pulled pork enchiladas

September 1, 2011 by 16 Comments

Remember a few weeks ago when I revealed my secrets on how we eat well on the cheap? Well, this dish totally falls into that category. It’s cheap, it’s easy, it’s delicious. Plus, it’s perfect for double batches. Double the recipe, freeze the second pan and save for a rainy day. Or, you know, a tuesday.

I love making enchiladas because they are so adaptable for every season. In the summer I love stuffing them with fresh corn and herbs. In the fall, they’re fun to make with roasted pumpkin. In the winter, sweet potatoes make them scrumptious. Switch up the meat, cheese, and seasonings to make whatever flavor you want, whenever you want.

This particular batch—one of my favorites—uses slow-cooked pulled pork, jack cheese, sweet corn and fresh basil. They’re so summery but warm and comforting at the same time.

Begin with a pork shoulder. They usually range anywhere from 2 1/2 to 4 pounds (boneless), and that’s too much meat for 8 enchiladas. So either plan on making a double batch or using half of the pulled pork for something else.

I would say slice the roast in half and freeze the remainder, or just buy a really small roast, but I’ve never had good luck cooking small amounts of meat in the Crock.

Marinate overnight in enchilada sauce. A word to the wise: the kind of enchilada sauce you use is important. Make sure it’s a brand you know and like since it’s such a dominant flavor in this dish.

After marinating, place in the slow cooker for 8 hours on low.

To assemble the enchiladas you’ll need basil, tortillas (handmade will make all the difference—trust me), corn, sour cream, enchilada sauce, jack cheese, one sweet onion, and a few cloves of garlic.

Begin by mincing the garlic…

…and slicing the onion. I like wedges myself since it’s more fajita-style.

Saute the garlic in a little vegetable oil, then add the onion and saute for a few minutes until the onion just begins to become tender. Remove from heat.

In a large bowl shred half the pork…

…then add the corn (carefully sliced from the cob), chopped basil, and onion mixture.

Toss together.

Now here’s a trick that will perk up any enchilada recipe: mix sour cream into the enchilada sauce. It will make it creamier. And dreamier.

Next, shred an unholy amount of cheese. A hill of cheese. Heck, a mountain of cheese. If you like the pre-shredded stuff you obviously don’t like cheese should really consider taking 5 more minutes and shredding a real brick of cheese yourself. I don’t know what they put in those plastic baggies, but I don’t think it’s actually cheese.

Pour one cup of the the enchilada sauce/sour cream mixture into the bottom of a 9×13″ pan, then fill each tortilla with a sprinkle of cheese…

…and a few spoonfuls of the pork filling.

Roll up each tortilla as you go and place in the pan.

Pour the rest of the sauce mixture over the enchiladas…

…and top with the remaining shredded cheese.

Bake. Bask in the heavenly aromas that are wafting from your oven.

Serve topped with sour cream and pico de gallo, if you wish. Or just inhale them right out of the pan. Up to you—no judgment here.

For me, the contrast of the sweet corn and basil against the spicy pork and creamy sauce is just about as good as it gets. I have died and gone to summer enchilada heaven.

Pulled Pork Enchiladas    printable pulled pork heaven

Using quality pork, handmade tortillas and good enchilada sauce makes all the difference in this dish. Plan on either doubling the recipe or finding another use for the other half of the pulled pork. Serves 4-6.

Inactive Prep Time: 1 day                 Active Prep Time: 30 minutes          Cook Time: 35 minutes 

