extreme pork barbecue

Don and Mary hosted a pig roast/luau for members of their church yesterday as a fundraiser. Part of our mission was to roast a pig for all to enjoy, and I think it would be safe to say that we will be eating pork until Christmas. He had originally picked out a 60-70 pound pig, but the butcher was feeling overzealous that day and decided an 80 pound pig would be more appropriate. For 25 people? It barely fit into the box. I had wanted to build one by hand to use for the roast, but time and practicality dictated that he buy one online for us to put together. Good thing, too, because we'd probably still be trying to build one from scratch.  The barbecue itself is called a "caja china" and is essentially a wood box lined with sheet metal, with two charcoal pans that lay on top and create a convection system.

The pig gets placed inside the box, closed, and then a bag of charcoal is poured on top and lit. After each hour, another half of a bag of charcoal is added to the top, until 4 1/2 hours have passed.

The trick is to not peek inside the box, as it will lose too much heat and not cook properly. There was no marinade or seasoning put on the pig, but you could do both if you wanted.

At 4 1/2 hours (the amount of time depends on the size of the pig), the top rack is removed so the ashes can be shaken off.

The pig is then flipped over....

...and the skin is scored with a knife to ensure crispiness. We then covered the pig back up, added more charcoal, and started checking the pig every 15 minutes or so until the skin looked appropriately cooked through.

At this point, the pig was ready to be pulled out to cool and serve.

Before yesterday I can't say I ever helped cook a whole pig, but it was a relatively easy process (not counting the amount of patience required to not look at the pig) and quite impressive to serve to the guests. The pork turned out very moist and delicious, especially from the tenderloin. I didn't help carve the pig because one, I am hesitant about wielding sharp objects around animals that are practically my size, and two, we were throwing ribs and chicken on the grill just in case there wasn't enough food...I haven't eaten that much since we went to Fernandez's in January (before it burned down). I don't know if I would do a whole pig more than once a year, but you can cook pretty much any kind of meat inside the caja china. Can't wait to try it again...and an awesome job as always by Don and Mary for putting together a very impressive luau!

Hamburger Helper is...American

I should be focusing on the patriotic theme this weekend, but if you want to go out on a limb I'd say this recipe is a lot of what America is about. A lot of families are so busy with work and chasing kids around, that grabbing a box of Hamburger Helper is what gets dinner on the table. Plus this particular recipe has Velveeta cheese, and you can't get much more American than that.

I love this new recipe because it's all of the flavors of a Mexican inspired stuffed pepper, but simplified into a delicious one-pot meal that can completely replace the salty, preservative filled mess that is shoved into one of those pre-boxed meals. The diced tomatoes with chilies spices up the meat without being too overpowering, and the mix of cheeses makes it creamy without going overboard.

Recipe of the day: Homemade Hamburger Helper

1/2 yellow onion, diced small
1/2 red bell pepper, diced small
1/2 green bell pepper, diced small
1 tablespoon olive oil
Pepper (do not add salt)
1/2 pound 93% lean ground beef
1 can diced tomatoes with green chilies (Rotel makes it)
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 small can beef broth
1 can water
1/2 pound small pasta (I used mezzi rigatoni)
2 oz Velveeta
2 oz sharp cheddar, grated
4 slices Land O Lakes white American cheese

In a large saucepan, add the diced peppers and onions with the oil and saute over medium heat for 5 minutes until softened.

Add the ground beef, and cook 5-7 minutes until meat is browned (see below).

Add the diced tomatoes with chiles and tomato paste, and stir well to distribute.

Add the beef broth and water, and bring to a boil.

Add the uncooked pasta, and stir to distribute.

Bring to a boil (as shown above), stir, and cover. Reduce heat to low and cook for 15 minutes, stirring every 3 minutes to prevent sticking.

Add the cheese, re-cover, and allow to melt 2-3 minutes.

Stir well to incorporate melted cheese, and serve hot.