Slow Cooker Pork Tacos

Greetings Readers,

This past weekend I ventured someplace I've never really dared to venture before; the Pork cooler. Pork, the other white meat, has long frightened me in the kitchen, but alas it has no sway over me no more.

For this recipe you will need a slow cooker, obviously, and the following ingredients:

2 cups store-bought salsa, plus more for serving
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 tablespoons dried oregano
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 2.5-pound boneless pork butt or shoulder, trimmed of excess fat
18 corn or flour tortillas
1/2 cup fresh cilantro sprigs
3/4 cup sour cream
1 lime, cut into wedges

Combine the salsa, chili powder, oregano, cocoa powder, and salt in the slow cooker. Since I didn't have any unsweetened cocoa powder I used regular, but omitted 1/2 a tablespoon to compensate. After stirring ingredients in the slow cooker, place the pork in the cooker and turn to coat, ensuring all sides are covered in the sauce. Cook the pork for 4 to 5 hours on high, or 7 to 8 hours on low (I cooked mine on low). Heat your tortillas in the oven or lightly brown them in oil in a pan for an even better taste. Serve your tacos garnished with fresh cilantro, fresh salsa, cheese, and a squeeze of fresh lime.


(Photo courtesy of Becky Reed)

Overall my first foray into pork was a success.  If I were to make these again, and I will, I would try it with unsweetened cocoa powder, and I might add a chili pepper or two to the cooker to add a little more kick to the meat.

Don't forget to tell your friends about my blog, and to check back often for more great recipes.

Recipe from http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/pulled-pork-tacos-00000000008021/

Chipotle Style Chicken Burritos

Greetings food lovers and people I suckered into looking at my blog. Within these hallowed confines of the world of blogging I will submit to you, the customers, my valuable experiences in learning to cook things that are actually edible and tasty. Sometimes I succeed and the food I prepare is fit for serving to others; however, with every success there is a failure. I will write about both here for your reading pleasure.

Tonight I dabbled in making chicken burritos; however, these aren't just any chicken burritos, these are SUPPOSED to taste like everyone's favorite burrito stand...Chipotle. The recipe seemed simple (read: how could I screw this up) and in the end I should have ended up with farm-fresh chipotle chicken....not so much.

The recipe called for the following ingredients to be processed together into a marinade for the chicken.
1 (2 ounce) package dried ancho chiles
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 teaspoons cumin powder
2 tablespoons fresh oregano, chopped
6 cloves garlic
1/2 red onion, quartered
1/4 cup vegetable oil

Problem #1: Normal stores don't carry packages of dried ancho chiles. So I substituted some diced peppers in a can.

The paste turned out fine, didn't smell like I screwed it up, and sufficiently covered the chicken: time to wait a few hours for it to soak in.

Time to cook.

After marinading I prepared the griddle for cooking.
Items needed:

Flipper: ✓

Vegetable oil: ✓

Brick wrapped in foil: WTF?

Apparently you are supposed to cook the chicken and flatten it out at the same time. SOOOOO I put on my shoes and go searching in the backyard for a brick to wrap in foil. Our once pristine back yard has been slowly turned into a wasteland of broken chairs and a random assortment of other items people have left outside. On top of that, there is currently 8 inches of snow outside. Yes, you read correctly, Baltimore (which was 70 and sunny as recently as last Friday) has snow. Miraculously I found a brick...to wrap in foil...to flatten the chicken.

Now, the recipe said I should use happy, organic chicken instead of the chickens who were cooped up their entire lives...when my chicken starts complaining about how it was treated, then I'll know it has had too many chemicals, but until that day I'll continue using the cheapest chicken money can buy.

So I cooked the chicken and...it was O.K.. Not too bad, but not like Chipotle either. It had a nice flavor, but it couldn't hold a candle to the real deal. Maybe it was my lack of ancho chiles, or my refusal to use organic chicken....but, in all actuality, it was probably just a poor attempt on my part. In the future, I will prepare the marinade the night before so that more of the flavor soaks in.

All in all it was pretty good. I didn't screw it up (aside from the lime-rice recipe which is also on the website)and will attempt this again in the future. For more Chipotle-esque recipes see the link below.

Chipotle Recipes