Grilled pork chop with grilled fresh pineapple, sweet and sour
red cabbage, boiled potatoes with garlic and chives.
To make boiled potatoes, select waxy potatoes, not baking potatoes. Peel or not, but scrub well if you don't peel. Cut into uniform chunks, not too small, about 2 inches is good. Add to warm, salted water, cover and bring potatoes to a boil. Turn down heat to low and cook until fork tender, not too soft. (If potatoes break apart when you fork them, you have overcooked them.) Drain water from pot and place back on stove over low heat to evaporate all traces of water. When potatoes are dry, add a few of pats of sweet cream butter to taste. A lot of butter makes them better but try and show some restraint. Add some minced fresh garlic. Please don't use that crappy garlic salt stuff. No wonder so many people think they don't like garlic. Garlic salt is bitter, too salty and tastes like chemicals. Buy a good garlic press and always use fresh garlic.
You've added unsalted butter and fresh garlic to your dry, boiled potatoes so now you must add some herbs. You can use your fave herbs. I prefer chives, parsley, or dill weed and often use a combination of two or three. The heat of the potatoes melts the butter and will release the flavor of the garlic and fresh herbs. I recommend fresh herbs but dried will work if that's all you have in the pantry. Gently stir after you add each ingredient being careful not to break the potatoes. They will crumble just enough for serving if you are gentle. Taste and add salt and pepper if you wish.
To make sweet and sour cabbage, crumble a couple slices of pre-cooked bacon and place in heated pan. (I cook off a pound of bacon at a time and keep it in the freezer in a zip lock.) Stir the bacon for a bit until it gives off a little bacon grease. Add a tablespoon or two of finely diced, sweet onion. Cook until transparent, about 1 - 2 minutes. Add thinly sliced, fresh red cabbage. Stir for a minute until the cabbage starts to wilt. Add a sprinkling of dark brown sugar and stir for another minute or two on medium high heat. Salt and pepper to taste. De-glaze pan with a couple of splashes of cider vinegar. Cook another 30 - 60 seconds and serve immediately.
3 comments:
TRY and show some restraint??!! PLEASE! It's BUTTER!!
Ha!
annie p
Well, try was the operative word. I try to think about not adding more than a quarter pound. (chortle)
No, Potatoes here are not exotic but we can usually choose between about a dozen varieties in the market. Americans used to eat potatoes almost every day until it was decided (in certain diet books) that carbohydrates were bad for us. Now, many of us feel guilty if we eat potatoes or rice or pasta. These items have become more like a treat than an everyday staple.
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