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Stock Your Freezer with these Smoked Garlic Cloves

Smoked Garlic Cloves in hand.
These smoked garlic cloves make everything better!

Smoked garlic is a little sweet, a little earthy, and adds a subtle smokiness to any dish you add it to. It lies somewhere between sweet and soft roasted garlic and punchy pungent raw garlic. This is a kitchen staple at my home. Something I always have on hand in my freezer. It’s easy to grab one or two cloves at a time and mince them directly from frozen. Add these convenient peeled smoked garlic cloves to any dish you would use regular raw garlic and be amazed by how it transforms your cooking.

How To Make Smoked Garlic

  1. Buy a 2-3 lb bag of peeled garlic cloves. You could peel your own, but trust me, you don’t want to! Peeled garlic cloves are available in quantities like this from Costco or Sams Club. Some grocery stores now carry smaller quantities of peeled cloves which you could also use and just make a smaller batch.
  2. Preheat the smoker to 180-200 F.
  3. Place the garlic cloves in 1-2 tin foil pans. You don’t want to pile them up too high. Using the flat side of a rolling pin, or a can, or a mallet of some sort, gently crush the cloves. You want to make some cracks in them to increase surface area and smoke absorption but you don’t want to pulverize them. It’s ok if some escape the mallet. This sounds easier than it is. You may want to place them on a cutting board to crush first and then transfer them to the pans. Whatever works for you.
  4. Using a skewer or toothpick, poke holes all over in the bottom of the tinfoil pan.
  5. Place the garlic cloves on the smoker and smoke for 2-4 hours until desired smokiness, stirring every 45 minutes or so. Cooked at a low temperature, these garlic cloves will still be pretty hard and retain some of the kick of raw garlic. If you would like softer, sweeter garlic cloves simply drizzle the cloves with a little oil and raise the smoker temperature to 350 F for an additional 20-30 minutes.
  6. Remove the garlic cloves from the smoker. Allow the garlic to cool all the way. Place them in a zip lock back and freeze. Turn the bag every hour while freezing so cloves don’t stick together. If you have an abundance of freezer space you can place the pans in the freezer and then transfer them to a bag once completely frozen for convenient “IQF” (Individually Quick Frozen) Smoked Garlic Cloves.
Smoked Garlic for Freezing and Using in Everything!

Here’s a tip…

I like to load up the smoker for max efficiency, especially when doing long low-temp smokes. In this batch, I have 5 lbs of The Best Dry-Cured Bacon with Maple, Garlic, and Thyme and a whole chicken (which is just out of the picture), plus 2 pans of smoked garlic which I gave away as holiday presents and used to stock my freezer.

Notice the bacon is dripping onto the garlic? Because why not…bacon drippings are delicious! What better way to capture and use them?

I’d love to hear how you use these smoked garlic cloves in the comments section!

Spicy Roasted Cauliflower with Red Pepper Tahini

The links in these recipes are for products that I use and recommend.  

Roasted cauliflower with roasted red pepper tahini, fresh herbs, raisins and olives.

This Middle Eastern-inspired spicy roasted cauliflower is the perfect companion to roasted lamb and spiced chicken. With this vegetable side technique is just as important as the ingredients used. The cauliflower should be roasted so that it has deeply caramelized parts and is not mushy. To achieve this, use high heat and plenty of oil and cook uncovered turning frequently.

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Spicy Roasted Cauliflower with Red Pepper Tahini, Raisins, Olives, and Fresh Herbs

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 5 reviews
  • Author: Kara Taylor- Home Cooks Guide
  • Prep Time: 10 minutes
  • Cook Time: 30 minutes
  • Total Time: 40 minutes
  • Yield: 4–6 servings 1x
  • Category: Side Dish
  • Method: Baking
  • Cuisine: Middle Eastern
  • Diet: Vegan
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Description

This flavorful cauliflower dish compliments roast lamb and spiced chicken and main dishes inspired by South Eastern European, Greek, Middle Eastern, and North African cuisines.  This side dish is vegetarian, vegan, dairy-free, and gluten-free.

Ingredients

Scale

1 head of cauliflower

1/4 cup oil 

1/2 cup Roasted Red Pepper Tahini – A delicious sauce for raw and roasted vegetables.

