Chili Spice Rub ☺

By Happy, February 27, 2013.

This is a spice rub for roast chicken or pork ribs.

Yield: 3 Tbsp

Prep Time: 00:10

1 guajillo pepper
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 bay leaves
4 whole cloves
1 tsp black peppercorns
2 tsp kosher salt
2 large cloves garlic

In a spice grinder, grind together the guajillo pepper, cumin seeds, bay leaves, and cloves. Pulverize the peppercorns with a mortar and pestle. Mash the garlic with a garlic press. Mix everything together in a small bowl. For a roast chicken, place the rub under the chicken skin, next to the flesh. For ribs or roasts, rub directly on the meat.

Nutrition

Calories: 0
Sodium: 3500 mg

Barbecue Sauce for Pulled Pork

Mix together:

1/4 c catsup
1/4 c vinegar
2 T prepared mustard
2 T brown sugar
2 T fish sauce
2 t sriracha sauce or hot sauce
2 t liquid smoke
1/4 t Thai or Indian chili powder
2 cloves garlic pressed or minced

Braised Pork Neck Chili

4 T oil, divided
1 large sweet onion
1 green pepper, diced
1 jalapeno pepper, chopped
3 stalks celery, chopped
2 medium carrots, chopped
2-1/2 lb meaty pork neck bones
1/2 t kosher salt
1 c red wine or tomato juice
2 medium cans diced tomatoes (no-salt)
1 small can yellow corn
1/2 t black peppercorns, crushed
1 dried ancho chili, ground
1 dried guajillo chili, ground
1 t dried basil
1 t dried oregano
1-1/2 t sugar (to taste)
2 T vinegar (to taste)
1 can black beans
1 can small white beans

Heat 2 T oil at medium heat in a large dutch oven. Add the onions, peppers, celery, and carrots, and saute for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. Remove the vegetables to a bowl.

Add the remaining 2 T oil to the dutch oven, and raise the heat to medium high. Place the meat in the dutch oven, meaty side down, and brown for 3 - 5 minutes. Salt the meat. Turn the meat, and brown for another 3 minutes. Remove the meat to a plate, and lower the heat to medium. (If necessary, cook the meat in two batches.)

Immediately deglaze the dutch oven. Add the meat and sauteed vegetables to the dutch oven. Stir in the crushed peppercorns, ground chilies, basil, and oregano. Add the sugar and vinegar to taste.

Cover the dutch oven and place in a 250°F oven for 2 hours. Take the chili out of the oven and remove as many bones as possible from the stewed meat. Add the two cans of beans, cover the dutch oven, and continue baking for another 2 hours or more.

Before serving, remove remaining bones, connective tissue, and gristle from the meat. Serve the chili over rice, or with cornbread.

Speckknödel

This recipe is adapted from a web site of Alto-Adige recipes. Chefs are H. Gasteiger, G. Wieser, H. Bachmann.

200 g (7 oz) white bread (about 6 slices) (See note, below)
80 g (3 oz) Speck alto Adige PGI, cubed,and trimmed of fat
15 g (2 T) flour
15 g (1 T) unsalted butter
40 g (1/4 c) onion, peeled and minced
2 eggs
100 ml (1/3 c + 1T +1 t) milk
5 g (1 T) chopped parsley
2 - 4 g (1/4 - 1/2 t) kosher salt
Grind of black pepper

Note: You can use white bread or bread rolls for this. Weigh the bread, then let it sit out for 12 hours or so, until it is dried out.

Cube the bread into 1/4-inch or smaller cubes. Add the speck and flour. In a skillet, melt the butter, and add the onions. Cook over low heat until the onions are translucent, but not brown. Add the onions to the bread mixture. Mix together lightly with your hands.

Mix together the eggs and milk. Pour over the bread. Sprinkle the parsley, salt, and pepper over the bread. Using your hands, knead the mixture, just until it holds together. Do not over knead. Cover and let sit for 15 minutes.

While the dough is resting, in a large, stock pot with a lid, pour 3" (7.5 cm) of water in the bottom of the pot. Add 15 g (2 t) of salt to the water, cover the pot, and bring the water to a simmer.

