Pulled Pork Sandwiches

This is a combination of recipes that add up to fabulous results. It might sound like a lot of work, but it's really not. The pulled pork is cooked in the crock pot. While there is a bit of preparation required, it's not too much. You simply have to taste this sandwich; you will know every ounce of effort was worth it.

The pork recipe is from Williams-Sonoma Kitchen, of course they sell their own dry rub and BBQ sauce, but I make my own. The Dry Rub for Barbecue and the Mid-South Carolina Mustard barbecue sauce are both from The Cook's Illustrated Guide To Grilling And Barbecue, which is an excellent reference guide.

Serve on toasted buns topped with fresh coleslaw. (the coleslaw is my addition, not Williams-Sonoma, by the way). This is the way pulled pork is meant to taste.

Ingredients:

3 1/2 Tbs. Dry Rub for Barbecue
1 quart warm water, plus more as needed
5 lb. boneless pork shoulder
1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
2 1/2 cups Mid-South Carolina Mustard barbecue sauce,
plus more for serving (optional)
8 to 10 hamburger buns, split and toasted
Fresh coleslaw, for topping

Directions:

In a large bowl, dissolve 2 Tbs. of the dry rub in the 1 quart warm water.

Put the pork in a slow cooker. Add the onion and carefully pour in the water mixture, adding more water if needed to almost cover the pork. Cover the slow cooker and cook on high for 3 hours. Using roast lifters or tongs, turn the pork over and cook until the meat shreds easily when pulled with a fork, about 2 hours more. Continue cooking as needed, up to 1 hour more.

Transfer the pork to a baking sheet, cover loosely with aluminum foil and let cool for 1 hour. Using 2 forks, shred the meat, discarding any fat, and transfer to a large bowl. Stir in the remaining 1 1/2 Tbs. dry rub and the 2 1/2 cups barbecue sauce.

To serve, place about 2/3 cup of the pork on the bottom of each bun. Top with more sauce, a mound of coleslaw and the tops of the buns. Arrange the sandwiches on a platter and serve immediately. Serves 8 to 10.

Mid-South Carolina Mustard Sauce

{picture soon!}

This is the sauce that I use, in combination with Dry Rub for Barbecue, to prepare my fabulous Pulled Pork Sandwiches. It is from The Cook's Illustrated Guide To Grilling And Barbecue.

The authors say: Here is another classic sauce for Pulled Pork that works well with other cuts of grilled pork, too.

Makes about 2 1/2 cups.

1 cup cider vinegar
1 cup vegetable oil
6 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons molasses (or maple syrup or honey. for this Pulled Pork, I use molasses)
4 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce, such as Tabasco
Ground black pepper

Mix all of the ingredients, including black pepper to taste, together in a medium bowl. (The sauce can be refrigerated in an airtight container for several days)

Dry Rub for Barbecue

This is the rub that I use, in combination with Mid-South Carolina Mustard Sauce, to prepare Pulled Pork Sandwiches. The rub recipe is from The Cook's Illustrated Guide To Grilling And Barbecue.

The authors say: "You can adjust the proportions of spices in this all-purpose rub or add or subtract a spice, as you wish. For instance, if you don't like spicy foods, reduce the cayenne. Or, if you are using hot chili powder, eliminate the cayenne entirely. This rub works well with ribs and brisket as well."

Makes about 1 cup

4 tablespoons sweet paprika
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 tablespoons ground cumin
2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons salt
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon ground white pepper
1-2 teaspoons cayenne pepper

Mix all of the ingredients together in a small bowl.

This rub should be stored in an airtight container and used within a week or two of preparation, because it contains brown sugar.

Macaroni & Cheese

This recipe is a new one, from Betty Crocker Country Favorites. It's one of those cookbooks that kind of sucks you in--it comes in the mail, you don't think you'll keep it, then recipe after recipe catches your eye and before you know it, you're sending them a check. (Please tell me I'm not the only one).

Anyway, the boys wanted macaroni and cheese, and we were completely out of the boxed kind. (at least they had been boxes of Annie's organic). So, I whipped this together. It didn't take too long, just the attention to stirring of the white sauce and the baking at the end. I didn't have elbow macaroni, so I used fusilli. I sliced up some tomatoes to put on top before I baked it. It was cheesy and delicious, and H-Bomb cleaned his plate.

