A Southern Supper

Every so often I get the urge to forego fancy or new dishes for supper.  When that happens I go back to my small town Southern roots.  You just can't go wrong with the basics of Southern cooking.  To that end, we had a meal that any Southerner would appreciate.  Last night's supper was grilled pork chops, mashed potatoes, fried okra, and mixed greens.  Oh my goodness it was good.  The only thing I didn't do that my grandmother would have done was make biscuits or cornbread to go with it.


I'll break down the how and why of this meal as I go along.  Now, on with the show.

A plate of good Southern cooking

Grilled pork chops should need no explanation.  After all, is there anything better than glorious pork?  I will say, I could have fried the pork chops but I didn't have enough space on the stove top.  If I hadn't had fried okra then I'd have fried the pork chops and been able to make gravy to go on the mashed potatoes.  Any way, pork is the meat of the South.  I am not big on over seasoning meat since I think the flavor of the meat should shine, so the pork chops got a simple treatment.  I sprinkled kosher salt and ground black pepper on the pork chops then splashed a little bourbon on them.  They sat on a pan until time to take out to the grill.  They were grilled until they reached 145F.  Beautiful juicy white meat with great flavor.


Mashed potatoes are one of those things that tend to get short changed.  It's hard to find a meal in the South without potatoes in some form.  Like pork, the potato is a versatile ingredient and can be used many ways.


Mashed Potatoes


4 russet potatoes
1 stick butter, sliced
buttermilk
salt
pepper
garlic powder


Cut the potatoes into cubes of similar size and place in a pot.  Fill the pot with water and rinse the potatoes then dump the water.  Repeat the process.  Fill  the pot with water until it just covers the potatoes then put over med-high heat.  Bring to a boil and cook until the potatoes are just tender.  A fork should stick in without breaking the cube.  Drain the water.  Put the pot of potatoes back on the eye to evaporate any remaining water.  Add the butter slices in pot and stir.  Once the butter has melted start mashing.  Add buttermilk as you go till you get the consistency you want.  Add salt, pepper, and garlic powder to taste.  Serves 4.


Fried okra is all some people know of okra, or it's the only form of okra they'll eat.  Mention boiled okra to most people and they start talking about slime even if they've never had boiled okra.  In spite of my okra plants getting laid over thanks to the edge of hurricane Matthew that hit us, they are still producing well.  Okra pods that get too big to be tender boiled get sliced and fried.  Since I had built up a good collection of frying okra that's what I used.


Fried Okra


1/2 lb okra
flour
1 egg
1 cup milk
cornmeal mixture (cornmeal, corn starch, salt, garlic powder)
oil


Cut okra into 1/2 inch thick slices and put in flour.  Shake excess flour off the sliced okra and put into egg wash made with the egg and milk.  Drain the excess and put in a bowl with the cornmeal mixture and toss to coat.  Once well coated remove okra from the bowl and put on a plate until all the okra is done.  Heat a skillet with about 1/4 inch of oil in it.  Once it is hot put in the breaded okra.  Cook until brown on the bottom and turn the okra to cook the other side.  Alternatively, you can deep fry the okra and not have to worry about turning it.  Serve hot.

Fried Okra almost ready

Greens are another thing that get Southerners going.  Greens mean different things to different people.  Greens can be collard greens, mustard greens, or turnip greens most often.  There are also wild greens like poke salad, dandelions, and lamb's quarter.  For me growing up, greens meant either mustard or turnip greens.  I now prefer a mix of the two since they both have different flavor profiles and textures.  I've also been known to throw some wild greens into the mix from time to time.


Greens get boiled and slow simmered in the South, especially collard greens.  After all, you've got to give the smoked pork time to give its flavor to the greens.  I did a variation on this.  Our greens had been blanched prior to freezing so they were nearly done.  For the pork flavor, I heated the thawed greens in a skillet with some bacon grease in it. 

