Before I could make bacon I had some fears to overcome in the process, maybe not fears but decisions.  I did not want to use any nitrates or nitrites in the process, which is scary at face value because nitrites, sodium nitrite particularly, and nitrates are used in meat processing and curing to prevent botulism.  Botulism is like cancer, no one wants it and everyone is scared of it.  The problem with using nitrates and nitrites in the curing process is that nitrites when exposed to high heat in the presence of protein, think frying bacon which has been cured in sodium nitrite, the proteins in the meat bind with the sodium nitrite to form nitrosamines.  Unlike sodium nitrite which is recognized as generally safe when consumed in small quantities, some nitrosamines have been proven to be carcinogens.

So the options are botulism or cancer then right?  Well not so fast, sodium nitrites are necessary in large commercial meat operations where there are numerous individuals handling the meat using various machines.  I contend that at home there is much more control over who and what are used in the processing of meat.  Like any other home cooking or canning exercise a good measure of cleanliness and attention to proper handling and sanitation will go a long ways in eliminating the need to add toxins to keep the meat botulism free.  With that said continue at your own risk.

As part of my operation everything was either new in package that was used (zip locks, foils pans) or sanitized in the dishwasher or cleaned with a bleach solution prior to contact with the meat.  Hands were washed regularly (with proper technique) and an alcohol based hand sanitizer was used just to be safe.  Overkill maybe but I suffer from Mysophobia.

If all of that is too much and you want to be safe just use some sodium nitrate, it won’t taste the same but it should at least provide a little more comfort, it is often sold under the names pink salt, curing salt, instacure and Morton® Tender Quick® among other names.  Be sure to follow the dosing instructions carefully when using these as they are toxic in large amounts.

So with all of that business out of the way I decided I would not use nitrates or nitrites in the curing process and would be extra vigilant in the processing, curing and smoking of my bacon and I am glad I chose to go this route, the end result is phenomenal.

I started out with a 13.54 lb chunk of pork belly from my cousin, she had a hog slaughtered a while back and had kept the belly in the freezer with hopes of having bacon made.  Keeping with the cautious side I had wanted to wait until daytime temperatures were set to max out around 40°F so I could truly cold smoke this and not have to worry about getting up too far into the scary temperature range.  First I chopped the belly into three fairly even chunks, I had three variations I wanted to try.

Next I mixed up my three cures they were all pretty simple and started with the same base recipe which can be found below, the recipe below is good for 3-5 pounds of meat.  The most important part of applying the cure is that it is applied evenly and thoroughly.  In addition I made two alterations to the base recipe to one I added 1/2 cup of real Michigan maple syrup and the other I added about a tablespoon of ground black pepper.

Once I had all three of the cures made up I took care to rub them on their corresponding pieces of meat making sure to get it in all the nooks, crannies and crevasses.  Once this was done I sealed up the meat in gallon zip lock bags getting as much air out as possible and then placed them in labeled foil pans in the refrigerator for seven days.  Each day I flipped the bags over, it was amazing how much liquid the salt pulled out even the first day.  As the days progressed the liquid continued to accumulate in the bags and the meat continued to firm up.

On the seventh day I removed the bacon from its home in the bag, rinsed it under running water patted it dry and placed it on a set of drying/cooling racks over a cookie sheet in the refrigerator.  In our home the are used for drying racks for smoked meat as much as they are for cooling racks after baking.  I digress, something else happened on that seventh day that was magical, this is a must, I sliced off two pieces of the bacon and fried them up to check for their saltiness and a flavor to see if anything needed to be adjusted.  This was a semi alarming process to be completely honest, the bacon started to cook like bacon then all of a sudden it turned GRAY!  Subconsciously I knew this would happen, it had no nitrates to give it the nice red color I am used to be it still took my by surprise, a few moments later it did turn a nice rosy color as it cook and the fat sizzled.  Then it was time to try, I was a little apprehensive, what if it was terrible?  It wasn’t it was salty, but not too salty and the maple bacon, it was like candy- sweet, salty and mapley, it was good.  At this point had it been too salty I would have soaked the bacon for an hour in cold water, rinsed, dried, fried and then put them in the refrigerator to dry if all was well.

   

After a good 24 hours in the refrigerator to form a pellicle, it should sit in the fridge for 12-24 hours but truth be told I didn’t have much of a chance for anything but 24 hours, I pulled the bacon out of the fridge, put it in the smoke house and fired up the smoke house.  The bacon was smoked for 12 hours using hickory and apple wood chunks, I also did some cheese in the smoker during the same time for good measure.  During the time it was in the smoker I monitored the temperature of the smoker constantly, I ended up having to put a house fan our in the garage on the firepot because despite the fact that it never got over 25°F, I had a hard time keeping the temperature in the smoker near 40°F like I had hoped.  My over fascination with keeping the temperature that low was likely that just an over fascination but none-the-less I did.

