Pork Bulgogi

Korean barbeque. Different than beef bulgogi, different ingredients, different sauce. With Trevor's help, I played around with two different recipes and came up with this. I've made this twice, after refining the first effort.

PORK BULGOGI

3 lb. pork loin, thinly sliced (I freeze for bit first to make this easy)
3/4 c. soy sauce
6 cloves of garlic
6 green onions, sliced
3 yellow onions, chopped
6 T. sesame seeds
black pepper
3 T. sugar
9 T. red pepper paste (gochujang)

6 t. sesame oil
6 t. chopped fresh ginger
6 t. white wine

Mix all ingredients together and marinate. Overnight is optimum; one hour is minimum. Cook meat in batches, over medium hot pan, until browned, one layer at a time. Serve with white rice.


Original recipes:
http://www.food.com/recipe/spicy-pork-bulgogi-29690 
http://crazykoreancooking.com/recipe/spicy-pork-bulgogi-spicy-marinated-pork

Christmas Eve

The church we've been visiting did not have a Christmas Eve service.  We don't always go, but it was kind of strange not to have the option.  We would've done it.  We're liking what we see and hear here.

Instead, we decorated cookies at home.  Robert made them earlier in the week, and I whipped up the icing tonight.

Robert and I joined in too.  Trevor made certain characters, including Walt from Breaking Bad (and Skyler, but I think he understandably killed her before I got a picture).

For dinner, I made Robert's new favorite food, Pork Green Chile.  He can't get enough of it.  He will eat it on top of Cheerios.  At least he says he will, I haven't seen him do it. Yet.  And when he's not eating about it, he's talking about it to anyone who will listen.

It really is amazing stuff.  I can't believe that these ingredients can come together into something so delicious.

Green Pork Chile

2 lbs. leftover pork roast, shredded
2 T. oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 HEAD garlic, minced (I dumped in a couple of spoonfuls of minced garlic from a jar)
6 T. flour
1 - 15 oz. can tomatoes, drained
2 c. diced green chiles, drained (I used a big can of whole green chiles, a bit more than 2 c.)
3 large tomatillos, coarsely chopped
5 c. chicken broth (or water)
1 T. cumin
2 T. chili powder
1 t. salt

Process half of the green chiles until smooth. (I forgot to do this the last time, and I couldn't tell a difference--so this step is optional.)

Heat oil in a large pot. Add onion; saute until tender but not brown.  Stir in garlic, and cook for a few more minutes.  Stir flour into onion mixture until flour is absorbed by fat.  Add broth.  Cook and stir until mixture comes to a boil and is slightly thickened.  Add shredded pork, drained tomatoes, chopped tomatillos, all green chiles, and spices.  Simmer for at least an hour, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking/burning on bottom of pan.

Serve in burritos, over burritos, with tortilla chips, with tortillas.  Or anything else. Including Cheerios.
 --
I adapted the above to suit our tastes.  This was the original recipe.

Recipe - Incredible Pork Loin Roast

Another recipe with amazing reviews that I found online. I was a bit skeptical too of the cooking time, but as I read the reviews, I remembered our favorite roast beef recipe is cooked the same way--turning the oven on high for a short period of time, then turning it off for a longer time for the meat to continue to cook.

PORK LOIN ROAST

one pork loin--the original recipe says 1 lb. Other reviewers cooked significantly larger roasts; mine was 3.5 lbs.

The success of this cooking method will depend on the accuracy of your oven and how well your oven retains heat. I guess mine is fine with both.

Determine the EXACT weight of your roast from the meat wrapper. The EXACT weight will determine the cooking time.

Preheat oven to 500-550 degrees. (Mine only goes up to 500.) Remove meat from fridge; season as desired. (I did nothing to mine.)

Place seasoned meat in uncovered roasting pan. (I added small potatoes and chopped carrots which had been tossed in oil, salt and pepper. I pushed them toward the edges of the pan so that the meat sat on the bottom of the pan.)

Bake EXACTLY 5-1/2 minutes PER POUND. Adjust +/- according to your oven's accuracy and heat retention. Turn oven OFF and DO NOT open the oven door for ONE hour. Remove from the oven and let sit for five minutes before slicing. Roast will be done, very slightly pink in the center, and very moist and tender.

For the recipe in its entirety, along with reviews, click here.

Ah-mazing Stovetop Pork Ribs

Cooked on the stovetop, my rib-loving family proclaimed these the "best EVER." Easier and quicker than many rib recipes, these were so very tender and flavorful. Dinner was even mostly silent as everyone wanted to just eat and not speak. I'm not that into ribs (way too messy!), and these were an outstanding exception.

