Recipes Discovered – Recipes

Read my review of this recipe.

Ingredients:

• 2/3  cup  hoisin sauce
• 4  tablespoons  rice vinegar
• 4  tablespoons  bourbon
• 4  tablespoons  maple syrup
• 4  teaspoons  grated peeled fresh ginger
• 3  teaspoons  fresh lime juice
• 1  teaspoon  chile paste with garlic
• 2  garlic clove, minced
• 2  (1-pound) pork tenderloins, trimmed
• 1/2  teaspoon  salt
• 1/2  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

Combine hoisin sauce and next 7 ingredients (hoisin through garlic) in a small bowl; stir with a whisk.Pour Half of mixture into a resealable plaster bag. Place the pork in the bag, seal, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight. Reserve the remaining sauce to baste the pork.

Prepare the grill.

Sprinkle pork with salt and pepper.  Place pork on grill rack coated with cooking spray; cook 10 minutes. Turn and baste pork with hoisin mixture; cook 10 minutes. Turn and baste pork with hoisin mixture; cook 10 minutes or until pork reaches 155° or desired degree of doneness. Let stand 5 minutes; cut pork into 1/2-inch slices.

Serves 6 to 8 people.

Nutrition:

Substitutions:

Recipe courtesy of myrecipes.com.

Read my review of this recipe.

Ingredients:

• 2 eggs
• 1/4 – 1/2 cup milk
• 1 cups crushed crackers or bread crumbs
• 2 pounds ground fully cooked ham
• 1 pound ground pork
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 6 tablespoons cider vinegar
• 2 teaspoons mustard
• 12 ounces crushed pineapple

Directions:

In a large bowl, combine the eggs, milk, and cracker crumbs. Crumble ham and pork over mixture and mix well. Shape into 1-1/2-in. balls. Place into two greased 15-in. x 10-in. x 1-in. baking pans. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 40 minutes or until lightly browned.
Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, combine the brown sugar, vinegar, mustard, and pineapple . Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened.  Pour mixture over ham balls and bake 10 minutes.

Serves 12.

Nutrition:

Substitutions:

Recipe courtesy of Taste of Home.

Read my review of this recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup packed fresh spinach greens, washed and dried
• 1 cup fresh basil leaves
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan, optional
•  2 tablespoons olive oil
• Salt, to taste
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 cup fresh spinach greens, washed and dried
• 1/2 cup ham, diced
• 4 eggs, whisked with a little milk or cream
• Salt and freshly cracked black pepper

Directions:

Add the spinach, basil, garlic, and cheese, if using, to a food processor and begin to pulse on low speed. Slowly add the olive oil while the processor is running. Pulse until the ingredients are blended into a smooth sauce, being careful not to overmix. Season, to taste, with salt.

Heat the butter in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add the spinach and ham to the skillet, stirring with a wooden spoon to combine. Cook for 2 minutes, and then pour the eggs over the spinach mixture. Allow the eggs to begin to set, and then add a few tablespoons of the pesto, salt, and pepper, to taste. Stir together until eggs are cooked evenly.

Serves 2.

Nutrition:

Substitutions:

Recipe courtesy of Food Network.

Read my review of this recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1 – 1 1/2 pounds pork shoulder or loin, cut into large pieces
• 1 recipe refried beans
• 2 cups salsa verde
• 8 corn tortillas
• 1 cup grated jack or cheddar cheese

Directions:

Put the pork in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil then cover, lower heat, and simmer for about 30 minutes. Drain and let cook slightly, then shred using two forks. Put in a bowl and set aside.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Spread a thin layer of salsa verde into the bottom of a baking dish. Spoon 1/8 of the refried beans onto a tortilla and top with 1/8 of the shredded pork. Roll it up to make an enchiladas and then place it seam side down in the baking dish. Fill and roll and remaining tortillas and add them to the dish. Pour the remaining sauce onto the enchiladas to cover completely. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until cheese is bubbly and brown.

Serves 4.

Nutrition:

Substitutions:

Recipe courtesy of The Complete Book of Mexican Cooking

Read my review of this recipe.