1/4 cup water

1/4 cup raisins (regular or golden)

2 Tablespoons Black Olives (preferable dry-cured), chopped

2 Tablespoons Cilantro leaves, chopped dill, and/or chopped mint

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 450 F.

Cut the cauliflower into bite-sized pieces.  Place on a sheet pan in a single layer, drizzle with oil and sprinkle generously with salt and pepper.  Using your hands, toss the cauliflower around on the sheet pan to evenly distribute the oil.

Roast the cauliflower, turning every 10 minutes for 20-30 minutes or until it is tender and deeply caramelized in some places.

While the cauliflower is cooking, combine the raisins and water in a microwave-safe container and microwave for 2 minutes.  Let the raisins steep in the water for 10 minutes or so.

To the raisins, add the tahini.  Microwave for another minute.  

When the cauliflower is done cooking, toss it with the tahini mixture and chopped olives.  If it seems too thick, add another tablespoon or two of water.  Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed.  Sprinkle with chopped herbs.

Serve and enjoy!

High Hydration Sourdough Loaf with Chia Seeds

The links in these recipes are for products that I use and recommend.  

A high hydration sourdough loaf with chia seeds.

A light and airy sourdough loaf with an open crumb. Chia seeds and the addition of whole wheat flour make it extra nutritious.

This loaf was one of those happy accidents. Weighing out my ingredients in my mixing bowl, I let my mind wander for a moment, and when I looked down at the scale I realized I had added quite a bit more water than I intended. To save the loaf, and soak up some of the extra water, I threw in a handful of chia seeds. The resulting loaf – a super delicious sourdough boule with a nearly transparent open crumb. It didn’t last a day in my house!

Baking Schedule

I started this loaf after dinner and completed the bulk fermentation overnight. I shaped and refrigerated it in the morning and baked it around 3pm so it would be cooked and cooled for dinner.

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Sourdough Loaf made with whole wheat flour and chia seeds on a cutting board.

High Hydration Sourdough Loaf with Chia Seeds

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star No reviews
  • Author: Kara Taylor- Home Cooks Guide
  • Prep Time: 12 hours
  • Cook Time: 1 hour
  • Total Time: 13 hours
  • Yield: 1 loaf 1x
  • Category: Bread
  • Method: Baking
  • Cuisine: n/a
  • Diet: Vegan
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Description

A delicious and nutritious high hydration sourdough boule.

Ingredients

Scale

415 g (1 3/4 cups) warm water

100 g (scant 1/2 cup) sourdough starter

400 g (3 1/4 cup) high protein flour

100 g (3/4 cup) whole wheat flour

20 g (2 Tablespoons) chia seeds

10 g (1 Tablespoons) salt 

Instructions

Starting with water and starter, add all the ingredients to a large mixing bowl.  Using your hands or a wooden spoon, form a rough dough.  Let this sit for 20 minutes.

Using your hands, turn the dough a couple of times to form a ball.  Give the dough a “full turn” every 30 minutes for the next couple of hours.

Cover the dough and leave at room temperature (65-70 F) until doubled in size, about 10 hours.

Turn the dough out on a floured surface.  Let it sit there untouched for about 20 minutes.  Then shape the loaf.  Place the dough seam side up in a snug bowl lined with a well floured tea towel.  At this point, you can refrigerate the dough for 6-8 hours or continue with the next step.

Leave the dough in the shaping bowl for another 2 hours at room temperature, or 1 hour in a warmer environment such as on top of the stove while it preheats.

Preheat the oven to 475 F.

Invert the bowl with dough onto a piece of parchment sprinkled with flour or cornmeal or semolina.  Score the dough.

Transfer the dough to a cast iron dutch oven (not preheated), cover it and place it in the oven.  Bake for 40 minutes.

Reduce the oven temperature to 400 F.  Remove the lid and bake for another 10 minutes.

Remove the loaf from the dutch oven and place directly on the rack (on the parchment still is ok).  Bake for another 10 minutes.  

Remove the loaf from the oven and place it on a cooling rack.  Let it cool for 1 hour before slicing.