Stovetop Pork Ribs

10 pork spareribs*
1/2 c. soy sauce
10 cloves garlic, crushed
1 T. dried rosemary
1 T. dried oregano
2 bay leaves
1 lime, juiced (I used bottled lime juice)
6 sprigs fresh parsley (I subbed a bunch of dried parsley)
ground pepper to taste
2 limes, cut into wedges

Place spareribs in a large, shallow pot. (*See note below.) Fill with just enough water to cover. Add soy sauce, garlic, rosemary, oregano, bay leaves, lime juice and parsley. Bring to a boil, then simmer uncovered over medium heat until the water has completely evaporated, about 25 mins.

When all of the water is gone, remove the bay leaves and allow meat to brown, turning occasionally. Use a spatula to scrape up browned bits from bottom of pot, and toss them back on the meat. Remove the meat, drain on paper towels. Season with black pepper and garnish with lime wedges.

*Note: I am not sure if I used the right kind of "pork spareribs." I bought a long rack and then cut them into groups of 4-5. I still had to cover them with quite a bit of water, which took an hour to boil off. I found this recipe ONLINE HERE, and next time I hope to read through the hundreds of reviews to find out exactly what kind of pork I should be using.

Oh my goodness, this was sooooooo good . . .

Slow Cooker Pork Tacos

I found this recipe at Food Network a few weeks ago while planning a Mexican dinner with friends. This had a slew of terrific reviews and was easy to make. The ingredients list seems long, but nothing required much chopping, as it was all thrown into the blender. Best of all, it was delicious!

Slow Cooker Pork Tacos

3 whole ancho chiles
3 whole pasilla chiles
(I couldn't find the "right" chiles so just subbed six Anaheim chiles.)
4 cloves garlic, whole is fine, or minced from a jar, it won't matter
2 to 3 chipotles in adobo sauce
1/2 medium white onion, cut into a couple of pieces
3 T. oil, divided
2 T. honey
1 T. cider vinegar
salt
2 t. dried oregano
3-3/4 c. low-sodium chicken broth
4 pounds boneless pork shoulder (untrimmed), cut into chunks
pepper
2 bay leaves
1 cinnamon stick
Corn tortillas, warmed, for serving
Assorted taco toppings, for garnish

You're going to make a sauce that will be poured over the meat to cook in the crockpot. If you double the amount of meat, you do not need to double the sauce (and it wouldn't have fit in my crockpot anyway).

Put the chiles in a bowl and microwave on high 2-3 minutes. (Note: Only do this for fresh chiles! If you used dried chiles, reconstitute by soaking in water before next step.) Stem and seed chiles, protecting your hands (I use plastic sandwich bags in a pinch).

Put the chiles and garlic into a blender. Add chipotels, onion, 2 T. oil, honey, vinegar, 1 t. salt, and oregano to blender; puree until smooth. Heat the last 1 T. oil in a large skillet over high heat; add chile sauce and fry, stirring, until thick, about 8 minutes. Pour in the broth and continue to cook until liquid is reduced and slightly thickened.

Season the pork all over and put in crockpot. Add the bay leaves and cinnamon stick, then pour in the sauce. Cover andn cook on high until the meat is tender, 5 hours. (I cooked overnight on low.)

Shred the pork with two forks. I strained the remaining sauce and put some of the solids back in the crockpot (discard bay and cinnamon). I chilled the strained broth, skimmed the fat, and poured some of the liquid back into the crockpot to keep the shredded meat moist.

Great taco garnishes include something cool to offset the spiciness of the meat--fruit or sweet salsa, shredded cabbage, avocado slices, etc. For more info on this recipe, including other reviews and hints, click here.

Amy's Dirty Rice

No photos here, but I'm adding this to remember it for future meals. I've had Amy's Dirty Rice a few times at potlucks and loved it; my family was hard to convince, but once Rob and Trevor tasted it, they were hooked too. Holly didn't try it, but it was fast, easy, and good enough for us to make again.

Amy's Dirty Rice

1/2 onion, chopped
1 lb. sausage (I used lower fat Jimmy Dean)
1 box Uncle Ben's Long Grain and Wild Rice
1 can sliced mushrooms, drained

Fry the sausage and onion together until sausage in brown and onion is soft and cooked through. Meanwhile, cook the rice according to package directions. When both are done, combine in one of the pans (whichever is big enough), add mushrooms and mix well.

This also makes a great potluck dish (I'm planning to bring it to one next week), as it doesn't have to stay piping hot to taste good.