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds thick cut bacon
• 2 pounds pork sausage
• 1 bottle BBQ sauce
• 1 jar BBQ rub or seasoning

Directions:

To kick off the construction of this pork medley you’ll need to create a 5×5 bacon weave.  If the strips you’re using aren’t as wide as the ones pictured, then you may need to use a few extra slices to fill out the pattern.  Just make sure your weave is tight and that you end up with a nice square shape to work with.

The next step is to add some barbecue seasoning on top of your bacon weave.  

Now that you’re pork is well seasoned, it’s time to add more pork.  Take two pounds of Italian sausage and layer it directly on top of your bacon weave.  Be sure to press the sausage to the outer edges of the bacon creating a patty that is the same thickness all the way across.  Most grocery stores carry loose sausage, so just pick out one you like.  

Next up is bacon layer number two.  Take the remaining bacon slices and fry them up the same way you would for breakfast (or lunch, or dinner, or a midnight snack).  If you like soft bacon, make it soft.  If you like crunchy bacon, make it crunchy.  If you like your bacon burnt so the smoke detectors go off, then burn it so the smoke detectors go off.  These pieces are going to be a major part of the inner flavor of our sausage fatty, so cook them your favorite way.  

Since this is a barbecue recipe, we need to add another layer of barbecue flavor.  Take your favorite sauce and drizzle it all over the top of the bacon pieces. Once you’ve sauced the bacon, sprinkle on some more of the barbecue seasoning you used on the bacon weave.

Now comes the fun part.  Very carefully separate the front edge of the sausage layer from the bacon weave and begin rolling backwards.  You want to include all layers EXCEPT the bacon weave in your roll.  Try and keep the sausage as tight as possible and be sure to release any air pockets that may have formed.  Once the sausage is fully rolled up, pinch together the seams and ends to seal all of the bacon goodness inside.

At this point we can start to see the final shape of our Bacon Explosion, but we’re missing one key item.  To complete the construction process, roll the sausage forward completely wrapping it in the bacon weave.  Make sure it sits with the seam facing downward to help keep it all sealed up.

Sprinkle some barbecue seasoning on the outside of the bacon weave, and now this bad boy is ready for the smoker or oven. Cook your Bacon Explosion at 225 degrees until your thermometer gives an internal temperature reading of 165 degrees.  Normally this will take about 1 hour for each inch of thickness, but that could vary depending on how well you maintain your fire or oven. On average, it will take 2 1/2 hours.

Now that our Bacon Explosion is fully cooked, we need to add some finishing flavors.  Remember that barbecue sauce we used for inner flavor?  We’ll be using that same sauce to glaze the cooked bacon weave.  Using a basting brush, coat the entire surface with a thin layer of sauce.  Sweet sauces are loaded with sugars, so they’ll give your fatty a nice glossy finish.  Spicy and vinegar based sauces don’t contain as much, so they won’t set up as well.  If you’re dead set on using those sauces, just cut them with a bit of honey and you’ll get the same effect.

Slice the Bacon Explosion into quarter to half inch rounds to serve.  If your roll was good and tight, you should now see a nice bacon pinwheel pattern throughout the sausage.  Obviously pork is best served by itself, but if you feel the need to make this meat monster into a sandwich, try placing a couple Bacon Explosion slices on a warm Pillsbury’s Grands Biscuit. 

Serves about 10 people.

Nutrition:

Substitutions:

I did this in the oven and it reached 165 degrees in about 2 hours, but the bacon was still very soft. I turned the heat up to 400 for about 30 minutes until the bacon was a little more done, coated it in barbecue sauce, and baked it for another 10 minutes to glaze.

Recipe and photos courtesy of BBQ Addicts.

Read my review of this recipe.

Ingredients:

• 8 links bratwurst sausage
• 2 cups julienned red onions
• 4 (8-ounce) bottles dark beer
• 6 ounces bacon, chopped
• 2 cups julienned yellow onions
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 3 large red or golden delicious apples, cored and cubed
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
• 1 teaspoon juniper berries, crushed
• 2 pounds sauerkraut, rinsed well under cold running water and drained
• 2 tablespoons light brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• Freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

With a sharp knife or kitchen fork, prick each sausage several times. In a saucepan, combine the red onions and beer and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Add the sausages and poach until almost cooked through, about 5 minutes. Remove the sausages from the liquid and set aside, reserving the liquid.

