Kalua Pork and Coconut Rice

When most people visit Hawaii, they go to at least one luau.  My husband and I went to Oahu for our honeymoon several years ago, and we loved the Kalua Pork at the Ali'i Luau we attended at the Polynesian Cultural Center.  A couple years ago, we decided to try to replicate the flavor of the Kalua Pork at home. 

Kalua Pork is simply smoked pork.  At a Hawaiian luau, they present a pig that was smoked all day in an underground imu.  Usually the pork is wrapped in banana leaves while it is cooking.

If you don't have room in your backyard to dig a hole big enough for a whole pig to smoke all day...then I guess you can't cook kalua pork at home.  No, no, no.  Just kidding.  It's super easy to replicate the taste and flavor in a crockpot.  I've included this super simple recipe in this post.  I've also included the recipe for Coconut Rice, which is a perfect accompaniment to Kalua Pork and is also super easy to make.

We served our Kalua Pork and Coconut Rice at a luau party we had last summer, and some of our guests commented that the food tasted better than the food at a luau in Hawaii.  A few months ago we attended a luau while visiting Maui, and I would have to agree that I like these recipes better than what they served in Maui.  So, if you want a taste of a tropical paradise at home, you can't go wrong with these recipes for Kalua Pork and Coconut Rice.

fully cooked Kalua Pork

Kalua Pork

Ingredients:

4 lb pork roast (shoulder or butt will work)
1 tsp liquid smoke
1 tbsp TexJoy

Method:

example of the bone coming out clean

Put the pork roast in a crockpot and sprinkle with salt.  Turn your crockpot on high for 8 hours or until the bone comes out clean.

You almost can't overcook it.  There will be a lot of juice from the pork.  After you take the bone out, add the liquid smoke to the juice and stir so that the meat is evenly flavored.  Sprinkle with TexJoy.

At parties, we usually serve the pork straight from the crockpot, but you can transfer it to a serving dish if you want to dress up the presentation.

 

Coconut Rice

 

Coconut Rice

Ingredients:

1 cup brown rice
2.5 cups Silk Vanilla Coconutmilk
3 cubes low sodium chicken bouillon (use vegetable bouillon for vegan or vegetarian diets)
1 tsp ground ginger


Method:

Put all ingredients in a pot.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce to low heat.  Simmer for 30 minutes, and check it.  Scrape sides of the pot to incorporate any part of the mixture that has boiled up and stuck to the sides.  Keep checking every 10 minutes until the rice is sticky and there is no visible liquid at the bottom of the pot.  Transfer to a serving bowl.

We've accidentally overcooked the rice before, and I actually LOVED the burnt, crispy rice that was stuck to the bottom of the pan.  It was almost like coconut candy.

My husband and I just finished devouring Kalua Pork and Coconut Rice for dinner tonight.  It was awesome served with a salad topped with a sprinkling of goat cheese.  Since we visited a goat farm on Maui that makes goat cheese, I associate goat cheese with Hawaii.

You could also enjoy these recipes with an Ono Mai Tai.

Happy eating!

Elephant Bar - Happy Hour

Skinny Snap Dragon Martini

This afternoon, my husband and I decided to try Happy Hour at the fairly new Elephant Bar in Northridge, CA.  It was pretty dead when we arrived around 4pm.  We chose a table on the patio area that's connected to the bar.  There was only one other table occupied out on the patio.  It was nice and relaxing.  There were TVs both inside the bar and out on the patio, but the volume was either turned way down or off which I appreciated.  I don't like the sports bar feel restaurants tend to get when the TVs are too loud.

Our waitress came over with full menus, but we ended up just ordering off of the Happy Hour specials.  To start, while we looked over the menu, I decided to take advantage of the all-day Tuesday special of half-price Skinny Cocktails.  I ordered the Skinny Snap Dragon Martini.  It contains Dragon Fruit Skyy vodka, passion fruit puree, cranberry juice and a pinch of cayenne.  I was not disappointed.  After visiting Maui, I've really grown to appreciate the passion fruit flavor, and the cayenne gave it just a hint of spice, a nice kick.  It was really a great combination.