Using a 2T (25 g) scoop, shape the dumplings into balls, and put on a large dinner plate. Wetting your hands will make it easier to handle the dough. The recipe makes approximately 16 dumplings. When you have shaped all of the dumplings, drop each dumpling into the simmering water. Cover the pot, and simmer for 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from the water with a skimmer or a slotted spoon.

Serve the dumplings hot in a broth, or as an accompaniment to meat. This serves 6 - 8 people as an appetizer, and 4 people as a side.

Pulled Pork

2 lb boneless country pork ribs
2 T olive oil

Rub

1/2 t pepper corns
3/4 t kosher salt
5 allspice pods
1/2 t cumin
1 t chipotle chili powder
1 t Spanish paprika

Sauce

1 large onion, chopped
1 - 15 oz can diced tomatoes
3 - 4 cloves garlic, minced
3 - 4 shakes of Angostura Bitters
1 t Worcestershire sauce
2 t liquid smoke
1 T vinegar
2 T brown sugar

Note: Believe it or not, you can get boneless ribs! Who'd a thought? You can use a pork loin roast if you can't find the ribs.

Mix together the rub ingredients in a spice mill, and whir until blended. Rub the spices into the surface of the ribs, and set aside for about 15 minutes or so.

In a dutch oven, heat the olive oil on medium heat until it smokes. Place the ribs fat side down in the dutch oven, and sear 3 - 5 minutes on each side. Remove the ribs from the dutch oven to a plate.

Turn the stove to low-medium and add the chopped onions and garlic to the oil in the dutch oven. Stir to coat the onions, and fry until the onions are translucent. Turn the burner to low, and add the remaining sauce ingredients, including any remaining rub. Simmer for about 5 minutes, and remove from the heat.

Turn the oven on to 250ºF. Place the ribs in the sauce, cover the dutch oven, and roast in the oven for at least a couple of hours.

Before serving, remove the meat from the sauce and shred it using a couple of forks. On the stove, reduce the sauce by half over medium high heat. Adjust its to taste for salt, pepper, vinegar, and heat (hot sauce, anyone?). Combine the reduced sauce with the shredded pork. Serve in a sandwich.

Wilted Lettuce

Serves 4 (sides)

1 large head leaf lettuce (see note)
1/8 lb thinly sliced pancetta
3 spring onions, chopped
6 cherry tomatoes, rinsed and halved -or- 1 medium tomato chopped
2 or 3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 T olive oil
2 T vinegar (see note)
parmesan cheese, for grating
black pepper

Note: You can use a leaf lettuce mix, including escarole. Stay away from iceberg. You'll need 6 - 8 c chopped lettuce. You can use just about any kind of vinegar. I mix together white and balsamic.

Rinse the lettuce in cold water, then dry it in a salad spinner. Coarsely chop the leaves, and set aside.

Lay out the sliced pancetta, in a large cold skillet (with a cover), and fry on medium heat until the pancetta begins to curl and lightly brown. Turn it, and fry until lightly crisp. Take the skillet off the heat, and remove the pancetta. Coarsely chop it.

Add the olive oil, onions, and garlic to the skillet, and return it to the stove. Fry for about a minute over medium heat. Add the tomatoes, and fry for another minute.

Pack all of the lettuce into the skillet, then pour the vinegar over the top. Cover the skillet, turn the heat to very low, and wilt the lettuce for five minutes.

Remove the cover, and stir the lettuce, tomatoes, and onions to lightly mix them. Plate the wilted lettuce. Sprinkle with the chopped pancetta. Pour the pan liquor over the salad, if you wish. Grate some parmesan cheese over the lettuce, and add a grind of black pepper. Serve immediately.

Pork Country Ribs

2 lb country pork ribs
1/2 t salt
1/2 t ground pepper
1 T olive oil
1/4 c ketchup
1/2 t liquid smoke
1 T fish sauce
2 T brown sugar
2 T cider vinegar
1 large clove garlic, minced
1 t oregano
1/8 t Thai chili spice or cayenne pepper

Heat the oven to 225ºF. Heat the olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium temperature. Use 1/2 of the salt and pepper to season one side the ribs. When the oil begins to smoke, put ribs, seasoned side down, in the dutch oven. Use the remaining salt and pepper to season the top side of the ribs. Fry the ribs for about five minutes, then turn, and continue to fry for another four to five minutes.