Bottle of homemade pepper sauce

I'll throw in one last tidbit about eating greens.  You have to have pepper sauce available.  No, I don't mean hot sauce.  Pepper sauce is vinegar with hot peppers in it.  You put it on your greens and you get a bit of the acid from the vinegar and a hint of heat and flavor from the peppers.  As you use up the pepper sauce, you simply add more vinegar.  The pepper sauce we use was made with Serrano peppers from our garden and apple cider vinegar.  Pepper sauce is widely available in stores, at least it is in the South but it is easy to make your own.  All  you need is a jar, some vinegar, and the hot peppers of your choice.  Pull the cap and stem off the peppers and put them in your jar then fill with vinegar.  Let it sit in the cabinet for a few weeks before using it.


There you have it, a good Southern supper.  Give it a try sometime.


Uncle T

Pork Loin and Fermented Green Tomato Relish

It probably won't be a surprise that I belong to several food related groups on Facebook.  Two of those groups deal with fermentation and the results thereof.  After all, there are many benefits to eating fermented food that I won't get into here.  Most times the conversations are about recipes/techniques to get a specific fermented item.  These are helpful and informative.  Then there are the discussions about eating fermented foods as they are or cooking with them.  These can get a bit contentious at times.  Obviously, I'm on the side of the "sometimes it's just about the flavor" group.  The idea for this supper came from someone posting a picture of a meal they had made using fermented salsa.  I don't have any fermented salsa but I do have the fermented green tomato relish.

Pork Loin on a  bed of sliced mushrooms with garlic

I had bought a couple of pork loins last week since the price was down a bit so when I processed them I kept two roasts.  Each roast is just a bit under 2 pounds which is enough for two meals for the good wife and me.  My plan when I cut this one last week was for it to be our Monday night supper.  I'm happy to say it was a success.

Pork Loin topped with Fermented Green Tomato Relish hot from the oven

Roasted Pork Loin


2 lb pork loin roast
1 quart fermented green tomato relish
1 lb mushrooms
1 head of garlic
olive oil
salt
1/2 cup white wine, optional

Drizzle olive oil in the bottom of your roasting pan.  Slice the mushrooms and put in the roasting pan.  Set the pork loin roast on the bed of sliced mushrooms.  Season with salt.  Slice the garlic and put on top of the pork loin roast.  Cover the pork roast with the fermented green tomato relish.  Add the white wine if using.  Place in a 400F oven and cook with the lid on for 1.5 hours.  Check the temperature of the pork roast, if it is at least 135F put the lid back on and let set until ready to slice and serve.  Carry over will bring the internal temperature of the meat up past 145F.  Slice the pork loin into thick slices and serve with a side of the green tomato relish and mushroom mixture.

A nicely done Pork Loin

We had ours with rice though it would pair equally as well with either roasted or mashed potatoes.   Then again, serve what you want to with it.

Oh what a meal

I know not many people will go to the effort to ferment green tomato relish, all is not lost.  There are commercially produced varieties of green tomato relish as well as chutney and chow chow.  These won't have the tang of the fermented relish but they should work with this recipe.  Plus,  you could use the salsa of your choice and make it like the dish that inspired this one.  Heck, it would work with sauerkraut as well though I think you'd have to go with potatoes as the side rather than rice.

Give this lovely dish a try and let me know what you think.  I believe you'll like it.


Uncle T

Frog Leg Salad

Sadly, we live in the city so places I can easily get to for frog hunting are nonexistent.  Even though there are small lakes close to us, I've never heard a bull frog.  If I knew there were bull frogs there I would definitely take an evening ride along the shore.


Happily, we have a good international market close by, Grand Mart.  Yes, I know I've mentioned them before but it is a great store.  Some time back, I had gone to pick up a couple of things and I happened to spot frog legs in the freezer section.  I didn't hesitate.


We'd gotten in the habit of eating salads on Tuesday and Friday as part of the Fast Diet.  Even though we are not following that at the present, we still do salads on those days time to time.  After all, a salad is quick and easy to fix.