Sweet Potato Fries

Coconut Shrimp Skewers

The menu had pictures of most of the items on the Happy Hour menu, so I used that reference to help decide what to order.  In the end, I chose Coconut Shrimp Skewers and Sweet Potato Fries.  They both tasted like "dessert," which to me means they were pretty sweet.  The coconut shrimp skewers were bigger than I expected.  It's a good thing my husband was there to help me eat them.  He usually doesn't like the texture of coconut, but with the batter, he actually enjoyed the flavor.  I really loved the sweet potato fries.  They came with Szechwan chili-spiked ketchup.  Our waitress also brought out a bottle of Heinz.  When it comes to ketchup, I always prefer Heinz.  In my opinion, that's what ketchup is supposed to taste like.  The Szechwan ketchup wasn't bad though, especially considering that a lot of the food at the Elephant Bar has Asian flavor.  In the end, I ate the fries without dipping them in anything.  They were just that good.

Quick-Fried Soy-Ginger Calamari

Classic "Big E" Burger and French Fries

My husband ordered the Quick-Fried Soy-Ginger Calamari and the Classic "Big E" Burger and French Fries.  The calamari was thick and juicy, but it wasn't as crisp as I would prefer.  It was okay, but we probably wouldn't order it again.  As far as the burger goes, to quote my husband, "That's probably the best burger you'll ever get for $5.50."  That's right folks, a 1/2 lb burger and a generous serving of fries for only $5.50 during Happy Hour.  That's less than you'd pay at your favorite fast food chain.  I took a couple bites, and I was impressed with the flavor.  I'll probably order the burger next time.  The fries were good, but I'd probably upgrade to sweet potato fries.

We looked at the dessert menu, but we were too full to really consider ordering dessert.  Maybe next time.

Happy eating!

Who needs frosting?

I actually had a dream about cupcakes.  Maybe that's not weird.  I think it was because I had just tried Dryers Slow Churned Take the Cake ice-cream which is scarily addictive.  It's yellow cake flavored ice-cream mixed with frosting and sprinkles.  It really tastes like birthday cake.  I love it.  But, this post is not about ice-cream.

After eating that ice-cream, I had a dream about cupcakes.  They were yellow cupcakes topped with peanut butter.  In my waking state, I would naturally think of chocolate cake or brownies with peanut butter, but I don't think yellow cake would ever occur to me.

Tonight I finally made cupcakes with a Butter Recipe Golden cake mix I had on hand.  That's not exactly yellow cake, but it's close.  My husband and I didn't wait for them to cool before trying out the peanut butter idea...and for good measure...Nutella.  In the picture below, the cupake on the left is topped with Nutella, and the cupcake on the right is topped with peanut butter. 

I know the frosting job in this picture is messy, but the flavor is amazing.  You could get decorative with the "frosting" if you were having a party or bringing them to a potluck, but otherwise, I go for finger-licking good.

Who needs frosting?  First of all, I could easily argue that both Nutella and peanut butter are way healthier for you than frosting.  The sugar content is lower, and if you use natural peanut butter or, even better, almond butter, the sugar content is 0%.  I wouldn't say that a cupcake topped with peanut butter is exactly "healthy," but it's way healthier than the alternative of 2-inch high frosting you get at all these new-fangled cupcake shops.

Get creative!  When making the cupcakes, you could put half the batter in the cupcake pans, add a dollop of jelly in the center and then put the other half of the batter on top of the cupcakes.  Then frost them with peanut butter.  It'd be peanut butter and jelly surprise cupcakes.  You could also top a cupcake with peanut butter and jelly or make strawberry cupcakes and top them with peanut butter.  That'd be kinda like peanut butter and jelly.

Any flavor of cupcake would be good with peanut butter, but I did dream about yellow cake, so I'm going to have to say that a yellow cupcake frosted with peanut butter is a Peanut Butter Dream cupcake.  Just sayin'. 

By the way, cupcakes freeze super well.  Allow cupcakes to cool completely, and then put the un-frosted cupcakes in freezer bags.  When you get a cupcake craving, they'll be there for you.  Just stick a frozen cupcake in the microwave for 30 seconds or less, top it with your favorite creative frosting (peanut butter, Nutella, whipped cream, jelly, Greek yogurt, etc, etc...), and enjoy your single serving size dessert.  This will save you from feeling like you have to eat an entire cake right away and will help with portion control.

I'm making myself hungry.  I'm going to have to go get another cupcake...with peanut butter!  Then the rest are going straight to the freezer...really.