Early on in this whole process I made sure to save a couple of smaller chunks of meat to mix in and pull out throughout the day to test for smokiness, this was a mistake.  Mostly because the chunks of meat were so small that they got really smokey, too smokey really quick and I got worried.  I figured the smokiness would mellow as the bacon aged, like cheese does after a smoke but I was still worried.  So when the fateful hour came to kill the smoker I started to get anxious.  I killed the smoke and left the meat sit in the smoker for another couple hours to come down to a near freezing temperature slowly.

Then it happened.  Bacon.  I took the bacon out of the smoker and brought it in to a once again meticulously sterilized work environment and began chopping it in to appropriately sized pieces of about a pound and chopping off a few slices here and there to try.  In the interest of perfection and not making my house smell more like a find smokehouse I cooked the bacon in the oven, this is cheating but delivers perfect bacon every time.  Because it was in the oven I am not sure if it ever turned gray or not but when it came out and sat for a few minutes it smelled like bacon, it looked like bacon and it tasted very little like the chemically altered pork you find at the supermarket, it was phenomenal.  It was sweet, it was salty, it was smokey and most of all it was bacon.  It was the candy of meats.  Number one on the periodic table of meats without question.  And the maple was still the best, all it needed was a pancake and some syrup to go with it.

At the end of the day we ended up with a literal pile of bacon, a big smile on my face and a delicious plate of bacon to be sampled.  We also ended up with a renewed understanding of why bacon is the candy of meats, it can be so sweet, salty, smoky and necessary.  On more accomplishment on the Nate’s must do everything at least once list, but this one will end up on the why can’t I do this weekly list I have a feeling.  It was good to be back in action and there is no better way to come back than with bacon.

Here is the recipe for the basic bacon cure, this will make enough for 3-5 pounds of raw pork belly depending on how thick it is.  The thicker it is the farther it should go.

I must caution that even though they may look delicious, and they are; they do take quite a while to make, I wish I had thought of that prior to starting them that they would take longer than I thought, by you live and learn I guess.  With that one caution here is the recipe.

Ingredients
1/2 chipotle chile, canned in adobo sauce
1 tbsp olive oil
1 lb pork tenderloin
1 tsp dried oregano
2 tsp ancho chile poder
1/2 tsp cumin
3/4 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
4 slices of fresh pineapple, 1/2″ thick
1/4 c fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
3 tbsp thinly sliced red onion
3 tbsp fresh lime juice
1/2 tsp ground chipotle pepper
soft corn tortillas

Instructions
Begin by mincing chipotle, then combine with olive oil and rub evenly over pork.  In another bowl combine oregano, chile powder, cumin, 1/2 tsp salt and black pepper.  Sprinkle spice mixture over both sides of pork and let pork stand for 30 minutes.  Prepare the grill for a hot fire.  Once the grill is ready oil the grate with vegetable oil or cooking spray.  Once the grate is good and hot throw pineapple on over indirect heat, cook 5 minutes per side.  Once pineapple is cooked chop roughly and combine with ground chipotle pepper, remaining salt, cilantro, lime juice and onions in a medium bowl.  Set aside.  Grill pork over indirect heat until an instant read thermometer reads 145°F.  Remove from grill and let rest for 5 minutes on the counter.  Roughly chop, prepare tortillas according to their instructions.  Pack each with equal parts pork and pineapple salsa.  Enjoy

Its sweet, its spicy and delicious.  This is a recipe I think that will make its way into the rotation, this was a good dinner and will make an excellent lunch tomorrow.

Ingredients
2 tsp olive oil
1 lb kielbasa, chopped
1 large yellow onion, chopped
2 ribs celery, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
6 c chicken broth
2 c stock (vegetable, chicken or beef)
2 c water
8 oz kale, stemmed and sliced
3/4 lb red skin potatoes, cubed
1 can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp smoked salt
1/4 tsp ground chipotle

Instructions
Pour oil in stock pot and place on burner over medium heat.  Add kielbasa slices and cook until browned and a little crispy.  Removed kielbasa and set aside.   Add onion and celery to the pot, cook until soft and semi translucent, add garlic cook for about a minute.  Add in kale, broth, stock, water and kielbasa.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until kale is wilted, about 10 minutes.  Add everything else except the beans.  Simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add beans.  Cook until heated through.

