Click on image for a larger version with a little more detail.
Here we find Biggles’ Pork Nurse inspecting the new arrival, pre-op if you will.
I picked up this interesing cut of pork at Mercadito San Juan yesterday after work. The butcher is an interesting guy, his meat changes on a daily basis. What I mean by that is one day they have a load of center cut pork chops and the next, they gone. One day they have a load of whole chickens and chicken pieces and today they’re gone. Last week they only had one kind of white fish with shrimp and last night 1/4 of the cooler was filled with fishy items. While this might make some people crazy, I love it because it keeps me on my toes. And you have to admit it sounds kinda nice to have some variety in your meat selection.
I knew I didn’t have time to cook this roast on a week night, but I bought it anyway.

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A local grocery store with a real butcher is still eluding me, even after a week and a half. Mercadito was next on my list and yesterday was the time. It’s in the wrong direction, but I don’t have many choices left. I’ve been to this place before and only semi-recently have they opened up a meat counter. I was apprehensive and yet totally willing to let this be the place. In fact, I really wanted this to be the place. I’ve been feeling a little lost over the last 4 days and in need of some healing.
On today’s grocery list are house marinated chicken pieces, fresh tortillas, cheese, limes and any veggies I think the kids might eat. This would be broccoli, sigh. Man, I’m so damned tired of the brocc.
Wanna know how the best damned Thursday meal went?

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It still hasn’t become real for me that Rick’s Quality Meats is done and over with. The last few days have found me teary eyed over the fact I’ll no longer find my fancy teriyaki marinated beef ball-tip roast (marinated for 5 days +) for an easy & luscious weekday meal. In spite of myself, life goes on. I must find another neighborhood grocery and meat counter to visit each and every day on my way home from work. Today’s adventure lead me to El Cerrito Natural Grocery.

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I hadn’t planned on posting this meal from last night. It’s a rehash of a few other posts I’ve done in the past, just search Meathenge for turkey breast. But goldangit! I just checked the snapshots to send to Kudzu, for show & tell and decided it needed to be SEEN !!! Awww, pretty meat.
Yes, yes, I know and have heard all the comments about how nasty and tasteless chicken & turkey are. I can still see Scott’s face spewing and contorting when confronted with the mere thought of a chicken breast. More for me is all I have to say about that. Wanna see how you can make it worth eating? I maarrrinated it in Italian coarse saallllt.

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I believe it was Wednesday when I remembered I’d picked up a little package of duck proscuitto from fatted calf last Saturday. I wanted to move fast and since it was during the week it had to be an easy meal that wasn’t too involved AND the little chilrens would eat. So a badass juicy pasta dish was out of the question, along with most other things with ingredients and flavors.
We hadn’t had a roast chicken in over a week, it was time.

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I received an inquisitive email from Shuna of Eggbeater last week. She was interested in preparing the Fatted Calf’s special this week, the Brasato al Midolo. I had to admit I hadn’t purchased / gnawed on one as of yet. It couldn’t be that tough, it’s a simple pot roast and they did most of the work already. After a few more emails it was clear I needed to reserve myself one. Interested to see what went on that lazy Sunday afternoon?

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What seemed like a simple, yet easy recipe has turned in to one of the best experiences in cooking and food in the last 6 months for us here at Meathenge Labs. Yup this would be Arrosto Di Maiale Al Latte (Pork Braised in Milk).
Earlier this week I was monkeying around at Kate’s Accidental Hedonist and came across a recipe she did, this Pork Braised in Milk. It was simple, it included pork and I hadn’t done anything remotely close to it ever before, I was sold.
I read through Kate’s adventures a few times, she’d used a pork loin roast. While this will render you a wonderful meal, if you must keep a close watch on a pork loin roast. Once it arrives at an internal temperature of 138 to 140 degrees, it must be pulled. It doesn’t have enough internal fat to keep it moist much beyond that range. The next obvious step would be to choose a pork butt roast, but I didn’t want to deal with all the fat coming out in to my ‘sauce’. I know that sounds odd, Biggles recoiling from pork fat, but I’m sure you understand at some level. Next up is the pork sirloin roast! It’s fattier than the loin and leaner than the butt, it’s what I chose for this meal. So, it was off to the market for a pork sirloin and some whole milk. Wanna come see this most amazing of pork adventures?

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I’ll be the first one to admit I’m a meat/food snob. This finds it’s evil ways in to cooking methods as well. So, I suppose you could say I’m a meat/food/cooking snob. It’s taken years, but I’ve learned to accept it and to hell with anyone who can’t deal with it.
However, I’ll be the second one to admit, I can’t be an snob for every meal.
So, it’s with much pleasure I bring you this awesome “BBQ” Pork Spare Rib dinner.

