JJ's Asian-Inspired Slaw

My mom rarely cleans her plate at the dinner table, but last night when I cooked for the family, she had a second sandwich - and ate all of it. That's how I knew this was a recipe I will have to make again & again, so I'd better write it down.

Most of the time when I'm cooking I don't measure out the ingredients - I just fly around the kitchen, tossing ingredients together by intuition. I'm not sure of the measurements for this dish, but since I had a lot of requests for the recipe, I figured I will share the basics & let you all try it per your own intuition!

I initially was making this slaw to accompany BBQ pulled pork tenderloin sandwiches and was going to make my homemade BBQ sauce, but lost track of time. Last minute, I decided to top the pulled pork tenderloin sandwiches with this slaw, some vegenaise, Sriracha pepper sauce, and a little hoisin sauce. YUM. Directions are below for the pulled pork as well. :) -JJ

Ingredients:

• Half a head of green cabbage, shredded
• 2 large radishes, peeled & julienned
• Bragg's Apple Cider vinegar (add gradually to taste)
• Mirin (add gradually to taste)
• Fresh lime juice (maybe 1/4 lime?)
• Black sesame seeds (shake generously!)
• Tupelo honey (maybe a heaping teaspoon?)
• Toasted sesame oil (add gradually - it's a strong ingredient!)
• Fresh cilantro, chopped (to taste)
• Sea salt (to taste)
• Chopped roasted peanuts (to top)

Directions:

Toss cabbage, radish, vinegar, Mirin, lime juice, sesame seeds, honey, sesame oil, salt and cilantro in a large bowl. Taste it. Love it. Top with peanuts. Done.

✳✳✳

Asian Pulled Pork Tenderloin Sandwiches...

• Pulled pork tenderloin
• JJ's Asian-Inspired Slaw
• Toasted buns
• Vegenaise
• Sriracha pepper sauce
• Hoisin sauce

Pulled Pork Tenderloin

Adapted from this recipe.

Ingredients:

• 2 pork tenderloins (~2.5 lbs.), halved lengthwise & cut into 2.5 inch pieces
• 1.5 beers
• 3/4 cup Bragg's apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 cup water
• 5 garlic cloves, bruised
• Black pepper
• Dried chili pepper
• Kosher salt (~2 tsp)

Directions:

Bring all of the ingredients to a boil, add the pork, cover, reduce heat to low, simmer for at least 1 hour or until pork is tender when stabbed with a fork. Remove pork from liquid, and pull apart using 2 forks.

Thai-Inspired Chili

This. This is really, really good. The photo of it… Not so much. ;)

My dad & I conceptualized the idea of a Thai-inspired chili recipe at least 4 years ago. The idea has been scribbled on a tattered piece of paper, hidden in a family recipe box, and we decided last night that it was finally time to make it come to life. The addition of red curry paste, fresh basil & cilantro, and a coconut drizzle to a pot of chili seemed like the perfect match - and it sure was!

I made enough for an army, so this recipe serves, like, 12 people. You will probably want to half it if you want to make it for a family of four - but I suggest you go ahead and just make a big pot of it so you have lots of leftovers. 

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp. peanut oil
• 3 sweet onions, chopped
• 3 small bell peppers, chopped
• 5 cloves garlic, thinly sliced or minced
• 3 lbs ground pork
• 28 oz. can of whole, peeled tomatoes
• 2 cups sliced button mushrooms
• 22 oz. can of Sapporo beer
• 1 can tomato paste
• 4 oz. jar red curry paste
• 1 quart beef broth
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 4 cans red kidney beans, drained
• 1 red chili pepper, deseeded & chopped
• 1 cup fresh basil, chopped
• 1 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
• 1/4 tsp. turmeric
• Salt, to taste
• Coconut milk, to drizzle (optional, but suggested)

Directions:

Heat peanut oil over medium heat in a large pot. When the oil is hot, add onions, bell peppers, garlic, and pork until browned.

Add tomatoes, beer, tomato paste, red curry paste, beef broth, basil, cilantro, brown sugar, salt and turmeric. Mix well. 

Stir in 2 cans of kidney beans, mushrooms & chili pepper. Reduce heat & simmer for 1.5 hours.

Add 2 remaining cans of kidney beans & simmer for another 30 mins. Serve hot with a swirl of coconut milk.