  • 3-4 lb boneless pork shoulder roast (sometimes called “pork butt”)
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • 1 28 oz can red enchilada sauce, divided
  • 2 cloves garlic, peeled
  • 1 sweet onion
  • 1 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 2 ears sweet corn, shucked
  • 1 c lightly packed fresh basil leaves
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 16oz container sour cream
  • 8 handmade 9″-10″ flour tortillas
  • 4 c shredded monterey jack cheese
  • pico de gallo, for serving (optional)
1. Rinse pork and pat dry. Place in a large freezer bag with 1/2 cup of the enchilada sauce and the kosher salt. Refrigerate overnight.
2. Place pork and marinade in slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours.
3. Preheat oven to 350F. Mince garlic. Slice onion. Heat vegetable oil on medium-high in a large saute pan. Add garlic and saute 30 seconds. Add onion and cook 3-5 minutes, stirring frequently, until onion just becomes tender. Remove from heat.
4. Place half of the cooked pork roast in a large bowl and shred with a fork (reserve remaining half of pork for another use). Add the onion mixture. Slice corn kernels from the husk and chop the basil. Add corn and basil to bowl, stir and season filling mixture with salt and pepper to taste.
5. In a small mixing bowl, stir together the sour cream (reserve some for serving, if desired), and the remaining enchilada sauce. Pour 1 c of the mixture into the bottom of a 9×13″ pan.
6. Divide the filling equally among the 8 tortillas. Top with 2-3 tbsp shredded cheese, roll, and place in pan. Pour remaining sauce over enchiladas and top with remaining cheese.
6. Cover dish loosely with foil and bake for 30-35 minutes, removing foil for last 10 minutes of baking, until sauce is bubbly and cheese is melted. Let cool 5 minutes before serving. Top with sour cream and pico de gallo if desired.

 

 

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buffalo fries

June 13, 2011 by 6 Comments

After a particularly greuling day full of doctors appointments and screaming children, Dave and I needed a respite. I couldn’t stand the thought of cooking and it was already late in the day, so we stopped in for happy hour at a local brewery. Lucy dug into a box of crayons, the baby napped, Dave spaced out to a baseball game on the bar television, and I sipped a very large, cold hefeweizen. It was just what the doctor ordered.

We picked a smattering of appetizers which included a plate of “buffalo fries”: soggy steak fries in a pool of buffalo sauce with some melted cheese on top. It was a dish that was much better in theory than in execution. And even though it was a pretty crappy appetizer, the thought of it stayed with me all week. I could make it better. Perfect, even.

And so can you. Grab a few yukon gold potatoes, a bunch of green onions, crumbled gorgonzola cheese, shredded jack, Johnny’s seasoning salt (or your favorite variety), buffalo sauce (I like Frank’s), and blue cheese dressing.

Begin by slicing the potatoes into wedges. You’re welcome to use regular old russet potatoes, but I find that for oven fries, yukon golds have a better texture and flavor.

Throw them in a bowl and toss with a little cooking oil.

Spread them in a single layer on a baking sheet and sprinkle with seasoning salt.

Roast in the oven until golden and crisp around the edges, roughly 15 minutes per side.

Next, find yourself an oven safe plate or platter that you’d like to serve the fries on. Carefully spread the hot fries onto it.

Drizzle with buffalo sauce…

…and top with the shredded jack and crumbled gorgonzola. Place under the broiler for a few minutes, just until the cheese is melted and starting to bubble.

Chop up the light green parts of the scallions…

…and sprinkle on top of the finished fries.

Of course you can’t serve anything “buffalo” without blue cheese dressing on the side.

Now these are buffalo fries done right. The potatoes are crisp and salty, the buffalo sauce adds heat, and the creaminess of the melted cheese tempers the spice. Make these for your next party and your friends will never leave.

I’m going to whip up a plate of these next time Dave and I need a break. Which is…pretty much always.

-RDG

Buffalo Fries printable pdf

Serves 4-5 as an appetizer. Prep Time: 10 minutes Cook Time: 35 minutes

  • 3 large yukon gold potatoes
  • 2 tbsp cooking oil
  • seasoning salt
  • 1/3 c buffalo sauce
  • 1 c shredded jack cheese
  • 1/3 c crumbled gorgonzola cheese
  • 3 green onions
  • blue cheese dressing (optional, for dipping)

1. Preheat oven to 475F. Slice each potato in half lengthwise, then each half into 6 wedges. Place in a bowl and toss with cooking oil. Spread in a single layer on a baking sheet lined with parchment or Silpat. Sprinkle with seasoning salt. Roast for 15 minutes, then turn fries, sprinkle with more seasoning salt, and roast for an additional 15 minutes.