Equipment

Notes

Need some sourdough starter?  I’ll mail you some of my dried starter for free if you are 1) a subscriber, 2) update your email preferences to include your mailing address, and 3) shoot me an email about it.  My gift to you.  Instructions for using a dried starter can be found here.

Did you know you can dry Sourdough Starter?

Sourdough Starter – you can dry and store it.

For a long time, I’ve kept a back-up sourdough starter in my fridge just in case I killed the one I use regularly. This back-up starter sat there, neglected, taking up a valuable kitchen container and fridge space. Well, you don’t have to do that. You can dry the starter, bag it up, and then reconstitute it when you need it. This is a tip I learned from my mother-in-law. (Thank you Leslie, you’re the best!!) And now, I’m passing it on to you. It’s super easy.

How to dry your sourdough starter

  1. Line a baking sheet with plastic wrap or use a silicone baking mat.
  2. When it’s time to discard some active, bubbly starter, pour some out over the prepared baking sheet Use a spatula to spread it into a thin layer.
  3. Leave this tray at room temperature for a couple of days until it is completely dried. You will be able to tell by looking it at.
  4. Remove the starter from the sheet pan and bag it up.

How to use dry sourdough starter

  1. Mix 1 ounce dried sourdough starter with 1/4 cup lukewarm water.  Let the dry sourdough starter dissolve, stirring occasionally.  This will take up to 3 hours.
  2. Whisk in about 1/4 cup all-purpose flour.  It should be the consistency of pancake batter.  Add more water or flour as needed.
  3. Leave this out at 65-80 F until it starts bubbling (1-2 days).  
  4. “Feed” it without discarding any: Mix in 1/4 cup flour with about 1/8-1/4 cup lukewarm water.  It should, again, be a pancake batter consistency.
  5. The next day, discard or use (bread, waffles, crepe batter, etc) half of the starter.  Feed it again with flour and lukewarm water to a ratio of 1:1:1.
  6. Continuing using and feeding your starter daily.  If you skip a day, no big deal, just start feeding it again.  If you plan on baking more sporadically, you can store the starter in the fridge and pull it out to feed 1-2 days before you plan on baking.

And one more little trick….
Sometimes, my starter will be a little sluggish. Maybe a forgot to feed it for longer than I want to admit. Or I was running low on all-purpose flour and kind of skimped on it’s mealtime for awhile…. When this happens, I sprinkle in a little dry starter powder (from the bottom of the bag) during feeding to give it a boost. Works like a charm everytime.

Seriously Whole Grain Mustard: An easy all-purpose condiment that is sure to impress!

The links in these recipes are for products that I use and recommend.  

Seriously Whole Grain Mustard is the perfect condiment for charcuterie.

This whole seed mustard was one of the first products I created when I started Smokey Ridge Charcuterie. It continued to be one of our most popular condiments at The Farm Table for years. This mustard is all about texture and visual appeal. The mustard seeds have the popping texture of caviar and the multicolored little seeds add so much to the presentation of any dish. This mustard is not spicy or pungent. I use it on its own and as a building block to many other sauces, and salad dressings.

I purchase my mustard seeds from SFHerbs.com. Their prices are great (about $2.50/pound of mustard seeds), as is their quality, and they have a great assortment of spices, teas, and salts that you may want to add to your shopping cart. I’m sure you could find them on Amazon and Nuts.com as well.

This recipe is scaled for 1 lb of mustard seed which seemed like the most usable quantity for the home. It still makes 8 cups which is a pretty big batch and will last you a while or be enough to share with friends.

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Seriously Whole Grain Mustard Recipe

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 11 reviews
  • Author: Kara Taylor- Home Cooks Guide
  • Prep Time: 10 minutes
  • Cook Time: 45 minutes
  • Total Time: 55 minutes
  • Yield: 2 quarts 1x
  • Category: Condiment
  • Method: Stove top
  • Diet: Vegan
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Description

This Whole Seed Mustard is a beautiful and versatile condiment that adds texture to any dish.

Ingredients

Scale

1 lb (4.5 cups) Whole Mustard Seed.  Either all yellow seeds or mixed mostly yellow with some brown seed.

1 cup white wine vinegar

1 cup white vinegar

2 1/4 cup water

1/3 cup sugar

1/4 cup honey

3 3/4 teaspoons salt

Instructions

Rinse the mustards in several changes of water.

