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Pork Orgy


phatj

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My wife, a pork hater, is going to be out of town for about a week starting this coming Thursday. I have decided that it would be good and proper for me, a pork lover, to overindulge my love during her absence. I intend to eat pork, probably to excess, with each meal during that time. I ask you, good people of eGullet, to help me achieve my goal of pork poisoning.

Pork items I have on hand: several pounds pork chops, frozen; one pound sliced bacon, frozen; one pound breakfast link sausage, frozen; one 1/2 pound ham steak, frozen.

Pork items I intend to purchase: rack of ribs, shoulder roast, ???

Tools at my disposal: 12" & 10" cast iron skillets, gas range, two-burner gas grill.

Intended menus:

Thursday: pork chops. I need help here. I have never cared much for pork chops, possibly in large part because of their general leanness and also possibly because I've almost always had them overcooked (fear of trichinosis, I suppose). I've never cooked them myself, and I need a good recipe. I'm going to have to make do with the ones I have on hand, which look pretty lean, so I'm assuming that brining will be a must.

Friday: ribs. I will probably smoke these (soaked wood chips on top of burner on one side of grill, meat on the other side with burner turned off). I have a recipe from Cook's Country involving a dry rub that I've made in the past with excellent results. I want a good coleslaw to go with this, though, and I've never had a great deal of luck making that. Suggestions would be appreciated -- I don't like the sweet, creamy standard coleslaw.

Saturday brunch: bacon, sausage, eggs, leftover pork chops and/or ribs.

Saturday dinner: =Mark's Carolina Pulled Pork. I've never tried this, but I've been dying to. I hope it will work out all right using the offset smoking on the gas grill mentioned above. I'll probably invite friends over for this, and will want to serve coleslaw again.

Sunday: probably more bacon, sausage and eggs for breakfast, leftover pulled pork the rest of the day.

The next few days I need some help with. Any suggestions for good pork recipes that aren't too expensive and that don't require a lot of time (i.e. weeknight meals) would be appreciated.

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A really nice sauce I make for pork includes vinegar, ginger, garlic, choppped onion and some apricot or peach perserves. I don't really measure, I start off with the jam in a pot on low heat, add enough vinegar to get it sweet/sour, and then add the other stuff to taste. simmer on a low heat and then brush on the meat that I'm baking in the oven. Serve with fried rice.

My dad always made pork chops breaded in seasoned flour, fried, and served with stuffing, gravy, boiled potatos and kraut.

I think the trick for cooking chops juicy is to use enough oil or fat in the pan, and lower the heat right after getting both sides nice and brown.

Good luck, it sounds like you have some good eating coming up! :raz:

---------------------------------------

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I think the best way to eat pork is in BBQ or in a suasage type form.

But if you are looking for a different form of pork try Tongkatsu (janpanese version of chicken fried steak with pork).

Good cut of pork (I've used loin, chop with the bone on, and parts of shoulder) and pound it out with to about 1/4 inch thick. Score the meat with a knife slightly so that it doesn't curl on you.

Batter (flour, egg, panko bread crumb in that order) and deep fry until done.

Sauce is made with 3 part wostershire and 1 part catsup.

Panko (janpanese bread crumbs) is a key and using western bread crumbs doesn't yield great results for me.

Just had it on sunday and my wife exclaim that this is her fav. pork dish. My kids eat this stuff up.

SoUP

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I think we need to know more about the pork chops: thick, thin, loin or rib? I am apprehensive with them, too, but I've increased my satisfaction level considerably by employing different techniques for different cuts.

I don't know off-hand what kind of chops they are. They were purchased as part of a large bundle of assorted meats from a local butcher, and came unlabeled. I'll see if I can take a picture tonight and post it. They're bone-in, and ~3/4 in. thick at a guess.

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I would definitely try to pick up some pork belly and make that. I am a huge pork fan and nothing (IMHO) beats a well-made belly dish. I have made the recipe in Scott Conant's New Italian Cooking, but I am sure there are other good ones.

