Irish Pork Stew with Baby Cabbage – What We Should Be Eating on St. Patrick’s Day

I’m sure you’ve heard by now that corned beef and cabbage is not authentic St. Patrick’s Day food. It wasn’t until Irish immigrants, fleeing the great potato famine, arrived in New York, and started hanging out in delicatessens that brisket became the cabbage-adjacent meat of choice.

I assume it was the potato knishes’ siren song that initially drew them in, but eventually they got hooked on the corned beef, and the rest is history. So, I decided to do a little mash-up (and mash-under), and this Irish pork stew with baby cabbage was the result. By the way, “baby cabbage” can be a little hard to find, but you can use Brussels sprouts, and no one will know the difference…mostly because there isn’t one.

You can cook them in the stew if you want, but the timing can be tricky, and trust me, you don’t want to eat “baby cabbage” that’s been cooked too long; no one does, So, I highly recommend blanching them first, and warming through at the end.

Since we are using Guinness, I will admit this isn’t a beginner’s stew. The stout gives a ton of flavor, but also a slightly bitter note, which some people do not enjoy. I balanced it with the balsamic vinegar and caraway seed, and it was absolutely wonderful, but I think it’s worth mentioning.

You can leave it out, use a lighter beer, or just splash in some extra stock. Anyway, if you’re looking for beautiful alternative to that traditional “authentic” St. Patrick’s Day meal, then I hope you give this a try. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 6 portions Irish Pork Stew:

2 1/2 pounds boneless pork shoulder, cut into 2-inch cubes

salt and pepper to taste

1 tbsp vegetable oil

1 tbsp butter

1 large onion, chopped

2 garlic clove, minced

2 generous tbsp flour

1 bay leaf

3/4 teaspoon caraway seed

1 (12-ounce) bottle Guinness Draft or other dark beer

3 carrots, cut into 1 inch pieces

2 ribs celery, cut into 1 inch pieces

2 cups chicken broth, more as needed

3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1/4 cup chopped Italian parsley
12 Brussels sprouts, halved, blanched

mashed potatoes to serve over

Pancetta-Wrapped Leek Gratin – Simply Amazing

I’m all about simply prepared vegetables, but every once in a while I need to cover them in caramelized pork and cheese, and this stunningly delicious pancetta-wrapped leek gratin was one of those times. I love those times.

This “umami bomb” is so flavorful and satisfying, it almost seems disrespectful to serve it as a side dish. Pair this with a slice of buttered bread, hedge your bets with a glass of Sauvignon Blanc, and enjoy a truly special lunch.

For extra credit, after you finish your meal, call your best French friend and describe what you had. They will love and hate you for it. So, whether you make this for lunch, or use it to upstage a steak or grilled piece of salmon, I hope you give this great leek gratin a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 2 portions:

3 large leeks

about 4 oz pancetta

2 tsp olive oil

salt, pepper and cayenne to taste

1/4 cup chicken broth

1/4 cup drinkable white wine

1/3 cup heavy cream

finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese as needed
chives to garnish

How Not to Make Roasted Pork Loin with Grapes and Rosemary Cream Sauce

Well, you can’t win them all. This perfectly fine looking pork roast was the victim of a few easy-to-make mistakes, and hopefully by watching this you’ll avoid such mishaps in the future. In exchange, you’ll have to promise not to make fun of me.

The first, and most obvious error was way too much freshly minced rosemary. I always tell people to be super-careful about adding this resinous herb. I wasn’t paying attention, and just added what I had chopped without thinking, and it was pretty much all over at that point.

Adding cream helped nothing, and only made the herbaceous reduction more caloric and offensive. I probably could have added some lemon, mustard, horseradish, or other heavy-hitting condiment, but by that time nothing was going to unrosemary this train wreck.

On the bright side, the grapes were really good, and even after 30 minutes in the oven, had a juicy, still-firm texture. Their warm sweetness went very well with the meat. So, I hope you watch, critique, and maybe adapt this potentially amazing recipe into something worthwhile. Enjoy!

