Pulled Pork

We had a party at the office this weekend.  It was a shredding, electronics disposal, BBQ and chair massage.  Oh, and folks could sign their paperwork for our big change.  Several weeks ago we had a BBQ tasting and determined that Black Diamond was the best.  Like they won by 27 points out of 30 to the other's 19 points.   See the things we go through for our clients?  I know.  It's tough but somebody's got to do it. 

Time came to order and the website said the big tray of pulled pork or beef brisket would serve 40.  I ordered a tray and a half of each.  Then, I ordered a tray and a half of mac and cheese and a tray each of slaw and baked beans.  Should have been plenty of food.  Let's just say the mac and cheese and baked beans were inhaled.  I got a little taste early on then headed to my office to meet with folks.  When I came up for air four hours later the pans were empty.  Bare.  Nada.  The only thing we had much left over was pulled pork.  There was about four pounds of that.  And, maybe a pound of the beef brisket. 

With the hours we've been working cooking has not been a priority.  But, I'm craving some good homecooked food.  So, I decided to take an evening and turn the pork into four dishes of about six to eight servings each.  I'd decided to make chili, shepherd's pie, stuffed peppers and something else.  As luck would have it, there was an article in Food Network Magazine by Melissa D'Arabian about ten uses for leftover pulled pork.  I was pumped.  As it turned out, I'd already made "sloppy joes" with some of the meat.  And, I had the chili and shepherd's pie on the menu.  Then, I found an old recipe from an antique Woman's Day that I'd pulled out of the stack in the basement to go thru and toss.  It was for a beef stew with garbanzo beans, black beans, salsa...  Perfect for pork.  I had my four dishes.  And, I came home in time to cook.

Here are the basics.  Since time is so precious here I'm going to be brief...

Shepherd's Pie:  Mix pulled pork, jarred gravy (pork is best but turkey will do,) a good splash of white wine, a good dose of herbs, frozen peas, chopped and cooked carrots, frozen pearl onions and a can of mushrooms.  Top it all with cheesy mashed potatoes and a sprinkle of paprika or emeril's essence or BBQ rub or something that'll give it some color and zing.  Bake until it's nice and bubbly.

Stuffed peppers:  Mix pulled pork, cooked brown rice, black beans, salsa, chipotle chili powder and shredded mozzarella cheese.  You can either freeze them and cook them later or bake them until the peppers are cooked through.

Chili:  Saute a large yellow onion (diced) with some diced green pepper.  Add a can of chicken broth (homemade stock is best but use what you've got,) a couple of cans of diced green chilies, pulled pork, a couple of cans of beans (rinsed and drained - I like pinto, white kidney and/or black beans,) along with a good sprinkle of cumin and chili powder.

Pork stew:  Mix a can of corn (drained) with a can of garbanzo beans and a can of black beans (both drained and rinsed,) pulled pork, 1 c each salsa and BBQ sauce (I use Sweet Baby Rays,) and a package of taco seasoning mix.  It also calls for mixing in chopped cilantro but since I was putting the mixture into a foil lined casserole dish then freezing the whole deal, I decided I'd top it with some grated cheese and cilantro when I actually bake it.

So, there you have it.  How I turned a few pounds of pork into about 16 meals.  Now, if I can keep from going nuts from eating pork too often  over the next month, I'll be in great shape.  That and if I can get through the veritable mountain of paperwork in my office... 

pork stew adapted from Women's Day

Cottage Pie

Saturday night was my favorite Halloween party.  I wasn't there.  I was home recouping from the not-so-wonderful auto accident on Friday when a gal rear-ended me at about 35 mph.  Friday evening was rough.  Friday night was more rough.  I made it through my two appointments Saturday morning.  Then, I kind of had a melt-down.  My whole body hurt.  I was sick to my stomach.  I just wanted to sleep.  I kept working because there was so much to do but I reached the point I couldn't do any more.  So, the couch at the office beckoned.  Nap time.  Connie said he was going to call Judy and tell her we couldn't make it.  :-(  Judy and Carl's parties are the best.  And, I didn't get to go.  So, enough whining.  On the way home from the office I was busy tearing apart the latest Everyday Food.  It had a recipe for a Cottage Pie.  Similar to Shepard's Pie but with thinly sliced potatoes on top instead of mashed potatoes.  Sign me up.  It looked really easy to prepare.  Even better.  And, standing feels a lot better than sitting so cooking is better than blogging about it. 

The recipe calls for either ground beef or lamb.  I knew I had ground beef in the freezer that needed to be used up.  Next time, I'll use the lamb.  It has a subtlety of flavor that the ground beef doesn't and I think it'd add a lot to this dish.  The original recipe called for two tablespoons of tomato paste, a cup of beer and a cup of water.  By the time I got the tomato paste and the cup of beer added, I knew it'd need more flavor.  I kept adding tomato paste until the entire 4 oz can was empty.  Then, I kept pouring in beer until the entire can was empty.  It still needed more flavor.  Fine, a quarter of a cup of red wine went in along with three very thinly sliced garlic cloves.  Ah, now we're talking.  The step that got me was when the recipe said to sprinkle two tablespoons of flour over the top and stir it in.  Really?  I've never added flour as anything other than a slurry (flour and liquid mixture) when adding it to an almost finished dish like this. I was very tempted to do it the way I've always done it but decided the worst that could happen was a few small lumps.  And, guess what, it worked perfectly.  The last change I made was to put about a cup of grated sharp cheddar on top of the meat sauce.  I couldn't taste it in the finished dish but my guess is it added another layer of good flavor.

Connie said the cottage pie tasted like pot roast.  He was so right.  The liquid cooked up into the potatoes and they absorbed all that flavor like little sponges.  The tomato paste and beer and red wine made the most scrumptious sauce.  There are so many variations you can make with this recipe.  Chicken or turkey or pork with leeks and shallots and carrots and a lighter beer and white wine.  It's also a recipe that's easy to double or triple for company.  We'll definitely be making this again!

Cottage Pie


Ingredients:

1 T olive oil
1 large yellow onion, diced
2 large carrots, diced
3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
4 T tomato paste
coarsely ground salt and pepper
1 lb ground beef or lamb
2 t fresh thyme leaves (it's fine to substitute with dried)
1 1/2 c dark beer
1/4 c red wine (cabernet or zinfandel would be best)
2 T flour
3/4 c frozen peas
1 c grated extra sharp cheddar cheese
1 large russet potato very thinly sliced (use a mandolin if you have one)
2 T olive oil
coarsely ground salt and pepper


Directions:
In a large saucepan or skillet, saute the onion, carrots and garlic in one tablespoon of olive oil. 

Cook them for about five minutes until the onion is softened. 

Add the tomato paste and stir it in.  Add the ground beef or lamb and stir it in.  (My hamburger was frozen so I browned it first in another saucepan.)

Make sure you don't have a lot of big chunks of meat.  Cook the meat until it's almost cooked through.  Add the beer, wine and thyme and bring to a boil.  Allow the liquid to reduce slightly - about 2 minutes.  Be sure to keep stirring.  Sprinkle the flour over the top and stir it in quickly.  Add the peas. 

Pour the mixture into a casserole dish. 

Top with the grated cheddar. 

Cover with the potato slices.  They need to be VERY finely sliced.

You want the slices to slightly overlap. 

Drizzle two tablespoons of olive oil over the potatoes then season them with salt and pepper.  Bake at 400 for 40 minutes.  Allow the dish to rest for 10 minutes after removing it from the oven.  This will allow it to set up a bit so you won't have quite as much liquid running around your plates.