Tag: pork
Fritada de Chancho (Ecuadorian Braised Pork)
Fritada de Chancho (Ecuadorian Braised Pork)
This Ecuadorian braised pork turns out like butter. It is so tender that chewing is barely required. A combination of boneless pork and bone in ribs are marinated in garlic and cumin, then braised for 2 hours. Once the water has evaporated, orange juice is added to the pork. It is then braised some more until the oj is gone. The pork is then browned in its own fat that it rendered out. Serve the pork with rice, beans, curtido, and avocado.
Ingredients
- 3 lbs pork sirloin or shoulder cubed
- 1 lb pork riblets
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 10 garlic cloves minced
- 1 medium white onion diced
- 4 small shallots diced
- 3 cups water
- 1 cup orange juice
- salt to taste
Instructions
- Marinate the pork with garlic, cumin, salt, and pepper for 2 hours.
- Heat up cooking oil in a Dutch oven over medium high heat. Sauté the onions and shallots for 3 minutes.
- Add in the pork. Sear for a couple of minutes.
- Pour in the water. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium low and simmer for 2 hours.
- At the 2 hour mark, the water should be almost completely evaporated.
- Pour in the orange juice. Simmer until the liquid has evaporated.
- Brown the pork in its own fat that it rendered out for 5 minutes.
Hong Shao Rou
Hong Shao Rou
This is my favorite way to prepare pork belly. Hong Shao Rou is a Shanghai Chinese classic dish. The belly is seared in melted sugar, then braised with light and dark soy sauces, shaoxing cooking wine, and aromatics, resulting in a reddish glossy melt in your mouth porky goodness. Serve the pork belly with steamed rice and a vegetable.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lb pork belly 1/2” thick; cut into 2” pieces
- 2 green onions cut in half
- 4 slices ginger
- water
Braising Liquid
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 3 tbsp sugar
- 1/3 cup shaoxing cooking wine
- 2 cups blanching liquid saved from the pork
- 3 tbsp light soy sauce
- 1 1/2 tbsp dark soy sauce
- 6 slices ginger
- 3 green onions cut into 2” pieces
- 2 star anise pods
Instructions
- Bring a pot of water to boil. Add in the pork belly, green onions, and ginger. Boil for 5 minutes. Skim off any of the scum that floats to the top.
- Drain the water, reserving 2 cups of the liquid. Rinse the pork belly under cold water. Pat dry with paper towels.
- Heat up cooking oil and sugar in a large sauté pan over medium heat.
- Watch the sugar. It will slowly turn an amber color. This will take about 5 minutes.
- Add the pork belly in a single layer to the pan.
- Cook the pork belly for 1 minute a side, making sure the sugar doesn’t burn.
- Add in the ginger and green onions. Cook for 1 minute.
- Pour in the soy sauces and cooking wine. Cook for a minute, scraping up the bits from the bottom of the pan.
- Add in the recesrved 2 cups of the blanching liquid. Bring to a boil. Cover. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 90 minutes.
Smoked Cured Spare Ribs
Smoked Cured Spare Ribs
What’s different about these ribs is the addition of pink curing salts to the brine. What this is going to do is turn your ribs into ham. Yes. Ham ribs. They turn out so unbelievably moist, I kinda only want to make ribs this way from now on. They will take a total of 5 hours of smoking.
Equipment
- Electric Smoker
Ingredients
- 4 lb spare ribs
- 1 tbsp paprika
- 1 tbsp black pepper
- 2 tsp ground sage
- bbq sauce
Brine
- 4 cups water
- 1/4 cup sea salt
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 tsp pink curing salts
Wood Chips
- hickory wood chips
Instructions
- Mix together the brining ingredients.
- Brine the ribs for 1 day.
- Season the ribs with paprika, black pepper, and ground sage. Let rest on a rack for an hour before smoking.
- Preheat your smoker to 250 degrees. Place the ribs in the smoker.
- At the 3 hour mark, brush a layer of your favorite sauce on the ribs.
- Brush one more layer of sauce on the ribs at the 4 hour mark. Smoke for 1 more hour for a total of 5 hours of smoking.
- Let the ribs rest for 20 minutes before cutting.
