Converted 1st, Cured 2nd

Well this has been tempting me all month, and actually since last month!

CHARCUTEPALOOZA. Say it loud, and say it proud. I have been converted, or at least I am in the conversion process as I don't have my supplies yet. I'm pretty sure the pork belly will not be an issue as they always have a good supply at the Asian supermarket. The cure might be an issue if I have to mail order it. I also know for sure that the process, chez nous, will not be able to start till the beginning of February.

 

charcutepalooza

That's ok, since the last time I made bacon was in Malawi and it was HOT. Food was hard to come by and when the Embassy was able to get pork, pork meant pigs. We and another family shared one. In addition to dealing with a fresh porker sliced down the middle, there was the issue of the head. Which family's servants would get the head. We dithered a bit and then I came out as the winner. I had convinced them that as we were the ones going to pick up the whole pig and deliver it to them, we'd get the head. Next pig, if god willing there were more pigs which you never knew, they could pick the beauty and thus let their servants have the head. I never knew what was done with the head but I know meat like that was extremely hard to come by and was greatly appreciated. I had more than enough on my hands with that pig in an un-airconditioned kitchen.

This bacon will not see me sitting on the floor, hot and sweaty with an aching back, trying to wrestle a carcass into submission, and sharpening, resharpening my best knives and Thai cleaver. Sometimes, a simple trip to the supermarket is so much better. It may not be locally sourced pork but it's also not an animal I have to cut up. I respect the animal that feeds me but today I'm not the 30something who tackled the non-existent butcher's job.

Converted? oh yes, I am. Now I just have to work on the curing. Why don't you try it out and enjoy some of the process.

Pork and Pears

The idea of Pork and Pears came to me straight from the cover of the most recent Williams-Sonoma catalog. Oh if I could have space for more LeCreusets in almost all the colors! I have two seasonal teapots but to go from red to yellow to green with the cast iron?? That is luxury and really, in truth, needless luxury. but fun to think about

So, if you clicked that link above, you will see what the goal was. Ok, so I'm one of the women who Messes With the Recipe. You knew that. I had a pork roast in the freezer but not a boneless loin but the right size and shape. I had the Anjou pears (and isn't it great that they were 99c a lb last week???), onions instead of leeks which I had already cooked up over the weekend - the leeks i.e., but all the rest. Well, I had half and half instead of cream, but that was enough to up the caloric value imho. You get the picture of how I cook.

Here's that roast browned, with the browned pears, ready to go back into the LeCreuset and the oven.

Now the gravy is simmering away after adding the half and half.

Eh voila! (or eh viola! if you want a musical twist)the final dinner. Boy it was good if the cook says so herself. Now I remember why I like to cook. My adaptation of the recipe is here.

Souper Saturday

Soup, soup. I had planned to make myself a luxe crab soup of some sorts, but the cold killed my taste buds for most of the week as well as seriously curbing my appetite. The latter is a good thing. So no crab soup was cooked tho I may take half of the sauted crab and make dh a Maryland Crab Soup in a day or so when he gets back home.

What I did eat this week was a poofed...pulled from the freezer...container of Lithuanian Sauerkraut Soup. This is one that doesn't always look enticing tho it really is delicious. DH will eat it but isn't wild about sauerkraut. No Lithuanian blood in that boy! The sourness mostly cooks away but being a person who likes sour and tart, I'm glad for what's left. While this recipe calls for pork, I know how many recipes substitute turkey for pork these days, so here's another one where you can use that turkey carcass. You have my blessing. I suspect the ancient Nanas of the world would make you call it Lithuanian-American Sauerkraut soup instead of kapusta, but that's minor. Just try it. It's hearty and makes a sick woman feel almost well.

SOUP Lithuanian Sauerkraut Soup

• 4 or 5 spare ribs (try a meaty turkey or chicken carcass)
• 1 diced onion (medium or large)
• A few bay leaves
• Peppercorns to taste (I use 5 to 10)
• Quart or large bag of sauerkraut (not rinsed)
• 1/2 fresh cabbage - shredded (optional)
• 1 can of diced tomatoes (soup sized can)
• 1 garlic clove
• Mushrooms (optional)

Cut up a 1/2 slab of ribs and brown the spare ribs in a bit of any oil or crisco. This browning is optional. Cover the ribs well with water; add bay leaves, garlic, several peppercorns and the diced onion. Cook the ribs until very soft. I always use a pressure cooker since it's a time saver. But this isn't necessary.
When the ribs are cooked, remove the meat from the rib bone and cut into pieces and put back into the pot. Leave the "ribs water" and add the sauerkraut and also some shredded fresh cabbage. This fresh is optional but really stretches the soup in case you don't have a lot of kraut on hand and it tastes good, too! Add the can of diced tomatoes and some sliced mushrooms. If you’re lucky enough to have some wild mushrooms around, they're wonderful in any "kapusta" dish. Add more water if necessary for the soup consistency you like.

This soup can be made from any cut of fresh pork that you have on hand. It's best to use something that has a bone. So, even if all you have is a pork chop and a little bit of kraut in the fridge - you can make a small pot of soup for yourself.

One special old time favorite is to have some chilled, whole boiled potatoes on the side. The hot soup and cold potatoes complement each other. ( I find this idea vile but then I'm born and bread East Coast American.)

I realize this is a loosly described recipe. But kapusta soup is something you can't screw up. The strong flavor of the kraut takes care of any sins along the way. I hope someone has some new ideas for this soup.
Recipe by: Helen

Back to the Kitchen

she said gladly.

Yes, I do like to cook, and today I kind of started back into the groove. Trouble is, we have a bunch of good leftovers and dh could eat for a week on those. Hmmmm...

But, a quick one for us tonight as I was finishing up a bunch of postcards for SwapBot today. I used to belong to a postcard exchange on a now defunct community site and it was a lot of fun. Back then, I couldn't conceive of Making A Postcard or even pimping one out. But now older and willing to be more foolish, I have moved into the realm of silly and fun. Gotta remember to scan them, tho terribly unique they're not. I realized I wouldn't have much time in the next week to make the May 1 deadline.

But dinner you say? Wasn't that the topic? Oh right.

Poofed (pulled out of the freezer) a packet of pork that I had precut in bits for curry.


Then made some raita...just for me. Dh wouldn't voluntarily choose to eat any plain yoghurt.


Put it together and we had dinner. About a 30 min meal and yummy yummy yummy. A good bit of nice heat on a chilly rainy day. (Enlarge this pic to see a note...)


Dessert? Well dh was so pleased (he does love a curry) that he was willing to go out and get some vanilla ice cream for Root Beer Floats. No pics cause we slurped them right down. Then a telly night with (recorded last night) My Boy Jack which moved us both to tears. This should be required watching for the fool in the White House.