Quick update: My husband and I went out of town for my birthday.  I like the tradition of blowing out a candle on a piece of cake, so I took a couple yellow cupcakes out of the freezer and brought them with us.  Frosted with peanut butter and topped with a candle, these cupcakes are an easy and delicious birthday treat!  I ate mine for breakfast.  It was my birthday after all.

Happy eating!

Cilantro Hummus

A couple days ago, my husband wrote his first guest blog post, which was for hummus.  You can read it here.  I love that he can cook and whip up new recipes.

His sister (my sister-in-law) told us that there are 2 kinds of people...those who like cilantro and those who don't like cilantro.  Apparently it's one of those love it or hate it flavors.  I can't imagine hating it, but if that's you, may I suggest reading a different recipe instead of this one.  You can find my latest recipes here.

My husband and I both love cilantro, and it's complimented perfectly by lime juice.  This variation on hummus goes perfectly with chips, or spread it on a sandwich for a real kick of flavor. 

You'll need a food processor for this recipe.  Use the metal blade that spins on the bottom of the container (not the shredder or slicer blade). 

Cilantro Hummus

Ingredients:

One 15-ounce can (425 grams) chickpeas, also called garbanzo beans, mostly drained (save the liquid to thin the hummus at the end.)

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/4 cup (59 ml) tahini (you might find it in the grocery store by the peanut butter)

1 teaspoon kosher salt

Garlic powder equal to1 large garlic clove

3/4 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon lime juice

1/2 teaspoon chipotle flakes

2 cups unchopped cilantro (approximately 1 bunch of cilantro as sold at the grocery store)

Method:

Put the drained chickpeas, olive oil, tahini, and salt in the food processer.  Process until blended smooth – about 20 seconds.  It doesn’t have to be perfect – you’ll process it more later.  Mix in the lime juice a little at a time (adding too much at once will cause it to splash all over the inside of the food processor). 

Mix in the garlic powder, cumin, and chipotle flakes.  Add cilantro and process until smooth.

Happy eating!

Hummus recipe

I told you my husband loves hummus.  Well, his first guest blog post is a hummus recipe.  It's so good that I even love it.  See below:

From 2004 to 2006, I was stationed at Incirlik Air Base in Adana, Turkey.  The Alley (a shop- and restaurant-lined street leading to the main gate) had some of the best food.  I loved the hummus and cheese bread, the chicken tava, doners, and kebabs.  I also got rugs and hand-made furniture for amazing deals.

Since I got to L.A. I’ve loved the Mediterranean hummus from Trader Joe’s.  I pretty much always have a container of it in my refrigerator.  As soon as I’m about to run out, it goes on the grocery list – thanks to my wife, I actually use a grocery list now.

I got a hummus recipe from http://www.inspiredtaste.net/15938/easy-and-smooth-hummus-recipe/.  I made it according to the recipe, and I liked it, but I altered it a little to suit my taste.  Below is my altered recipe.

A food processor is a miracle invention, and I wouldn’t even try this without one.  Use the metal blade that spins on the bottom of the container (not the shredder or slicer blade). 

Hummus

Ingredients:

One 15-ounce can (425 grams) chickpeas, also called garbanzo beans, mostly drained (save the liquid to thin the hummus at the end.)

2 tablespoons chickpea liquid

1/4 cup (59 ml) tahini (you might find it in the grocery store by the peanut butter)

1 teaspoon kosher salt

Garlic powder equal to1 large garlic clove

3/4 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon chipotle flakes

sprinkle paprika before serving

Method:

Put the drained chickpeas, 2 tbsp chickpea juice, tahini, and salt in the food processor.  Process until blended smooth – probably 20 seconds or so – maybe more/less.  It doesn’t have to be perfect – you’ll process it more later.  You can mix in some of the lemon juice, but putting it in a lot at a time will make it splash all over the inside of the processor.

Mix in the garlic powder, cumin, and chipotle flakes.

Add in the rest of the lemon juice slowly while processor is on.  If the hummus is too thick, add more chickpea juice one tbsp at a time until it's the desired consistency.

One thing that’s great about the 16oz hummus container from Trader Joe’s is that this recipe makes the perfect amount to refill the container – and it’s just as good.  

Happy eating!