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Bits of Pig Casserole

Bits of Pig Casserole I intentionally bought the least promising bits of Pork. Two Trotters and a Shank. When I was in the Butchers the Shanks were put in boiling bags in the Ham Boiler overnight and sold on the hot counter, but the ‘Running Gear’ as Geoffrey called them invariably went in the Bone & Fat bin outside. This was emptied every couple of weeks and taken away for rendering. So can you make anything good from these scraggly bits of meat in the slow cooker? Oh yes you can! Ingredients for the Casserole:- 2 Pigs Trotters 1 Pork Shank 1 Large Onion, roughly sliced 1 Tin of Kidney Beans 1 Tin of White Beans, whatever you have 1 Tin of Chopped Tomatoes ½ a Tube of Tomato Puree 1 Stock Cube / Stock Pot Salt & Pepper to season 1 Tsp of Chilli Flakes Cider, as cheap as you can get. 1 Tsp of Marmite (We use the Morrisons own brand as it is Gluten free) Method:- (1) Bung everything in the Slow Cooker on high. (2) Add enough Cider to cover everything. (3) After 4 hours push the meat down if it has floated to the top and give everything a good stir. (4) After another 4 hours remove the meat. (5) With a fort and reasonably sharp knife strip the meat from the bones and skin (These were a real threat for our Foxes). (6) Return the meat to the slow cooker and stir well. We served this over Garlic Mashed Potatoes and garnished it with sautéed Spinach. This would easily have fed a family of 4 and was actually really tasty.

I intentionally bought the least promising bits of Pork. Two Trotters and a Shank. When I was in the Butchers the Shanks were put in boiling bags in the Ham Boiler overnight and sold on the hot counter, but the ‘Running Gear’ as Geoffrey called them invariably went in the Bone & Fat bin outside. This was emptied every couple of weeks and taken away for rendering.

So can you make anything good from these scraggly bits of meat in the slow cooker? Oh yes you can!

Ingredients for the Casserole:-

2 Pigs Trotters
1 Pork Shank
1 Large Onion, roughly sliced
1 Tin of  Kidney Beans    
1 Tin of White Beans, whatever you have
1 Tin of Chopped Tomatoes
½ a Tube of Tomato Puree
1 Stock Cube / Stock Pot
Salt & Pepper to season
1 Tsp of Chilli Flakes
Cider, as cheap as you can get.
1 Tsp of Marmite (We use the Morrisons own brand as it is Gluten free)

Method:-

(1) Bung everything in the Slow Cooker on high.
(2) Add enough Cider to cover everything.
(3) After 4 hours push the meat down if it has floated to the top and give everything a good stir.
(4) After another 4 hours remove the meat.
(5) With a fort and reasonably sharp knife strip the meat from the bones and skin (These were a real threat for our Foxes).
(6) Return the meat to the slow cooker and stir well.

We served this over Garlic Mashed Potatoes and garnished it with sautéed Spinach. This would easily have fed a family of 4 and was actually really tasty.

 

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Chicken Leek and Mushroom Pie recipe

 

This sounds like it should be well over our budget. But it was created mostly from left-overs. We had some tired looking Mushrooms, a couple of Leeks, half a cooked Chicken and half a bunch of fresh Coriander in the fridge. If it’s not dead nothing goes to waste here and we really enjoyed the filling in the Polenta Pie  we recent made – if not the Polenta itself….

So we had everything we needed to reinvent the recipe with Chicken and Gluten free pastry, which Sue had in the freezer!

Ingredients:-

100g Margarine
1 large Onion, sliced
1 clove of Garlic, minced
225g cooked Chicken,  mixed vegetables (Leek, Mushrooms, Carrots, Swede etc.)
1 tbsp on Flour
A Handful of chopped fresh Coriander
½ tsp dried Basil
Juice of a Lemon
Chicken Stock
Salt and Pepper
Oil

Method:-

(1) Prepare and chop the vegetables into bite sized pieces. The vegetables can be anything you have to hand.
(2) Fry the Onions and Garlic with a little Oil and Margarine.
(3) Add the meat and fry until browned.
(4) Add the vegetables and fry until they still have a little bite.
(5) Add the Stock, Flour, chopped Coriander, dried Basil, and Lemon Juice.
(6) Season with Salt & Pepper and simmer gently.
(7) Transfer to an oven proof pie dish and allow to cool slightly.
(8) Top with Pastry (We used frozen left over home made Gluten free pastry).
(9) Brush the pastry with an Egg wash if you prefer a more golden brown pastry top.
(9) Place in a pre heated oven at 180C for 30 minutes or so until the pastry has browned.

We served ours with mashed Potato, Cabbage, Carrots, Leeks and gravy.

 

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Radish "Cress" experiment

We bough varions seeds to plant in the boxes on our balcony. To our ammusment the Radishes turned out to be real thugs and overwhemed everything else. We had over half a pack of seeds left so I wondered if you could use them in a salad a bit like Mustard Cress.

Well we're still alive! They do have a very strong Radish flavour. Unfortunately they do not stand up well with a DIY vigegarette dressing. So as Sue suggested last night they are probably better just used to add a bit of colour as a micro salad. But I think we'll be growing some more very soon.....

 

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Summer Vegetable Tray Bake

The vegetables you use really is a matter of taste. We used Onions, Beetroot, Broccoli, Carrot, Broccoli stems and mushrooms.

Method:-

(1) Boil the Beetroot in it’s skins with Cider Vinegar for 15 minutes or so.
(2) Cut the vegetables into bite sized pieces and the Broccoli stems into batons if you are using them.
(2) Sprinkle with a dried mixed herbs, a little grated Italian style Cheese and a drizzle of oil.
(3) Roast at 180C until tender but still with a little bite.

The tray bake and the Gluten free stuffing balls were the star of the show last night. But the Garlic and fresh Rosemary roast Chicken was pretty good as well. Not forgetting the Yorkshire Puddings!

 

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DIY Gluten free Pastry

Due to a health issue Sue has everything we cook is Gluten free. This is generally not a problem and we certainly don’t miss out. But there are some things which can be a bit challenging. Sue has perfected her Gluten free Yorkshire pudding batter and they are better than ordinary Flour based ones, in our opinion. But Gluten free pastry recipes can be a bit hit and miss to say the least. This version looks light and crispy without the pallid appearance of the shop bought pre-rolled versions.

We’ll let you know when we eat the pasties!

The filling was actually the remaining filling from the Zambian Polenta Pie

Ingredients:-

12oz Gluten free plain flour
3oz Lard
3oz Margarine
A punch of Salt
1 tsp Xanthan Gum
1 beaten Egg
80ml of cold Water

Method:-

(1) Rub the Fats into the Flour with the Salt and Xanthan Gum with the tips of your fingers until it resembles breadcrumbs.
(2) Add the beaten Egg and water and combine.
(3) The texture should be sticky but not wet.
(4) As you knead the dough add a little extra Flour if required and knead until you have a smooth texture.
(5) Wrap in film or foil and rest in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
(6) Roll out as required with plenty of Flour.

 

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Discount fridge Mixed grill

I don't think a recipe is required here....

You'll often find me loitering around the discount fridge. Some days it's fruitless, other days.....

Large mixed grill for £1.75 - Don't mind if we do!

  1. Mustard & Cress
  2. Polenta Pie
  3. Pork Cherry sauce & Tray Roasted Veg
  4. Leftovers Soup!

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