Quickie Pork Carnitas (Or, How to Throw Caution to the Wind in the Kitchen)

We're trying something a little new around here tonight - a quickie version of pork carnitas.  I thought rather than simply post a recipe, it would be fun to walk you through the cooking thought process as I make it less threatening.  By and large, I find this is the most common hang-up in the kitchen - intimidation breeds a lack of willingness to try new things, to be adventuresome.

Allow me to calm your frayed nerves.  First, I'm a vegetarian, having not eaten meat in nearly twenty years.  However, I don't allow myself to be threatened about cooking it.  Second, further throwing caution to the wind, we have guests tonight - British soccer coaches we're hosting for the week.  You know your mom told you never to try a recipe out for the first time on guests.  Pish posh.  Finally, I haven't a recipe.  This is my preferred method of kitchen adventure and debauchery.  I'll grab some things that look interesting to try (in this case, some boneless pork sirloin roasts of about 1.5 pounds apiece) and develop a loose plan - in this case, some avocados and a vague idea of something sort of Mexican in nature.

So, my starting point is always to do a quick web search for a basic recipe.  Tonight I've grabbed some instructions on "How to cook a 3 pound pork roast" from LiveStrong.com.  I'm not looking for strict edicts - I'm looking for basic infallible instructions.  In this case I've gathered that a roasting pan, an internal temperature of 150 degrees and some sort of herb/oil blend are the essentials.  From there, I'll wing it.  Incidentally, this is my preferred approach - a vague concept of what I want to create, a quick web search for recipe commonalities to give me a starting point, and then off to the races with my own version.

So, I've first ignored the 1 tbsp of oil and gone for about half a cup of olive oil, and then I went with my preferred spices - in this case, I thought oregano, marjoram, some garlic salt and a low-sodium salt and pepper blend would create a nice rub.  I decided rather than a cookie sheet to use a square cake plan lined in foil (I'm not about scrubbing funk) and a piece of parchment (to eliminate stickiness).  I've got the oven at 450 and the pork is in its quick roasting stage, and then I'll take it down to 250 or so for the next hour.

I'm serving some great (Target) World Table salsas on the side along with their blue corn tortilla with flax seed chips, which I love.  *Nomnomnom.*  I'm making some homemade guacamole (avocado, lime juice, a bit of hot sauce, onion salt, a few red pepper flakes and just a smidge of olive oil based mayo) and putting a little sour cream out.  I'll add some plain black beans, lettuce and shredded cheese to the offerings for a build your own taco sort of situation.  For the vegetarians in the crowd (moi) I'm quickly sauteeing some baby bella mushrooms to fatten up the soft tacos.


Quick tip 1: I'm all about not using canned items whenever possible and try to use dried or, in a pinch, frozen beans and so forth.  But, I keep a small number of organic, low-sodium canned tomatoes, olives and beans around for a pinch.  I always thoroughly rinse said beans to remove as much perceived bad stuff as possible for a short cut that I can still not feel to badly about.

Quick tip 2:  Take your sauces & sides out of the containers.  Grab some of those inexpensive salsa dishes you'd see in a Mexican restaurant and feel a little more big time about what you're serving.

Quick tip 3: Heat your tortilla chips and tortillas (wrapped in foil) for a few minutes in the oven.  It's just a nice touch - like you know how to cook or something!

Ok, progress report - the pork came out looking pretty lovely, if I do say so myself.  I thought it needed a few minutes of browning after it hit 150 degrees, so I turned it back up to 500 degrees for about 7 minutes to give it a nice browning, then I sliced it up:

Finally, I sliced it again into nice long semi-shredded slivers, the better for stuffing a nice tortilla.

About an hour start to finish, and that's with lots of touches (setting the table, transferring sauces to serving bowls, stopping to blog (!) and so forth).  The verdict: maybe my family just doesn't get enough meat, making them exceptionally grateful when they do, but they were exceptionally happy.  They deemed the pork moist and a nice texture for the tacos.  I put very little seasoning since there were lots of other tastes to round it out (guacamole, sour cream, cheese, salsa verde etc.) so it would be a bit bland by itself, but I think you could season it up a bit and have this round out a meal nicely.
 