That Other Meat Sauce

We did a classic Italian bolognese sauce not too long ago, which reminded me that I’ve actually never posted a basic, Italian-American meat sauce. This sauce goes by many names, including Sunday sauce, since that’s the day it’s traditionally made, but for me growing up, this was just called “sauce.”

This is one of those primal recipes that always follows the same procedure, yet almost never contains exactly the same ingredients. I was raised on a blend of beef, pork, and chicken, but any and all leftover proteins can, and must, be added to the pot.

Meatballs are a great choice; as are things like pigs feet, neck bones, and other similar cuts. The tougher the meat, the better it’s going to be in this sauce. Besides playing meat roulette, I’ll also switch different herbs like basil in and out, as well as include the occasional season vegetable.

You can also vary your results here with different tomato products. I went old-school and hand-crushed whole plums, but you can also use crushed or pureed tomatoes as well. The finer and smoother the tomatoes are processed, the thicker your sauce will be, so keep that in mind. Speaking of tomatoes; yes, it is much better to caramelize the tomato paste with the onions before you add the San Marzanos, but I didn't because Grandma didn't, and also, I forgot. 

As long as you cook the meat long enough, and season thoughtfully, there’s really no way this sauce isn’t going to be great. So, while you may not have grown up in an Italian-American home, with this comforting sauce simmering on the stove every Sunday, your family still can. I hope you give this a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 6 portions:

2 tbsp olive oil, divided

1 beef shank

2 pounds pork ribs

2 bone-in chicken thighs

1 diced onion

6 cloves garlic

3 (28-oz) cans San Marzano plum tomatoes, crushed or blended smooth
(Note - any canned tomato product will work. Try with pureed or already crushed tomatoes and save a step)

1/4 cup tomato paste

2 cups water, more as needed

2 tsp salt, or to taste

1 tsp black pepper

1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

2 tbsp chopped Italian parsley

1/4 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

Italian Sausage Chili – Another Super Bowl

It’s been a while since we posted a chili recipe, and what better time than right before the Super Bowl? When it comes to feeding large groups of hungry sports fans frugally, there’s nothing like a big pot of chili. That’s right, more money for beer.

While I’ve added pork to ground beef in chili before, I’ve never tried it with all Italian sausage, and I loved the results. We Italian’d this up even more with cannellini beans and a touch of basil, but other than that, it’s a fairly classic chili (everywhere except Texas and Cincinnati).

Putting basil in chili may sound a little odd, but the sweet, aromatic herb is absolutely perfect with these big, bold flavors, which is why you’ll find it in things like spicy Thai curries and Vietnamese soups. It actually has me thinking about adding coconut milk to a beef chili, along with the basil, but that one is still in the brainstorming stage.

In the video, I mention not to drain the meat after you brown it. This is a common instruction in chili recipes, and is intended to drain off fat, but you also lose lots of flavorful juice. Instead, keep and reduce the juices as you finish browning the meat, and skim the fat off the top later. Everybody wins. I really hope you give this great chili a try soon…like Sunday. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 6 servings (you can double or triple for larger groups easily):

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 onion, chopped

2 1/2 pounds Italian sausage
1 teaspoon salt, or to taste

2 tbsp ancho chili powder

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp ground chipotle pepper

1/2 tsp dried oregano

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

2 1/2 cups water

1 cup tomato puree

1 red pepper
1 green pepper

2 (12 ounce) cans cannellini or other white beans, drained and rinsed

*plus more water as needed during the two simmering stages
*garnish with sour cream, avocado, red onion, and basil!

Bacon Jam – Take That, Fruit!

At the end of the video, I joke that if this bacon jam were the only thing you served at your Super Bowl party, people would still leave raving about the food. That wasn’t a joke. Such is the profound deliciousness of this magical, spreadable bacon.

I’ll have to admit that the first time I heard about bacon jam, it didn’t strike me as a very good idea. I loved the part about frying tons of bacon crispy, but then you want me to add it to a bunch of wet onions? Why would I do that? As usual, I was wrong. Despite losing its crispiness, the intense caramelized bacon flavor, and sweet/tart/peppery punch of this “jam,” more than make up for it.