Combine the seeds with all other ingredients.  Soak overnight or for a couple of days.

Bring the mixture to a boil.  

Transfer to sterile storage containers and refrigerate.  This mustard will last for months in the fridge.  Alternatively, you could transfer to sterile 8 oz canning jars and process in a water bath for 15 minutes (at sea level).  Adjust processing time for your altitude.

Equipment

Notes

Some Variations to try:

Substitute sugar for lavender sugar

Add jalapeno or other spicy peppers

Add dry mustard powder

Add tarragon or other herbs

Stir mix this whole grain mustard with dijon for a spicier condiment with a great mustard seed texture.

It’s time we celebrate celery! Celery Root Soup Recipe with Fresh Celery Topping.

The links in these recipes are for products that I use and recommend.  

A celebration of celery. This soup uses celery root, celery stalk, celery leaves, and celery seed.

Celery is one of the most overlooked and undervalued vegetables. It plays a supporting role in mirepoix and the holy trinity – the vegetable bases that are essential to many Western European and Cajun dishes. It sometimes shows up on Fresh Vegetable Platters. Yet it is never really celebrated on its own and that’s a shame.

Celery is crisp and crunchy, sweet and yet, bitter and astringent at the same time. Its flavor is fresh. It stimulates and cleanses the palate. Most people use the thick stalks of celery and discard the rest to the compost bin. I’ve even seen Culinary School-trained chefs do this in my kitchen, to my dismay! The bright lime green leaves from the innermost heart of the celery head are the most flavorful part of the whole plant. And the thin yellow-white stalks at the very center are the sweetest and most-celery tasting part of all.

The innermost stalks and leaves are the most flavorful part of celery.

Celery root is creamy, sweet, and nutty. The celery flavor is soft but still prominent. Celery root (or celeriac) and the thick stalked celery are the results of two different selective breeding tracts originating from smallage, or wild celery.

This soup is a study in celery. The pureed soup is made from celery root and the fresh celery topping uses flavorful stalks and leaves from the center of the head, along with celery seed. You will never think of celery the same again.

I first experienced a similar soup at The Pearl Cafe in Missoula, MT. I developed this recipe from that experience and served this regularly while I was chef at The Farm Table.

The pureed soup is vegan and gluten-free. There is a tiny bit of creme fraiche in the topping, which could be omitted or substituted for a fully vegan/ dairy-free meal. Served with buttered bread or a side salad this makes a lovely light meal. Or serve it as an elegant appetizer.

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Celery Root Soup with Celery Remoulade

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 2 reviews
  • Author: Kara Taylor- Home Cooks Guide
  • Prep Time: 15 minutes
  • Cook Time: 30 minutes
  • Total Time: 45 minutes
  • Yield: 2 quarts 1x
  • Category: Soup
  • Method: Stove top
  • Cuisine: French
  • Diet: Vegetarian
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Description

The soup uses celery in all its forms: celery root, celery stalks, celery leaves, and celery seed.  It’s simple yet elegant.  Perfect for a light meal or an appetizer.

Ingredients

Scale

Pureed Celery Root Soup

2 Tablespoons olive oil

1 large onion, diced

3 celery stalks, diced

1 parsnip, peeled and diced

2 small-medium celery roots, peeled and diced

7 1/2 cups water

1 small russet potato, peeled and diced

1/4 cup white wine

1 heaping Tablespoon Salt

1/8 Tablespoon ground Pepper

A handful of chopped parsley leaves

Fresh Celery Topping

1 cup minced celery heart (tender small stalks and lime green leaves) *

2 Tablespoons minced shallot or onion

2 Tablespoons Seriously Whole Grain Mustard**

2 Tablespoons Creme Fraiche or sour cream

2 Tablespoons minced chives

1/4 teaspoon celery seeds

1/4 teaspoon lemon juice

salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

For the soup

In a large pot over medium heat, sweat the onions, parsnip, potato, celery, and celery root in a little oil until soft and tender.  You are not trying to brown any of these vegetables.

Add the white wine and cook for a couple of minutes.

Add the water, salt, and pepper and bring to simmer.*

Cook until all the vegetables are very tender.