Spicy BBQ Baby Back Ribs

Serves 4-6 

My mom found some delicious-looking organic baby back pork ribs yesterday at Native Sun in Jacksonville, FL, for me to make for a family dinner. I'd never cooked ribs before, so I researched some different cooking methods. I found a wonderful recipe on AllRecipes.com (link to original recipe below) that had rave reviews. I altered the sauce and cooking method, and got very lucky! The sauce turned out incredible (I will use it for different BBQ meats in the future), and the meat was literally falling off the bone. The garlic is a nice touch, and I'm going to double it next time! I cannot wait to make these yummy ribs again. :)

Ingredients:

Ribs:

• 4 pounds baby back pork ribs 
• 2/3 cup water 
• 1/3 cup Bragg apple cider vinegar 
• 6 large garlic cloves, barely chopped 
• 2 bay leaves 
• Freshly ground black pepper 

Barbeque Sauce:

• 1/2 cup Melinda's Jalapeño ketchup 
• 1/2 cup ketchup 
• 1 cup water 
• 1/2 cup Bragg apple cider vinegar 
• 1/3 cup Worcestershire sauce 
• 1/4 cup organic creamy yellow mustard 
• 4 tablespoons butter 
• 2/3 cup packed brown sugar 
• 1 teaspoon Sriracha pepper sauce 
• 1/8 teaspoon sea salt 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Place ribs in two 10x15 inch roasting pans. Pour water and apple cider vinegar into a bowl, and stir. Sprinkle some freshly cracked black pepper over the ribs. Add the garlic and bay leaves to each of the pans. Pour diluted vinegar over ribs, and cover with foil. Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes. Baste the ribs with their juices. Reduce heat to 300 degrees F. Bake for 35 minutes more. 

In a medium saucepan, mix together jalepeño ketchup, ketchup, water, Bragg apple cider vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, butter, brown sugar, Sriracha pepper sauce, and sea salt; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer barbeque sauce for 2 hours. 

Place all ribs into one container, discarding cooking liquid and bay leaves, keeping garlic. Pour half of your BBQ sauce all over them. Cover and marinate for at least 2 hrs in the refrigerator. (I marinated for 3 hrs.) Take the ribs out of the refrigerator about 30 minutes before you're ready to cook them to let them get to room temperature. 

Preheat grill for medium heat. 

Lightly oil preheated grill. Grill ribs (with garlic) over medium heat for 10 minutes, turning ribs once. Baste ribs generously with barbeque sauce, and grill 2 minutes. Turn ribs, baste again with barbeque sauce, and grill 2 minutes. 

Place ribs on a serving platter, and let rest for 5 minutes. Serve with extra BBQ sauce on the side for dipping. Garnish with grilled garlic.

Recipe adapted from Allrecipes.com

Buffaloaf

Serves 4*

Okay, I'm not one to toot my own horn, BUT this has to be one of the best things I've ever eaten, let alone come up with.  The photo does it no justice.  If you've ever eaten bison/buffalo meat, you will appreciate this recipe by just reading the ingredients... if you haven't tried bison/buffalo meat yet, you are in for a treat.  Bison is so much leaner than beef, AND tastes even yummier in my opinion.  According to an article on Livestrong.com, "a 3 oz. serving of beef sirloin contains 12 grams of fat, while 3 oz. of bison sirloin contains just 5 grams. Beef sirloin is also higher in saturated fat, with 5 grams, compared to 2 grams of saturated fat in bison sirloin."  Pretty impressive, huh?  Ground bison can be found at your local Whole Foods Market (or other high end grocery), and even some basic grocery stores - just ask your butcher!  I made Garlicky Spaghetti Squash on the side, and it was a perfect meal.  I hope you enjoy this as much as I did!!

*Just a tip: you will probably want to double this so that you have left-overs!

Ingredients:

• 1.5 lbs. ground buffalo (bison)
• 15 oz. of Rao's Marinara Sauce (or your favorite marinara/spaghetti sauce)
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup whole wheat Panko crumbs
• 1/4 cup sweet onion, chopped
• 2 tbsp. fresh basil, chopped
• 1 can of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce - use 1 pepper, deseed and finely chop - about 1 tbsp.
• 8 oz. fresh mozzarella cheese (Buffalo mozzarella if you feel like spending the $!), cut into 1/4 inch slices
• 1 tsp. Kosher salt
• 1/4 tsp. freshly cracked black pepper
• 2 tbsp. grated parmesan cheese, for topping

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350.  In a large bowl, combine the buffalo meat, half of the marinara sauce, eggs, Panko crumbs, chipotle pepper, onion, basil, salt, and black pepper.  Mix well.  Divide the mixture into thirds.  Spread 1/3 in the bottom of an ungreased 9x5" loaf pan.  Place half of the mozzarella slices on top.  Repeat layers, and end with the meat.  Bake for 30 minutes.  Spread the rest of the sauce on the buffaloaf. Bake for an additional 20 minutes.  Remove from oven, and add parmesan to top.  Bake for 5 minutes more.  Let sit for 5 minutes before serving.  Enjoy!!