In a large pot, cook the bacon over medium heat until crisp, about 5 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Add the yellow onions to the fat in the pan and cook, stirring, until very soft, about 10 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Add the apples and cook, stirring, until starting to soften, about 5 minutes. Add the bay leaf, peppercorns, and juniper berries and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Add the sauerkraut and reserved beer cooking liquid (strained, without the onions), sugar, salt and pepper, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer uncovered until tender and aromatic, stirring occasionally, about 1 1/2 hours.

To grill the brats, preheat the grill. Grill the sausages until cooked through, about 5 minutes, turning to cook evenly on all sides. Remove and place on a platter. Alternatively, add the brats to the sauerkraut for the last 15 minutes of cooking to heat through.

Remove the sauerkraut from the heat and discard the bay leaf. Stir in the cooked bacon and adjust the seasoning, to taste. Arrange the sauerkraut on the platter with the sausages.

Serve with rolls and mustard.

Nutrition:

Substitutions:

I couldn’t find juniper berries, so obviously I didn’t use them. The peppercorns completely soften when cooked, although they are still quite spicy.

Recipe courtesy of Emeril Lagasse.

Read my review of this recipe.

Ingredients:

• 2 slabs baby back ribs (3 to 4 pounds)

Dry Rub:

• 8 tablespoons light brown sugar, tightly packed
• 3 tablespoons kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon Old Bay Seasoning
• 1/2 teaspoon rubbed thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder

Sauce:

• 2 bacon slices
  
• 4 sprigs fresh thyme
  
• 1/2 onion
  
• 3 smashed garlic cloves
  
• 2 cups ketchup
  
• 1 cup seedless blackberry preserves
  
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard or 1 tablespoon dry mustard
• 2 tablespoons molasses
  
• 2 tablespoons red or white wine vinegar
  
• 2 teaspoon ground cumin
  
• 2 teaspoon ground paprika

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees. Mix all the ingredients together for the dry rub. Put the ribs on a baking sheet lined with foil, season with dry rub. Stick them in the oven, and let the ribs bake, low and slow for 2 hours.

Meanwhile, make the sauce. Wrap the bacon around the middle of the thyme sprigs and tie with kitchen twine so you have a nice bundle. Add the thyme bundle to the pan and cook slowly for 3 to 4 minutes to render the bacon fat and give the sauce a nice smoky taste. Add the onion and garlic and cook slowly, without coloring, for 5 minutes. Add all of the rest of the sauce ingredients, give the sauce a stir, and turn the heat down to low. Cook slowly for 20 minutes to meld the flavors. Put some sauce in a separate bowl for basting, reserving the remaining sauce for serving.

Baste the ribs with the sauce and let them continue cooking, basting twice more, for 30 more minutes. When the ribs are cooked, take them out of the oven. You can let them hang out like this until you’re ready to eat.

When ready to eat, preheat the broiler for 5 minutes and broil the ribs, basting with the sauce. They should become crisp and charred, about 5 minutes on each side.

Serves 4.

Nutrition:

Substitutions:

Recipe courtesy of Tyler Florence.

Read my review of this recipe.

Ingredients:

• 2 whole slabs pork baby back ribs (3 to 4 pounds)

Dry Rub:

• 8 tablespoons light brown sugar, tightly packed
• 3 tablespoons kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon Old Bay Seasoning
• 1/2 teaspoon rubbed thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder

Braising Liquid:

• 1 cup white wine
• 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped

Directions:

Preheat oven to 250 degrees.

In a bowl, combine all dry ingredients and mix well. Place each slab of baby back ribs on a piece of heavy-duty aluminum foil, shiny side down. Sprinkle each side generously with the dry rub. Pat the dry rub into the meat. Refrigerate the ribs for a minimum of 1 hour. In a microwavable container, combine all ingredients for the braising liquid. Microwave on high for 1 minute.

