Weekly Cooking (and related issues) Thread

[mumblypeg]

Dollar Tree sells quart-sized Gossner milk for $1.
Ultra high pasteurized, packaged in mylar box.
Shelf life 1 year, needs no refrigeration until after it’s opened.
Gossner provides this milk to the US military.

[Jamestown1630]

Thanks for that; we’re ‘preppers’ on a small scale, and will keep your advice in mind!

-JT

[Jamestown1630]

I’m going to try that! We don’t have outdoor cooking space, and all of our pulled pork is done in the oven, or the crockpot.

Thank You!

-JT

[Twinkie]

Well. I used to pack my kid’s lunch a lot of the time when
he was in school. I *thought* I was fixing delicious stuff
for him. Later I learn that he was trading it off for some
pure-dee junk food behind my back. :o(

[NorthstarMom]

Hope you like it :-). We recently moved to a new town and one boy on our sons’ football team has been really kind and welcoming to them-funny kid, like a 14 yr old stand up comedian. He was pretty down one day-his mom was sick and just got home from the hospital so I brought a meal that included pulled pork and new potato salad. I felt a little funny as I had never met them, but was grateful for what their son had done for my kids. The friend told the boys the next day that the meal was so good it was”org—m” good.

I guess it doesn’t get much better than that! My oldest almost died when he whispered that to us-face was beet red.

[amorphous]

This is how we do it down in Galt's Gulch:

or

Bring them home from Sam's Club, Cosco. Take your largest chef's knife, divide them up into about 4" x 4" slabs while still frozen. Slip each portion into zip-lock bags, and put them in your freezer until you feel hungry for a pulled-pork sammich. Butter up and toast a couple of hamburger buns while heating the pulled pork in a small pot with an ounce or two of water added.

You can have 10 times the number of sandwiches by this method, verses buying only two pulled-pork sandwiches at a deli, or in 1/10th the time it would take you to make them from scratch.

[Jamestown1630]

LOL! Nothing better than pulled pork, and potato salad!

-JT

[Jamestown1630]

Thanks for the clue1 i can buy all of that stuff at my local grocery!

-JT

[amorphous]

You're welcome. Just paying it forward since I've learned many useful things myself from other FReepers that saved me both time and money.

I wised up after parting with a $20 for only two pulled-pork sandwiches at a barbeque joint. The last time I bought 4-lbs of pulled pork from Sam's cost about $12. It's probably where the barbeque place here gets there's. lol

Some foods are far/cheaper and better to make from scratch, like ribs, brisket, potato salad, baked beans, etc. I don't find this to be true with pulled pork though.

I just discovered dehydrated tomato powder tonight. I had ordered a #10 can from Walmart and made chilli mac using it in place of tomato paste from a can. Wow, great tomato taste without the tin can taste. There is a recipe on the can for making BBQ sauce.

We make our own spaghetti sauce, chilli, etc. Will use this now in place of canned paste and sauce. Plus unopened, it has a shelf life of 25 years! We also use a lot of dehydrated vegetables for cooking, like bell pepper, onions, celery, carrots. Beats trying to keep fresh vegetables like these, used for cooking, on hand during the winter.

[pugmama]

This is the recipe I like for pulled pork.I always get rave reviews and requests for the recipe. I add 1 tbsp ground coriander to the dry rub. Also the sauce is quite tart. Adjust as you see fit. See reviews of the recipe for additional comments.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/pulled-pork-barbecue-recipe.html#communityReviews

[MV=PY]

I’ve been smoking pulled pork this way for years:

http://virtualweberbullet.com/pork2.html

It’s a bit of trouble but absolutely amazing!

For the Carolina white sauce:

http://barbecuebible.com/recipe/pig-picker-pucker-sauce/

Hmmm hmmm!

[Liz]

More stories please about your shopping expeditions.

[illiac]

4 lbs pork roast (shoulder or butt)
2 large onions
1 cup ginger ale
1 (18 ounce) bottlefavorite barbecue sauce (I like Sweet Baby Ray’s)
One can diced tomatoes

