Sic Semper Porcus

BACON-burger

So this is a variation on a previous recipe that I posted in the past.  We had some old ground chuck with a touch of freezer burn that clearly needed to be used up.  Clearly bacon can mask any inferior meat with texture and flavor, but instead of merely frying up loads of bacon and piling it high atop the patty, I added it to the mixture.  This not only helped render the freezer burn obsolete but also helped hold together the patties which had lost their ability to hold themselves together.  I added a bit of spice in the form of fresh cayenne peppers and a touch of acid and salt with the addition of finely diced capers.  In the end you never would have known that the burgers were made from questionable beef (to be fair it was probably still better beef than you find in most commercial establishments).  I garnished it with some heirloom tomatoes, arugula, crispy caramelized onions and a small slice of Parmesan Reggiano all thrown on a toasted baguette.  I realize this concoction comes off a bit pretentious, but I assure you it was well thought out and the toppings were not thrown on haphazardly...or at least to the extent that I had everything in my fridge.

BACON-buger

 

1 ½ lb ground chuck (freezer burn optional)

½ lb of cooked bacon finely chopped

1 tsp salt

2 tsp pepper

2 fresh cayenne peppers (substitute jalapeños for more heat), diced

1 tbsp finely diced capers

1 tbsp diced fresh parsley

2 tsp hot Hungarian paprika

2 cloves of garlic diced

½ a yellow onion, sliced

¼ cup of dry sherry

 

Combine all the ingredients except the onions and sherry and form into 6 patties.  Grill to taste and adjust seasoning.  Add onions to a pan with oil and cook at a high temperature for one minute and then reduce heat and add sherry to finish caramelizing onions.  Add garnishes, Parmesan, arugula, tomatoes and onions.  I served this with a bottle of Domaine Garrignon Cotes du Rhone Rouge.  Damn fine burger…

Alfredo Sauce with Bacon

I'm no chef nor am I that good of a cook.  I'm lucky.  I have two roommates that love to cook and I get to eat fantastic meals.  Some of them are posted -- some of course not.  But having said all of this, I do cook.  I make pastas along with my Italian heritage and go to my pantry and pull out random things and put them together.  This on occasion works. 

Lately I made a good Alfredo sauce.  Technically I don't think it's even called an Alfredo sauce because I added several extra ingredients -- garlic and of course bacon.  However, I would just call this snobbery and will call my pasta anything that I like.  This is one of my favorite sauces and anything called "heart attack on a plate" has to be good!  It does not take that long to make but just make sure to have your pasta ready and a hand ready to stir the sauce to keep it from getting clumpy.

Pasta with Alfredo Sauce and Bacon

1/2 stick of butter
1 cup of heavy cream
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 1/2 cups freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 strips of cooked bacon
salt and pepper to taste

Melt the butter over low heat in a pan.  Then add the cream while stirring.   After a few minutes add the cheese, garlic, red pepper and bacon.  Finally pepper and salt the sauce to taste.  Though you need to remember that bacon and the cheese add a fair amount of salt on their own accord.  Continuously stir until you add the sauce to about a pound of cooked pasta. 

Farfalle with Pancetta and Vegetables

I had to do something with the newly created pancetta, so I decided to take advantage of summer's bounty of green things and make a nice light pasta dish enriched by homemade pancetta.  These simple pasta dishes always remind me of childhood.  I remember summer nights where my father would throw together all the fresh veggies we had with perhaps some of the leftover meat from the night before or maybe a bit of prosciutto and we would sit out in the back yard enjoy the simple meal and the hours after the intense Chicago summer heat had subsided.  These meals were basically the product of my father's creative cooking mind and, in fact, really inspired me to begin cooking.  The idea of taking whatever disparate elements you have and combining them into a cohesive final product embodied, to me, the true nature of cooking.

