Char Siu pork ribs and riblets

I decided to buy spare ribs instead of the normal baby back ribs I usually smoke. One of the reasons is that I planned on trimming them St Louis Style and then using the off cuts to make Char Siu riblets.

 I had experimented with Char Siu on a recent Chinese-food-making foray, but wanted to refine the recipe.

Refine nothing! I found the recipe I'll use from now on, thanks to Jessica Gavin on her Test Kitchen site. While I substituted some of the ingredients I didn't have (Sherry for the Mirin Wine and a bit of sesame oil in the marinade instead of Sesame Paste or Tahini) and a different cut of meat, this recipe turned out sticky, savory and sweet and as good as I have had in any restaurant. I have reproduced the recipe below, but I'd encourage you to follow the link above or below, read her tips and definitions and give her a thumbs up.

CHAR SIU RECIPE

(CHINESE BARBEQUE PORK)

http://www.jessicagavin.com/test-kitchen/seafood-meats/cantonese-char-siu-recipe/

Traditional Cantonese style barbeque pork recipe (Char siu). Roasted to perfection with savory and sweet Chinese spices and flavors.

Cook time: 50 mins
Total time: 1 hour 50 mins
Serves: 4

INGREDIENTS

• 1 ½ pounds pork loin or shoulder (trimmed weight) 
• ¼ cup honey 
• 2 tablespoons mirin wine (Aji-Mirin sweet cooking rice seasoning) 
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil 

MARINADE

• ¼ cup dry sherry (Shaoxing or sake if sherry not available) 
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed 
• 3 tablespoons light soy sauce 
• 1 tablespoon sesame paste (Tahini may be substituted) 
• 1 tablespoons black bean paste (or black bean and garlic sauce) 
• 2 tablespoons hoisin sauce 
• 1 teaspoon salt 
• ½ teaspoon five-spice powder 
• ¼ cup granulated sugar 

DIRECTIONS

1. Use off cuts from the spare ribs or trim fat and silver skin from your chosen meat and cut into 2 X 2 X 10 inch strips.

2. Combine all marinade ingredients; mix well. Add pork and toss to cover with the marinade. Cover and set a room temperature for at least 1 hour or refrigerate 3 hours, or overnight. Either use a ziploc bag or turn every 30 minutes or so.

3. Preheat oven to 375°F. Place a roasting rack on top of a sheet pan lined with foil. Place the pork on top of the roasting rack. Roast the meat in the center rack of the oven for (40 minutes).

4. Turn oven to 450°F. Mix the honey and mirin. Brush the strips of pork with the honey mixture, then sesame oil. Roast 5 minutes, then turn the strips over, brush the other side of the meat. Roast additional 5 minutes.

5. The meat should be cooked until an internal temperature of at least 135-140°F is reached.

6. Serve the char siu with your favorite vegetables and white rice.

Smoked Chicken and Rajas with Fresh San Marzano Tomatoes

What do you do when a fine neighbor brings an offering from his garden? Perhaps you combine it with an offering from your own for a simple yet satisfying meal.

We have been watching some fine Anaheim Chiles grow in our front yard, evidently a volunteer plant from last year's Chile Ristras that decorated our porch from the holidays. When the tomatoes arrived I decided dinner had to be something that could highlight both.

Hickory and apple wood smoked chicken breasts with New Mexican spices, Rajas and Spanish Rice with refried beans complimented the fresh tomatoes. Rajas are a combination of sauteed onions, garlic, roasted chiles and spices combined with cream that create a rich and delicious dish that can stand alone or compliment Carne or Pollo Asada. I hope you enjoy the recipes below as much as we did.

Smoked Chicken Breast

The chicken breast was prepared with a spicy southwest rub and slow cooked with indirect heat on the grill with apple and hickory wood chips. It is finished by grilling on direct heat till desired appearance and color.

Anaheim Chile Rajas

You can use different peppers or seasonings but this is a good model recipe.

I N G R E D I E N T S
4 medium, fresh Anaheim chiles, roasted and peeled
1 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 medium onion, sliced 1/4 inch thick
1 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
2/3 cup crema or whipping cream
1/2 teaspoon - thyme, 1 tsp Mexican oregano
2 bay leaves
1/2 teaspoon salt

I N S T R U C T I O N S
Chiles: Stem and seed the roasted chiles. You can remove the veins if you want a more mild rajas. Slice the chiles crosswise into 1/4" strips.

Heat the oil in a heavy sauté pan over medium heat and fry the onions until they brown, about 7 -8 minutes. Stir in the garlic and chile strips, cook 2 minutes.

Add the cream, herbs, and bay leaves and simmer until the liquid reduces enough to just coat the vegetables. Remove the bay leaves, taste and adjust salt as needed. 

 Rice: 

1 Cup rice
1 can diced tomatoes
1/4 Cup diced white onion
1/4 Cup diced green onion
1 clove garlic, diced or minced
1 Tbsp spicy southwest rub or to taste


Coat bottom of skillet with Olive or vegetable oil. Add rice and stir fry for 5 to 7 minutes. Add garlic, diced white onions and diced green peppers and continue to stir until the onions are translucent and the rice may begin to brown. Add one can diced tomatoes (with juice) and lightly sprinkle with seasonings such as spicy southwest rub . Add water to cover rice and simmer with lid until rice is done.