Frozen frog legs are much easier to work with than fresh frog legs.  Fresh frog legs still have nerve action remaining so the legs tend to kick and jerk while you fry them.  Freezing them eliminates that problem.


To make a frog leg salad, all you need is 3 - 4 pairs of frog legs per person and a salad for each person.  Any salad will work but we prefer a mix of greens rather than a single type.  The salad pictured is leaf lettuce and Romaine from the garden.  When we have them I also add beet greens and sometimes carrot greens.  I generally use a vinaigrette to dress the salad.  Once you have the salad all you have to do is fry the frog legs and dig in.


Fried Frog Legs


3 - 4 pairs per person
2 cups flour
2 Tbs salt
2 Tbs pepper
2 Tbs garlic powder
oil


Add the flour, salt, pepper, and garlic powder to a bowl and mix well.  Work your way up to the measurements of the salt, pepper, and garlic powder to make sure you get the flavor you want.  Heat oil in a skillet, a 1/4 to 1/2 inch deep.  Once the oil is hot, dredge the frog legs in the flour mixture and place in the skillet.  Once you can see the flour is browned on the bottom turn them over to finish frying.  Once browned to your satisfaction, let drain on a rack or on paper towels.  Once all the frog legs are fried and drained, arrange them around the edge of the salad bowl and serve.

Frog Leg Salad

The left over flour mixture can be placed in a ziplock bag and be stored in the freezer until the next time you fry something.  It can also be used to make a seasoned roux for making gravy or a béchamel sauce for making macaroni and cheese.  I always have a bag in the freezer ready to use.


This salad can also be made with a nice fish fillet, I use tilapia and white bass, or a boneless chicken breast.  When we have the chicken breast I slice it thinly and lay on the edge of the salad bowl in its original shape.  Sliced thin the pieces can easily be cut with a fork to desired bite size.


Give this a go sometime to up your salad.  Let me know what you think about it once you've tried it.


Uncle T

Spaetzle and Sauerkraut Soup

What a way to combine some of our favorite things.  This came about because of a statement by the good wife.  After finding a container of leftover spaetzle in the refrigerator while putting up leftover spaetzle from supper she told me to make soup to use it up.  Her wish is my command.


I've been trying to use more of our fermented food as part of meals or in recipes.  Yes, I know cooking with them kills the probiotics but sometimes it's about the flavor.  Besides, the improved nutritional benefit is still there and that is good enough.  Since the weather is cooling and since sauerkraut and spaetzle go together well it seemed natural.


I started searching for recipes for soups containing these and couldn't find any with them together.  The spaetzle soups tended be chicken with spaetzle and the occasional recipe with pork or mushrooms.  All the sauerkraut soup recipes had either white beans, potatoes, or both along with a meat that was usually sausage.  So, as frequently happens, I went my own way and started planning.


In the end, this tasty soup ended up containing homemade spaetzle, home fermented sauerkraut, homemade pork broth, and homemade mettwurst.   I chose the mettwurst because it is a good spicy sausage that pairs well with sauerkraut on the plate and I figured it would do the same in the soup.  The soup was made in the electric pressure cooker using a combination of different settings.

A full pot of soup.  The pressure cooker has a 6 quart capacity.

OK, I know most people won't go to the extent of growing cabbage and making their own sauerkraut.  That's OK.  I would suggest buying kraut that comes in a bag in the cooler section of the store rather than the canned variety.  The bagged kraut has much better flavor and crunch


Spaetzle and Sauerkraut Soup


1 lb smoked sausage (mettwurst, kielbasa, etc)
3 - 4 cups cooked spaetzle
1.5 - 2 lbs sauerkraut, drained
1 cup diced carrots
2 cups diced potatoes
6 cups broth
1/2 - 1 Tbs salt*
1 tsp ground turmeric
1/2 Tbs garlic powder


Put the broth in a large pot and bring to a simmer.  Add the diced carrots and potatoes along with the spices and cook until tender.  I set the pressure cooker for 5 minutes.  Once they are tender, stir in the spaetzle and sauerkraut and let them get warm.  Slice the smoked sausage into 3/8 inch/1 cm pieces and add to the soup and stir.  Let the whole pot simmer for 30 minutes for the flavors to come together.  Serve with a good crusty bread.  Makes 6 servings.