This simply dish could be turned into any number of different dishes based on what you have at home.  Serves 4

Farfalle with Pancetta and Vegetables

2 large heads of broccoli
2/3 lb of green beans (French green beans are preferable as they are thinner and require less cooking)
10 oz farfalle
1/3 lb of pancetta diced finely
3 garlic cloves sliced thinly
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/4 cup of chopped fresh basil, chiffonade
1/2 cup of white wine
1 tablespoon of olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Bring water to boil for the vegetables.  In a seperate pot boil water for the pasta.  When the water is close to boiling begin to cook your pancetta at medium low heat in a large enough pan to hold all the ingredients in the end.  Cook until the pancetta has rendered off a bit of fat and is starting to crisp up.  Add your olive oil and garlic and allow it to soften and brown slightly.  When the water is boiling toss in the broccoli stumps first as they take longer to cook, then add the florets and finally shortly after the beans.  They will only need a couple minutes of cooking as they will get a bit more cooking time at the end of the dish.  Also at this time you should add your pasta to the other pot.  After the veggies have cooked for a couple minutes you can pull them out and drain them.  A few minutes before the pasta is ready add the white wine to the pancetta and garlic and deglaze the pan.  Pull the pasta from from the water with a basket strainer or a large slotted spoon, you want some of the pasta water to get added to the sauce.  Cook the mixture for a few minutes until the pasta is almost al dente then add the vegetables, salt and pepper and mix it all together.  Top with fresh basil and red pepper flakes and serve. I paired this with a Falanghina Feudi di San Gregorio, a wonderful bright white wine from southern Italy.  Bon Appetit!

Pancetta

The process for making pancetta is very similar to that of bacon except with the extra step of partially dry curing it.  Pancetta is wonderful for it rich, spicy character and the slightly more concentrated "cured" taste.  However, since it is not smoked, it allows the simple nuances of the meat to show through a bit more, which as a pork lover is always a plus.  It is typically used to enhance sauces and other bases, but also combines very well wrapped around vegetables and fruits that you would roast (asparagus, apples, figs, etc.). In a pinch, bacon often gets substituted for pancetta but for the sake of authenticity and the full range of flavor that good pancetta offers, I highly recommend pancetta. 

The initial steps in the preparation are the same as bacon with the one exception being: in this situation you are going to want to remove the skin ahead of time as it will speed up the curing process and because you won't be cooking it like you do bacon.  Make a course ground mixture out of the spices and curing elements (SALT!) and rub them on your piece of pork belly, try not to enjoy this part too much.  Toss your spice crusted belly in a large sealable bag and pour in all the spice that may have fallen off.  Shake the bag up and evenly distribute the curing mixture.  Let it cure in the fridge for a week, occasionally flipping it over and redistributing the spices. 

After the week is up, take it out and clean it off and apply a new layer of fresh ground black pepper.  Roll up the piece of belly tightly and tie it off with butcher's twine in 1 to 1/12 inch increments.  Wrap the roll of pancetta in cheese cloth and suspend it in a cool dark place (optimal curing condition are 60º F and about 60 percent humidity).  To finish curing the pancetta it will take about another week and a half, if at any point the meat starts to emit a rancid smell then unfortunately you have to pitch it and start all over (don't be a hero!).  Once it's finished curing the pancetta will have the texture of pliable leather.  It will keep in the fridge for another two weeks or so.  Cook pancetta as you would bacon.  Enjoy!

Pancetta

3lb piece of pork belly
1 1/2 tablespoons whole black peppercorns,
1 tablespoon black pepper for after curing
2 tablespoons whole juniper berries
1/4 cup kosher salt
2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
2 teaspoons curing salt
3 garlic cloves, minced
3 dry bay leaves
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary leaves

Bacon Bloody Mary

Nothing starts off a day of smoking large quantities of meat like a nice spicy bloody mary.  Since this is a pork blog I figured I had to switch things up a bit, hence the bacon.  As a note, I can never bring myself to use a bloody mary mix so I always end up making my own vegetable puree and season it myself, I feel this always ends up with better results.  We figured that as a nice twist we could add a nice thick cut of bacon to use as a stirrer in addition to a few pieces blended in to the mix.  The salty smoky nature of the bacon is a nice complement to the spicy bloody mary.

