Text 324, 115 rader
Skriven 2006-04-14 11:44:00 av MICHAEL LOO (1:123/140)
     Kommentar till en text av JIM WELLER
Ärende: country "ribs" 521
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 ML> (but how dumb is that? Braised pig shoulder is one of the
 ML> great foods).
 JW> I scored a pair of good ones recently. Bone in, lots of fat cap.
 JW> They're in the freezer right now.

The pig is about as close to a real-life schmoo as we
are going to get. The Jews and the Muslims don't know
what they're missing. One must always bear in mind the
words of the Sage, "pork is my favorite vegetable."

 JW> Also a less than wonderful ham. All I noticed in the store was $1.39 a
 JW> pound. Fantastic price. When I got home and looked at it with a more
 JW> critical eye I noted that the skin had been peeled off and all visible

Did not the texture and the heft of the package give this
away to some degree.

 JW> fat trimmed away. The fine print on the label mentioned "enhanced
 JW> flavour solution". It also said "Conagra, Product of the USA". Now I
 JW> don't want to sound anti-American but this is really skanky meat.

If agribusiness, petrochembusiness, and politics were all I
knew of America, I'd be anti-American too. But the people aren't
all bad, and there's some fairly nice scenery.

 JW> salt. I decided to soak the rest of the ham in water with sugar and
 JW> various spices to desalinate and flavour it; then I simmered it, then I
 JW> baked it. By the time I got the salt content down to reasonable there
 JW> was no ham flavour left and the meat was dry (overcooked and not enough

I haven't any experience with the subject but would suggest that
perhaps the best way to deal with the stuff would be to treat it
as if it were Spam - in which case chopping it in little bits and
frying it to almost the jerky stage and then using it in small
quantities to flavor fried rice or mashed potatoes might work.

 JW> fat). I'm having a real hard time getting a good meal from this thing
 JW> no matter what I do. Even the boiling water is too salty and not hammy
 JW> enough for decent split pea soup. A pox on Conagra and their cheapoid
 JW> chemical saturated meatesque products!

Of course. 

 JW> We getting those quite often with a really tasty in-store dry rub for
 JW> the same price as plain. I've been crock potting them for pork stews
 JW> or oven baking them at 225 but plan to start grilling them soon.

Funny thing - looked at the Giant Food ad for this week, and they're
advertising spiced green tea rubbed top round steak for $2.99, where
the untreated stuff is $4.99 at least. Carol thought it was perhaps
a misprint; I figured it was probably a miscalculation of a more
culinary sort.

=

 ML> A surprising lot of sausages have nonfat dry milk in them
 JW> It makes a good binder if you're not lactose intolerant. But small
 JW> amounts of cereal meal or flour works fine too.

So why use nonfat dry milk, offending the Kosher and the lactose
intolerant at once, when small amounts of starch would do the
job as well. I reiterate to you, it's the dairy subdivision of
agribusiness at work.

 ML> Li'l Smokies made with Cheddar (if they're still on the market).
 JW> They are indeed. And very popular in my family although I prefer mine
 JW> without cheese. (I prefer hamburgers to cheeseburgers too which puts
 JW> me in a minority here.)

Cheeseburgers are wondrous things. Make me sick, though.

Stuffed ham
cat: main, Easter
servings: 24

12 lb country ham
3 lb kale
3 lb watercress
2 lb cabbage
1 bn celery
1 hot red pepper
6 Tb salt
6 Tb pepper
2 Tb red pepper
2 Tb mustard seed
2 Tb celery seed
2 ts Tabasco

Parboil ham 20 min. Remove skin.

Chop greens. Mince celery and red pepper.
Blanch all together until limp; drain well.
Add seasonings and mix.

When ham is cooled sufficiently: "starting
at the butt end of the ham, cut three length
wise slits, 2 inches long, all the way through.
On second row cut two slits and on third row
cut three slits. The ham is now ready to be
stuffed. With your fingers, push the seasoned
greens into slits first from the top, then
from underneath, until you can feel all the
spaces have been filled. The remaining greens
are banked over the top of the ham."

Wrap ham in cheesecloth; pin or tie securely.
Return ham to boiler and simmer 15 min per pound.
Let cool 2 hr in the pot liquor before refrigerating
overnight, still in the cloth. Serve cold, sliced
thin.

Maryland's Way, The Hammond-Harwood House Colonial Cookbook
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