*This will be variable depending on your broth.  My homemade broth didn't have any salt so both it and the potatoes need the salt.  Commercially produced broth has varying levels of salt so adjust to taste.  Don't forget the kraut will have some salt as well.

A bowl of filling tasty goodness

As with many soups and stews it was better the 2nd night and will probably be even better on the 3rd night.  This is a filling nutritious soups perfect for cooler weather.


If you make this soup let me know what you think.


Uncle T

A Different Sunday Dinner

Growing up, Sunday dinner tended to be predictable.  Momma would wrap a beef chuck roast in aluminum foil with some potatoes and carrots and put them in the oven just before we headed out the door to go to church.  After we got home, we ate roast, potatoes, and carrots to the enjoyment of all.  Every once in a while the menu would change but to the best of my recollection, this was the standard.


These days, the good wife and I usually just eat leftovers from Saturday's supper as our lunch on Sunday.  Some times I'll go ahead and cook something but that is usually because we have something we don't want to chance going bad by waiting another day or two.  This most recent Sunday, I cooked for that very reason.


Exotic fruits are some of the few food items we actually go to the store to get.  After all, most of them won't grow in Virginia.  A few days ago we bought some plantains because they had some good looking ones and the price was right.  I don't do the green plantain double frying thing.  I prefer to use one that is almost completely ripe.  Add a little salt after they are done to play against their sweetness and it is an excellent side dish.

Minimum ripeness of plantain I use

Fried Plantain


1 - 2 plantains, almost fully ripe
oil
salt


Cut the plantains in half then cut the two halves down the middle.  Remove the skin.  Lay each half on a cutting board and carefully cut into two slices of equal thicknesses.  Heat oil in a skillet and place the plantain slices in a single layer.  Fry until golden brown then turn them over.  Once the second side is done, remove them from the skillet and drain on a rack or paper towels.  Repeat the process if need be.  Sprinkle a little salt on the plantain slices and serve.


Along with the plantains, I grilled some pork chops and made some black beans in the pressure cooker. 


The pork chops were seasoned with salt, pepper, and ground roasted cumin then a little splash of Tequila for additional flavoring was added.  The pork chops were then grilled to 145F which is medium rare and leaves them tender, juicy, and with just a faint hint of pink inside.  I thought about making a pineapple salsa to top them with but decided that would be gilding the lily.  The flavor was so good I'll definitely be using this seasoning combination again.


The black beans turned out very well.  As usual, I used my Simply Ming electric pressure cooker.


Pressure Cooker Black Beans


1 cup dry black beans
3 cups chicken broth
2/3 cup salsa
3 oz fat back or bacon ends and pieces
2 - 3 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp ground roasted cumin
1/2 tsp cayenne
2 - 3 bay leaves


Add all ingredients to the pressure cooker and stir to mix well.  Put on lid and turn valve so it will build pressure.  Select pressure cook and set timer for 50 minutes.  At the end of the time, allow pressure to naturally release.  If the liquid isn't thick enough for your liking, mix a little corn starch and water and add to the beans and stir.  Raise the heat for10 minutes then turn back to warm.  Stir and the broth should be thicker.

Fried Plantain, Black Beans, and grilled Pork Chop

As you can see, not a typical Sunday dinner for a good Southern boy at all.  One of the benefits of an Army career is traveling and being introduced to other food cultures.  Try those foods when you get the chance.  If you like them, make them yourself.  If you can't find the right ingredient use one that is close that you do have.  Some of those subtle changes yield excellent results.


Give these a try either together or as parts of different meals.  I think you'll enjoy them.  Let me know how they turn out.


Uncle T