Pork Tacos with Pico and Avocado Cream

I love my recipe for Pulled Pork. A lot. If I ate nothing else for the rest of my life, I would eat this dish. But other people, while fans, don't have that same devotion to slow-cooked meat slathered in BBQ. So when I make it, I've got to get a little creative. And there's no better way to use up leftover meat than with tacos.

To avoid showing you a recipe where I just stuff some taco shells with meat, I decided to make my own taco toppers. Some fresh salsa, also known as pico de gallo, and avocado cream.

Let's do the pico first. I picked up some pretty looking roma tomatoes at the store. First, you cut them in half. Then you cut them into planks (but not cutting the very root part of the tomato.)

Then you turn the tomato 90 degrees and cut the planks into cubes.

Do the same with an onion. I used something like 1/4 of an onion.

Messily mince a clove of garlic and add it to the onion and tomato.

Or just try to do a better job than I did.Wipe your board clean first if tomato water everywhere bothers you.

Squeeze in the juice of half a lime.

Track down a jalapeno. In an attempt to limit the contact my hands have with the inside of the pepper (the hottest part), I cut jalapenos from the bottom up, and mince them that way.

Or you could wear gloves. I just hate how they feel on my hands.

Anyway, mince it up and add it to the bowl of tomatoes.

Grab a handful of lovely fresh cilantro.

Gather it up to make a tight bundle, for easier cutting.

See?

Add the cilantro the bowl, along with some salt and pepper.

Stir it up and let it sit. For optimum pico-ness, you can make this a day in advance and let the flavors meld overnight.

Now that the pico is done, you make the avocado cream.

Pick a nice, ripe avocado. I like to buy mine while they're still firm, and let them ripen at home. There's less chance that they'll get overly bruised that way.

Scoop the avocado meat out of the peel and mash it around in a bowl until it's as smooth or chunky as you like it.

To keep it from turning brown, use the rest of your lime's juice.

Avocado cream is pretty much exactly what it sounds like--avocados and cream. So add the cream. In this case, sour cream.

Be sure to add salt and pepper!

So pretty and green and creamy.

Now that your taco condiments are ready, you can start assembling. First the meat.

Then the avocado cream.

Now the pico.

Have I mentioned how much I love tacos?















A  sprinkle of cheese, and your tacos are ready! This is a great recipe for any leftover meat. Try using leftover Dry-Rubbed BBQ Chicken, Slow-Cooker Pot Roast, or Stout-Braised Short Ribs!

Recipe: Pork Tacos with Pico and Avocado Cream

leftover shredded meat
soft and hard taco shells

Pico:
3 Roma tomatoes
3 tbsp. onion, minced
2 tbsp. fresh cilantro
1 garlic clove, finely minced
1/4 jalapeno, finely minced
juice of half a lime
salt and pepper, to taste

Combine all ingredients and stir.


Avocado Cream:
1 avocado, mashed
juice of half a lime
1/4 c. sour cream
salt and pepper, to taste

Combine all ingredients and stir.


To assemble tacos: Spoon meat into shells. Top with avocado cream and pico. Serve!

German Chicken

I have no idea what makes this chicken German. I was just looking for something new to do with chicken, and I stumbled onto the concept. I don't know who invented it, or why, but I will say that the end product was pretty dang tasty.

And you can't really argue with a recipe that has less than 10 ingredients.

So anyway, the first thing you want to do is chop the bacon into bite-sized pieces and get it started on the stove.

While the bacon cooks, use your free time to slice half an onion into very thin slices, and smash a couple cloves of garlic.

When the bacon has given up its fat but isn't yet crispy, toss the onions and the garlic into the pan.

Now while your onions cook down, core, half, and then thinly slice a green apple. Layer the slices in a shallow baking dish.

Make sure the dish is large enough to hold both your chicken and the potatoes!

When your onions are nice and soft and golden brown, you can pour the contents of your hot pan over the apple slices.

Now for the fun part. Lay a thin layer of sauerkraut over the top of your onions.

Okay, I'm not sure what was so fun about that. I just wanted to make the recipe seem a little more exciting. Did it work?

Lay the chicken over the top of the kraut, and make sure to salt and pepper both sides of your meat!

This is a half chicken that's been quartered. Does that make sense??

Arrange your little potatoes around the chicken.

When you've got everyone situated, pour your favorite BBQ sauce over the top of the chicken.

Use a sauce you know you'll like--the sauce can change the overall flavor of this dish quite a bit, and if you cheap out and use a yucky sauce, you might not like the end result.

Cover the dish with tinfoil and roast for about half an hour at 350F (if your potatoes are larger, you may need to remove the chicken when it's done and let the potatoes roast by themselves for a while.)

Come on. How good does that look?
















Scoop out some of the apple/kraut mixture and then top it with moist slices of BBQ chicken. Smash the potatoes slightly and top with butter and maybe a little sour cream. You've got an easy and definitely different dish to surprise your family and guests. Give it a try tonight!