Give it a shot - be an adventuress.  What's the harm?  A poorly executed recipe is just a chance for good humor and another shot later on.  Add it to your family's arsenal and join them by being self-deprecating when you all laugh about the time you made... (fill in the blank) and nearly burned the house down.  Or, surprise them and yourself by turning out something novel and nearly divine.  Promise you'll be proud.

Parmesan & Nut-Crusted Fish

First, as I type this, I am devouring some strawberry and basil scones concocted by my sister.  Rest assured I'll track down the supposed simple recipe and post here.  She swears she thought them inedible and almost trashed them.  Heathen!

In the interim, I've been day dreaming about a favorite recipe of ours: essentially, a parmesan and nut-crusted fish.  Obviously, I found it critical to share.

At some point, I found a similar recipe in the classic Better Homes & Gardens red & white cookbook, but it's been modified and tweaked so much I don't think I can give credit there.  The best part about this "recipe" is that it works equally well on the grill (my favorite), in the oven or on the stove top.

I usually start it on foil for the grill or in a parchment lined dish for the oven.  Stove top (semi-fried) is probably the least healthy way, but it tastes pretty delightful.  My favorite fish for this is halibut steaks, but we've used tilapia, halibut filet or any other white fish with a nice, meaty flavor.

Typically, I start by soaking or rubbing the fish in olive oil, and then in a separate bowl I stir together about two cups of seasoned bread crumbs, about one cup of nuts (diced walnuts or pecans or packaged nut topping all work well), a healthy dose to taste of Italian seasoning and about a cup of fresh shredded parmesan.  After mixing it all up, I coat (thickly) the fish.

For the grill, just setting the fish with the skin side down on the foil, pouring on olive oil and then pouring on this mix and patting it to a nice crust works perfectly - I wrap up the foil package and hand it over to the keeper of the grill, who takes it from there.

For the oven, I pop the whole thing in somewhere around 375 (a little higher doesn't hurt) for 15 - 20 minutes.  It's a pretty difficult dish to mess up.  I like a nice brown to the crust and adjust accordingly.  For the stove top, I usually use smaller fillets with the skin off and just saute them in a good amount of olive or cooking oil, turning them and then keeping warm in the oven while I finish side items like some asparagus and wild rice.

It's a great summer (or anytime) meal, and I've got to dash off to the store for fish now to satisfy the craving.

Enjoy!

Cooking to your Craving (and Homemade Three Cheese Mac)

It occurs to me that, in general, this is what I do and likely the reason I do love to cook.

This evening, for example, I considered exactly that which my tummy was pining for (pity my family when their cravings do not align with mine). I thought about comfort food, since the eerily springlike weather had given way to the reality of an ongoing winter. I thought about protein, which I crave this evening but do not always desire. I thought about a bit of chopping, which I find to be enjoyable, and of mushrooms, which I find most satisfying to chop.






And I thought about NPR, which I find to be interesting to accompany chopping, because in the evening hour I may catch key words (emancipation, slavery, soldiers) but not a full story while cooking, allowing me to exercise my mind a bit. But I digress.

These thoughts led me to a three cheese homemade mac (blue cheese, a basic shredded fiesta blend and parmesan) with mushrooms, which I thought would be tasty with some quickly blackened shrimp. I added a premade salad with some carrots and sesame ginger dressing, and behold: I found my cravings (and my patient family) satisfied.

If you don't make homemade mac, it is high time to begin.

1. Cook the noodles just al dente. I like this:





or whole wheat noodles, but hey - it's your craving!

2. Drain the noodles and use the same pot to quick sauté onions in olive oil - maybe 1/2 cup, but to your taste!

3. Add about a tbsp of flour (I like whole wheat!) and black pepper (I like lots!) and whisk, then add milk - I use a liberal pour (probably 1.5 to 2 cups) of 2%, but play with your preferred type and amount based on consistency.

4. Start folding in cheese! A basic finely shredded fiesta blend works well, but I try others once in a while. About 2 cups, but again, to taste based on the thickness you wish of the cheese sauce.

5. Put a light spray on your casserole or baking dish, add the drained noodles and pour on the cheese sauce, stirring to incorporate.

7. Bake at 350 for 15 to 20 minutes or so. I often top with more shredded cheese and pepper, and turn to broil for the last 5 minutes to brown.