If you don’t have any stock on hand, you can always substitute with broth.

This is a tasty soup, its going in the cookbook for a later rendition.

Moving on, tonight’s baking ended in a much more pleasing manner.  The brownies cooked up nicely, the sauce albeit stubborn turned out and end result…a more than 1300 calorie (before the ice cream), Paula Deen would be proud…it uses nearly a half pound of butter, life shortening dessert that is worth the 10 miles it would take to run off those calories.  But I didn’t eat a whole piece, just enough to know its good and that is all I need.

So now the details of how to make this beast of a dessert, make a double batch and you will need nearly a pound of butter and over three cups of brown sugar, this is not for the faint of heart.

Ingredients
1 c sifted flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 c chopped walnuts + extra
1/3 + 1/2 c butter
1 + 3/4 c packed brown sugar
1 egg, beaten
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1/2 c white chocolate chips
3/4 c maple syrup
4 oz cream cheese

Instructions
Preheat oven to 350°F.  Combine flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda and sift twice.  Add 1/2 c of chopped walnuts, mix well and set aside.  Melt butter, when melted add brown sugar and mix well.  Then add egg and vanilla and mix well.  Add flour mixture slowly, mixing well.  Add white chocolate chips.  Spread in a greased (with butter) 9 inch square pan.   Bake 20 to 25 minutes until done ( when a wooden tooth pick comes out clean).

While baking melt 1/2 c of butter and the cream cheese in a pan with maple syrup, stir in brown sugar until it is dissolved.  Once the brownies are done serve brownies topped with ice cream, drenched in maple butter sauce and sprinkled with walnuts.

It is important to note that real maple syrup is the key here, not the garbage you get at the store that is imitation, real stuff that was cook from sap that was drained out of trees.  That kind, its expensive and worth every penny.

Enjoy these babies and don’t tell your cardiologist about them or any other doctor for that matter, they may not approve.

One of the recipes that has been passed down through my family like balding (I hope not) and an attitude are sun dill pickles.  Just like they attitude they are true to form every time.  You put the same stuff in the jar, you follow the same process, you get the same result.  Easy, actually they are really easy, but, also true to form I have tried a few things this year to make them last longer.  One problem we always have they spoil, well they don’t actually spoil they just turn mushy.  No one wants a mushy pickle, they do make great dill relish at this point I must point out.  The best dill relish ever actually.

So this year I am trying the typical alum in half of the jars (I have left the alum in the recipe as handed down) and grape leaves in the other half.  In my reading this year I found that grape leaves are supposed to keep things crisper.  Do they?  I have no idea but come middle of the winter I will crack open two jars of pickles one with each technique and be sure to follow up on here with the results.  Fearful of a funky taste I have tried a few pickles from the grape leaf jars and noticed no difference in taste.

Also new this year to the process in addition to the usual washing I have begun removing the a small chunk of the blossom end of the pick approximately 1/16-1/8″ off the end of each pickle.  I read several places that there is an enzyme in the blossom end of the pickle which makes them mushy…so just to be safe they are all gone.

So with all of that said here is the recipe, it is designed for a gallon of pickles, rarely do I do a whole gallon at once, the left over brine keeps nicely in the fridge until it is needed.

These are probably the simplest pickles ever and they are mighty tasty, they are no Claussen pickles (more about that to come) but they are great in their own light and did I mention simple to make?

Be sure to check back mid winter to see how the grape leaf – alum throw down shakes out, which will keep the pickles crisper, will either or will they both fall short.

We started out with the beef shortribs this was perhaps the easiest part.  It was providential almost, I recently began to subscribe to Bon Appetit magazine and the July 2011 edition had a recipe for a Korean BBQ Marinade.  The recipe was good, actually it was really good we tried it a couple of weeks ago on some shortribs just for fun and I think I would be evicted by my wife if I don’t make it again.  It was really good.  We did let our shortribs soak in this marinade for about 16 hours, and the flavor was good, it permeated all the way through but was not too strong.

Next came the condiments, I started by tossing some shredded romaine and cabbage with a Korean Soy Vinaigrette, arriving what was affectionately known as dirty lettuce.  This was really easy to make and I made the vinaigrette the morning of so it had some time to meld and mature.  You can find the recipe below.