Remove from the heat, add the parsley.

Transfer your soup to a blender in batches and puree or until very smooth.  Or you can use your immersion blender to blend the soup directly in the pot.**

Make the Remoulade

While the soup cooks, mince the celery heart, leaves, chives, and shallot and combine in a small mixing bowl.  Add all the other ingredients.  Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed and set aside.

To serve

Fill your bowls with the soup and place 1-2 Tablespoons of the remoulade on top.  Enjoy!

Notes

*You could certainly substitute water for home-made chicken broth or vegetable broth, however for pureed vegetable soups that are highlighting a single vegetable, I find plain water is best.

** This is a whole seed mustard that is not spicy.  There really isn’t a good store-bought substitution that I have found.  I don’t recommend using dijon as it is just a very different flavor.  The best substitute would be to boil some whole mustard seeds until tender or just omit this.

**A vitamix or other powerful stand mixer will get this really smooth and creamy.  The immersion blender will be result in a more rustic soup with flecks of parsley in it.

Roasted Red Pepper Tahini – A delicious sauce for raw and roasted vegetables.

The links in these recipes are for products that I use and recommend.  

An all purpose dipping sauce for cooked or raw vegetables.
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Roasted Red Pepper Tahini

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star No reviews
  • Author: Kara Taylor- Home Cooks Guide
  • Prep Time: 10 minutes
  • Cook Time: n/a
  • Total Time: 0 hours
  • Yield: 6 cups 1x
  • Category: Sauce
  • Method: Blend
  • Cuisine: North African & Mediterranean
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Description

This sauce is slightly sweet and spicy with a prominent sesame flavor.  It compliments roasted and fresh vegetables, falafel, savory fritters, and flatbreads.

Ingredients

Scale

3 large (18 oz) Canned Roasted Red Peppers*

1/4 cup roasted or smoked garlic (or 3 cloves fresh)

1 cup boiling water

1 teaspoon smoked paprika (or paprika)

1 teaspoon Chili Powder (I use Ancho Chili Powder)

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1 Tablespoon honey

1/4 teaspoon cayenne

1 (15 oz) can Tahini (if separated with oil on top, include the oil)

1/2 Tablespoon Red Wine Vinegar

Instructions

Place all ingredients in a blender bowl or an 8 cup pitcher (if using an immersion blender) with the tahini on top.  

Blend.

Notes

*If you would like to use fresh made roasted red peppers, increase the vinegar by a little bit.

You can spice this up by adding more cayenne or using a spicy roasted pepper like poblano or anaheim.

Spiced Rye Sourdough Bread (Pumpernickel) with Fennel, Orange, and Caraway

The links in these recipes are for products that I use and recommend.  

A fragrant sourdough loaf.

Rye breads are a staple throughout Northern and Eastern Europe and Russia where they are often seeded with caraway and other spices or whole rye berries. Rye flour is low in gluten, will rise less during fermentation and prefer a longer slower ferment. These dark dense loaves compliment smoked salmon, pate, salty meats, mustard and horseradish.

My mother, Sue, requested a dark rye bread to serve alongside our New Years Day ham dinner. I hadn’t really ventured into pumpernickel bread so I had to do some research. I knew there would be caraway involved but was surprised to find many recipes calling for coffee and cocoa powder and one that also added fennel seed and orange zest, which I thought sounded really amazing. Fennel and orange are one of my favorite winter flavor pairings.

This recipe here is an amalgamation of several recipes that I found in my research plus my own bread-making intuitions. The result – a deliciously fragrant loaf with prominent but not overpowering caraway and fennel. The orange and espresso are very subtle. On my next batch, I may increase the orange and espresso a bit and try adding the cocoa powder just to see, because I’m curious. I’ll let you know how that goes.

Baking Schedule

Rye flour is lower and gluten and ferments differently than all wheat bread. I find that a longer ferment at cooler temperatures works better. I  start this bread in the afternoon, turning it occasionally until bedtime, then move it to a cool place (my garage) until early morning.  When I wake up, I shape it and place it into a bowl for its final rise for several hours.  Cooking it midday.  It won’t double in size, and that’s ok.

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2 dark rye sourdough loaves on parchment..