Macaroni & Cheese
6 servings
Prep time: 25 minutes
Start to Finish: 50 minutes

1 package (7 ounces) elbow macaroni (2 cups)
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground mustard
1/4 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
2 cups milk
2 cups shredded or cubed sharp Cheddar cheese (8 ounces)

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Cook macaroni as directed on package.

3. While macaroni is cooking, melt butter in 3-quart saucepan over low heat. Stir in flour, salt, pepper, mustard and Worcestershire sauce. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture is smooth and bubbly; remove from heat.

4. Stir in milk. Heat to boiling, stirring occasionally. Boil and stir 1 minute. Stir in cheese. Cook, stirring occasionally, until cheese is melted.

5. Drain macaroni. Gently stir macaroni into cheese sauce. Pour into ungreased 2-quart casserole. Bake uncovered 20 to 25 minutes until bubbly.

Bacon-Wrapped Jalapeños

This is a recipe from Pioneer Woman's website, but she doesn't list the quantities for some reason. So here's my take on it. The quantities below used all of the cream cheese, and nearly all of the bacon. Could vary depending on size of your jalapeños, etc. but I like to have an idea before I get started.

They are awesome and delicious, and when Ree said "make about 4 or 5 times more than you think you'll need," she wasn't kiddin'. Number One and I polished off 16 of these puppies tonight, and I think we could have eaten more if I hadn't put the rest in the freezer.

Go. Make. Some. Right. Now.

Bacon-Wrapped Jalapeños

8 oz. cream cheese, softened
14 or so jalapeños, about 2-3 inches in size (I ran out of cream cheese at 28 halves)
1 lb. thick bacon, cut in thirds (she said thin, but I used thick. I tried to use thin, but it just doesn't hold up and is difficult to work with. Use thick.)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Cut jalapeños in half lengthwise, and carefully scrape out seeds and white membrane with a spoon. Fill each jalapeño half with cream cheese. Wrap each jalapeño half with 1/3 slice bacon, and secure with a toothpick. (make sure toothpicks go through each side of the jalapeño to hold)

At this point you can place the uncooked jalapeños on a baking sheet and stick them in the freezer. When individually frozen, place the jalapeños in a plastic ziploc bag and bake them when you're ready. I baked my frozen jalapeños at 375 degrees, for about 1/2 hour--just watch them. These would be an easy, make ahead appetizer for a dinner party. I plan on keeping bags of these in the freezer to pull out whenever we want!


Place jalapeños on a rack on a baking sheet. Bake at 375 for 20 to 25 minutes, until bacon is browned. (you can put them under the broiler for a minute or two to finish them off, but I didn't have to)

These are amazing.

Llajua pronounced "YAH-kwa"

This recipe is NOT for the meek.  If you find Senor Pepe's Mild Salsa a bit too fiery than DO NOT MAKE THIS RECIPE!!!    You have been warned.

We were recently at a birthday party for another child in our son's daycare.  The family is Bolivian and both grandmothers were visiting.  They were getting the food out and put this pleasantly green "salsa" in front of us.   My husband innocently asked, "What's this?"  Apparently it is common recipe in Bolivia and is used as a salsa-like dip or a sauce on various dishes.  We also found out that just like most traditional recipes, no one makes it exactly the same.  One grandmother said just to throw everything into the food processor, seeds and all.  "If too hot, just add a little tomato."  The other grandmother swore the entire recipe would be ruined if you added tomato!  

It took a while and much deliberation on the grandmother's part but we got the gist of the recipe.  Enough so that we could play around with proportions until we got something we really liked.  I don't have a picture yet but will post one soon!  

Min!  Perhaps I'll bring this to the BBQ in July!

Here's what you need...

8-10  Jalapenos (seeded)

1 medium red onion

coarse salt (maybe a 1/2 tsp or so)

fresh cilantro (about a palm's worth)

Roll the jalapenos on the table before you cut them open.  Apparently this helps get the seeds out.  After seeding the jalapenos, cut both onions and peppers into uniform size pieces and put everything into a food processor.  Cutting it uniformly will help everything get processed more evenly.  Pulse the processor until you have a very finely chopped consistency.  You may have to adjust and add more salt and/or cilantro to taste.  