You'll never go back.

Long live the basic act of listening to your gut (as it were).

Baked Salmon & Quinoa Yumminess

Our standard salmon has just about reached perfection, and that happy moment when a recipe or way you make something becomes second nature - no double checking instructions.

I've purchased salmon at three places recently - our regular grocery store, a dedicated butcher/seafood market and a gourmet grocery store that brings in fresh fish daily.  My husband preferred the third, but I liked the butcher's salmon best.

I've been lining my baking dish with parchment paper, but last night tried a combo of foil on the bottom (to protect the dish from blackening and make cleanup easy).  It worked, but I didn't like the amount of waste.  I think parchment will remain the standard because by the time the fish is done, it is practically decomposing before my eyes, so I don't feel so badly about throwing it away.


I simply lay the salmon on the parchment and douse it with the combo above (all of it) and put it in the oven for about 25 minutes at 400 degrees.  You can't mess this up - just bake until the salmon flakes nicely.  In our house, we like very well done salmon with a bit of browning, so I usually turn it up to broil for the last 10 minutes while prepping some quinoa and warming some sourdough bread.  Delightful.  It makes the garlic cloves brown up nicely and deepens the flavor of the salmon.

A note on the quinoa - it's such a great item and so underused.  I grabbed a box and pulled some of last summer's diced bell peppers, onion and yellow squash out of the freezer (I flash froze them to cut down on retained liquid/frost).  I quick sautéed these in a bit of olive oil and then added about 1.25 cups of quinoa to a can of vegetarian broth plus water.  It was yummy and snuck our veggies into dinner.  Served it all up with a basic Barefoot riesling - it was surprisingly perfect on a cold night!  Kind of like craving ice cream in winter, I guess.  Enjoy!

Bending the Rules, Loving the Results (and Crawfish Po' Boys)

It's so easy to assume that a food lover should follow all the rules: wielding a knife like a Culinary Institute graduate, perfecting sublime desserts, using the fanciest gear and gadgets and the freshest local ingredients.  Rather, I would argue, we all aspire to that, but everyday cooking is an adventure best tackled with zest and a willingness to fail miserably (and pick up takeout or make a PB&J when the situation demands it).

One of tonight's dinner guests prior to walking the plank

To wit, I submit tonight's dinner: crawfish po'boys in January.  Crawfish are neither in season nor easy to find, but one's cravings do not always align with practicality.  So, tonight we picked up three pounds of whole, seasoned, frozen (gasp!) crawfish from a local gourmet outpost along with crusty, cheesy (also a broken rule) La Brea bread and a remoulade sauce.  We bent other rules with abandon: the market didn't happen to have shredded lettuce or an appetizing-looking head of iceberg, so we subbed in some lovely spinach leaves already at the house.  Tomatoes aren't at their best right now, so we skipped them.  Home fries would have been delightful on the side, but we were starving, so a bag of sea salted, lower salt Ruffles accompanied us home.

We thawed and steamed (about 5 minutes) the crawfish and peeled them with visions of mid-April crawfish boils dancing in our heads, split and toasted the bread lightly, slathered it with remoulade and arranged the crawfish and greens.  The chips finished out the plate along with a frosty Negra Modelo apiece.  Hey - Abita Purple Haze and all the right touches would have been brilliant, but guess what?  The meal was absolutely fantastic because it satisfied a craving, scratched an itch, came together speedily and met all our (fairly low) expectations.  Isn't that what time in the kitchen is all about?

Asian Peanut Noodles with Tofu

Ingredients

Olive Oil, 2 tbsp
Garlic, 2 tbsp
Red Pepper, 1 large, julienned
Carrot Strips, 1/2 cup
Sugar Snap Peas, about 30 (1 cup or so)
Firm Tofu, 8 oz, cubed
Egg Noodles, 6 - 12 oz package
Peanut Butter, 2 tbsp
Rice Vinegar, 4 tbsp
Brown Sugar, 4 tbsp
Lime Juice, 3 tbsp or juice of 1 lime
Sesame Oil or Olive Oil, 2 tbsp
Red Pepper Flakes
Green Onions, fresh, chopped
Asian sweet chili sauce to taste (like Mae Ploy, available in Asian food stores)