While the ribs are frying, mix all of the remaining ingredients. Remove the ribs from the heat. Brush the top of the ribs with the sauce, and turn the ribs over. Brush the other side of the ribs.

Cover the dutch oven, and bake the ribs for an hour.

Uncover the ribs and pour off and reserve accumulated liquid. Turn the ribs, brush them with the remaining sauce, cover the dutch oven, and continue to bake for another hour.

Remove the ribs from the oven. Add any additional accumulated liquid to the reserved liquid. Cover the dutch oven, and set the ribs aside while preparing the sauce.

Skim the fat from the liquid. In a small skillet, boil the liquid over medium high heat until it is reduced by about half. It will be slightly thickened.

Remove the ribs to a serving dish. Spoon the sauce over the ribs.

Cabbage Chop Suey

3/4 to 1/2 lb fresh pork - brown and add:
1 c onion
1 c celeerly
1 gr. pepper
1 small can mushrooms
2 med. tomatoes

Steam 10 min. & add:
1 qt shredded cabbage
1 T soy sauce

Steam 10 min. more & serve hot.

Heart Attack Lasagna

1 lb sweet or hot Italian sausage
1 onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
32 oz jar pasta sauce
9 lasagna noodles
1/4 lb parmesan cheese, grated
1 lb ricotta cheese
2 eggs
1 lb mozarella cheese, grated
1/2 lb extra sharp cheddar cheese, grated

In a large skillet, fry the sausage, and break it up into small pieces. Add the onion and green pepper, and continue cooking on medium heat until the veggies are soft. Add the pasta sauce, and season to taste. (I add some ground fennel, black pepper, and oregano.)

While the sauce is cooking, grate all of the cheeses. In a small bowl, combine and mix together the ricotta, parmesan, and eggs. Season (if you want) with some black pepper and whatever your grandmother would use.

In the bottom of a very large baking dish (13 x 9 inches or larger) spoon enough sauce to cover the bottom of the dish. Lay three of the noodles over the sauce, so that the noodles are not overlapping. Top the noodles with 1/3 of the ricotta mixture. Spoon some more pasta sauce on top. Sprinkle with 1/3 of the mozarella cheese. Continue layering noodles, ricotta, pasta sauce, and mozarella. Sprinkle the cheddar on top and bake at 350 F for 45 minutes or until the cheese browns.

This dish serves a lot of people. It's great for potlucks.

Sausage and Olive Polenta

1/2 lb mild Italian sausage
1 onion, finely chopped
1/4 lb Greek olives, pitted and sliced in quarters
1/4 lb gorgonzola cheese
2 large cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1-1/2 c instant polenta
4 c boiling water
1 t dried sage

Chop the onion. Pit and slice the olives. Mash the cheese, and separate it into curds about the same size as cottage cheese. Mince the garlic. Lightly grease a 9 X 13 cake pan. Start the water to boil.

Remove the sausage from its casings. Brown over medium heat in a 3 or 4 qt saucepan. When browned, remove the meat to a dish and drain all but 1 T of the drippings.

Add the onion and 1 T olive oil to the saucepan. Fry the onion over medium-low heat until it is cooked and browned. Add the boiling water to the onions. If necessary, bring the water back to a boil.

Add the instant polenta in a steady stream to the boiling water, keeping the water at a boil over medium heat. Stir constantly for 2-1/2 minutes. Remove from the heat, and add the chopped olives and garlic. Return the saucepan to the heat, and continue to stir constantly for another two minutes. Remove the polenta from the heat, and stir in the cheese and sage.

Spread the polenta in the cake pan, and chill for at least a couple of hours. Before serving, slice into 8 or 10 squares. Remove the squares to a cookie sheet, and broil for 2 to 3 minutes until the tops are brown and crispy. Alternatively, you can heat some olive oil in a skillet and fry the pieces until golden on the bottom and top. Serve with a spicy tomato sauce. Serves 4 or 5.