Spiced Rye Sourdough Bread (Pumpernickel)

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 3 reviews
  • Author: Kara Taylor- Home Cooks Guide
  • Prep Time: 20 hours
  • Cook Time: 1 hour
  • Total Time: 21 hours
  • Yield: 1 loaf 1x
  • Category: Bread
  • Method: Baking
  • Cuisine: Scandanavian
  • Diet: Vegan
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Ingredients

Scale

6 grams (1 Tablespoons) Fennel Seed, coarsely chopped

2 grams (1/2 Tablespoons) Caraway Seed, coarsely chopped

5 grams (1/2 orange) zest

2 grams (1/2 Tablespoons) instant espresso powder or coffee powder*

380 grams (1 3/4 cup) warm water

80 grams (1/3 cup) starter

250 grams rye flour

250 grams High Protein Bread Flour

10 grams salt

36 grams (2 Tablespoons) molasses

Instructions

In a large mixing bowl, add all the ingredients.  I always start with water and starter and end with the salt, that’s just my habit.  With your hands or a wooden spoon, mix it to form a course dough.

Let the dough sit covered on the counter for 20-30 minutes, then give it a full turn.  Continue turning every 30-60 minutes for the next 5-6 hours.  (For more guidance on how to do this and the other steps of the process, check out How to Make Sourdough Bread)

Transfer the dough to a cool place for another 10 hours (or leave it at room temperature for another 6-8 hours).

Turn the dough out on a floured surface.  Let it relax there for 20 minutes.  Then shape it and place it seam-side up in a bowl lined with a floured tea towel.  Cover it and let it rise for another 4-6 hours.

Preheat the oven to 500 F.  

Invert the dough onto a floured sheet of parchment.  Transfer the parchment and dough to a dutch oven (not preheated), cover and bake for 30 minutes. 

Reduce the heat to 425 F, remove the lid and cook for another 20 minutes.  

Remove the loaf from the dutch oven and place directly on the oven rack (on parchment is fine) and bake for another 10 minutes.  

Transfer to a cooling rack and let it cool for 1 hour before slicing.

Equipment

Home-Made Chashu Pork for Ramen

The links in these recipes are for products that I use and recommend.  

Chashu Pork is a Japanese-style pork belly braised in a sweet-salty soy marinade with ginger and garlic. This is the melt-in-your-mouth pork that tops bowls of ramen at your favorite noodle joint.

Pork belly is one of my all-time favorite cuts of meat to work with because it has so many different expressions: Dry-Cured Bacon, Italian Lardo, and pancetta, pork belly confit, a Porchetta Roast covered with crispy crackling…. and Chashu Pork. Chashu is super tender meat with gelatinous skin all rolled up into a log for easy slicing.

It is really easy to make Chashu at home and a fun weekend project. Simply buy a skin-on piece of pork belly (you may need to order this ahead of time from your grocery meat department), roll it into a log, tie it with butcher twine, and braise it in a simple soy marinade. Then let it cool completely in the braising liquid and use it over the next couple of days for ramen and rice dishes.

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Home-Made Chashu Pork for Ramen

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star No reviews
  • Author: Kara Taylor- Home Cooks Guide
  • Prep Time: 15 minutes
  • Cook Time: 4 hours
  • Total Time: 4 hours 15 minutes
  • Yield: 2 lbs 1x
  • Category: Meat
  • Method: Braise
  • Cuisine: Japanese
  • Diet: Low Lactose
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Description

Japanese-style braised pork belly for ramen and rice.

Ingredients

Scale

2 1/2–3 lb piece of skin-on pork belly

2 cups soy sauce

2 cups water

1 cup sake

1/4 cup burnt honey (see note)

1/4 cup sugar

4 inch piece of ginger, halved or quartered lengthwise

8 green onions

1/2 cup sugar

Instructions

Roll the pork belly into a log and tie it with butcher twine.

Place the pork belly into the smallest sized pot that will fit it snuggly.  Cover with water and bring up to a boil.  Simmer for a couple of minutes.  Drain and rinse.

Add all the other ingredients to the pot with the pork belly.  Let this sit at room temperature to marinate for at least 3 hours, or refrigerate overnight.  

