Crazy Girl's Kitchen

Get ready:

• 2 1-lb pork tenderloins
• 1 lime, zest and juice
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 cup salt
• 1/2 olive oil
• 1 Tsp dried tarragon leaves
• 1 Tsp pepper
• 2 Tsp garlic powder
• 2 Tsp olive oil

Now let’s play:

Combine all ingredients in a large ziploc bag and marinade for 2 hours in the fridge. When time is up, heat up oil in a large cast iron skillet and sear all sides of tenderloins till golden brown. Then place the skillet in a 400F oven for 8-10 minutes till pork is cooked through. Slice and serve (4-6 servings).

After-play thoughts:

Leave the pork tenderloins in the marinade too long can overwhelm the nature taste of pork. If you have to, take the pork tenderloins out of the marinade after 1 hour and place them in a covered container without rinsing.

Get ready:

• 1 tablespoon cumin
• 2 tablespoon paprika
• 1 tablespoon granulated garlic
• 1 tablespoon granulated onion
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 tablespoons salt
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon white pepper
• 3 racks of baby back ribs, about 8lb

Now let’s play:

Preheat oven at 300F. Mix all the ingredients well in a container. Place the ribs on sheet pans, and rub the mix generously over the ribs (pad down the mix onto the ribs). Then park in the oven for 3-3.5 hours.

After-play thoughts:

You can always make the rub mix in a larger batch for future uses.

Get ready:

• 1 5lb pork shoulder, bone-in and skin-on preferred
• 4 Tsp vegetable oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 10 cloves of garlic, minced
• 8 anise seeds, crushed
• 20 peppercorn, crushed
• 3 Tsp grounded ginger
• 1 cups dark Chinese soy sauce
• 2 cups light Chinese soy sauce
• 1/2 cup fish sauce
• 1/4 cup Chinese vinegar
• 1/2 cup Chinese cooking wine
• 2 cups sugar
• salt and pepper

Now let’s play:
Mix well dark and light Chinese soy sauce, fish sauce, Chinese vinegar, and Chinese cooking wine. Heat up 2 Tsp oil in a large dutch oven. Season the pork shoulder with salt and pepper,  and then brown the entire pork shoulder when the oil is hot (skin sides first). Set the pork shoulder aside. Add remaining oil, diced onion, and saute for 3 minutes. Add minced garlic, crushed anise seed, crushed peppercorn, and grounded ginger. Saute for another 2 minutes. Add the pork shoulder back to dutch oven. Pour in mixed sauce and sugar. Add water until the pork shoulder is barely covered. Put the lid on, and bring to broil. Turn down the heat to medium low, and cook for 2.5-3 hours. To serve, pull the pork shoulder apart into chunks and drizzled with sauce (4-6 servings).

After-play thoughts:

This is a very authentic Chinese festival holiday dish. It’s totally fine to strain and then freeze the cooking liquid for future use. If you find skin too fatty, feel free to discard it when serving.

Get ready:

• 1 Tsp salt
• 1/2 Tsp ground black pepper
• 1 Tsp onion powder
• 1 Tsp garlic powder
• 3 Tsp paprika
• 1 Tsp chili powder
• 1 Tsp cayenne
• 1 Tsp brown sugar
• 1 Tsp ground cumin seed
• 1 tsp ground fennel seed
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 1 cup apple cider vinegar
• 2 cup ketchup
• 8 Tsp packed dark brown sugar
• 2 Tsp Dijon mustard
• 2 teaspoon salt
• 2 tsp cayenne
• 1 7lb pork blade roast
• 3 tsp olive oil

Now let’s play:

Preheat the oven to 250F. Mix the first eleven ingredient together in a bowl. Rub to mix onto the pork blade roast. Place the roast in a large roasting pan, drizzle with olive oil, then place the whole thing on the middle rack of the preheated oven. Roast for 10-12 hours. Take it out of the oven, and let it rest. Meanwhile, assemble the next six ingredients. Microwave for 2 minutes and then stir till well combined. Pull the pork apart. Mix in half of the sauce evenly. Serve immediately, as entry or on the bun, with the rest of the sauce on the side as a condiment (12-14 servings).

After-play thoughts:

Please do not open the oven door during the first at least 10 hours of roasting. After 10 hours, only open the door if you are not sure about the doneness, but the cases are the roast can be cooked for 12 hours straight.

Get ready:

• 3 slabs baby back ribs (about 7 1/2 pounds)
• salt and pepper
• extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 Tsp dried thyme
• 2 bay leaves
• 5 Tsp onion powder
• 2 Tsp garlic powder
• 1 cup ketchup
• 2 14oz cans tomato sauce
• 4 Tsp soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 2 Tsp dry mustard
• 2 Tsp honey mustard
• 1 Tsp cayenne
• 1 Tsp ground paprika
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 ground nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 2 Tsp brown sugar

Now let’s play:

Preheat oven at 350F. Season ribs with salt  and pepper. Drizzle some olive oil on the top, and bake for 1 hour. Assemble the remaining ingredients in a sauce pan. Cook over medium heat for 15 minutes, and stir till well combined. Take ribs out of the oven. Spoon or brush a thick layer of sauce onto the ribs, and then bake the ribs for another 1.5 hours. Let the ribs rest for 15-20 minutes and serve with the (6-8 servings).

After-play thoughts:

If there are leftovers, it’s best to refrigerate it in its whole rack form, so least amount of juice would get lost and ribs stay tender after reheat. Also, I suggest store dipping sauce separately; otherwise, taste of meat will be overpowered by the sauce as the sauce would be marinating the ribs in the fridge.