Recipe - Nacho Dogs

Due to an abundance of hot dogs in my freezer, I recently put out a plea for hot dog recipes to my loopy friends. Renita passed on a link from Food Network, which included for this great Bobby Flay recipe. What really convinced me was the number of great reviews people had posted. That, and a desperate need for something a little different and new.


The complete and real recipe can be found here, but this is how I made them:

Nacho Dogs

Guacamole:
2 avocados, mashed
1 jalapeno, finely diced
3 T. red onion, finely diced
1 lime, juiced
1 T. oil
3 T. chopped cilantro leaves
salt
pepper

Combine all ingredients; mix well; set aside.


Salsa:
I used jarred salsa in the fridge.

Hot Dogs:
8 hot dogs
8 buns
1-1/2 c. grated cheddar cheese
handful of pickled jalapenos, finely diced
crushed tortilla chips

Grill hot dogs to desired doneness. Place hotdogs in buns, top with cheese, jalapenos, guacamole, salsa and tortilla chips.

Trevor and I loved it. Robert and Holly were much more dubious, pulled ketchup and mustard
out of the fridge, and ate their guac with chips, separate from their dogs. But the nice thing about this recipe is that everyone can fix it their own way. I'll definitely be making these again; I'd take them over regular hot dogs any day!

Recipe - Pork Chops with Beef Gravy

My mom tried this recipe and passed it on. It was super fast and easy to make. It's also pretty forgiving, easy to substitute the few ingredients. Best of all -- TA DAA -- everyone liked it. A LOT. (Holly picked out the onions.)

The only thing I would do differently next time is make mashed potatoes or rice to go with the great gravy!




Pork Chops & with Beef Gravy

2 T. cornstarch
1-3/4 c. beef broth (I used 1 can beef consomme and added a can of water)
1/8 tsp. pepper
cooking spray
6 bone-in pork chops, 1/2” thick (I used thin sliced, since it's what I had)
1 medium onion, sliced

Mix cornstarch, broth and pepper until smooth. Set aside.

Spray skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium-high 1 minute. Cook pork chops 10 minutes or until browned. Set chops aside. Remove skillet from heat.

Spray skillet with cooking spray. Add onion. Cook over medium heat until crisp-tender. Stir cornstarch mixture and add to skillet. Cook until mixture boils and thickens, stirring constantly. Return chops to skillet. Cover and cook over low heat 5 minutes or until chops are done.

* * *

Thanks, Mom!!

Grilled Fusion Pork Chops

I had pork chops to use tonight, but no one was excited about bbqing them (execpt for me). I stumbled upon this recipe, and it was a big hit. Holly and Trevor even finished their meat before I ate mine!

GRILLED FUSION PORK CHOPS

1/4 c. soy sauce
1/4 c. lime juice
1 T. garlic paste
1 T. ginger paste
1 T. oil
4 pork chops, 1" thick
1 T. garam masala (see below)

In a large ziplock bag, mix together soy sauce, lime juice, garlic, ginger, and oil. Add pork chops, lay flat, and remove all air. Seal bag and refrigerate 2 to 3 hours, turning occasionally.

Place pork chops on preheated grill. Sprinkle with garam masala as they cook.


GARAM MASALA

This is an Indian spice. There are several different recipes, but this is quick, and I had most of the ingredients on hand. I reduced the recipe, eyeballing the "odd" measurements. I really don't need any leftovers right now!

1 t. ground cumin
1/2 t. ground coriander
1/2 t. ground cardamom (I didn't have any so just skipped it)
1/2 t. black pepper
1/3 t. ground cinnamon
1/6 t. ground cloves
1/6 t. ground nutmeg

Stir together in small bowl. Can store in airtight container in cool, dry place.

The Best Ribs Recipe

I originally found this recipe several years ago in Parade Magazine. Pam Anderson is a chef and cookbook author, and we've also enjoyed her pot roast, meatball, and fajita recipes. I'm not a fan of ribs. They are messy, and I don't really like to eat with my fingers. I made these for Robert originally, and he loved them. I made them again last year, and the kids thought they were great, so much that they asked for them again this Easter. I think they are a little spicy. Not overly so, but I used only have the mustard and rub on one of the racks last year, but both kids much preferred the spicier ribs. The recipe is also really easy, and I've slightly modified bits of it along the way.

