German-style Pork Chops

My Hubbie thought these were amazing!

Ever since I visited Germany as a teenager, I have loved their culture and food. Since returning, I have made it my goal to re-create the delicious meals I enjoyed there. This recipe is in no way authentic, but it uses German flavors to create a delicious, no-fuss dinner.

Growning up, we ate Shake N Bake pork chops on a pretty regular basis. I loved them, and still enjoy them when my Mom prepares them. I don't purchase many convenience foods, but love the simplicity that this method offers, so I use this crumb mixture. It's great on pork or chicken.

I think the German mustard really makes this dish, its robust flavors pair well with the richness of pork.

Ingredients

4 pork chops
2 tablespoons German-style mustard
Crumb Coating Mixture:

•  2 cups fine dry breadcrumbs                    
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• 2 teaspoons onion powder
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 3 1/2 teaspoons poultry seasoning
• 2 tablespoons crumbled dried parsley

Preheat oven to 375 F. Line a baking sheet with foil and grease or coat with cooking spray. Brush pork chops on both sides with German-style mustard. Combine Crumb Coating ingredients in a bag, add chops and shake until coated, one at a time. Place on foil-lined baking sheet and bake for 30 - 40 minutes, ensure that pork is fully cooked before serving.

Pig in the Potato Patch

I feel like I've been the spokeswoman for pork lately. We had a 20 lb Boston Butt that I needed to use, so I've been coming up with yummy ways to use it. This recipe is super simple and people really like it. It is one of my Hubbie's favorite lunches.

Ingredients:

Leftover Pulled Pork
Baked Potato (I do this in the microwave during warmer months)
Sour Cream
Salt & Pepper
Green Onions
any other fixins you like on your baked potato, shredded cheddar would be yummy

Split the baked potato, season with salt and pepper to taste, add a tablespoon of sour cream, top with a good amount of pulled pork,and sprinkle with green onions. Enjoy.

You can also make baked potatoes in the crock pot. Just put them in and cook on HIGH for 4 hours. You can wrap them in foil if they'll need to keep warm, but it isn't necessary.

I shared this recipe at the Full Plate Thursday linky party.

Italian Pork Roast & Uses for Leftovers

I love using an economical cut of meat to make something spectacular. This recipe is a great way to prepare an expensive pork roast, with a little twist on the traditional. It is great sliced and served with veggies and mashed potatoes, in a sandwich, and so many other ways. I'm going to show you how I prepared it, and the various ways I served it.

One of our local grocers had boston butt on sale for .99/lb, so of course I had to get some. Boston butt is usually sold in 3-5 lb packages. I sent my hubbie to buy two. He called me very perplexed and asked where I planned to store so much meat. "Uh, in the freezeer" I replied. "I'll bring you one, if you still want more, I'll pick another one up tomorrow". I said "OK"; but I was a little confused, until he got home five minutes later. These suckers were being soldin 20 lb packages. It was huge, two would NOT have fit in my freezer, I wasn't even sure about one. Luckily, Hubbie was able to cut it into four 5lb roasts and pack them in the fridge.

 Ingredients:

Boston Butt (pork shoulder) - 3-5 lbs
Garlic - 2 cloves
Fennel Seed - 1 TBS
Salt - 1 TBS
Dried Rosemary - 3/4 TBS
Pepper - 1 tsp
Ground Cloves - 1pinch

Grate garlic with a microplane, addthe remaining herbs and spices and mix together. Place the meat in a roasting pan, fat side up. Score the top in a criss cross pattern. I go through the fat and maybe 1/4 inch into the meat. Rub the spice mixture into the meat, pushing it into the score marks as you go. Cover with foil or plastic wrap and let it sit for at least a few hours. I seasoned mine about 11:30 Monday night and let it hang out until 7:00 Wednesday morning. Then I put it in the Crock Pot on HIGH for four hours, then switched it to low for about four hours.

These are some sandwiches I have made from the leftovers this week:

 

Pork roast, onions that were cooked with it, romaine pepperoncinis, and mozzarella on a focaccia roll, drizzled with oil & vinegar.

 

 

Pork roast, grilled zucchini, grilled onions, grilled bell peppers, spicy bread and butter pickles, pepperoncinis, mozzarella, and feta on a focaccia roll, spread with Dijon mustard. I made this into a panini since I already had the panini maker out to grill the veggies on.

 

We also made Pulled Pork Sandwiches, BBQ Pork Pizza, and sliced pork roast with gravy made from the juices.