Directions
Slice one onion and place in crock pot.
Put in the roast and cover with the other onion, sliced. Pour over the ginger ale and diced tomatoes. Cover and cook on LOW for about 12 hours. See Note2 below regarding amount of time needed!
Remove the meat, strain and save the onions, discard all liquid. With two forks, shred the meat, discarding any remaining fat, bones or skin. Most of the fat will have melted away.
Return the shredded meat and the onions to the crock pot, stir in the barbecue sauce. Continue to cook for another 4 to 6 hours on LOW.
Serve with hamburger buns or rolls and additional barbecue sauce. Any leftovers freeze very well.
TIP: freeze ready-made sandwiches - a scoop of meat on a bun, well-wrapped. These make a great quick meal or snack. To reheat, remove wrapping, wrap in a paper towel, and zap 1-2 minute in the microwave.
Note: Shoulder or butt are recommended because the meat shreds very well. Other cuts do not shred as readily. It is a fattier cut, but the fat melts away in the cooking and is poured away when you discard the liquid.
Note 2: I have an older, smaller crock pot. The above times work perfectly for me. But if you have a newer or bigger crock pot, you may need to revise times downward, esp. after the bbq sauce is added. I think you need at least a couple of hours for it all to meld, but that may be all you need. Update: I recently bought a bigger crockpot, I think 5 or 6 qts. I cooked a 6 lb pork shoulder in it for 8 hours and it was shreddable at that point. Shredded, added the sauce, and cooked for another hour or so to meld everything. So use your best judgment on timing!
Note3: You might want to turn your roast over after it’s cooked a while, to ensure more even cooking. I think this may depend on the size and shape of your roast and the size of your slow cooker. Remember that each time you remove the lid you lose heat and be careful, as turning a large piece of meat is awkward.

[illiac]

A pork loin also works very well with this recipe....

[KosmicKitty]

Our favorite pulled pork recipe is from Pioneer Woman

I’ve done this several times. I like to actually make it at least a day before and store the shredded meat separate from the juices. That way, the fat solidifies on top of the juice and I can take all the fat off the juice before I mix the meat back in and heat it up. Personally, I like it better not swimming in fat.

I’ve brought this to picnics and potluck and pot lucks and it’s always a hit. It’s not a spicy as you might think as the soda tempers the spice quite nicely. And people have commented that it was nice and moist, but not fatty.

---

Spicy Pop Pulled Pork

Ingredients

2 onions, peeled and quartered
1 whole pork butt ( pork shoulder roast)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
One 11-ounce can chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
2 cans pop (I use Dr Pepper)
4 packed tablespoons brown sugar

Directions

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.

Start by placing the onion quarters in the bottom of a pot. Sprinkle the pork with salt and pepper, and then place on top of the onions. Pour the chipotle peppers over the top, and then crack open the cans of pop and pour them over the whole thing. Add the brown sugar to the liquid and stir.

Cover the pot, put in the oven and cook for at least 6 hours, flipping the roast 2 or 3 times during the cooking process. When it’s done, the pork will be dark and weird and wonderful. It’ll also be fork-tender. That’s when you know it’s done.

Remove the meat from the pot and shred completely. Then return the meat to the pot and keep in the juice until you need it. Divine!

2011 Ree Drummond, All Rights Reserved

[KosmicKitty]

Later I learn that he was trading it off for some pure-dee junk food behind my back.

I think that's common in this day and age. Not too many moms make real food so the kids who don't get good food want some. And kids who get feed good food at home are convinced by TV commercials that they really want the junk. Win-win for them, I guess.

My kids were raised with home cooked dinners almost every night with pizza or fast food as an occasional weekend treat. I remember when son #2 was 10 or 11 years old telling me with disgust in his voice that some other kid he know ate at McDonalds almost every night.

They may not voice it, but even kids know that home cooking, even when it's not perfect, still blesses a family.

[oldvirginian]

Just got around to reading the thread this week.
Bookmarked it to try out the delicious sounding recipes!

I am no making my doctor happy because the wife and I HAVE to try at least 2/3 of the recipes posted every week.
Very hard keeping my weight down hanging out with you people.

KEEP THE DELICIOUSNESS COMING!

[mrsmith]

Never got the mail.
I know it would be better to cook the meat in a sauce instead of adding it later but a ‘vinegary-BBQ’ type sauce I could put on a sandwich would be perfect for me.

[Original Lurker]

Humm. Okay. Let me try this again.. Stay tuned. :-)

[Original Lurker]

Re-sent!
I would not suggest cooking the meat in any sauce.
A pork butt has all the glorious fat needed to flavor the flesh, that in all honesty, could get by with just salt and pepper..

Here in the deep south we often pull the pork by hand, chop it with a meat cleaver then toss with BBQ sauce the same way you would with a green salad with its dressing.

I like serving pulled pork (butt) sandwiches with my homemade Kosher dill pickles and tater salad. (I have a wonderful tater salad recipe if you’re interested)

The BBQ sauce recipe I sent you is coveted.
Yeah, seriously.

Let me know if you get it.