To Finish:
Add refried beans, the fresh sliced San Marzano tomatoes, and sprinkle with grated or crumbled Cotija cheese.

Carne Asada Pizza

We had a family feast last night: Carne Asada, Pollo Asada, Hasson's famous Pineapple-Orange-Mango salsa and homemade Pico de Gallo and guacamole. There were lots of leftovers to play with, so I decided to experiment a little.

to make the pizza, you can go with your own homemade dough or make it easy on yourself and go with a store bought ready-to-go pizza crust.For this pizza I decided to go with a jalapeno-cilantro-lime and spice sour cream base. See the recipe below.

To prep your crust:
brush lightly with Olive oil
Rub jalepeno peppers and or crushed garlic into the olive oil.

For the base:
Mix together sour cream, fresh chopped cilantro to taste, a squeeze of about a quarter lime, and a prepared spice mix such as the New Mexico Style Rub. (Sorry, I did this by eye so I don't have exact amounts).

Toppings:
In this case, I topped the base with a simple combination of sharp cheddar and pepper jack cheeses, then topped that with Carne Asada , homemade Pico de Gallo, a few extra chopped tomatoes. A little extra pepper jack cheese went on top to help prevent overcooking the already cooked Carne Asada.

To  serve -
Grab some of that guacamole and a few slices of lime on top. Makes a great day after meal that still has a nice spice kick.

Carnitas con Rajas

I decided it was time to explore something I haven't cooked... carnitas. There are a few ways to cook this tasty dish, but basically all of them involve slow cooking a Pork Butt (shoulder) for about 3 hours. The yield from this patience is well worth it, especially if you have to "tend the stove" and there happens to be a football game on.


Carnitas are cooked traditionally in Michoacan by simmering cubes of pork shoulder in a copper pot filled with lard. Most people today a)don't have a bunch of lard lying around, and b) want to try to keep their cholesterol under 350. In this first go-round, I decided to try a semi-traditional method by simmering lightly seasoned meat on the stove and then reducing the liquids till done. To accompany the carnitas, I added Rajas and Avocado-tomatillo salsa.

I love Rajas, and the recipe got me of to a simple but pretty good start. It was fairly mild, and I might add a little more heat next time. The avocado tomatillo salsa is an excellent version, and I'll use it again.


Carnitas (adapted from DianaKennedy)

Ingredients:
3 pounds of pork butt
Orange juice and water in a 3 to 1 ratio, enough to cover the meat
2 teaspoons of salt

Method:
1. Cut pork into strips (three inches by one inch), add to a large pot or cast iron skillet with the liquids and salt. Bring to a boil and then simmer uncovered on low for 2 hours. Do not touch the meat.
2. After two hours, turn heat up to medium high, and continue to cook until all the liquid has evaporated and the pork fat has rendered (about 45 minutes). Stir a few times, to keep pork from sticking to bottom of pan.
3. When pork has browned on both sides, it’s ready (there will be liquid fat in the pan). Serve either cubed or shredded (pork will be tender enough that just touching it will cause it to fall apart).
 Serves 4-6

Notes: The key to this recipe is that the meat has fat, so don't trim it! If there's not enough fat on the meat the recipe will turn out too dry. The brilliance of this recipe lies in its simplicity. Add rubs or spices as desired, or simply season with salt.


Hasson's famous Avocado Tomatillo Salsa

1 ripe avocado

1 medium tomatillo

1 stemmed jalapeño pepper, quartered*

1 Cup water

1 Tablespoon white distilled vinegar

3/4 Teaspoon salt

2 Tablespoons minced fresh cilantro

2 Tablespoons diced onion

Chef's note: 

For less heat, remove seeds from the jalepeños.

To make it hotter, substitute serrano peppers to the recipe.

In a blender or food processor puree all ingredients.  Add 1/4 to 1/2 lime to taste. Cover and chill until ready to serve.

Makes 1-1/2 cups

Basic ChilePoblano Rajas

You can use different peppers or seasonings but this is a good basic recipe, by Rick Bayless.

I N G R E D I E N T S
4 medium, fresh chiles poblanos, roasted and peeled
1 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 medium onion, sliced 1/4 inch thick
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
2/3 cup crema or whipping cream
1/2 teaspoon mixed dried herbs (thyme, Mexican oregano, marjoram)
2 bay leaves
1/2 teaspoon salt

I N S T R U C T I O N S
Chiles: Stem and seed the roasted chiles. You can remove the veins if you want a more mild rajas. Slice the chiles crosswise into 1/4" strips.

Heat the oil in a heavy sauté pan over medium heat and fry the onions until they brown, about 7 -8 minutes. Stir in the garlic and chile strips, cook 2 minutes.

Add the cream, herbs, and bay leaves and simmer until the liquid reduces enough to just coat the vegetables. Remove the bay leaves, taste and adjust salt as needed.