Get ready:

• 4 1-inch-thick center-cut boneless pork chops
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 Tsp olive oil
• 2 large peaches, peeled, cored, and pureed
• 1 cup white wine
• 1 Tsp caper
• 1 tsp dried parsley
• 1 Tsp butter

Now let’s play:

Season both sides of pork chops with salt and pepper. Heat up olive oil in a saute pan. When the oil is hot, sear both sides of pork chops until golden brown (in batches if necessary), about 2 minutes each side. Then set aside. Add white wine to the pan, and scrape off the brown bites at the bottom of the pan. Reduce the wine by half, and then add peach puree, caper, and parsley. Cook and stir till the sauce is rich and smooth. Turn off the heat, and finish the sauce with butter. Pour the sauce over pork chops, and serve immediately (4 servings).

After-play thoughts:

Tired of apple and pork? Try peach and pork for the summer (well, next year summer in this case)! Peach makes more smooth and richer sauce then apple, and I just adore the subtle sweetness from the peach.

Get ready:

• 4 1-inch thick center-cut pork chops
• 2 Tsp olive oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup diced carrots
• 3 celery stalks, diced
• 2 yellow bell pepper, diced
• 2 tsp dried thyme
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1 cup red wine
• 2 cups beef broth
• salt & pepper

Now let’s play:

Season both sides of pork chops with salt and pepper. Heat up the oil in a large saute pan (12 inch recommended) at high heat. Sear the pork chops on both sides till golden brown, about 2 minutes on each side. Set the pork chops aside. Then heat down to medium. Saute diced onion with a pinch of salt for 2 minutes. Add minced garlic and saute for another 2 minutes. Add carrots and celery, and saute for 5 minutes. Add pepper, thyme, chili powder, and saute for 2 minutes. Add red wine. Scrap off the brown bites at the bottom of the pan, if any. Add back the pork chops. Add beef stock, and bring to boil. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Serve immediately over rice (4 servings).

After-play thoughts:
If you don’t have a skillet large enough, you can sear the pork chops in batch and rest them in a roast pan; saute the vegetables in red wine and pour over the pork chops; add beef broth till the pork chops mostly immersed; cover tightly and bake in 350F oven for 25 minutes.

Get ready:

• 2 pork tenderloin
• 1 1/2 cups old fashion ricotta cheese
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 pepper
• 1 Tsp dried parsley
• 3/4 cup dried cranberry
• 1 lb ham, thinly sliced
• 1/2 tsp dried parsley
• 1/2 tsp dried theme
• 1/2 tsp dried rosemary
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 2 Tsp Dijon mustard
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• olive oil

Now let’s play:

Butterfly pork tenderloin lengthwise. Mix ricotta cheese, salt, pepper, dried parsley, and dried cranberry together. Apply half of the mix onto the butterflied surface of each tenderloin. Set aside. Lay out the ham slices (overlap the slices a little bit), so they  form two wraps large enough to go around each tenderloin twice. Mix together the rest of the ingredients, other than olive oil, and spread half of the mix onto each “ham wrap”. Transfer two tenderloin onto each “ham wrap”, and wrap them up as wrapping burritos. Place wrapped tenderloin in a large buttered baking dish with seam side down. Drizzle some olive oil on the top, and bake in a 350F oven for 40 minutes. Cover with foil and let it cool for 30 minutes. Slice (1/2 inch wide) and serve immediately (about 6-8 servings).

After-play thoughts:

The amount of ham used may vary depends on how much you overlap the slices, as well as the shape and the thickness of the ham slices.

For the Pork Chop

Get ready:

• 4 (1 inch thick) pork chops
• 1 cup AP flour
• 2 eggs, whisked together
• 2 cups Panko bread crumbs
• salt & pepper
• vegetable oil

Now let’s play:

Pound the pork chops to about 1/4 inch thick. Season generously with salt and pepper. Coat the pork chops with AP flour on both sides, dip into egg, and coat with Panko bread crumbs (pat the bread crumbs on the chops for better results). Pour vegetable oil into a Dutch oven or a heavy bottom pot, about 2 inch deep (the bottom of pot at your choice should be bigger than the pounded pork chop). Heat up the oil to 350F. Fry the pork chops one at time until golden brown, about 2 minutes on each side. Drain off the extra oil on a cooling rack over a sheet pan lined with paper towel. Serve immediately (4 servings).

After-play thoughts:

Panko crumbs make a huge difference on how crispy the pork chops come out. Most oriental markets carry them, or you can order from Amazon as I did.

For the Vegetable Curry:

Get ready:

• 2 Tsp vegetable oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 6 medium carrots, diced
• 1 lb russet potato, diced
• 2 Tsp curry powder
• 1 tsp red pepper flakes
• 4 cups chicken stock
• salt & pepper

Now let’s play:

Turn heat to medium high. Add oil. Saute the onion for 2 minutes. Add the garlic. Saute for another minute. Add the carrots. Saute for 3 minutes. Add curry powder and red pepper flakes. Saute for another minute. Add the diced potato and chicken stock. Bring to broil. Simmer uncovered for 10 minutes, and stir occasionally, until potato falls apart and the sauce starts to thicken. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately over rice (4-6 servings).

After-play thoughts:

Potato is often used in Asian cuisine as a natural thickener. Using potato results in a more light but creamy texture while using corn starch or flour can lead to somewhat gluey sauce.