Spicy Grilled Pork With Fennel Cumin And Red Onion Recipes

SPICY GRILLED PORK WITH FENNEL, CUMIN AND RED ONION

Steps:

• Season pork lightly with kosher salt and put it in a bowl or resealable bag.
• Juice the lime into a blender or food processor and add cilantro, fish sauce, garlic, jalapeño and honey. Blend until the jalapeño and garlic are puréed, then add fennel, cumin, coriander seeds and pulse four or five times to bruise the spices and mix them in.
• Pour mixture over the pork, tossing to coat the pieces. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes while you heat the grill, or up to 24 hours.
• When ready to cook, heat the grill or broiler with a rack positioned 4 inches from the heat source.
• Thread the pork onto skewers, leaving a little space between cubes. Grill over the highest heat possible, or broil on high, for 2 to 5 minutes, then flip the skewers and continue cooking until the meat is browned all over and charred in spots. It should be just cooked through: A little pink is OK, but there shouldn't be any red spots.
• Serve the pork with cilantro sprigs and onion slices on top, and lime wedges on the side for squeezing.

GRILLED PORK LOIN WITH HERBS, CUMIN AND GARLIC

Steps:

• Butterfly the pork by slicing through it horizontally until you almost cut through, but leaving it attached on one side. Open the meat like a book. Depending upon the cut, it should be about 1 to 2 inches in thickness.
• In a blender, purée all of the remaining ingredients, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed to get a smooth paste. (Add a little water if needed to make the mixture move.) Spread herb paste all over the pork, making sure to cover it thoroughly and evenly. Place the meat in a large resealable plastic bag (folding it back together like a closed book if necessary to fit it in the bag) and let marinate in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours, or up to 48 hours.
• Light the grill or heat to medium. Lay the pork out on the grill so it lies flat (like an open book). Cover grill and let cook until char marks appear on one side, 7 to 12 minutes. Use tongs and a large spatula to flip the meat. Continue to cook on the other side until the center of the meat registers 135 degrees on an instant-read thermometer for medium doneness, about 5 to 8 minutes longer. (The pork will continue to cook as it rests.)
• Transfer meat to a cutting board, cover loosely with foil and let rest for at least 10 minutes before slicing.
• Serve the pork slices garnished with red pepper flakes, lemon wedges, and basil and thyme leaves.

SMOKY PORK SHOULDER WITH CHILE PASTE

Steps:

• Set pork shoulder in a deep roasting pan just large enough to accommodate it. With a sharp knife or straight edge razor blade, cut a deep 3/4-inch diamond pattern into the thick fat cap.
• Sprinkle 2 tablespoons kosher salt over the diamond cuts, then all the pepper. Rub the salt and pepper into the cuts and all over the top and sides of the pork shoulder.
• Turn the shoulder fat-side down, and sprinkle the remaining salt over the meat. Rub the salt and any pepper that has scattered in the pan into and all over the meat to have a wholly seasoned piece of meat - especially on the top, in the diamond-cut fat area. Let the seasoned roast rest on the counter at room temperature for 2 hours.
• Meanwhile, make the chile paste. Bring a medium saucepan of water to boil. Off heat, add the pasillas, guajillos and árbols, and let them soak for 30 minutes while you gather and prepare the other ingredients. When the chiles are softened, transfer them and 1/2 cup of their soaking water into a high-powered blender. Add the garlic, scallions, cilantro, vinegar and kosher salt, and blend into a smooth, dark red-brown paste. (The consistency should remind you of jarred applesauce.)
• Pour this chile paste over the pork shoulder and massage it all over the roast, leaving a nice extra schmear on the top of the roast and, again, seasoning the diamond-cut fat cap a little more generously than the bottom. (The fat on the top is going to render slowly all through the cooking and melt down into the meat, in a self-basting way, which is why the most seasoning is at the top.) Don't worry about the excess paste; it will remain in the roasting pan to enhance the juices later.
• Build a fire in your grill, then push the hot coals to one side in a mounded crescent shape, leaving space for the roasting/drip pan that now holds the marinade-slathered meat. If using an oven, heat it to 325.
• Remove the meat from the pan, and set it to the side (I use a sheet of parchment for easy cleanup) while you prepare the grill or oven.
• To prepare the grill or the oven, add a full inch of water to the roasting pan, stirring briefly to combine it with the excess chile paste, and nestle the roasting pan into the bottom of the grill in the empty space next to the crescent of coals, or on the bottom rack of the oven.
• Place the grill rack in position over the coals. Set the meat directly onto the rack above the water-filled roasting pan so that the juices will drip into it while cooking. If using a conventional oven, place the roast, fat side up, on the rack directly above the roasting pan.
• Place the cover on the grill, open the vents all the way and let the roast cook for 3 to 4 hours maintaining a gentle 300 degrees, adding coals when needed. If the temperature spikes to 325 or drops to 275 along the way, it doesn't matter at all - open and close the lid as needed to get back on track. The goal is to slowly, gently cook the meat, giving all that fat time to melt, the skin time to crisp and the tough cut of meat (muscly shoulder) time to become tender.
• Add water to the drip pan if you see it evaporating, though I did not need to add liquid any time I tested this. The natural fats and juices drip down into the pan, commingling with the chile-paste-spiked water to create a smoky, spicy, delicious cache of pan juices for later spooning over the roast while it rests. Loosely cover the meat with foil if it starts looking too dark too soon.
• Cook until the internal temperature reaches about 165 degrees, up to 4 hours. Remove from the grill (or the oven). Remove the roasting/drip pan. Let the meat rest for 30 minutes. Spoon the drippings over the roast until glossy and moist. Slice thin.