We played with this recipe a couple times...  we preferred red onion to white onion and leaving the seeds OUT.  The llajua we tried at the party had one habanero pepper in it which added pretty reddish flecks of color but I couldn't feel my lips after 3 bites.  Feel free to take out a jalapeno or two and add the habanero if you're brave!

Great with a Corona!!

French Toast Soufflé

This soufflé is wonderful, and you can make it ahead of time! We prepared a triple batch for a family brunch where it was devoured with many complements.

It is from Better Homes & Gardens Annual Recipes 2004.

French Toast Soufflé

PREP: 20 minutes CHILL: 4 to 24 hours

BAKE: 40 minutes STAND: 15 minutes

1 cup packed brown sugar

½ cup butter

2 Tbsp. light corn syrup

1 1-lb. loaf unsliced cinnamon bread, sliced 1 inch thick

8 eggs, beaten

3 cups half-and-half or light cream

2 tsp. vanilla

½ tsp. salt

1 Tbsp. orange liqueur (optional)

1. In a medium saucepan combine brown sugar, butter and corn syrup; cook and stir until mixture comes to a boil. Boil, uncovered, 1 minute. Pour into a 3-quart rectangular baking dish.
2. Arrange bread slices on top of brown sugar mixture. In a bowl, combine eggs, half-and-half, vanilla, and salt; pour over bread slices. Cover and chill in the refrigerator for 4 to 24 hours.
3. Preheat oven to 350°F. Let baking dish stand at room temperature while oven preheats. Bake, uncovered, for 40 to 45 minutes or until top is browned and puffed and a knife inserted near center comes out clean. Let stand 15 minutes before serving. If desired, drizzle with orange liqueur. Makes 8 servings.

Summer Garden Pasta Salad with Olive and Feta

This recipe is from The Best Make-Ahead Recipe. Right up my alley, as you know. I made the Asiago, Capers and Basil variation for Miss Jenny's baby shower last year, and it was excellent! I'm sure either variation is sure to please. The thing about these Best Recipe folks, they have tried every different way of preparation, so if they say to do something specific (for storing, serving, etc) they have their reasons, and you'd best follow their directions, especially if you plan to make ahead!

Summer Garden Pasta Salad with Olives and Feta
serves 12 to 14

We like the size of farfalle (bow-tie) pasta here, however, you can substitute any small pasta, such as rotini or penne. If using a different pasta shape, note that the yield may change significantly. Cooking the pasta until it is completely tender is crucial here--undercooked pasta becomes tough as it sits in the salad overnight.

DRESSING
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
3 tablespoons juice from 2 lemons
1 medium shallot, minced
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon minced fresh oregano, or 1/2 teaspoon dried
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

SALAD
Salt
1 pound farfalle pasta
2 medium carrots, peeled and grated over the large holes of a box grater
1 large yellow bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and cut into 1/4-inch-thick strips
8 ounces feta, crumbled (about 2 cups)
1 cup pitted kalamata olives (about 6 ounces), chopped coarse
1/2 cup minced fresh parsley leaves
1 pint cherry tomatoes (about 12 ounces), quartered

1. For the dressing: Whisk all of the ingredients together in a medium bowl, set aside.

2. For the salad: Bring 4 quarts of water to a boil in a large pot. Stir in 2 tablespoons of salt and pasta and cook until completely tender. Reserve 1 cup of the pasta cooking water, then drain the pasta in a colander. Transfer the hot pasta to a large bowl.

3. Stir the reserved pasta water into the dressing. Pour half the dressing over the pasta and toss to coat. Stir in the carrots, bell pepper, feta, olives and parsley. Scatter the tomatoes on top of the pasta (do not mix in).

4. TO STORE: Cover the pasta salad tightly with plastic wrap and poke several vent holes in the plastic. Transfer the remaining dressing to an airtight container. Refrigerate the pasta salad and reserved dressing separately for up to 2 days.

5. TO SERVE: Bring the pasta salad to room temperature (or microwave on high power for 1 to 2 minutes to remove the chill). Shake the reserved dressing to combine, then pour half of the dressing over the salad and toss to combine. Add the remaining dressing as needed to keep the salad moist.

