Thursday, April 29, 2010

The Smokey Pig


The Smokey Pig
Originally uploaded by EatingVideo
The kids and I ate at The Smokey Pig in Ashland VA.
We have never eaten here despite passing it multiple times on the road. The boy was hungry

hungry smile

the girl was in judge mode

waiting

We started with some hush puppies, which were great

hush puppies

They were crisp and bready with corn and apple taste

taste it

The boy considers himself a soup critic and thought the tomato soup was incredible.

tomato soup

The girl ordered a steak which came to the table perfectly grilled with a smokey exterior, medium rare interior.

steak

The boy went with a burger (he shares my antipathy of pulled pork)
the burger was huge and tasty

burger

I ordered the pork ribs

rack of ribs

They were meaty, perhaps a bit dry, and not as smoky as Buzz and Neds but still very flavorfull. The house sauce is sweet and tangy and complimented the ribs very well.

We left very full, very happy with the food, and great personal service.

satisfied

http://thesmokeypig.com/

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Mofongo


Mofongo
Originally uploaded by EatingVideo
The fortunate combination of fried green plantain and crispy pork is a delicious dish. I deep fried pieces of green plantain till cooked but not crisp then combined them with pieces of pork sauteed till crispy. This is actually pieces from my baked pork head.

cooking the plantain

I added a homemade chicken stock

caldo de pollo

mixed in the food processor till it all came together I molded it in a bowl and served it.

Mofongo

It is great with a saucy shrimp scampy (as I served it) or roast chicken or pork.

Strawberry Jam


strawberry jam
Originally uploaded by EatingVideo
Remember the jam braised pork chops, well my daughter made that jam, and this (her favorite) strawberry jam. All I can say is that it is chopped strawberries, sugar, lemon juice, and water. I always forget the quantities and proportions which clearly signifies that my wife and daughter are much better bakers, candy makers, jam makers than I am. I am much more likely to vary and inevitably screw up a candy, jam, bakery recipe. (cooking is much more forgiving).

She combines all the ingredients and cooks them down

girl cooks

till they get sticky and gooey (my terms)

jam

the girl actually spoons it onto a chilled plate and draws a line in it to test doneness

testing

and when it is done to her satisfaction she cans it.

strawberry jam

When I say she does it she is in charge, I supervise but this nearly 12 year old calls the shots. To her credit it is very good... (I would add some black pepper and strawberry brandy but that would probably screw it up).

its hot

Saturday, April 24, 2010

I love food curated and her videos, but I am so jeleaous of the pizza oven, as I would love to build my own.

Retiring to Make Pizza: Paulie Gee's from SkeeterNYC on Vimeo.

Saturday, April 17, 2010

Tostones again


bullet hole
Originally uploaded by EatingVideo
I know we have cooked fried plantains multiple times but here we go agagin.

Tostones sous chef

the plantains are fried at a low temperature (325 deg) for 10 min then taken out to rest and flattend

aplanando

in my house using the mortar

Making Tostones from Eugenio Monasterio on Vimeo.



then refried till crispy

Thursday, April 15, 2010

Acorn Edition Salumi


la Quercia box
Originally uploaded by EatingVideo
I received our second shipment from La Quercia today (Acorn Edition hog share). This box contains cured items.

la Quercia shipment

I am probably the most excited to try the Lardo

lardo

fat

But we also got some Coppa

organic coppa

Nicely marbled

coppa

Guanciale (cheeks!)

la Quercia guanciale

Pancetta

pancetta

pancetta

Looking tasty

pancetta

Somehow I missed a picture of the Lonza (cured loin) but it is in there.

lots of it

Now to portion it out amongst the shareholders (my brothers) and feast!

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

Jam braised pork chops


weekend cooking 005
Originally uploaded by EatingVideo
This was an easy dish that turned out great. Sweet and savory.
I started with a couple strips of bacon on a cast iron pan

weekend cooking 001

I then added some thin pork chops seasoned with salt and pepper, and then painted liberally with a mixed berry jam (mostly blueberry).

weekend cooking 002

I then layered some chopped onions on top

weekend cooking 004

and reseasoned with salt and pepper. I put it in a 375 deg oven for 40 minutes, till It looked like this...

weekend cooking 007

The carmelized and charred onions went well with the sweet jam, and the chops were very tasty. I served it with mixed vegetables on the side.