ROASTED PORK, FENNEL, AND ONIONS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Melt butter in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1/2 cup sage. Cook and stir until leaves are slightly crisp, about 1 minute. Remove leaves with a slotted spoon, and drain on paper towels. Cool, wrap in paper towels, and seal in a plastic bag. Set aside. Reserve the butter.
• Mix the pepper and cumin in a small bowl. Rinse roast and pat dry; rub evenly with the pepper and cumin. Tuck remaining 1/2 cup sage leaves under the strings on the smooth (fattiest) side of the roast. Set the pork, herb side up, on a rack in a roasting pan.
• Spread olive oil in the bottom of a medium baking dish. Thickly slice fennel and place in the dish. Toss to coat with the olive oil, and drizzle with 3/4 cup orange juice. Place onions in the dish cut side down.
• Place roast on the center rack in the preheated oven. Place fennel and onions on lower rack. Bake the pork and vegetables 1 hour, or until pork reaches a minimum internal temperature of 145 degrees F (63 degrees C) and vegetables are tender. Turn fennel once during bake time. Reserving drippings, transfer meat to a platter and keep warm; let stand at least 10 minutes. Keep the vegetables warm in the baking dish.
• Place the roasting pan with reserved drippings over high heat on the stove top, and mix in the reserved butter from Step 1, the remaining 3/4 cup orange juice, stock, and vinegar. Bring to a boil, and stir to scrape up any browned bits in the pan. Cook, stirring often, 10 minutes, or until reduced by about 1/2.
• Arrange onions and fennel around the pork. Garnish with fennel tops, sprinkle with the fried sage leaves, and season with salt to serve.

SPANISH PORK SKEWERS

Steps:

• Thread the pork onto 12 bamboo skewers. Season lightly on both sides with salt and pepper.
• Sprinkle the skewers with the cumin, coriander, pimentón and oregano. Smash the garlic cloves to a paste with a little salt, mix in the olive oil and drizzle over the meat. Rub the seasoning in with your fingers. The skewers can be refrigerated until ready to cook, up to several hours.
• Place a large cast-iron skillet or griddle over medium-high heat until nearly smoking. Cook the skewers about 3 minutes on each side, until nicely browned. Serve hot, with lemon wedges.

ROASTED FENNEL AND RED ONIONS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°F.
• Cut each fennel bulb lengthwise into 8 wedges and in a roasting pan toss fennel and onions with butter, oil, and salt and pepper to taste. Roast vegetables, stirring once halfway through roasting, 25 minutes, or until tender. Add vinegar to vegetables and toss to coat.