Bacon Bloody Mary

5 large tomatoes
3 carrots, peeled
4 fresno peppers, stemed
1 1/2 cups reserved cooking water
1 tablespoon worchestshire sauce
4 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
3 cloves of garlic, diced
2 lemons, juiced
2 tablespoons of chile infused oil
3 tablespoons ground black pepper
1 tablespoons ground fennel
3 tablespoons salt
2 pieces of bacon plus one for each glass

Boil the vegetables until the tomatoes are tender.  Remove the vegetables and peel the tomatoes.  Sautee the bacon to taste, dice two strips. Combine all the ingredients (except the water) in a blender and blend until it is a thick smooth puree.  Slowly add the water until it has thinned out to the desired consistency.  Add your choice of vodka.  We used two different vodkas: Qino One, an excellent Vodka from France made from the Quinoa grain and also Kiev Vodka, a classic example of Eastern European vodkas.

Bacon, Morels and Eggs

One my favorite parts of late Spring and early Summer in the Midwest, aside from reprieve from the character defining Winters, is searching for my favorite mushroom, morels.  My pops and I went out on a gorgeous day and scrounged around the forest floor for these gems.  Morels are probably one of the more sought after mushroom, obviously deferring to truffles, because they haven't really been successfully cultivated commercially and because of their unique flavor: smoky and woody with a meaty element as well. 

Morels are such a treat that I usually prepare them in a very simple way.  I used up most of my share of the morels on a cream and shallot sauce that topped some roasted cornish hens (mouthwatering mini chickens, mmmm).  Morels seem to react so well with cream and butter, the mushrooms gain a supple creamy body and then they in turn impart their wonderful characteristics into the sauce, making a velvety sauce that taste like the forest floor.  In any case, eggs also marry very well with morels and I needed to use up the remaining one before they dried out.  I figured our fennel and pepper cured bacon would add a little heft to the meal and the smoky element would naturally meld with the morels so I chopped up about four thick slices and then diced that.  Throw it on medium to low heat and render out as much fat as possible.  Add a couple tablespoons of butter and then your diced morels and sautee until soft and the mushrooms have absorbed most of the fat and butter.  Add your eggs with salt and pepper to taste, and briskly scramble to taste. I like mine just a little runny.  Toast up some nice bread and slather on butter and you have yourself a decadent breakfast perfect for lazy/ hungover mornings. 

As a note, if you ever want this meal when morels aren't in season or you don't have access to fresh morels dried morels make a decent substitute.  Be careful not to put too much water as they'll become overly soft because they're basically like little sponges.  Err on the side of less water when reconstituting.

BTC Sammich

Nothing says summer like a BLT.  Crisp bacon with beautifully ripe tomatoes and crisp flavorful lettuce (the lettuce is clearly the least interesting part, but it's tradition).  So in order to ring in the warm weather and grilling I thought I'd have a nice BLT.  Well as fortune had it, there was no lettuce in my apartment so I had to get a little creative.  I decided to model it after the bahn mi sandwich of Vietnam.  Crisp vegetables, normally carrots and cucumbers, and fragrant herbs (cilantro) are paired with meat on a baguette to create a refreshing sandwich perfect for those blisteringly hot days where even siting up makes you sweat.  We had some fennel and pepper bacon that we actually got around to smoking this time rather then cooking it in the oven.  Fry up three slices of thick-cut bacon slice up some nice tomatoes (it's still a little early in the season so these were mediocre) slice some carrots thin, a mandolin makes this very easy.  I toasted a portion of a baguette, spread on some homemade mayonnaise and dressed it all up with some fresh rosemary.  Stellar.  On a final note, get ready for more madness as now my partner in crime, Tom, will actually be posting on the site.  It'll be interesting to see how this goes, it might turn out slightly schizophrenic...

My Breakfast

Just a quick post this morning.  I have to run some errands on my day off.  We have some new bacon so I figured I would create something tasty this morning.  The new bacon is cured with fennel and red pepper flakes.  Obviously nothing starts the day better than bacon.  Initially I was going to make something conventional like bacon and scrambled eggs, but obviously we were out of eggs.  The next thing that came to me was grits.  Grits are a treasure of southern cooking and just thinking about a big creamy pile of grits with crispy bacon perched beside it made my mouth water.  I decided to make a slight twist on the classic dish.  I looked in the fridge to see what inspired me.  Leeks seemed like a nice touch, but I didn't have any appropriate cheese to balance the flavor of the leeks.  Then I spied a little container of creme fraiche that needed to be used up.  This would provide a creamy balance to the grits while adding a nice lightly sour touch.   Well it turned out lovely and hopefully y'all will enjoy it too.