TO SERVE RIGHT AWAY: Refrigerate the pasta salad as described in step 4 until just slightly chilled, about 1 hour, before tossing with the reserved dressing.

• VARIATION:

Summer Garden Pasta Salad with Asiago, Capers and Basil
Follow the recipe for Summer Garden Pasta Salad with Olives and Feta, omitting the feta, olives and parsley. Add 3 ounces Asiago cheese, grated (about 1 1/2 cups), and 3 tablespoons capers, rinsed, to the pasta with the carrots in step 3. Stir in 1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh basil leaves just before serving.

Steak Fajita Marinade

This is a fabulous fajita marinade from my sister-in-law. We use flank steaks for fajitas, and this meal has rendered guests speechless in the past. I believe that is the best complement. Enjoy!

In a large ziploc bag, or non-reactive dish, mix:

1/4 Cup Olive oil

1/4 Cup lime juice

Tons of chopped garlic

2 Tablespoons cumin

2 Tablespoons coarse salt (Kosher)

1 Tablespoon Pepper

2 Tablespoons Mexican Oregano

1 teaspoon cayenne

2 Tablespoons tequila

Place your flank steaks in the bag or dish and turn to coat. Marinate in the refrigerator for a couple hours, turning over every half hour or so. Don't marinate it much longer.

We marinate flank steaks for fajitas, then grill the steaks on high to medium-high about 5 minutes on a side along with onions and colorful bell peppers. Slice the meat thinly against the grain, and serve with warmed tortillas and some beans (these beans or these beans), and you have the Best Fajitas Ever.

Come over, I'll make you some.

Chiles Rellenos

This recipe is authentic Tex-Mex. While a bit tricky and time-consuming, the end result is delicious, worth the effort and you will NOT be sorry! I will post a picture this summer...the red chile sauce is so fabulous, you will want to use it as a condiment for other dishes. I've even thought of canning it, but so far have not done so.

Chiles Rellenos

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SERVES 4

IN THE HANDS OF Aida Gabilondo, a longtime resident of the border region where West Texas meets Mexico, these charred, stuffed peppers are a masterpiece of subtlety. Her recipe is an example of real border food.

8 Anaheim chiles

1 lb. Monterey jack cheese, sliced into 3” x 1” strips

2 cups flour

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

4 eggs, separated

Vegetable oil

3 cups red chile sauce (recipe follows)

RED CHILE SAUCE:

1 small onion, peeled and sliced

4 Tbsp. vegetable oil

1 28-oz can whole plum tomatoes

1 clove garlic, peeled and chopped

½ tsp. crushed fresh oregano leaves

1 tsp. sugar

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 cup chicken stock (optional)

1. Char chiles by placing over a gas flame, turning often until skin is blackened all over. Or arrange chiles on baking sheet and place under the broiler, turning often until blackened all over. Place hot chiles in a brown paper bag, close tightly, and allow to steam for 15 minutes. Peel off and discard skin. Cut a slit lengthwise at the top of each chile, about ½” from the stem. Use a small spoon to scrape out veins and seeds. Slip cheese slices into the chiles.

2. Pour flour into a shallow bowl and season liberally with salt and pepper. Place egg whites in a large glass bowl and yolks in a small one. Beat whites with an electric mixer or whisk until foamy, add a pinch of salt, then continue beating until whites are stiff but not dry. Lightly beat yolks, then gently fold into whites with a rubber spatula.

3. Pour oil into a heavy skillet to a depth of 1” and heat over medium heat until oil reaches 375°. Dredge chiles first in flour, then in egg mixture, then fry in batches, turning once, until evenly browned all over, about 10 minutes. Drain on paper towels. Serve with red chile sauce.

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RED CHILE SAUCE: Sauté onions in oil in a large skillet over medium heat until soft, about 15 minutes. Puree onions, tomatoes and garlic in a blender or food processor, strain, and return to same skillet. Add oregano and sugar, then season to taste with salt and pepper. Cook, covered, over medium heat, for 5 minutes. Thin with chicken stock if sauce is too thick. Keep sauce warm over low heat until ready to use. Makes 3 cups.

FROM SAVEUR COOKS: authentic AMERICAN, page 210