 

So, next time you see Boston Butt or Pork Shoulder roasts on sale, pick one up. It's an economical cut of meat that can be made into several delicious meals. For more inspiration, check out my Boston Butt post.

Boston Butt

Photo courtesy of foodsubs.com

Boston butt is a delicious and economical cut of meat. Prepared properly, it makes a delicious feast. It is not from the butt of the pig as the name implies, but the shoulder. You may see it sold as "Pork Shoulder Roast". Every few months, I find it on sale for about .99/lb. With Memorial Day being so close, there are lots of meat sales to take advantage of. This is an easy cut to prepare for those of us who aren't grilling, or in addition to the grilled food. Here are a few ways I have prepared it in the past. I'd also love if anyone would share their favorite recipe or way to prepare it. I am trying a new recipe now, which I will share later this week. I like to prepare enough to have leftovers for sandwiches and fried rice later.

Photo courtesy of culinaryarts.about.com

Pork Roast can be made in the oven or the crock pot. I do prefer the oven method; but there's no way I'm going to run my oven that long during the summer in the south. It's been 90+ degrees all week.

Just marinade or season, then prepare using your method of choice.

Oven Method: Put the oven rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
Place the roast on a rack in a roasting pan, fat side up, and put the roast in the 450 degree preheated oven. Roast for 10 minutes, then RE-SET THE OVEN TEMPERATURE TO 250 DEGREES.
Continue cooking for about 50-90 minutes or until the meat registers 150 degrees on a meat thermometer. Remove the roast from the oven and set on a cutting board. Cover the meat with tin foil and let it rest for about 15 minutes before slicing it.
Adapted from: Joy of Cooking

Crock Pot Method: Place in a large crock pot on HIGH for 6 hours or LOW for 8-10 hours. Please ensure that the meat reaches 150 degrees.

This one is probably my favorite. The las time I made it was on a cold day, so I used my oven instead of my Crock Pot. I sliced 3 onions and an orange and placed the roast on that instead of a rack. After 3 hours at 250 degrees, I removed most of the fat and chopped the meat. I rendered a little fat in a large cast iron skillet and then heated the meat in batches to "crisp up" very slightly then added the broth and a little more cumin and simmered. My favorite Mexican restaurant back home does something similar on a flat top, and this yields a similar result.
 
Pork Carnitas - I am from Southern Cali, so I have had some of the best carnitas available. This recipe came from a friend's mom. It is on par with any restaurant. 2 pounds pork shoulder 1/2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice (about 1 large orange) 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice (about 1 large lime) 7 cloves garlic (whole intact) 1/2 tablespoon kosher salt 1 tablespoon cumin 1/2 cup beef broth The Directions. Use a 6 quart slow cooker. In a small bowl, combine the salt and cumin. Rub mixture all over the pork, then plop into the slow cooker. Add whole garlic cloves. Squeeze on the citrus, and pour the beef broth evenly over the top. Cook on low for 8-10 hours, or until the pork shreds quite easily with a fork. If your meat is still fully intact after 8 hours, remove and cut into chunks, then return to the crock and flip to high for about an hour or two. Shred meat fully and serve on warmed corn tortillas with desired toppings. Asian-Inspried Pork Roast
• 1 whole 2-3 Lb Pork Sirloin Roast
• ¼ cups Olive Oil
• ¼ cups Teriyaki Sauce
• Juice Of 1 Lemon
• Zest Of 1 Lemon
• 2 cloves Garlic - Smashed Or Chopped
• 1 Handful Chopped Cilantro
• 1-½ teaspoon Salt
• ¾ teaspoons Pepper
• 1 teaspoon Chili Powder
Combine marinade ingredients, add to large bag with roast. Let marinade a few hours or over night. Super Yummy (I couldn't thinkof a name for this, it was DELICIOUS though)
2 TBS cranberry sauce
2 TBS prepared coarse ground mustard
1 tsp Cayenne
2 tsp Paprika
2 tsp Worcestershire Sauce
1/2 tsp liquid smoke
1/2 cup pineapple juice
I mixed up the marinade in a bowl, kinda smashing the cranberries as I went. Put the roast in a large bowl, sprinkled it with pepper and a dash of cayenne, rubbed it in, then spread a thin layer of coarse ground mustard over it. Then I poured the marinade over the meat. Covered it and refrigerated it for 24 hours, I turned it a couple of times during that period.
Also, check out my post on Pork Roast Leftovers.