Recipe: German Chicken

4 slices bacon
1/2 onion, sliced
2 cloves garlic, mashed
1 Granny Smith apple, thinly sliced
1 1/2 c. sauerkraut
1/2 chicken, halved
6-8 small roasting potatoes
3/4-1 c. of your favorite BBQ sauce

In a large pan, cook bacon until fat has rendered.

While the bacon cooks, thinly slice half an onion and smash your garlic. Add them to the pan of bacon.

While the onions cook, core, halve, and thinly slice the apple. Lay the apple slices in a shallow baking dish. Cover the apple slices with the softened onions, garlic, and bacon. Then cover the onions with a layer of sauerkraut.

Arrange the chicken over the top of the sauerkraut, and be sure to season both sides of the meat. Lay potatoes around the chicken.

Pour BBQ sauce over the top of the chicken. Cover entire dish with tinfoil and bake at 350F for 3-40 minutes (may need to remove chicken and let potatoes finish by themselves.)

Pulled Pork Sandwiches

I love me a good pulled pork sandwich. The juicy meat, the tangy sauce, accompanied by a side of nice cold, crisp cole slaw. It was a Sunday and my local BBQ joint was closed, so what's a girl to do but make her own?

It was funny. I had the idea of making pulled pork sandwiches the day before, when I drove into town to pick up  our CSA meat. I was also planning a stop at the grocery store after, so I figured I would have to buck up and buy a pork roast there. Heidi and Chuck at Painted Hill Farm must have known that I was obsessing over it, because lo and behold! There was a pork roast in my meat bag! Hoorah! 

This is such a simple recipe. A few standard kitchen ingredients and a crock pot and you're good to go!

The first thing I did was melt a mixture of butter and oil in a pan large enough to fit my pork roast. You'll want to get good color on your pork, so at least medium or medium high is the temp you want.

While the butter and oil are getting hot, dice or mince an onion, and give your garlic cloves a good smash.

Then season the pork on all sides.

When the butter and oil are hot,  carefully set the pork in the hot pan.

Sear the meat 2-3 minutes on each side, until nice and golden brown on the outside.

Once the meat has good color, remove it and place it in your slow cooker.

Drain any excess fat from the pan, leaving about a tablespoon's worth in the bottom.

Toss the onions and garlic into the pan. Use a wooden spoon to get all the pork crusties off the bottom of the pan.

When the onions and garlic are softened, turn the heat to medium-low. Hold your face far away from the pan and pour in the vinegar.

Now that your measuring cup is empty, use it to measure out some ketchup.

Measure some molasses too.

Scoop the ketchup and molasses into the pan with the vinegar and onions. Then dump in some brown sugar.

Then some Worcestershire.

A little dry mustard was next, for some zip.

A couple dashes of cayenne come next, just because I like a little heat. And don't forget to add salt and pepper!

Stir everything together and let the stove do its thing. When the sauce starts to bubble, you can pull it off the heat.

Pour it right over the pork that you let hang out in the slow cooker.

After 5-6 hours on high (or 7-8 on low), your pork roast should be fork-tender. Shred it with a fork or use a cleaver to cut it into little bits.

If you're serving the meat right away, you could serve it as-is. I wasn't, so I moved it to a pot and added a little bit of the juice left in the crock pot, to keep things moist.

Add some of your favorite BBQ sauce if you like. I know some people like their meat naked, and other people love to slather sauce everywhere. Or you could just add more of the cooking liquid.











I could eat these sandwiches every day. OMG. Amazing. With just a few ingredients, a short period of prep time, and a reliable slow cooker, and you've got yourself a meal everyone will love!

Recipe: Pulled Pork Sandwiches

2 tbsp. butter
2 tbsp. oil
2-3 lb. pork roast
salt and pepper, to taste

1 onion, minced
2 cloves garlic, smashed

3/4 c. apple cider vinegar
3/4 c. ketchup
1/3 c. molasses
1/3 c. brown sugar
1 tbsp. dry mustard
1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. cayenne pepper
salt and pepper, to taste

BBQ sauce (optional)


Season the pork with salt and pepper. Melt butter and oil in a hot pan and sear the meat on all sides. Remove meat from the pan and set in slow cooker. Drain excess fat.

In the same pan, saute onions and garlic until softened. Deglaze the pan with vinegar. Add ketchup, molasses, brown sugar, mustard, Worcestershire, cayenne, and salt and pepper. Stir to combine and heat until bubbling. Pour sauce over pork roast in slow cooker.

Cook on low for 7-8 hours or high for 5-6.

Once meat is fork-tender, remove and shred. Serve immediately. If not serving immediately, either move back to crock pot or to a pot with some added cooking liquid. Pour on some of your favorite BBQ sauce, if desired. Keep over low heat until ready to eat.