Fennel and Red Pepper Bacon   

5 lb pork belly
1/4 lb of kosher salt
5 teaspoons sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons pink salt
4 tablespoons crushed fennel
3 chiles de arbol, ground

Grits and Crispy Leeks with Fennel and Red Pepper Bacon

3 pieces of Fennel and Red Pepper Bacon
4 tablespoons of grits
1 cup of water
1/3 cup of milk
2 teaspoons salt
1/3 of a leek sliced thin
2 tablespoons of chicken stock or water
1 tablespoon creme fraiche
ground black pepper to taste
pinch of cayenne pepper

Cook the bacon over low heat to render as much fat and to ensure the bacon is crispy.  After the bacon is cooked, add the leeks and cook until slightly brown add the stock and deglaze the pan and allow the leeks to briefly absorb some of the liquid.  Bring the water to a boil and then add the grits, salt and milk.  Lower the temperature and cover and cook for 5-10 minutes or until the grits have set to the consistency that you like.  Add the leeks and pan juices to the grits along with the creme fraiche, cayenne pepper and black pepper to taste. 

Bacon Success!

The bacon that we were curing has turned out spectacularly and we have been cutting big chunks off of both the regular cured and also the guajillo bacon. Neither are smoked because of weather issues, but certainly the next batch will be.  The guajillo cured bacon is not as spicy as I had hoped, but perhaps next time I'll add more guajillo and briefly toast the chiles before grinding them for the curing rub.  After your pork belly has cured for about 7 days in the fridge, take the finished product out and rinse it clean and remove the skin from the top of the belly, revealing the glistening fatty top of your bacon slab.  Next, either smoke or bake it at a relatively cool temperature (below 200 degrees F) for about two hours.  Then you're free to cook with your bacon in any number of ways.

The great thing about making your own bacon, aside from the fact that it will be better than most of the bacon you buy in the store,  is the versatility it provides.  When you have a bacon in slab form your can cut off standard slices for your breakfast, make lardons for classic French dishes or give it a name and constantly apologize to it for hacking it apart (note: this is not advisable as unhappy bacon will never taste as good)

Whatever you choose to do, you should know that there are endless uses for bacon and variations on the cures.  So try something new and redefine your view of bacon.  Stay tuned for our pancetta.  Below are the two cures we used.

Regular Bacon Cure

5 lb pork belly
1/4 cup of kosher salt
10 teaspoons sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons pink salt
2 tablespoons crushed peppercorns

Guajillo Bacon

5 lb pork belly
1/4 cup of kosher salt
6 teaspoons sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons pink salt
3 dried guajillo peppers, stemmed and partially seeded and ground
4 dried chiles de arbol, ground

Bacon will bring about world peace...

(Tom is clearly excited by the prospect of homemade bacon)

Bacon must be the food of the gods.  I've known several die hard vegetarians who have turned back to meat because of the enticing joy of well prepared bacon.  Bacon is so simple to make you'll never buy that mediocre crap they sell in commercial grocery stores again.  In addition, once you master it, you won't have to pay exorbitant prices for the well made stuff.  Bacon is pork belly (which you can get at any good butcher) that is heavily salted and allowed to cure in a cool place.  It's so simple we decided to make three kinds.  A classic bacon with salt and pepper, Italian pancetta and our own recipe, a guajillo chile bacon.  The same culprits are involved in the curing process: salt, curing salts and whatever spices you choose to throw on.  Spread your rub on the bacon, grab a 1 or 2 gallon ziploc bag toss it in the bag and throw it in your fridge and a week later you got bacon.  Wipe off the rub and smoke it for that classic smoked bacon taste or just roast it at a low temperature and then slice it up for any number of mouth watering dishes.

(Your humble author and our attempt at pancetta)