicious with Cuban Black Beans and Rice.

Don’t wait for the next “supermoon” to make these!

Cooks Illustrated Mexican Pulled Pork Carnitas

Ingredients:

  • 1 4-pound boneless pork butt, cut into 2-inch chunks
  • Salt and pepper
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 small onion, peeled and halved
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • juice of 1 lime
  • 2 cups water
  • 1 medium orange, halved and juice (seeds removed)

Heat oven to 300 degrees.  Add all the ingredients in a Dutch oven.  On the stove top, heat the ingredients until they begin to simmer, stirring to combine the spices and meat.  Cover the pot and place it in the oven.  After the dish has been in the oven for 1 hour, stir it so as to turn the meat, and continue cooking for one hour more.  Meat should be very tender and falling apart.

Remove from oven and remove the pork from the dish, transferring it to a bowl.  Keep the liquid but discard the bay leaves, onion and orange rinds.  On the stove top, place the Dutch oven over high heat and bring to a boil.  Boil until the liquid has thickened and is reduced to approximately 1 cup.

Turn oven to broil and lower racks to near the bottom of the oven.  In the bowl, pull each piece of pork in half using two forks.  Pour in the reduced liquid and add salt and pepper to taste.  Place the pieces of pork on a wire rack on a baking sheet (we used cooling racks that we had for baking, which worked just fine).  Broil the meat for 5 to 8 minutes on each side until well browned.  Serve immediately in the tortillas of your choosing.

 

 

Spring on Mendenhall Part 2

21 Mar

Spring on Mendenhall

20 Mar

Nothing is more welcomed on Mendenhall than the first day of Spring. My backyard tulips are beginning to bloom and they soon will be cut for arrangements inside. This morning I took several photos of flowers blooming on Mendenhall Street. I’ll share them this week.

In addition to enjoying the sunshine this weekend, we also enjoyed the “supermoon!” With a bigger and brighter than usual moon on Saturday, I thought there was no better excuse to invite a couple of friends to enjoy a meal underneath it. I made a combination of Cuban and Mexican dishes – from carnitas to black beans and rice. This meal was not only delicious – but it was a bargain! Less than $30 paid for a meal for four people plus plenty of leftovers to last me through the week. Recipes to come… until then, enjoy this weather.

Springing Forward

15 Mar

With all this Spring weather it is really hard to commit myself to blogging!

This weekend couldn’t have been more springlike as we sprung forward into daylight savings time – meaning extended afternoon dog walks and the beginning of al fresco meals. The first of many tulips opened up in the backyard – a hue of purple and pink (a little like the color on the salmon I grilled on Sunday night).

Over the weekend, I enjoyed casual meals with friends – including a French themed potluck at my friends Masha and Aaron’s house with my new friend (and excellent cook) Adrienne. We enjoyed homemade crepes, an onion tart, a variety of vegetables from beets to haricot vert and homemade beignets! What a joy to share such fun food!

I finished off my weekend grilling lemon and fresh oregano marinated salmon to top a homemade cesar salad with freshly baked croutons – accompanied by a mixture of iced red zinger tea and apple juice. A quiet night cooking on my own (dog by my side) in a warm and blooming backyard…my  ”Sunday Kind of Love.”

Lemon Risotto

11 Mar

I made this risotto on Sunday night and have been eating the leftovers for lunch and dinner all week. It is delicious re-heated with a crisp salad right on top (with fresh lemon vinaigrette). I also mixed in the leftover garlic butter roasted mushrooms into the risotto – and the capers and garlic added an amazing kick. The original recipe only called for only 6 cups of chicken broth and I needed around 8 cups.

Lemon Risotto from Bon Appetit 2002 

  • 8 cups canned low-salt chicken broth
  • 2 1/2 tablespoons butter
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 large shallots, chopped
  • 2 cups arborio rice or medium-grain white rice
  • 1/4 cup dry white wine
  • 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese or to taste
  • fresh parsley, for garnish
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  • 4 teaspoons grated lemon peel

    • Bring broth to simmer in large saucepan over medium heat. Reduce heat to low; cover to keep warm. Melt 1 1/2 tablespoons butter with oil in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add shallots and sauté until tender, about 6 minutes. Add rice; stir 1 minute. Add wine and stir until evaporated, about 30 seconds. Add 1 1/2 cups hot broth; simmer until absorbed, stirring frequently. Add remaining broth 1/2 cup at a time, allowing broth to be absorbed before adding more and stirring frequently until rice is creamy and tender, about 35 minutes. Stir in cheese and remaining 2 tablespoons butter. Stir in parsley, lemon juice, and lemon peel. Season risotto with salt and pepper. Transfer to bowl and serve.

     

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