THE BEST OVEN ROASTED RIBS

1/4 c. brown sugar
1/4 c. paprika
2 T. black pepper
1 t. salt
2 T. garlic powder OR 2 t. crushed garlic
6 T. Dijon or yellow mustard
2 slabs of pork spareribs (9 lbs.), or 4 slabs of baby back ribs (8 lbs.)
1 bottle of your favorite bbq sauce (optional)

Mix brown sugar, paprika, pepper, and salt in small bowl. IF you are using garlic POWDER, add this in too. Mix mustard and CRUSHED garlic (if you are using that) in a small bowl. Brush both sides of slabs with mustard, spreading evenly. Sprinkle both sides with the dry rub, using your fingers if you need to rub it in a little, and it will look like this.


Line a large jellyroll pan or other shallow roasting pan with a sheet of heavy duty foil. Place pan on the oven floor (if oven is gas) or bottom oven rack (if oven is electric), making sure the foil covers the entire oven level. Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and preheat oven to 250 degrees.

Roast ribs until fork tender–2 to 3 hours for spare ribs and 1-1/2 to 2 hours for baby back ribs. If you are using bbq sauce, remove foil lined pan from oven and pour off any fat. Transfer ribs to foil lined pan, meat side down. Turn on broiler. Brush ribs with half the sauce. Put pan under broiler until glaze bubbles vigorously. Remove pan, turn ribs, brush with remaining sauce, and return to broiler until glaze bubbles vigorously. Let stand 5 to 10 mins. Cut into individual ribs and serve. Two slabs makes 4-5 servings at my house.

It could have been worse

It could have been snowing. But it wasn't.


It was Robert's brand new car. Trevor was sitting right here. They'd JUST parked, Robert was out of the car, and incredibly Trevor wasn't out yet. The driver of the other car backed up quickly, C-RUNCH. Thank you, God, for watching over Trevor and keeping him from opening his door. So it definitely could have been worse.


Robert called me from the parking lot and asked me to bring the camera. I could have been going to the hospital. It definitely could have been worse.

We all went into the mall afterwards. Holly tells me that Aunt Lori was asking her how *I* would have felt if MY mom had followed me around with a camera when I was 12. (Gee, THANKS, Aunt Lori!!) Actually, Holly has been a good sport. At least she didn't hide!

We bought a couple of pretzels, and Robert consoled Trevor at Orange Julius. Trevor was still pretty upset. Even little accidents can be traumatic for adults, and he's just a kid. (I felt like Emily at the mall with my camera, but I did turn off my flash!)

When we came home, Trevor and Robert restocked our woodpile. Again.

Of course, while they worked, I didn't. I walked around with my camera. Just before sunset, everything was bathed in gold.


Two weeks ago, we experimented with Breakfast Burritos for dinner. Oh, they were so good! I made them again last week when Robert worked late, and they were all gone the next morning. I made them again tonight for dinner.

BREAKFAST BURRITOS

Per burrito:
1 potato
1 egg
1/8 lb. chorizo or sausage
cheese
1 tortilla, warm

Peel and dice potatoes; boil until tender. Scramble egg the way you like; I always add a couple of teaspoons of 1/2 and 1/2 for each egg. Fry sausage. Mix all together, and place in tortilla. Top with cheese and anything else you want (sour cream, salsa, etc.). Wrap well. Can wrap in plastic and reheat in microwave.

YUM!

* * *

So, not the best day ever. But it certainly could have been worse.

Back to school

I was a little worried about starting back to school today, but it went just fine! For starters, we woke up to warm weather. The high yesterday was 28, and the wind blew all night. When I woke up this a.m., it was already 38 degrees outside.


Nice for melting some of the snow too. :)

Holly and Trevor had no problem getting back into the routine. Poor Holly had a very long math review to start off her day. Math isn't her favorite subject, and we recently switched her from Saxon to Singapore a few months ago. I have been very pleased with the way the new math curriculum is making her think. It's like night and day, she's much more engaged, and she understands what she's doing. Her attitude about it has also improved considerably.


Trevor chose to read Charlotte's Web on his own instead of me reading it out loud. We'll see if his motivation lasts. I'd prefer he read easier and shorter books on his own, plus I was kind of looking forward to reading this book. On the other hand, if he reads it himself, *I* won't cry at the end.

The kids were so "on" today that they even were disappointed when I stopped after one of the Seven Wonders. Hey, that was all that was on my schedule. They can wait for tomorrow to learn about two more. I'd rather keep them guessing anyway.

Every time I pulled out my camera, Trevor protested. He thought this was a protest face. Hah, that'll teach him that I'll post any picture of him that I can!


I spent some time tonight adding some links and photos of our curriculum on the sidebar. I think I still have to figure out a few details.