Directions

Sauté garlic in olive or sesame oil in a wok or pan
Add pepper, carrots & peas and cook for 5 - 10 mins
Add tofu - cook 5 - 10 mins
Start water boiling for egg noodles, then cook 4 - 6 mins
Mix remaining ingredients (except red pepper flakes, green onion and chili sauce) with a fork or whisk in a small bowl and add just as noodles finish cooking for 1 - 2 mins on low heat
Drain egg noodles thoroughly and add to vegetables and sauce, toss to coat and heat
Serve Add 1 cup barley, broth and 3 cups water
Simmer approx 20 mins
Whisk together flour and milk thoroughly, add to soup
Simmer 5 - 10 more mins

Source/Lineage

This recipe was modified (vegetarian) from the recipe

featured in Fitness Magazine - January 2011.

The Nitty Gritty

Nutritional info per serving obtained via SparkPeople Recipes:

• Servings Per Recipe: 4
• Calories: 450
• Total Fat: 19.0 g
• Cholesterol: 54.2 mg
• Sodium: 323.8 mg
• Total Carbs: 64.3 g
• Dietary Fiber: 5.9 g
• Protein: 21.2 g 

 

Inspiration

I'd been craving an Asian style noodle dish with peanut sauce, and I've been trying to amp up my protein intake.  At a glance, this recipe looked perfect, but then I found it was a cold salad-style meal.  No good.  I wanted a hot dish for dinner.  So, with a few tweaks - replacing shrimp with tofu for a change, using egg instead of cellophane noodles (purely based on pantry contents) and thickening up the dressing to serve as a sauce, we were all set.

Added benefit - this dish was an enormous hit with my family, including the seven year old - she devoured it.  I think it was just sweet enough for her, and the vegetables were non-threatening, crunchy and a little sweet as well.  Nutritional information is without any toppings.  The grown-ups each added the chili sauce and green onions to our servings, and it was great.  Healthy and tasty.

Best of all, this meal took literally 20 minutes from walking into the kitchen to putting it on the table.  You can't beat that!

Enjoy!

Mushroom Barley Soup

Ingredients

Olive Oil, 1 tbsp
Onions, raw, 1 cup, chopped
Garlic, 1 tsp
Mushrooms, fresh, 16 medium, sliced or torn in chunks
Balsamic Vinegar, 3 tbsp
Worcestershire Sauce, 5 tsp
Vegetarian Vegetable Broth, 1 can (approx. 14 oz)
Whole Wheat Flour, 1/4 cup
Milk, 2%, 1 cup

Directions

Sauté onion and garlic in olive oil
Add mushrooms and cook for 5 - 10 mins
Add balsamic and worcestershire - cook 2 mins
Add 1 cup barley, broth and 3 cups water
Simmer approx 20 mins
Whisk together flour and milk thoroughly, add to soup
Simmer 5 - 10 more mins

Source/Lineage

This recipe was modified (vegetarian) from the recipe

featured in Fitness Magazine - January 2011.

The Nitty Gritty

Nutritional info per serving obtained via SparkPeople Recipes:

• Servings Per Recipe: 5
• Calories: 110.0
• Total Fat: 4.0 g
• Cholesterol: 3.9 mg
• Sodium: 464.4 mg
• Total Carbs: 15.0 g
• Dietary Fiber: 12.0 g
• Protein: 4.7 g

 

Inspiration

There are so few soup recipes or restaurant offerings that are truly vegetarian.  I'm amazed at the number of restaurants that make vegetable soup... with chicken or beef broth.  I crave warm, comforting soups in the winter and typically have to count on making them myself to fit the vegetarian bill.  As a side note - I'm not a wimpy soup lover.  Watery French onion soup and the like don't make the cut in our test kitchen.  I'll typically amp up a soup with pasta, rice, barley etc. to give it more heft as a meal.

I usually serve this (and most other soups) with a round of whole wheat sandwich thins/rounds (recently popular and easy to find in most grocery stores) with provolone or parmesan cheese on top - no butter needed.  About 5 minutes at 350 - 400 degrees to melt the cheese plus 2 - 3 minutes on broil to give it that cheesy toasty goodness fits the bill at our house.  Enjoy!