Oh, and I think "Porgie" might be the better term, to avoid confusion with the fish. :biggrin:

Edited by mikeycook (log)

"If the divine creator has taken pains to give us delicious and exquisite things to eat, the least we can do is prepare them well and serve them with ceremony."

~ Fernand Point

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I would definitely try to pick up some pork belly and make that.  I am a huge pork fan and nothing (IMHO) beats a well-made belly dish.  I have made the recipe in Scott Conant's New Italian Cooking, but I am sure there are other good ones.

Ditto on the pork belly! A truly luscious cut. I've had good results with this recipe, but there are many others out there.

Re: the pork chops--I think 3/4" is just thick enough that, with close supervision, they could be pan-fried or broiled/grilled without drying out. The key is the close supervision--they can go from juicy to overcooked pretty quickly. For doneness temperature, don't go by the numbers in older cookbooks--they're usually way too high for today's lean-bred pork and result in dried-out overdone meat, as do their warnings to cook until no pink remains. I like to still have a little pink showing in the interior, and a finished top internal temp of 150 deg. F. A brine or marinade beforehand will certainly help keep the meat moist. Alternatively, you might consider braising the chops. Pork braised with sauerkraut is a yummy thing.

(edited to try and do something about funky grammar...)

Edited by mizducky (log)
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For chops, I like to do the same method I would for a steak (like Cote de Boeuf). Get as good a sear as you can for 1-2 minutes on each side, then finish in a very hot oven (as good cast iron skillet works best for me). I have gone even lower in temperature (140 F near the bone) with fine results.

"If the divine creator has taken pains to give us delicious and exquisite things to eat, the least we can do is prepare them well and serve them with ceremony."

~ Fernand Point

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When Smoking on a gas grill DONT FORGET TO PUT A PAN UNDER THE MEAT.....somewhere there is a picture of my grill the day after I smoked a butt in there. I turned the sucker on and walked away only to return to 5 ft flames shooting out of it and dripping out the grease hole onto the propane line.

otherwise it works just fine

tracey

The great thing about barbeque is that when you get hungry 3 hours later....you can lick your fingers

Maxine

Avoid cutting yourself while slicing vegetables by getting someone else to hold them while you chop away.

"It is the government's fault, they've eaten everything."

My Webpage

garden state motorcyle association

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When Smoking on a gas grill DONT FORGET TO PUT A PAN UNDER THE MEAT.....somewhere there is a picture of my grill the day after I smoked a butt in there. I turned the sucker on and walked away only to return to 5 ft flames shooting out of it and dripping out the grease hole onto the propane line.

otherwise it works just fine

tracey

What, no photos?

Dave Scantland
Executive director
dscantland@eGstaff.org
eG Ethics signatory

Eat more chicken skin.

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as you wish

gallery_23695_426_563775.jpg

The great thing about barbeque is that when you get hungry 3 hours later....you can lick your fingers

Maxine

Avoid cutting yourself while slicing vegetables by getting someone else to hold them while you chop away.

"It is the government's fault, they've eaten everything."

My Webpage

garden state motorcyle association

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OK, here are my chops:

gallery_29755_3153_14228.jpg

gallery_29755_3153_116175.jpg

As you can see, I have appetizing pork, lean & juicy, and guaranteed fresh! It also appears I have two different types of chops. I'm guessing the latter are rib chops, as one of the two bone segments in each appears to be a rib cross section. Are the former loin chops?

Also, I stand by my original estimate of 3/4 inches in thickness now that I've taken a closer look (for both types).

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Well heck, if you are going to have a pork orgy you might as well add some deep fat frying to it as well. :biggrin: Here's a starter page for you...

http://www.porktenderloinsandwich.com

and to make them...

http://web.mac.com/davydd/iWeb/Site/BPT_Tutorial.html

And this is what I am talking about... :biggrin::raz:

rh8w1v.jpg

Davydd

It is just an Anglicized Welsh spelling for David to celebrate my English/Welsh ancestry. The Welsh have no "v" in their alphabet or it would be spelled Dafydd.