Trevor had a friend stay for dinner, and it was a hit. Of course, it helps when everyone is really hungry, but tonight they were all quiet when eating, and I think all of dinner took nine minutes. I made Pork Chops with Lemon Caper Sauce. The recipe calls for sliced pork tenderloin, but I had boneless chops on hand and Holly requested this recipe. Clearly, it's a favorite.

PORK MEDALLIONS WITH LEMON CAPER SAUCE

1 T. coarse ground pepper (use less)
1-1/2 lbs. pork tenderloin, cut to 1: thick medallions
4 T. butter
1 c. chicken broth
1/4 c. fresh lemon juice
2 T. capers, drained

Press pepper in both sides of pork pieces. Heat 1 T. butter in large skillet or medium heat. Cook until just done, 4 mins. per side. Transfer to plate and keep warm. Add broth and lemon juice to skillet. Boil until only ½ c. left, about 7 mins. Whisk in remaining butter. Add capers, salt and pepper to taste. Pour over medallions. Serves 4.

* * * *

It was an overall great day, and it was the day I was expecting to be the toughest this week. Life is great!

Monday, Monday

Wow, there are so many nice comments about my Pikes Peak pics! I am really surprised, I thought they'd be boring. I never expected such a response! It IS a gorgeous view. We also have clear shots of both Garden of the Gods and Cheyenne Mountain, but they are right between houses across the street. I should just crop out the houses and post.

School wasn't as hard as I thought today, going back to work after a long weekend. We began reading Hittite Warrior, which requires some concentration on Trevor's part. Holly wasn't thrilled at first--the story is about a boy (gasp!), but she changed her mind quickly. The only killer is that the book is due next week, and I know we won't be done with it. I hate reading through it quickly just to finish. We were off to a great start to the day, stalled big time by late morning, but caught up early in the afternoon. Whew!

I haven't heard from my mom at all. The news I've read online says that half the county is still without power and it may take until late tomorrow to get everyone back up. The HIGH for today and tomorrow is below freezing. Unbelievable. They have a wood stove, and I wasn't worried at all until I saw the temps a minute ago. Two years ago, during an unexpected cold spell, a frozen pipe burst, poured water into their upstairs bathroom until the well pump burned out, and caused horrible damage. They were gone at the time and returned a month later to find their upstairs ceiling all over their dining room, mold everywhere. I'm sure they are glad to be able to keep an eye on things. I was hoping they were enjoying "roughing it," but this is too cold to pretend it's fun. If nothing else, maybe they'll have some good memories out of it.

Robert doesn't like it at ALL when I try new recipes for dinner. So I figured why stop at just one. :) He's been wanting cauliflower for a couple of weeks, so I built the rest of dinner around a new cauliflower recipe and tried a new pork recipe and new salad dressing recipe. I think we were all surprised that dinner turned out as well as it did. It was a huge hit!

The menu:
Citrus Grill Pork Loin
Browned Cauliflower
Spinach with Warm Balsamic Dressing and Mushrooms
french bread

**
The kids and I sampled this pork recipe at Sam's Club last week. I already had the spice, since I'd sampled it with fish awhile ago at Sam's Club.

CITRUS GRILLED PORK

2 T. oil
1 pork loin, cut into 1/4" slices (I used 4 already-cut pork chops), trimmed
Durkee Citrus Grill Spice
pepper
1/3 c. orange juice
1/3 c. chicken broth

Heat oil in large skillet to medium heat. Sprinkle both sides of pork with Citrus Grill and pepper. Sear pork on both sides until browned. Add orange juice and broth to pan, cover, and reduce heat. Simmer until cooked through, about 6 mins.

**
Trevor liked the cauliflower too, and we ate it all.

BROWNED CAULIFLOWER

3 T. olive oil (I used regular canola and it was fine)
1/4 t. hot red pepper flakes
4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 cauliflower trimmed into 1" chunks
1/2 t. salt

Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add red pepper flakes and garlic, and add cauliflower. Sprinkle with salt and cover. Let cauliflower cook, giving the pan an occasional shake, for 4 mins. Remove cover and toss everything together well. Cover and cook 3 more mins., then toss well again. By this time, the cauliflower should be starting to brown. If not, turn up heat. Cover pan again, let cauliflower brown slowly, and toss every few minutes until cooked and browned, 12-15 mins. total time.

**
The salad was okay, too vinegary, so I won't make it again. But it was definitely edible.

Tomorrow will be the last of our "nice" weather. "Nice" is relative, it's way too cold for me now, in the 40s. Brrrrr! At least I'm not on an island without power in below freezing temps . . .