Ingredients
2 c shredded napa cabbage
4 c shredded romaine lettuce
1/4 c soy sauce
1 tsp grated ginger
1 clove garlic (finely minced)
2 tsp rice vinegar
3 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cayenne
1/2 tsp ancho chile powder
generous squeeze of lime juice
dash of sesame oil
a sprinkling of toasted sesame seeds

Instructions
Combine all but lettuce and cabbage in a bowl and let sit refrigerated at least 8 hours.  Just prior to serving shred cabbage and romaine and toss with vinaigrette.  Only toss as much as you need otherwise it will get soggy.

The last condiment that needed assembly was the Cilantro-onion-lime relish and it was something crazy it was easy to assemble but added such depth to the overall combination of flavors it would be tragic to leave it off.  You can find its recipe below.

Ingredients
1/2 red onion minced
1 tsp rice vinegar
1/2 tsp white wine vinegar
1 tbsp chopped cilantro
juice of 1 lime
pinch of salt

Instructions
Mince onion and combine in a bowl with vinegars, allow to set for 5 minutes.  After five minutes drain, rinse and allow onion to thoroughly drain.  Add remaining ingredients to a bowl with onion, stir to combine.

There was one final condiment we topped these babies with to give them a bit more of a kick, a little bit of a punch in the side of the face, it was a little Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce, you know the stuff in the clear bottle with the green top that is absolutely incredible.

So once the short ribs were grilled, de-boned and shredded, it was assembly time.  We heated up a skillet with little heat in it and warmed our tortillas in there the then piled on the meat and condiments and enjoyed.  These are pretty good, they are worth the effort and are on the menu again soon.

If I pulled one learning from this it would be that corn tortillas may be a bit better than the flour ones for this.  So next time we know.

Cooking in a dutch oven is not necessarily my forte, I mean it is primitive, but sadly my dutch oven is probably the least used weapon in my cooking arsenal.  Unlike the smoker, you can’t just set it and forget it (more or less), it requires constant devotion, and that presents a challenge at home when I usually do not have hours on end to babysit the pot.  Sadly.

Given the opportunity to give the dutch oven a try, I left the smoker at home and busted out the pot.  It is vacation, days are supposed to be spent doing the stuff you don’t have time to do at home like fishing, relaxing and yes, tending to a dutch oven.

To get started I had to do battle with the wind. First I dug a hole a few inches deep and a few inches wider than the dutch oven, then, grabbed the neighbors fire ring to act as a wind block.  Wind problem solved.

Next, I fired up 22 coals in the charcoal chimney and got ready to cook.  For every coal I put on the lid I put two underneath the oven in a checkerboard pattern.  From there, every 25-30 minutes, I added 6 to 8 or so fresh coals following the same distribution and rotated the oven half turn and the lid a half turn the other way.  There is a handy dutch oven temperature calculator you can find here.

After two and a half hours of this madness and the constant whiffs of amazing smells coming from the pot, it was time for phase two, the fire.  This was where we were to finish and give the ribs a nice outward texture.  While maintaining the coals on the pot, I had been building up a nice bed of cherry wood coals to finish the ribs on with a bit of BBQ sauce.

Once the ribs had taken on a nice set of grill marks and soaked up some cherry smoke, they were ready and tender!  So, when it was all said and done, there was really no recipe it was a cobbled together bit of whatever came to my mind goodness but here is my best stab at it.

Ingredients
1 1/2 tsp brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp chile powder
1 1/2 tsp sage
1/2 c apple cider vinegar
1/2 c apple juice
1/2 can Coca Cola
1 large onion (chopped)
4 cloves garlic (chopped)
1 tbsp oil
mustard seeds
rosemary
black pepper
2 bay leaves
bbq sauce
spare ribs (bones removed)

Instructions
Make a rub using brown sugar, chile powder and sage.  Mix thoroughly and rub into all the meat.  Set meat aside.  Combine remaining ingredients with the exception of the bbq sauce in the dutch oven with a cup of water add meat and top with a bit of bbq sauce.  Cook meat in the dutch oven until it falls apart over low heat (250-300°F), about 2.5 hours and finish over and open fire or on a grill with some more bbq sauce.  Let rest for about 5 minutes and enjoy.

After another successful yearly installment of caveman cooking, the novelty has not warn off.  Cooking with nothing but fire is rewarding, its natural, its primitive and its time consuming.  But at the end of the day, its worth it. Its a blast and you can almost taste the effort in the food.

Happy Independence Day! I have leftovers to eat!

Every spring my parents have an abundance of asparagus from their small garden plot out back, an abundance might be an understatement but it is way more than they could possibly hope to eat and still like it at the end of the season.  As a result I usually end up with a bit of it myself, which is fine with me, asparagus is my friend.  This year I thought I would try something a little different.  I tried pickling some asparagus, I tried three different methods and got three different results.  You will have to check back for the other two types of pickles as I have not yet tried all three.