I must warn you. My passion is the Breaded Pork Tenderloin Sandwich

Now blogging: Pork Tenderloin Sandwich Blog

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Day One of Porgy 2006 is complete.

gallery_29755_3153_100126.jpg

I crisped some bacon for the grease. I ate one strip and reserved the rest (see below).

Fried the chops (naked, brined in .5 cup table salt/1 gallon water for 1-2 hours) in the grease for 90 seconds per side; then tossed in 400F oven.

Made pan sauce by deglazing with Jack Daniels and adding whole grain mustard, beef stock, onion confit and chopped reserved bacon. The sauce was inspired by something I had at a local steakhouse recently (Skippack Ale House, for those who are also nearby) that was awesome. It contained the bourbon and mustard, but the onions and bacon were my own addition.

(I must here give a shout-out to eGullet for the onion confit and stock recipes. I had made my own stock before, but never as good, and I'd never heard of onion confit.)

Served with bagged salad with red pepper slices and buttered, parsleyed rice.

The chops, unfortunately, were uninspiring. Juicy, but not especially tender or flavorful. The sauce was yummy, though (trust me, it tasted better than it looked!). I need someone to point me to a place that serves really incredible pork chops. I'm not sure if it's me doing something wrong or if they're just not a cut that is for me.

Nevertheless, leftover pork chops with yummy sauce and rice are my lunch tomorrow. A 4 lb rack of spare ribs are currently enjoying a dry rub in my fridge for tomorrow's dinner.

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Make sure you tell us about the dry rub.  Is it sweet? hot?

It contains, roughly, the following:

1/4 C generic chili powder

1/4 C brown sugar

1/4 C table salt

2 T paprika

1 T ancho chili powder

1 T ground mustard

1 t fresh ground black pepper

1 t cayenne

1 t garlic powder

1 t thyme

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I usually sear my pork chops in a really hot frying pan for a minute or so, until they are browned. Once browned take them out of the pan and reduce the heat. Stir in some liquid (I've used beer and/or apple, juice) but use whatever you like. Deglaze the pan's stirring up the browned bits into the juice. Turn the heat back up and reduce by at least half. Put the browned chops back in the liquid, reducing the heat again. Let them simmer for about 5-10 or until tender. It makes a silky smooth sauce that looks like gravy, but without the gravy mouth feel.

Iris

GROWWWWWLLLLL!!

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Porgy Day 2.

The ribs were super yummy.

Here they are just after being put on the grill. I had to cut the slab in half so as to keep it from being directly over the heat. The small piece was a random piece that was in the package along with the slab. The wood is 50-50 hickory and mesquite chips.

gallery_29755_3153_41180.jpg

After the first hour, I sprayed the ribs with a mix of apple cider, cider vinegar and Jack Daniels and flipped them, and repeated every 1/2 hour thereafter.

Here they are after about three hours:

gallery_29755_3153_59820.jpg

And about 45 minutes later, I declared them done. I ate a bit before taking this shot:

gallery_29755_3153_29465.jpg

Mmmmmmmm. Very tender, almost pulled pork consistency (or at least what I imagine pulled pork consistency to be, having never had it), and very juicy. The rub was perfect, to my taste. Salty and not too sweet, with just a little kick to it. They didn't taste very smoky, though. I think for the butt tomorrow I'll add an additional pan of wood chips.

Speaking of the butt, it's brining as I write. I'll be up at the butt crack of dawn (pun intended) to rinse that sucker and get it smoking.

I never got around to making slaw tonight, opting instead for an all-protein (and fat) meal. But tomorrow I think I'll want slaw. Any suggestions for good non-sweet coleslaw recipes?

Also, does anyone have experience with smoked veggies? I'm thinking smoked corn on the cob and halved onions would be pretty good. Any tips on time or preparation?

