FoodB

Look at that, a genuine inflatable matzah ball. Man there are some weird pictures on the internet. Can't imagine why I don't already own a genuine inflatable matzah ball.

Speaking of which, this entry covers (as you might have guessed) matzah ball soup. Jenn and I watched a special on the customs of Passover feasts from around New York, and it got me interested more in kosher food and various Jewish meals. One of the main meals that I know of from Jewish culture is matzah ball soup.

So, once again I came across a recipe in our big soup book and asked Jenn if she could make it sometime. Here is what the recipe looked like:

Matzah Ball Soup

4 large Eggs
1/4 cup Vegetable Oil
7 Tbsn. of Water
1 cup matzo meal
1 1/2 tsp. Salt
1/4 tsp. Black Pepper
2 Quarts Chicken Stock
3 small Carrots, peeled and cut into round 1/8 inch thick
2 Tbsn. finely chopped fresh dill or parsley

1. Lightly beat the eggs with a whisk in a medium bowl. Whisk in the fat, then the water. In a separate bowl, mix together the matzo meal, salt and pepper. Stir the matzo mixture into the liquids. The consistency will initially be like pancake batter, but it will immediately begin to thicken. After 2 to 3 minutes the batter will be like soft mashed potatoes or soft polenta. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 4 hours.
2. Bring 4 quarts of water to a boil in a large stockpot of Dutch oven over medium high heat. With moistened hands, form 1 level tablespoon of matzo mixture into balls about 1 inch diameter. Drop the balls into the boiling water so that each falls into the pot in a different place. When all of the balls are added, reduce to a simmer over medium low heat and cook covered for 20 minutes. With a slotted spoon, remove one matzo ball, cut in half and check for doneness and seasoning. The matzo ball is done when the inside is not dark or wet. If more seasoning is desired add 2 teaspoons salt to the water. If necessary cook 5 to 10 additional minutes, or until the color is uniform throughout and the texture is light and fluffy.
3. While the matzo balls are cooking bring the stock to a boil in a large saucepan. Add the carrots, reduce the heat to medium low and cook until tender, about 6 minutes. Use slotted spoons to transfer the matzo balls to the soup. Stir in the dill or parsley and serve immediately.

Man was I impressed. I helped Jenn a little in the making of the soup and I thought it was going to be horrible. It was basically dough balls that consist of flour, eggs, water and some spices for the matzah itself. Just sounded bland. Then the broth was just chicken broth and carrots. Again, nothing earth shattering there. I was happily surprised that the matzah balls themselves have a lot of flavor and made for a really good soup. It was still good the next day as leftovers.

This week we are making it again (this recipe should have been posted about a month ago). This time Jenn says she wants to add some celery to the broth. Either way, I think this one is going to be a staple for us.

Posted by Gordon at 10:20 AM | Permalink

Silent round here. Been busy. School. Work. The usual.

A few weeks back, Jennifer's mom was having another open house. She offered to buy the food if I was willing to cook it. Always one to step up to a challenge like that, I accepted. I had my heart set on smoking a big ole chunk of pig.

Just a quick info session on the process of smoking. Smoking is cooking (in a BBQ looking device) at less than 250 degrees for long periods of time. Generally you only smoke larger pieces of meat this way because: a) smaller pieces will finish too quickly, therefore negating the reason for smoking; adding flavor b) larger pieces have more fat and can withstand the long cook time better, and c) it's just more fun to say that you stayed up all night cooking. So the main recipients of the smoking method are beef brisket, beef or pork ribs, and pork shoulder.

All that being said, I had yet to try smoking a pork shoulder. So we all went to the market and I settled on a picnic roast (mainly because they did not have the more sought after pork butt which I wanted). So here is the recipe as far as I can remember:

Pulled Pork (picnic roast)

1 Pork Picnic Roast (approximately 7-10 lbs.)
Generous amount of spice rub (I used a BBQ rub we get from Plowboys)
4-6 Baseball sized wood chunks (I used apple)
Hamburger buns or large kaiser rolls
BBQ sauce
Cole slaw

Basting Sauce
2 cups apple cider vinegar
1 cup water
3 Tablespoons ground black pepper
2 Tablespoons table salt
1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 Tablespoon paprika
1 Tablespoon pepper

1. Fire up you smoker according to your directions. The temperature of your smoker should be between 200 and 250 degrees.
2. Remove any skin and excess fat from the roast. Apply a generous amount of spice rub to cover (it should look like the spices are caked on. Don't worry about over spicing because it cooks into the meat and that is good eating).
3. Place roast on smoker. Cook for about 1 1/2 hours per pound. Your desired temperature is 188 degrees so your cooking time may vary.
4. About halfway through you cook, mix the basting sauce in a pot. Warm over a low flame and mix together. Flip the roast on the smoker and baste with the sauce.
5. Once roast hits 188 degrees, remove the roast and let it rest, covered in foil, for 30 minutes to 2 hours. Once the rest is up, pull the pork into small bite size pieces with your hands. Mix some of the basting sauce into the pulled pieces of pork. Serve with buns, BBQ sauce, and cole slaw.

Can't believe I waited this long to cook this guy. Really good stuff here. Next time I will try a full pork butt instead of the picnic. Supposedly the picnic has more of a ham-like flavor. I didn't notice any of that but I would like to try at least once.

This was definitely an adventure. I started cooking the roast around 10 p.m. the night before. I have a remote thermometer that I can program to wake me up if the temp gets too high/low and will warn me when the meat hits a certain temp. That little remote is one of the best investments I ever made. We also had to speed up the cook at the end because I hit a temperature plateau. Butts and picnics sometimes hit a temperature and stay there for a long time. I had a hungry houseful of people, so I had to speed the process up a bit by increasing the temp of the smoker.

Just a word of warning also. I drink beer when I BBQ. When I am grilling that means I will have about 2 beers when cooking because most grilling takes only up to 30 minutes. With smoking the time moves up to 10+ hours. Don't be a Gordon and start drinking early. It only leads to bad things.

Posted by Gordon at 01:18 PM | Permalink