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As I situate myself for this post, I flash back to Saturday evening when this beast was removed from the oven and plated up. I started with Justin Wilson’s Mushroom Braised Brisket, followed with simmered greens (swiss chard) and finished with Meathead’s Southern Cornbread. Mr. Wilson would have been proud of my version, very proud.
How did this all start? Well, that’s a story in itself, are you interested?

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You gotta know, coming up with a daily dinner menu has lately become akin to slamming my right hand in a door repeatedly. And lord help me if I have to roast another damned chicken. Yet, after wandering the meat counter at Rick’s Quality Meats in El Cerrito for a few minutes, I came away with another !@#$%^ whole natural chicken.

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Just when I thought I’d run through my bag of tricks, just when I figured I’d done it all. I roasted meat, veggies & tubers in a new and vibrant way. That’s right, I brought two roasting techniques together all in one meal and in one pan no less. The results you ask? Click on brother, or sister …

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I have to admit, I’ve been in a decent mood over the last few days. Been day dreaming about what’s next, what new meat concoction can I toss in to my smoker? Counting the little lambs dancing in my head and thinking how wonderful the olive tapanade stuffed lamb roast was. You know, those kinds of day dreams.
Last night I found myself with a whole chicken. Everyone who loves a good roast chicken, raise your hands. Excellent. Now everyone that loves a rich and savory chicken stew, raise your hands. Teeerific. That’s about where I was last night. You see, our summer temps never rose above 78 degrees. The other night I considered turning the furnace on, it was that chilly. Keep in mind, this time last year it was 94 degrees outside.
The flavors I wanted for our dinner was a crispy, bright, roast chicken, but I also wanted that rich broth and stewed veggies that a stew comes with. I had an idea and it was bone simple.
You’ve probably already figured it out.
Preheat oven to 375, bottom rack.
Cut the back out of your chicken, lay cavity side down. Whack breast so it lays somewhat flat, doesn’t have to be real flat. In fact, it helps if it has half of its curve remaining. Olive oil it lightly and install kosher salt evenly over all. Set aside.
Get your dutch oven heated up with a bit of oil and toss in your sliced carrots (it’s gotta cook fast, so slice them about a quarter inch thick or so), celery, onion, mushrooms and smooshed whole cloves of garlic. Get all those sizzling along for maybe 10 minutes. Pour in not quite a quart of good chicken broth, you want to just more than cover your veggies. Get this to a rolling boil and let it run for 5+ minutes, good and hot. Lay in your chicken, you want the broth to just come up over the sides, no more.
Put in to oven for an hour or hour and twenty, no lid. Pull and let rest for 10 minutes.
It’s really damned cool. When you put the chicken on your carving board, the skin is all crispy and bright and salty. Yet, the meat is fall off the bone tender from sitting in liquid. THE CHICKEN WINGS ARE CRISPY !!! The breast meat was flavorful, tender and had a nice texture. The dark meat was fully cooked and juicy as always and it picked up the stew flavor from the broth & veggies!
So, here you have, “Wet Roast Chicken” and trust me, it tasted twice as good as it looks.
Biggles

Here is a typical “look what I ate for dinner and you didn’t” photograph. I’d say I was sorry, but I’m not. As simple as a roast chicken is, I’m never bored by the presentation and taste.
Wash, dry thoroughly, kosher salt the sucker and do an hour at 450 degrees.
When sliced? Juices pour and flavor smacks yer cheeks.
Nikon D70 with 50mm f1.4, used a reflected light off the breast from natural incoming daylight. I hate daylight, but it does come in handy from time to time.

Click on the image to get a larger one, now. Check out the juicy porky love puddlin’ below. Come up to the wing there, right there. Golden crunch perfection. Look at the thigh & leg portion, crispy poppy. Hop up on top of the breast portion, see the darker bits? That right there is the Danish Viking-smoked salt. And if move ever so slightly to the right and look carefully you can see the bacon poking out. Do you have any idea what a high roast, viking-smoked salt chicken stuffed with bacon smells like ?!? No? You can you know, all it takes is a little effort and a teaspoon of Danish Viking-Smoked Sea Salt. Oh and a nice chicken and two strips of your favorite bacon. I’m sorry and feel like a bonehead for not keeping this stuff in stock over the last year or two. Never again.

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This baked chicken was too easy. And this is why I did it, it was easy. Was it good? Does it look good? Der, it was superb. Moist, moist with a crisp chickenny skin and loads of yummy salt. Yes, it was good. Chef Thomas Keller strikes again.
Rarely do I roast a chicken I don’t like, I was not looking for the perfect roast chicken. I tried it because it was so simple, I was able to remember it and it’d take 20 minutes off my cook time. Saving time is a good thing, especially when it looks like this. Interested?

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