Crockpot Pulled Pork

I have been eating variations of this recipe my entire life. And as anyone who reads this blog knows, I love barbecue/bar-b-q/BBQ/barbeque!

Now that we have a house, we are investigating grills and smokers. I saw a combo one that I really want! It is another version of this grill that also has a separate compartment off the charcoal side for indirect heat smoking. What a dream to be a pitmaster, even if in my own backyard!

I also want to create an oven variation of this recipe in my Dutch oven, but it is still too hot here to have the oven on all day, even at only 200 or 250 degrees, so I am once again looking to my crockpot for delicious pulled pork.

I have posted this recipe before, but last time, the focus was on the homemade sauce. I am not making sauce today, as it is a long, hot process, and I have chemistry tests that need to be graded, so today's focus is the meat.

Start by rounding up the cast of characters. My favorite liquid mix is apple juice, cider vinegar, and liquid smoke, but plain old tap water will do in a pinch.

Line the bottom of the crockpot with thinly sliced onions. I use the mandoline to get them nice and even. Rub the meat with a little brown sugar-salt-pepper mix. Place the meat in the crockpot fat side up, and then pour the liquid (about 1/2 - 3/4 c.) over the meat.

I usually cook the meat on high for an hour or so and then turn the crockpot down to low for the rest of the day. When the meat is ready to fall apart, remove it from the crockpot, reserving the onions. Let the meat cool until you can safely touch it. Remove any bones and as much fat as you can, and return the meat and reserved onions to the crockpot and pull it apart with a couple of forks. Pour a cup to a whole bottle of sauce over the pork, depending on how much meat you have and how wet you want it. You can also keep the liquid and cook it down to half and pour it back over the meat instead of using sauce, but I've only done it once, and I prefer sauce.

Serve on buns with pickles or slaw, if desired. ENJOY!

Hash Browns from Scratch

I tend to make most of my baked goods from scratch. It's weird because people always seem impressed by this, but I think it's nearly as easy, usually less expensive, and much, much tastier to make things from scratch than to make them from a boxed mix. However, I usually use frozen shredded or chopped potatoes for hash browns. Not so today! I got out the mandoline and shredded a few potatoes.

My mandoline was a gift from Darren's stepfather. He got one for me and one for Darren's mom. I LOVE it and use it often (THANKS!), while Darren's mom is not a fan of hers. Any one out there got an opinion on a mandoline? My mandoline has a permanent diagonal blade and a rotating part that switches among thick slices, thin slices, large julienne, and small julienne. I used the small julienne setting for these hash browns.

The internet tells me that the secret to crispy hash browns is dry potatoes. Different sites suggest different methods, so I am going to go with my instincts and a combination of how my mom makes homemade french fries.

Prepare a bowl with cool water and a generous pinch of salt. Julienne the potatoes and put the slivers in the water to soak for 10-15 minutes.

Drain the potatoes through a fine colander, shaking out as much water as possible. Place the potato shreds on a kitchen towel (I am using my spinach towel), and fold/wrap/bundle them inside. Wring or press out as much water as possible.

Fold the towel a different way, and wring out some more water. Now you're ready to cook those hashbrowns.

Preheat the griddle to medium heat and coat it with a thin layer of oil. Just use a large skillet, if you don't have a griddle.

Add the potatoes in a layer. I tried making little bunches like they do at Waffle House, but I failed miserably.

Cook the potatoes for 4-5 minutes until beginning to brown and then flip. Season with salt, pepper, and desired spices. I used salt, pepper, paprika, and crushed red pepper. Repeat this process 3-5 times until the potato shreds and all done and a fair amount are nicely browned.

If desired, sprinkle cheese on top and allow to melt.

Serve alone or with sausage, eggs, and biscuits. Yum yum, gimme some!

If you try these hash browns, leave a comment and let us know how they turn out.