As it turns out, when I ran my concoction -- deep fried Peeps on a stick, dipped in melted chocolate -- by my son and daughter, who go to college in Oklahoma, they shrugged and said, "Oh yeah, we had those at the fair last year."
It's hard to pull tricks on midwesterners when it comes to food...
But thinking about what all the midwest has to offer -- cows, chickens, pigs -- reminded me of another quick & easy ManChow delicacy: Pulled Pork. Well, quick and easy to prepare, long and sloooooow to cook. But as they say, by that point you're just an interested bystander -- the pig's pretty well committed.
I forget where I got this recipe, but it's a favorite of everyone who's tried it. You can serve it as a main course, side dish or sandwich. The great thing is, it only takes about 15 minutes in the morning to pull it all together, set it in a low temp crockpot for 6 - 8 hours and come home to an amazing dinner!
Or breakfast, depending on how lucky you got the night before. Crockpots are forgiving that way... unlike you-know-who.
Yup, you heard me, you have to have a crockpot which, as you'll remember, is on my Basic List of Stuff Guys Need. You can find a good one for under $20 at Walmart, Target or the like. A small, 4-quart Crock-Pot(tm) will do just fine, you're not cooking a turkey in it.
Yet...
SLOW COOKED PULLED PORK
Goes well with a light American beer. So get one ... or several. Hell, set the case on the counter!
Ingredients
I large red onion, chopped
7 cloves of garlic, coarsely minced
(here's a little trick: Use a wide-blade knife and whack those suckers good! This
smooshes them and keeps them from rolling off the cutting board as you chop them)
Dump the chopped onion and garlic in a good sized bowl and add:
1 bottle chili sauce
1 tsp liquid smoke
1 tbs chili powder
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1 tbs Worcestershire sauce
1 cup brown sugar
3 tbs olive oil
Mix well and set aside.
(NOTE: Everything but the chili sauce and pork can be had
from the 99-Cent Store, as is our mandate here at ManChow)
Cooking Instructions
Heat a tablespoon of vegetable oil in a medium frying pan; when very hot, brown a 1-3 pound boneless pork shoulder on all sides (to seal in the juices). I buy a pack of Costco's super-thick pork chops, then split them up 2-3 per baggie and freeze till needed, so I use three big chops.
If you're really bored you can balance them on their sides to brown all over; knock them down like dominoes (hint: never cook naked!); or pretend you're marching through the Ardennes Forest.
In the meantime, set your brand spanking new crockpot to Low and pour the sauce in. When the chops are browned place them on top of the sauce.
Put the lid on and walk away. You're done for 6-8 hours!
During that time your place will begin to fill with the most amazing aroma, and you'll be hard pressed to keep family, friends and neighbors away!
Mount a guard, if need. Anyone but the dog.
After 6-8 hours of this torture the pork will fall apart like a cheap pair of shoes in the rain. To hasten the process use two large forks to pull the meat into shreds (hence the name). Mix the shreds back into the sauce and try not to drool into the pot.
Serve on large hamburger buns (I prefer onion) with, traditionally, a dollop of cole slaw on top.
I like mine with potato salad on the side, but it's your call.
Voilá!
P.S. I have an addendum to the tater tot recipe last month. My daughter just happened to mention the other day that Sonic Drive-Ins are now selling sweet potato tots. WHA--?!?!
Unfortunately, I live in a Sonic-free zone (we *do* have In-N-Outs, though, so nanner-nanner!). Instead, I came across a great recipe on Pretty Girls Cook, a food blog I can learn (and steal!) lots from.
I tried making them tonight, and while my tots looked less like hers and more like the opening credits for Game Of Thrones, they tasted awesome.
So thank you Pretty Girl, whoever you are! The steps are a little labor-intensive for ManChow (sweet and simple, that's us; and so's our food!) but for the more adventurous it's worth it.
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