teriyaki pork tenderloin kabobs

we broke out the grill. amen.
i read somewhere recently that pork being unhealthy is just a myth. i'm sure there was more to that, but i'm going to just go with it. i do like a pig. unless of course i can see it's cute face. then you can count me out.
this is a super simple weeknight recipe. i served with a side of brown & wild rice.

teriyaki pork tenderloin kabobs
1, 2 lb pork tenderloin, cut into 2"x 2"pieces
1 yellow squash, sliced thick
1 zucchini, sliced thick
1 red pepper, cut into 2" x 2" pieces
1 purple onion, cut into 2" x 2" pieces
teriyaki marinade (below)

teriyaki marinade
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbs brown sugar
1/3 c soy sauce
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1 tbs olive oil

1. combine teriyaki marinade ingredients in a large plastic bag marinade pork tenderloin pieces in teriyaki sauce for 30 minutes.
2. place kabob ingredients on skewer alternating veggies with pork.
3. grill on medium heat for 7 minutes on each side or until cooked thru.

pork tacos with red pepper pico de gallo

taco week day 4: pork tacos with red pepper pico de gallo
yay for crock pot meals! best thing ever to make in the crock pot is shredded pork. you can never go wrong.
the red pepper pico de gallo brings a freshness to the dish. a trick for getting more juice out of your lime- throw it in the microwave for 12 seconds before slicing.

pork tacos with red pepper pico de gallo
3 lb pork shoulder
corn tortillas
1/2 c queso fresco or queso blanco, crumbled (mexican cheese)

mexican pork rub
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp paprika
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper

red pepper pico de gallo
2 plum tomatoes, diced
1/3 c white onion, diced
2 tbs jalapeno, minced
1/2 c red pepper, diced
3 tbs cilantro, chopped
juice of one lime

1. combine mexican spice rub ingredients in a small bowl. rub over pork shoulder.
2. cook in crock pot with a half of a cup of water for 4-6 hours. once cooled, shred and set aside.
3. combine red pepper pico de gallo ingredients in a bowl.
4. pile pork, pico de gallo and cheese on top of a warmed corn tortilla.

Pin It

southwestern pulled pork

been checking out other food blogs and realizing mine really isn't as cool as i thought. there are some amazing blogs out there. all the more motivation to keep chugging along with my new found hobby and make it just a tiny bit better than yesterday.
on my blog meandering i came across one of the better known ones- http://www.smittenkitchen.com/. she is quite the talented little lady. while i do pride myself on taking a recipe and simplifying it, she has more of a complex approach. and by complex i am referring to the number of ingredients or number of steps involved. this one has quite a few ingredients, but i can honestly taste each and every one of them. deb used brisket in her recipe. i had full intentions on trying to cook this recipe using brisket. that is until i noticed the price tag on a 3 lb slab of brisket. if i remember correctly it was around $30. yikes. well, that's not really in my weekly grocery budget so i used a pork shoulder and reinvented the recipe to be pulled pork vs. brisket. it was fabulous. feel free to serve on a corn tortilla or a soft bun. we tried both and it was great either way. 

southwestern pulled pork

3 lbs pork shoulder
2 tbs vegetable oil
5 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
1 onion, quartered and thinly sliced
1 tbs chili powder
2 tsp ground coriander
2 tsp ground cumin
1/4 c apple cider vinegar
1 1/2 c water
1 (14 1/2-ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes, with their juices
1 to 2 whole canned chipotle chiles en adobo (and this i quote straight from miss smitten kitchen herself: "1 or 2 from a can, not one or two cans, m'kay? Many misread this amount!")
2 bay leaves
1/4 c molasses

1. heat oil in a large pot. add pork shoulder and brown on each side for a total of 10 min. put pork in a crock pot.
2. add onion, garlic, cumin, chili powder and coriander to pot with remaining drippings from pork. cook for 1-2 minutes scraping bits off of the bottom of the pot. add vinegar and boil until vinegar evaporates/dissolves. pour in water and add all to crock pot
3. break apart whole tomatoes and put in crock pot with pork. add remaining juices, molasses, bay leaves and chiles.
4. cook on low for 10 hours. shred pork with two forks and serve.

adapted from adam pearson and deb perelman

ode to grandma marion

i'm going to get a ton of flack for this, i already know. posting something not related to grilling on a 95 degree day. ugh. sorry. it's coming soon, i promise. lots of great summer recipes on the horizon. stay tuned.
in the meantime let's talk about my grandma marion holcomb. she's a kind soul that you'd love to lunch with. she's cooked a full meal every night since i can remember. all suppers include a side of vegetables, side of fruit and a loaf of italian bread. her specialty is spaghetti and meatballs which will come later. this is a must-try recipe straight from her kitchen.

pork tenderloin with mushrooms

2, 1 lb pork tenderloins
3 tbl butter
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 1/2 c mushrooms, sliced
1/2 c celery, sliced
2 tbl flour
1/2 c chicken broth

1. brown tenderloins in butter in a skillet. put into a baking dish. saute onion, mushrooms and celery in pan drippings until tender.
2. combine flour and broth until smooth and add to pan. bring to a boil and cook for 2 minutes. pour over meat.
3. cover pork and bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour. let stand five minutes before slicing.

adapted from marion holcomb.

rye-crusted pork medallions

who would of thought to use rye bread to make bread crumbs. delicious! this recipe is for those few "somebodys" that say cooking is too hard.

rye-crusted pork medallions

3-4 slices rye bread
salt and pepper
1 egg
1 1/2 lb boneless center-cut pork loin cut into medallions (i've also used boneless pork chops)
2 tbl olive oil

1. toast rye bread. in a food processor, pulse bread until you have coarse crumbs. add salt and pepper.
2. whisk egg with 1 tsp water.
3. season pork on both sides with salt and pepper. dip each medallion in the egg and then the bread crumbs.
4. heat olive oil in saute pan. cook medallions until no longer pink (5-10 min each side).

adapted from martha stewart