2. Set oven to broil. Carefully place hot fries onto an oven safe platter. Drizzle with buffalo sauce, then sprinkle with cheeses. Broil until cheese is melted and just begins to bubble. Remove from oven.

3. Dice green onions and sprinkle over the top of the fries. Serve with blue cheese dressing on the side.

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artichoke crusted chicken a la sugarlaws

May 27, 2010 by 7 Comments

I dream about cooking soufflés. Coq au vin. Seven-layer tortes. I live a fictional life as a professional chef while I sleep full of commercial kitchens and walk-in pantries stocked by DeLaurenti’s. I bake loaves and loaves of bread. I pipe rosettes onto cakes. I have $100 bottles of olive oil at my fingertips. I simmer mussels in wine and shave white truffles over homemade pasta.

But then I wake up. The baby is crying. I step on a musical toy donkey on my way to the bathroom. The coffee needs to be ground, the eggs need to be scrambled. And as I sleepily stumble my way around my kitchen with it’s laminate countertops, electric burners and too little square footage, I long to go back to that dreamworld of stainless steel and white aprons.

This is why when I run into a recipe that takes basic and easy to a whole new level of delicious, attention must be paid. In my evening alternate universe, there is endless time and unlimited ingredients. But for me, non-professional chef Jenny, living in the real world where time is scarce and trips to the grocery store are often few and far between, I need a go-to recipe that I can get on the table fast. I’ll save the sous vide and napoleons for my dream life of professional chef-dom.

This recipe for insanely tasty artichoke crusted chicken breasts comes from one of my blogger crushes Sugarlaws. She is beautiful. She is fashionable. She is not afraid to post pictures of herself for all of the world to see (I am quite the opposite). And she has a huge stock of recipes that are all delicious and easy. For this dish, you don’t need complicated ingredients, a well-stocked pantry, abundant workspace or even gas burners. 15 minutes, one pan and an oven should suffice.

Start by chopping some artichoke hearts (canned or jarred), and mixing them together with a little mayo, grated cheese, salt and pepper.

Toss some chicken breasts in a frying pan with a little olive oil. Brown well on one side…

…and then the other. Remove from heat, transfer to a baking sheet, and top with a dollop the artichoke mixture.

Broil for a few minutes until the cheese has melted and the topping turns a nice golden brown.

Stick them on a platter or directly on your dinner plate, and that’s it.

Does it get any easier than that? I don’t think so. This dish is so simple and satisfying that it should be given a medal.

And talk about tasty. The chicken is moist, the topping melty, salty and rich from the artichokes. Make a few potatoes or steam some veggies, and that’s dinner.

Make this tonight for your hungry ones. I know I will.

And afterwards, when the dishes are done and we have all gone to bed, I may just dream of this life—the fabulous, fun, crazy delicious life I live everyday. In my own tiny, outdated kitchen.

-RDG

You can find the original post and recipe for Sugarlaw’s Artichoke Crusted Chicken right here.

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poblanos stuffed with chipotle mac ‘n’ cheese

May 3, 2010 by 20 Comments

Someone needs to stage an intervention. I’ve been so hung up on mexican food (and tex-mex), that I’ve shirked all regard for personal safety and common sense. I went on a 72-hour binge of green chile chowder, never once combing my hair or stepping foot outside a ten-foot radius of the refrigerator. I’ve been sleepwalking to Ballard at night, pounding on Carta’s door, begging for molotes and fish tacos. Husband finds me in the morning, asleep on the pavement on Ballard Ave.

And now, with Cinco de Mayo looming on the horizon, I’ve gone and done it again. I woke up in a craze last Wednesday morning—an epiphany had come to me in my dreams. Peppers. Stuffed peppers. Cheesy stuffed peppers. Mac ‘n’ cheese. Unicorns. Unicorns with wings. Unicorns smoking cigars.

Wait, where was I…

Mac ‘n’ cheese. Spicy mac ‘n’ cheese. Chipotle mac ‘n’ cheese.