Preheat to oven to 275 F.  Bring the pot with the pork belly and marinade up to a simmer on the stovetop.  Transfer to the oven and cover with a lid left slightly ajar.

Braise for approximately 4 hours, turning the pork belly every 30 – 45 minutes.  It is done when a skewer can be inserted all the way through with little resistance.  At this point, the skin will be very fragile so be careful handling the pork belly.  It will firm up once cooled.

Place the chashu in a ziplock bag.  Strain half the marinade into the bag, squeeze the air out, and seal.  Refrigerate until ready to use.  

Strain the rest of the marinade and set aside to use as seasoning later on or for making ramen eggs or drizzling over rice or grilled vegetables.

Melt-in-your-mouth braised pork belly for ramen.

When ready to use, remove from refrigerator and marinade and thinly slice.  You can reheat in a frying pan with a little of the marinade or simply dip it in the hot ramen broth for a moment before you serve it.

I usually cut this in half, tightly wrap one half with plastic wrap and freeze for later.

Notes

Burnt Honey

I stumbled upon this ingredient trick by accident.  I had a little honey in the bottom of a large mason jar that had solidified.  So I put it in the microwave and pressed start.  Three minutes were left on the timer from the last time it was used.  I had intended to only let it go for 30 seconds or so but I got distracted digging around for a pacifier for my fussing baby.  When I got back to the honey, it was all bubbled up and the color of mohagony.  I could tell by the appearance of the bubbles that it was going to cool to a hard caramel.  It smelled of toast with notes of dandelion.  It was less sweet, with more acidity and a pleasant bitterness.  I added it to my braising liquid and was really happy with the nuanced sweet-earthy flavor it imparted. It may be one of the new seasoning agents in my kitchen.

Quick Clam Carbonara Recipe

I have always loved Pasta Carbonara. A simple dish consisting of pasta, salty pork, egg yolk, parmesan cheese, and pepper. The simplicity of the ingredients gives space to focus on technique.

I ended up with a bunch of chopped clams in my fridge after a project at the restaurant. Clams and bacon are a classic pairing and I was hankering for pasta so I threw this Clam Carbonara together with some of my home-made Dry-Cured Bacon.

The trick with Carbonara is in getting a perfectly silky sauce, thickened with egg yolk, that doesn’t curdle with the heat. You do this by mixing the egg yolk with grated cheese and removing the dish from the heat before you add the egg mixture while stirring constantly. Reserve some pasta water to thin the sauce to your desired consistency. Too little water and the sauce will be kind of gummy and sticky. If you have leftovers, reheat very gently adding a little water as needed.

Start to finish this is a 30 minute meal. Perfect for busy weeknights.

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Clam Carbonara

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  • Author: Kara Taylor- Home Cooks Guide
  • Prep Time: 15 minutes
  • Cook Time: 15 minutes
  • Total Time: 30 minutes
  • Yield: 4 servings 1x
  • Category: Pasta
  • Method: Stove top
  • Cuisine: Italian
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Description

A simple Pasta Carbonara that plays off the sweet-salty pairing of clams and bacon.

Ingredients

Scale

1/2 lb pasta

1/2–1 cup drained chopped clams

1/3 cup diced bacon

1/2 onion, diced

3 garlic cloves, minced

1/3 cup chopped parsley

1/2 cup pasta water

3 egg yolks

1/2 cup grated parmesan

salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Boil pasta to al dente.  Reserve 1/2 cup pasta water (plus some extra in case you want it).  Drain the pasta.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl combine the egg yolks with grated cheese. 

In a skillet, sauté the bacon until it is crispy and has rendered fat in the pan. 

Add the onions, and garlic, and sauté until soft and transparent, about 3-5 minutes. 

Add the drained chopped clams (reserving clam juice for another use) and cooked pasta.  Cook while stirring for another 1-2 minutes.

Remove the skillet from the heat.  Slowly add the egg mixture while stirring constantly. 

Add 1/2 hot (but not boiling) pasta water and chopped parsley.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Add more pasta water if you would like a thinner sauce.

Serve with more grated parmesan and pepper at the table.

Notes

This recipe makes 4 small-ish servings or 2 large servings.  You may want to double it for a family of 4 or serve it with salad and bread.