Place the ribs on a baking sheet. Open one end of the foil on each slab and pour half of the braising liquid into each foil packet. Tilt the baking sheet in order to equally distribute the braising liquid. Braise the ribs in the oven for 2 1/2 hours.

Transfer the braising liquid into a medium saucepot. Bring the liquid to a simmer and reduce by half or until of a thick syrup consistency. Brush the glaze onto the ribs. Place under the broiler just until the glaze caramelizes lightly. Slice each slab into 2 rib bone portions. Place the remaining hot glaze into a bowl and toss the rib portions in the glaze.

Nutrition:

Substitutions:

Recipe courtesy of Alton Brown.

Read my review of this recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon soy sauce, divided
• 1 cup pineapple juice, divided
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon grated ginger
• 1 pound pork loin, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 tablespoon oil
• 1 cup diced onion
• 1 cup diced celery, jicama, or water chestnuts
• 2 cup chopped carrots
• 1 cup chopped green peppers
• 1 cup chopped red peppers
• 1 tablespoon corn starch dissolved in 2 tablespoons of water
• 2 cup chopped pineapple
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil

Directions:

In a large non-reactive bowl, combine 1/2 cup soy sauce, 1/2 cup pineapple juice, garlic, and ginger. Place the pork in the bowl and toss to cover. Marinate in the refrigerator overnight.

In a bowl, combine 1/2 cup pineapple juice, ketchup, brown sugar, vinegar, water, and 1 tablespoon soy sauce. Mix to combine and set aside.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Drain the excess marinade from the pork, and then add the pork to the hot skillet. Cook 4 to 5 minutes, until pork is golden brown. Remove from the pan and drain on a paper towel.

With the skillet still over medium-high heat, add the onion, celery, carrots, peppers. Cook for 5 minutes, until the vegetables are crisp-tender. Add the reserved sauce mixture and the corn starch mixture. Cook for one minutes, until the sauce thickens, and then add the pork back to the skillet, along with the pineapple. Stir to combine, remove from the heat, and then drizzle with sesame oil. Serve over rice.

Serves 4 – 6 people.

Nutrition:

Substitutions:

I would cut the sugar down to 1 tablespoon.

Recipe adapted from Alton Brown.

Read my review of this recipe.

Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons paprika
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
• 1 tablespoon coarse salt
• 5 pound pork roast, preferably shoulder or Boston butt
• 12 ounces beer, stock, or water
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• Barbecue sauce
• Rolls

Directions:

Mix the paprika, garlic power, brown sugar, dry mustard, and salt together in a small bowl. Rub the spice blend all over the pork and marinate for as long as you have time for, as little as one hour or up to overnight, covered, in the refrigerator.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Unwrap pork and place in a roasting pan with sides about 2 inches high or in a Dutch oven. Cook 45 minutes until dark browned and even blackening in places. Remove from oven. Lower oven to 325 degrees. Pour beer (or other liquid) over the top and add chopped garlic around the pork. Cover tightly with aluminum foil or with Dutch oven lid. Poke about 10 holes all over the top of the foil. Cook pork 2 1/2 hours longer. Remove the pork from the oven and transfer to a large platter. Allow the meat to rest for about 10 minutes. While still warm, take 2 forks and “pull” the meat to form shreds. Using 2 forks, shred the pork by steadying the meat with 1 fork and pulling it away with the other. Put the shredded pork in a bowl. Combine with barbecue sauce until desired consistency is reached. Serve immediately with rolls or keep warm in a saucepan over low heat.

Makes about 10 sandwiches.

Nutrition:

Substitutions:

Seth loves these sandwiches with cole slaw on top.

Pork can also be made in a slow cooker. Rub the pork with the spice rub and allow it to rest at least an hour. Place in a slow cooker and fill with water until half of the pork in covered. Cook on low for 8 hours and then remove from the slow cooker and discard the water. Pull the pork, add the barbecue sauce, and either serve immediately, or return to the slow cooker on the warm setting.

Recipe courtesy of Tyler Florence.