While I'm officially posting this as another Super Bowl snack idea, its potential uses go way past the big game. One taste and the mind reels with possibilities. While impressive served simply on a chip or crisp, this stuff will turn a grilled cheese sandwich into something beyond our world…and don’t even get me started on the hamburger applications.

Such pleasure does not come without its price, however. This takes some time to make, and there is expert-level stirring involved, but what a small price when you consider the final results. Whether you do this for your Super Bowl party, or other festive occasion, I hope you give this amazing bacon jam a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for about 3 1/2 cups of Bacon Jam:

1 1/2 pound bacon, cooked crisp, chopped fine

2 tsp butter

2 tsp reserved bacon fat

4 large yellow onions (about 3 pounds), diced

1 tsp salt, plus more to taste

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup sherry vinegar

1 1/2 tsp fresh picked thyme leaves, divided (1 tsp cooked in, 1/2 tsp at the end)

1 teaspoon black pepper

pinch of cayenne

1/2 cups water

2 tsp balsamic vinegar

2 tsp extra virgin olive oil

Pork “Al Latte” – Now 100% Milk Free!

This comforting pork stew recipe is exactly the kind of homey dish you want waiting for you after a long, hard week…and maybe a 13-hour drive. Unfortunately, I made this last week, so I couldn’t actually enjoy it today, after a long, hard week and 13-hour drive, but just editing it made me feel better. It was that good.

This stew version is inspired by the classic Italian recipe, “maiale al latte,” or “pork in milk,” but instead of the usual moo juice, I decided to make my own with chicken broth and crème fraiche. I figured I’d get the same basic viscosity and fat content (okay, maybe a tad more), but also a little more flavor, and a better texture once reduced.

I topped it with some fried sage, which is an optional, messy, but delicious extra step, and makes this much more restauranty. Simply heat a 1/2-inch of vegetable oil in a small pan, and toss in some (not wet!) whole sage leaves. Fry until crisp, about 10-15 seconds

The classic preparation involves braising and slicing a whole roast, but one taste and I think you’ll agree it translates beautifully to the stew delivery system. I really hope you give it a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 4 portions:

1 1/2 pound pork shoulder, cut in 2-inch cubes (note: I only had 1 pound, but the recipe will work with another half, which will make four nice portions)

1 tbsp olive oil

2 strips bacon

1 small yellow onion, diced

4 cloves garlic, sliced

1 1/4 cups chicken broth

1/2 cup crème fraiche

2 tbsp fresh chopped sage leaves, plus more for frying

salt and pepper to taste

red chili flakes to taste

*Simmer covered for 1 hour, and then uncovered until the meat is very tender, and the sauce is thickened. Adjust with more broth if needed.

Salad Lyonnaise – A Super Salad from a City of Meat

How great is Salad Lyonnaise? Lyon is considered the meat capital of France, and yet the city’s most famous, and reproduced dish is probably this simple frisee salad. Now that’s some delicious irony.

Don’t worry…this salad is far from vegan. The mildly bitter greens are dressed in a shallot and Dijon dressing, it’s spiked with a generous handful of crispy lardons, or bacon in my case, and topped with a runny egg.

By the way, unless you’re some kind of crazy person, you’re going to need some crispy croutons or crostini to finish this masterpiece off. Here’s a link to the ones I used for this, sans Parmigiano-Reggiano. You’ll also want to taste and adjust the dressing to your liking. I use a 2-to-1, oil to vinegar ratio, as I think you need some acidity to cut the richness of the bacon and egg yolk, but you may not want it as sharp.

As I joked about in the video, this is so tasty, it may be the only salad that has a chance to be picked as someone’s last meal. There’s good, and then there’s death row good. Anyway, I’ve been dying to film this old favorite, and I really hope you give it a try soon. Enjoy!

For 4 generous portions:

2 heads frisee lettuce, aka curly endive, or use arugula

8 oz bacon (or pancetta if you want to experience something closer to real lardons)

4 large eggs

1 tbsp chives

For the dressing (makes extra, about 3/4 cup total):

1 generous tbsp minced shallots

1 generous tbsp Dijon mustard

salt and pepper to taste

1/4 cup sherry vinegar

1/2 cup lightly flavored olive oil