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| Pork before Cooking |
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| Crispy Skin, tender pork meat |
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| Pat and Doshi present the Stuffed bread on our new board |
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| Pork Tamales from Shumon |
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| Leek Bread Pudding |
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| Potatoes Vindaloo |
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| Some of the desserts |
This was definitely a year that we don’t feel we have a lot
to be thankful for. We decided to have a Thanksgiving and make it very
international.
We had 10 people over for dinner, the usual suspects. No one
wanted Turkey so we decided wisely to make Bo Ssam a Korean Pork dish. We had
made it for July 4th and everyone asked for a repeat. The key is to
get great pork shoulder and we got an 11.5 pound one from McCall’s Meat andFish. The second trick is to cook it low and slow. We cooked it for 6 hours. You
can get the recipe on our blog of: May 27,
2016. Click the date to get the recipe. It is fantastic! We served it with
Ssam Sauce we purchased from Momofuku. The night before we had eaten at Newport Seafood, our favorite Chinese restaurant. We brought home some of their Garlic, Chili,
Pepper Sauce they serve with their Lobster it went perfect with the pork. In addition, we purchased what
happened to be excellent Kimchi at Cookbook.
Shumon had previously brought us over once incredible Nicaraguan
Tamales stuffed with Pork. They were filled with the lightest Masa and were
delicious and they were huge. I did feel the pork they were made from was a bit
gristly. We decided to serve them as appetizers, but we wanted them to be both
appetizer size and made from a better quality of pork. We purchased the Pork
from McCall’s Meat and Fish and gave the pork to Shumon. He took to the Nicaraguan
women who makes the Tamales. After she stewed the pork, she told Shumon it was
the best pork she had ever used in a recipe. Being from McCall’s I don’t doubt
it.
Pat and Doshi brought all kinds of good stuff, including a
beautiful cutting board as a gift. They made Spinach Stuffed bread, a wonderful Salad that we want the recipe for, a Pear and Ginger Pie with a crumb crust that I loved and a Cake. All were wonderful.
The night was warm and we had drinks on the deck with
the Tamales, The Spinach Stuffed Bread and Hummus and Chips from Joan’s on 3rdStreet. We hadn’t even sat down for dinner and we were all stuffed! That is the
way it should be on Thanksgiving.
I am very glad that Sharon Ubered up from Long Beach to join
us. She knows everyone and it was good to be with her.
We made Potato Vindaloo, an Indian dish made with both
regular Potatoes and Sweet Potatoes. It was extremely fragrant and added
another international aspect to the dinner.
I also like stuffing so even though nothing was stuffed
(except for us and the other guests) we made Leek Bread Pudding. It is better
than any stuffing I have ever had. You can get the recipe on our blog of: December
2, 2010. Click the date to get the recipe.
Michael made Asparagus with Mushrooms. So we even had a
green vegetable!
Tim brought two pies both big hits from Cake Monkey. Who
would think Cake Monkey would have good pies, but they do! Everyone pigged out
on the 3 pies and Cake.
Did I mention we had lots of Wine and Scotch? This was a
dinner to give thanks for, even if the election results suck. Everyone went
home with leftovers.
Two-Potato Vindaloo
Plenty
Yotam Ottolenghi
Here’s
a great recipe you can make heaps of and keep for a few days. It only gets
better! As always, thick cool yogurt will make an excellent condiment.
Serves 4
8 cardamom
pods
1 tbsp
cumin seeds
1 tbsp
coriander seeds
½ tsp
cloves
¼ tsp
ground turmeric
1 tsp
sweet paprika
1 tsp
ground cinnamon
2 tbsp
vegetable oil
12 shallots
(about 10 oz in total), chopped
½ tsp
brown mustard seeds
½ tsp
fenugreek seeds
25 curry
leaves
2 tbsp
chopped fresh ginger
1 fresh
red chile, finely chopped
3 ripe
tomatoes, peeled and chopped
¼ cup
cider vinegar
1-3/4 cups water
1 tbsp
sugar
salt
2-1/2 cups
peeled waxy potatoes, cut into 1‑inch dice
2 small
red bell peppers, cut into 1-inch dice
2-1/2 cups
peeled sweet potatoes, cut into 1‑inch dice
mint
or cilantro leaves to serve
Dry-roast the cardamorn pods
and cumin and coriander seeds in a small frying pan over medium heat until they
begin to pop. Transfer to a mortar and pestle and add the cloves. Work to a fine
powder, removing and discarding the cardamom pods once the seeds are released.
Add the turmeric, paprika and cinnamon and set aside.
Heat up the oil in a large
heavy-based pot. Add the shallots with the mustard and fenugreek seeds, and
sauté on a medium-low heat for 8 minutes, or until the shallots brown. Stir in
the spice mix, curry leaves, ginger and chile and cook for a further 3 minutes.
Next, add the tomatoes, vinegar, water, sugar and some salt. Bring to the boil,
then leave to simmer, covered, for 20 minutes.
Add the potatoes and bell
peppers and simmer for another 20 minutes. For the last stage, add the sweet
potatoes. Make sure all the vegetables are just immersed in the sauce (add more
water if needed) and continue cooking, covered, for about 40 minutes, or until
the potatoes are tender.
Remove the lid and le|ive to
bubble away for about 10 minutes to reduce and thicken the sauce. Serve hot,
with plain rice and garnished with herbs.