The first type of pickled asparagus that I got to try was lacto-fermented pickled asparagus.  It was perhaps the most intimidating of the three batches I did, but I had to know.  Lacto-fermentation is a natural process in which the naturally occurring lactobacilli on the surface and in the vegetables (in this case) convert the sugars and starches in the vegetables in to lactic acid.  This lactic acid inhibits putrefying bacteria and preserves the vegetables.  At first glance.  Scary.

The asparagus pickle recipe I used was adapted from a recipe found over at Awesome Pickle.  Because I was using a pint jar and had enough asparagus to fill the entire jar I adapted the recipe a bit.  I did however find the technique  they used to submerge the asparagus in the jar simple and effective.  You can view that technique at the bottom of the page linked above.

Ingredients
asparagus (enough to fill a 1 pint wide mouth jar)
2 cloves garlic
1/2 tsp coriander seeds
1/2 tsp black peppercorns
1 c water mixed with 3/4 tsp kosher salt

Instructions
Wash asparagus.  Trim asparagus to fit into a 1 pint wide mouth jar, heads down, with about an inch of head space.  Thinly slice garlic cloves and place them in the jar, add in the spices.  Pout in the water until it entirely covers all of the asparagus.  Use the method shown in the third picture here to keep the asparagus from rising up during the process.  Put the jar in a cool place dark place with a towel underneath and another towel draped over the top to keep the dust out and forget about it for a week or two.  Once its ready in a week or two remove the jar, remove any surface mold and store in the refrigerator.

I initially had hoped to try these before I headed out on vacation a week ago but for some reason they just didn’t seem ready.  So instead I just took off and left them be in the basement and another week later they were ready to go.  These little guys are pretty tasty and still had a good crunch so far.  We’ll see how they are by the end of the jar.  If you can get over the initial intimidation of allowing nature to run its course on a jar of veggies.  Lacto-fermentation yields a delicious product that I am told is easier for the body to digest.

The atmosphere was authentic, it wasn’t wedding receptions nice but it was close but not cramped, dimly lit and fairy noisy.  All characteristics of a restaurant I would typically never want to come back to, however, Filippi’s managed to combine all these things into a tremendously enjoyable atmosphere.  The service was a cut above out waitress was fun and full of attitude, she was a riot.  And then there was the food.  Wanting to keep things simple we went with a pepperoni, extra cheese pizza and we were rewarded for out simplicity.  It was perhaps one of the best pizza’s I have ever had.  The salty oily cheese on top and the subtle but magical sauce on the crispy crust made this pizza something to long for.  It was awesome I would not hesitate to visit again and we just may yet this week.

Filippi’s Pizza Grotto in San Diego, it’s worth the wait.  It also has a neat deli and carry out available.

And I have to say it was not bad chicken, but it wasn’t chicken that left me wanting more either.  It let me down.  It was juicy, but I attribute that more to technique than the recipe.   I had high hopes for it and it just fell short, flat on its face at my feet, I was disappointed but when piled onto of a salad with some taco-ranch dressing it was almost just like any other chicken, but perhaps with just a hair more Mexican flavor and eaten that way it was quite alright.  So here is a copy of the recipe should you wish to try it.  I did use half the amount of cinnamon because that was all I had around.

Ingredients
1 1/2 tsp ground ancho chile pepper
1 tsp dried oregano
pinch of ground cloves
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 garlic cloves pressed
3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1/4 c fresh orange juice
1 tsp Kosher salt
chicken (parts or a whole)

Instructions
If using a charcoal grill, get some charcoal going in a chimney (I used half a chimney full).  Mix all ingredients except chicken together in a bowl to create a wet rub.  Once the charcoal is ready place all of the coals on one side of the grill to set up a cool zone and a hot zone.  Place the chicken on the cool side of the grill, brush healthily with the wet rub.  Turn chicken and brush the other side with the wet rub.  Cover the grill and cook until a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the chicken reads 165°F; basting with any remaining rub throughout the cooking period.  Remove chicken from grill and allow to rest for a while 5-10 minutes for parts or 10 to 15 minutes for a whole chicken.

The original recipe called for green onions to be grilled once the chicken was done, maybe this is where I went astray.  It also called for a whole chicken and not for parts, maybe that was the problem.  Either way it wasn’t bad, but like I said it let me down, it wasn’t all I had hoped for and the process of making the rub filled my kitchen with a heavenly familiar aroma of Jerk Chicken and made me think, why am I not making Jerk Chicken?  Well I may just have to do that soon.