This recipe seems elaborate, but it was actually the result of a bunch of leftovers from other recipes. The pork butt was purchased for porchetta (at work), the dashi, pork skin jus & Japanese mustard greens for pork ramen (at my leisure). Looking at these ingredients, I decided to give a classic Philly sandwich a try: roast pork & bitter greens on a seeded roll. The flavor profile has shifted East and the provolone has been omitted in favor of a slightly richer, more flavorful gravy for the pork but this is otherwise pretty straightforward. Totally satisfying lunch.
N.B. The pork skin jus is an adaptation from The Art of Living According to Joe Beef: A Cookbook of Sorts. For my money, it was the best cookbook released in 2011 and it has been a great source of inspiration in the kitchen.
Read the rest of this entry » «Japanese Roast Pork Sandwich»
Tags: butter, curry powder, dashi, garlic, mustard greens, pork butt, pork shoulder, pork skin, potato starch, shallots, shiitake, togarashi
I do not know what inspired it, but I had the quirky and likely disastrous idea to cook with egg nog. Not something like cookies, which would be reasonable, but a savory recipe. Here, I have adjusted a basic cream of mushroom soup recipe to balance out the sweetness and spices of the egg nog. The result is 100% edible and I am just as surprised as you about that.
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Tags: butter, dashi, egg nog, fennel, garlic, ham, scallions, shiitake
Like Vinny, I have been having a hectic week that has limited my time spent cooking up delicious ish for y’all. I made literally ONE non-sandwich meal this week and this was it. It was also a vegetable bin clearing effort; once again, my ambition at the farmers market outran my ambition in the kitchen. After glancing through Peko Peko & Izakaya for inspiration, I came up with the following dish: Miso Sesame String Beans (with shiitake to make it a bit more substantial).
Read the rest of this entry » «Miso Sesame String Beans»
Tags: garlic, ginger, Japan, mirin, miso, Rice, sesame, sesame seeds, shallots, shiitake, string beans
No culinary pretentions here: this recipe was an attempt to clear our my vegetable bin before the Saturday morning trip to the farmers market for fresher produce. Early plans for this dish included pork fat and/or eggs, but I eventually jettisoned those in favor of making it strictly vegetarian. Of course, that posed the problem of how to maximize flavor without delicious animal products, which led me to make the most of the shiitake mushrooms’ umami-rich properties. I surprised myself a little with how well this dish came together.
Tags: arugula, garlic, peppers, Rice, shiitake, soy sauce, tomatoes, truffle oil, vegetarian, zucchini
This recipe is my second attempt at the Mission Street Food cookbook rillette from last week. I have been looking for an excuse to try cooking Chinese bacon, so I subbed it in for the Spam. The flavor profile of Chinese bacon is hard to describe, but somewhat similar to Chinese takeout spare ribs, and I changed the seasonings to compliment it better. Guess what? The rillette is still damn good.
Bonus! In addition to the rillette, you will have leftover Chinese bacon broth. This is ridiculously fatty, so if you are foolishly misguided enough to try and limit the amount of pork fat in your diet, you may want to separate it by cooling and skimming the surface. My plan is to combine with the Spam broth from last week in a 2:1 ratio for the ultimate ramen soup base. The broth is also good for reviving the rillette if its been sitting in your refrigerator for a few days; just add the rillette to a pan over low heat with a little broth until warm.
Tags: black pepper, bonito, dashi, ginger, konbu, shiitake, Sichuan peppercorns, tamari