Thanks in advance.

Edited by phatj (log)
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Make crock pot Chile Verde!! If you have a crock pot, this is a great weekday meal as it will be busy cooking while you are aout. If you don't have a crock pot, it is worth buying one just beacuse this pork is so insanely good.

The inspiration can be found on This Crock Pot Thread. (Many thanks to Jaymes and KMPickard for the posts that inspired me to make this stuff.)

When I make it I get a grizzly, inexpensive piece of pork shoulder, about 3 or 4 lbs, no bone. I sear it well on all sides then dump it in the crock pot. In go a few cloves of sliced garlic, a big diced onion, some cumin, black pepper, oregano, and 2 small cans of Herdez chile verde. A bit of water or chicken stock so the pork is about 1/2 to 2/3 submerged, then turn the pot on to low and leave it for about 8 hours. I normally asemble this the night before, put the pot insert into the fridge overnight, then fire it up before I leave the house in the AM.

To serve, get the pork out of the sauce...when it's done is gets meltingly tender, all the fat and gristle have disolved into utter braised yumminess, so it falls apart as you take it out. Have it with some sliced avocados and fresh cilanto, on tortillas or on rice. Ladle some of the sauce out and have it with your pork.

This stuff is good enough to serve guests.

Regarding your chops, I'd say the issue was the chops themselves. It seems like you did all you could have in the cooking. If you can get a nice thick (1-1/2") natural loin pork chop, fresh and not frozen, you will have a great piece of meat that you can cook to medium (still a bit pink) with as much ease as a good quality steak. The best chops I've had have been like that, and they are delicious. The thinner chops are hard to get good results with.

Anothe pork fave for me is a tenderloin, wrapped in prosiutto (double pork happiness), seared in a pan and finished in the oven. Or you can marinate a tenderloin in a soy/honey/ginger/red chile combo and cook it in the same way. Actually, I've had great results from freezing the tenderloin in a bit of marnade in a zip lock bag...something yummy for the next time your wife is away.

Happy porking out!! The ribs look delicious!

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Porgy Day 2.

The ribs were super yummy.

Here they are just after being put on the grill. I had to cut the slab in half so as to keep it from being directly over the heat. The small piece was a random piece that was in the package along with the slab. The wood is 50-50 hickory and mesquite chips.

gallery_29755_3153_41180.jpg

After the first hour, I sprayed the ribs with a mix of apple cider, cider vinegar and Jack Daniels and flipped them, and repeated every 1/2 hour thereafter.

Here they are after about three hours:

gallery_29755_3153_59820.jpg

And about 45 minutes later, I declared them done. I ate a bit before taking this shot:

gallery_29755_3153_29465.jpg

Mmmmmmmm. Very tender, almost pulled pork consistency (or at least what I imagine pulled pork consistency to be, having never had it), and very juicy. The rub was perfect, to my taste. Salty and not too sweet, with just a little kick to it. They didn't taste very smoky, though. I think for the butt tomorrow I'll add an additional pan of wood chips.

Speaking of the butt, it's brining as I write. I'll be up at the butt crack of dawn (pun intended) to rinse that sucker and get it smoking.

I never got around to making slaw tonight, opting instead for an all-protein (and fat) meal. But tomorrow I think I'll want slaw. Any suggestions for good non-sweet coleslaw recipes?

Also, does anyone have experience with smoked veggies? I'm thinking smoked corn on the cob and halved onions would be pretty good. Any tips on time or preparation?

Thanks in advance.

I don't know about smoked onions, but my mom used to bake halved onions wrapped in foil witha bit of butter & brown sugar. YUM! Also check out Paula Dean's recipe for corn on the cob with mayo and chili powder. I'm pretty sure you can find it at FoodTV.com. It sounds Yummy, and maybe even better if you use the mayonaise with lime...(droolie added here)

"Commit random acts of senseless kindness"

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