Peppers. Mac ‘n’ cheese. Peppers and mac ‘n’ cheese. Peppers stuffed with chipotle mac ‘n’ cheese!

I bolted out of bed, scrambling for my laptop to search for recipes that would fit the bill. Lo and behold, I had bookmarked a recipe for chipotle mac ‘n’ cheese from Homesick Texan a billion years ago.

I fiddled with it a bit, but the basics are the same: melty cheese (jack and sharp cheddar), cottage cheese, macaroni, spices, and one chipotle pepper in adobo (a.k.a. Hot Spicy Death in a Can). Careful handing these buggers.

Put the chipotle pepper, cottage cheese and spices in a blender with some milk. We’re makin’ the sauce, baby.

Pour over the noodles…

…toss in some grated cheese…

…and mix it up. Perfect.

Now, find yourself some poblano peppers. These look just right for stuffin’, don’t you think?

Lay out one pepper so it sits naturally. Not cross-legged, not yoga-style—just plain old natural sittin’ down. We don’t want them to tip over in the pan.

Make one long slit lengthwise…

…and then a short crosswise slit to form a “t”.

Open that puppy up and yank out the seeds. It’s easiest to bang it over your sink or garbage can.

And if you’re smart (not like me, obviously), you’d put on gloves before beginning this process. But me? Nah. I wanted my fingers to feel like they were on fire all day long. Keeps things interesting.

Lay them in your roasting pan (I lined mine with foil to keep cleanup easy)…

…and spoon in the macaroni mixture. Roast just until they look…

…like this.

And this.

And this.

How did I never think of this before?

Oh, it’s because I wasn’t a junkie before. I lead a normal life in which I did not dream up stuffing peppers with spicy pasta. And I didn’t sleepwalk. And actually left the house and combed my hair.

How did they taste? To this addict, they were amazing. The pasta cooked perfectly inside the peppers, the spice was just right, and the moisture from the poblanos kept everything tender and tasty. Peppers or no peppers, this mac ‘n’ cheese was mighty fine. Spicy, creamy, but not overly saucy.

You may say that I’m nuts. Or you may say that I’m a genius. Or you may try to put me in Mexican food detox. But whatever the case, you need to make these for Cinco de Mayo. Your friends will be totes impressed.

Tomorrow I’m going to holla back at ya with this mango, corn, avocado and tomato slaw that I served alongside my crazy stuffed peppers.

Happy monday! Hope it’s a good one!

-RDG

Poblanos Stuffed with Chipotle Mac ‘n’ Cheese (macaroni adapted from this recipe from Homesick Texan)

  • 2 cups dry elbow pasta (macaroni)
  • 1 1/2 cups grated jack cheese, plus more for topping
  • 1 1/2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese, plus more for topping
  • 1 cup cottage cheese
  • 1 1/4 cups milk
  • 1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce (I use Embasa brand cans that can be found on the Hispanic food aisle)
  • 1 teaspoon mustard powder
  • 1 dash cumin
  • salt and pepper
  • 8 poblano peppers for stuffing

Combine cottage cheese, milk, chipotle pepper (use gloves or pull it out of the can with a fork), mustard powder, cumin, and salt and pepper in a blender. Puree until mixture is light pink in color and smooth. Pour over dry pasta and stir in cheeses.

Wash and dry poblano peppers. Set each pepper on prep surface so that it sits naturally and won’t tip over. Make one slit lengthwise down the pepper (leaving a little room at each end), and another crosswise (about 2″ long) near the top to form a “t”. Carefully open the pepper and remove seeds. Spoon macaroni mixture into each pepper, leaving at least 1/4″ room for expansion. Place in roasting pan and bake in a 375F preheated oven for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and carefully top each pepper with 2 tablespoons of the extra grated cheese. Return to oven and roast an additional 10 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes before serving.

What to do with that opened can of chipotle peppers? See my tips right here. Or you can always dump the contents into a freezer bag and store for up to 6 months in the freezer.

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