pork products (again)

just a brief rundown of recent dinners:

posole (pork and hominy stew)

buttery cornbread with caramelized corn and scallions
made this with c – she made the posole and i made the cornbread. one really shouldn’t take as long making cornbread as i took, but i ended up making some caramelized corn/onions to add to the mixture, along with some chopped scallions. i also scrambled the extra egg white into the caramelized corn, so as not to waste it. the cornbread and posole went really well together, and make me wonder that i ever hated cilantro. fyi, i hated cilantro enough to pick it out of the batter my mother would use on homemade chicken nuggets. it’s all very strange because now i love cilantro. back to the food: the posole awakened a love for hominy; i’ve had hominy before in cape verdean food, and i’ve liked it, but not as much as this. makes you appreciate having something to chew, in some odd, primal way. oh, also – i’ve adjusted the original cornbread recipe to reflect a little less butter, and do make sure you cook it long enough, so it’s not doughy in the middle.

crispy pork (enough said)
c made this one night when i had dinner plans already; i ended up eating some both before and after my dinner engagement. oof. it was that good – essentially an easy version of carnitas. just envision this: pork fried in pork fat. yeah. i could never be a vegetarian ’cause i’d miss my pork products.

layered chicken enchiladas with tomatillo sauce
i made this last week, having made it once before many years ago when i was working in chicago. i remembered it as being excellent, and i think it was pretty good upon second try, though not quite all i wanted. i roasted my own chicken, but i suppose i’m just a pork product kind of girl.
adapted recipes below:

posole  (pork and hominy stew)

1 large head garlic
12c water
4c chicken broth
4 lbs country-style pork ribs
1t dried oregano (preferably Mexican), crumbled
chili powder and paprika
1 1/2c boiling-hot water
1/2 large white onion
1t salt
1 1/2 30-ounce cans white hominy
about 1 1/2 cups vegetable oil

potential accompaniments: diced avocado, thinly sliced lettuce, chopped onion, diced radish, lime wedges, hot pepper

1. peel garlic cloves and slice. in a dutch oven (c used a le creuset enameled cast iron one), bring water and broth to a boil with sliced garlic and pork. skim surface and add oregano. gently simmer pork, uncovered, until tender, about 1 1/2 hours.

2. transfer pork with tongs to a cutting board and reserve broth mixture. shred pork, using 2 forks, and discard bones if using bone-in meat. rinse and drain hominy. return pork to broth mixture and add oregano, chili powder, paprika, hominy, and salt. simmer pozole at least 30 minutes, until thickened.

[serves 8]

buttery cornbread

1 1/3c coarse stone-ground yellow cornmeal
1c unbleached all purpose flour
1/4c sugar
2t baking powder
3/4t coarse kosher salt
1c plus 2T buttermilk
7T butter, melted
1 large egg plus 1 large egg yolk, beaten to blend

1. butter a 9x5x3 metal loaf pan or a 9×9 pyrex dish. mix together cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. add buttermilk, melted butter, and beaten eggs. stir with wooden spoon until well blended.

2. add any additional ingredients (scallions, corn, etc). let batter stand 30 minutes to absorb liquid; preheat oven to 375F.

3. pour batter into prepared pan and bake until browned around the edges and tester comes out clean, ~40 min. let bread rest 5 minutes, then turn out of pan and cool.

[serves 10-12]

crispy pork  (carnitas con salsa de aguacate y salsa mexicana)

4lbs boneless country-style pork ribs
2c (or more) water
1 1/2c fresh orange juice
6 garlic cloves, peeled
2t salt
1t grated orange peel

1/4c brandy

warm corn tortillas
avocado salsa
fresh tomato salsa

1. cut pork pieces crosswise into thirds. cut off any big chunks of fat from pork and reserve; leave small pieces of fat attached to pork. combine pork, reserved fat, 2 cups water, and next 4 ingredients in deep 12-inch skillet (c used the dutch oven again). bring to boil. reduce heat, cover, and simmer until pork is tender, stirring occasionally, about 1 hour 45 minutes, adding more water by 1/4 cupfuls if necessary to keep pork partially submerged.

2. uncover skillet; boil pork mixture until liquid is reduced by half, about 10 minutes. stir in brandy; boil until liquid evaporates and meat browns and begins to get crisp, stirring often, about 15 minutes. cool meat slightly; discard any loose pieces of fat. tear meat into strips; return to skillet.

3. season pork with more salt, if desired; transfer to bowl. serve with warm tortillas, avocado salsa, and tomato salsa.

[serves 6-8]

layered chicken enchiladas with tomatillos

2lbs tomatillos, husked, rinsed, halved (quartered if tomatillos are particularly large)
1 1/4c chicken broth
10 garlic cloves, peeled
2c sliced scallions
2c (packed) very coarsely chopped fresh cilantro (1 1/2 bunches)
1 large serrano chile, sliced (with seeds) (substitute 1 medium jalapeno without seeds for those who like less heat)
12 5- to 6-inch corn tortillas
1 roasted chicken, torn into strips (~4c)
1 lb whole-milk mozzarella cheese, cut into strips
1 cup whipping cream

1. reheat oven to 450F. in a large saucepan, combine tomatillos, chicken broth, and garlic cloves. cover and bring to boil. reduce heat; simmer gently until tomatillos are soft, about 10 min. transfer hot mixture to food processor. add sliced green onions, chopped cilantro, and sliced chile; blend mixture to coarse puree.

2. overlap 6 tortillas in 13x9x2-inch oval or rectangular baking dish (i used 2 9×9 pyrex dishes). top tortillas with half of chicken strips and half of mozzarella strips. pour 2c tomatillo sauce evenly over. top with remaining tortillas, chicken strips, and mozzarella. pour 1 1/2c tomatillo sauce over, then whipping cream. sprinkle with salt and pepper. bake until bubbling, about 25 minutes.

[serves 6-8]