Well.. Oh! Yeah!
Earlier this year I had been having good feedback from people about the Mardis Manger, and I've wanted to bring it back on the blog more often. But I also wanted to make it into more an an illustration project for myself. So, I'll be experimenting, and most probably trying different looks and styles, while having fun and sharing some personal recipes. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!
I love pulled pork. Most people have it in sandwiches. I also love it on rice, with eggs, in omelets, in salads, with roasted veggies.. really it's a big favorite in my tiny family of three. (Constance loves it even if she never gets to taste it. She just knows she loves it.)
I'm always trying to eat better.. and well, pulled pork is normally made from pork shoulder, and that's pretty fat. (Especially if you keep the skin or the big chunks of fat. Even if you don't eat those, it cooks right in it..) So this time around I came up with a low-fat version, and it was just as delicious. I even preferred it actually. It's definitely more dry, but I love drier meats. Up to you to try it both ways and see how you prefer it. Either way, you can cook it in a slow-cooker. At high-speed I usually cook it for about 3-5 hours. Just start testing if it's ready after 3 hours. You should be able to break the meat very easily with a fork.
I rubbed my rôti with salt, pepper, paprika and dijon mustard. I added 1 cup of water (you'll need that because the meat is lean, and you are at high-speed. If using fatty pork, 1/2 cup will be fine). Generously add bay leaves (like 8-10) and cloves, and a whole head of garlic, crushed.
Then I covered it with some Physalis preserves. (We call them cerises de terre, ground cherries. Or husk tomatoes.) But really that was just to sweeten it with something else then sugar. It could be brown sugar, maple syrup, a couple of apples, pears or plums, even molasses.. try with what you have at home. It's a good way to ad extra flavor, and not just sugar. You get to decide how much sugar and salt you ad, which is always a great plus of making meals from scratch.
When I took the meat out to "pull" it apart, I incorporated some of the cooking juice left in the slow-cooker into the meat and tossed. It's some of the water you added at the beginning, and you'll see how much you need / want to add to make your meat more or less moist. I also tossed a table spoon of apple cider vinegar, to add some kick.
* I am drawing my ingredients in French, since it is my first language, and it is what feels right to me, right now. I have no ambition of having the blog bilingual 100% of the time, nor do I want to write in French all the time. I think I'll keep posting in English and have the images in French, seems like a good balance to me!