GRAND PORCH PARTY

The Billie Hollies! Julia, Janet, Donna, and Coralie

Life is so interesting isn't it?!

 The Grand Porch Party, a music festival featuring 20 bands, was held this past Sunday in Waterloo.  Since it was happening in Kris’s neighborhood, she hosted a band, The Billie Hollies, who performed throughout the afternoon on her front porch.  They are a super-cool band, be sure to check them out! As an added surprise,  we were also treated to some magical opera singing from the porch, as Brooke Dufton

performed an aria by Murray Shafer.

Or course, whenever there is a crowd, we always think of food. We sent out the word about the Grand Porch Party, along with some invites to family and friends to join us for a casual dinner to follow the music.  Anticipating a large group, we immediately thought of smoking a pork roast and serving pulled pork sandwiches. We added a few salads and came up with a feast. Here are a few memorable recipes.

Quinoa Salad with Mango and Toasted Walnuts in a Curry Vinaigrette

2 cups quinoa

4 cups chicken stock

1 mango, diced

1 ½  cup walnut pieces, toasted

1 carrot, shredded

5 green onions, chopped

½ cup chopped fresh herbs – we used parsley and cilantro

Vinaigrette:

½  cup canola oil

Juice of 1 lime

2 tbsp rice vinegar

 Pulled Pork Feast- don't forget the dill pickles!

1 tbsp mirin

4 tbsp curry powder

Prepare quinoa by rinsing thoroughly in cool running water for 3 minutes.  Drain well. Place quinoa and chicken stock into a saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally.  Cover and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and fluff with a fork. Allow to cool.

While cooling, prepare vinaigrette by combining canola oil, lime juice, rice vinegar, mirin and curry powder is a glass bottle and shake vigorously.

Combine quinoa, mango, carrot,  green onion and toasted walnuts in a large bowl. Toss with vinaigrette and top with fresh herbs.  Serve chilled.

Pulled pork is a great  dish for a large crowd. Here are some tips to making pulled pork stress free!

1)      You must give yourself all day for this dish, as “low and slow” grilling should never be rushed. We smoked and pulled the pork the day before the party. We reserved some of the cooking liquid to mix the pork with to keep it moist overnight and gently reheated it the next day.

2)      The rub recipe is enough for 2 - 10 lb boneless pork butts.  Reserve half for next time. Rub pork roast with half of the rub and store in large resealable plastic bag in the refrigerator overnight.  Remove roast from refrigerator  1 hour before putting on the grill to allow meat to come to room temperature.

3)      Pork butts are excellent for smoking, since they have a nice fat cap and a good amount of marbling. Trim fat to approximately ¼ inch. Cooked “low and slow” as we did results in a fantastic moist , flavourful and tender pulled pork.

4)      Temperature is really important!  Cook to internal temperature of 190° F. How do we know when it is done? -Use a meat thermometer! This takes the guess work out of cooking and gives a perfect product every time.  Always let the meat rest, tented under foil for half an hour before serving.

5)      The interior temperature of the barbecue is equally important. Do not let it rise over 300°F. We prefer that it stays closer to 275°

6)      To create smoke, you need fire! Soak wood chips for half an hour.  Wrap one cup of chips in a foil envelope and pierce with a fork a few  times.  Make 5 or 6 of these packets. Place one packet directly over lit burner several times throughout the cooking.

Pulled Pork with Chipotle/Beer Barbecue Sauce

1-       7 lb pork butt roast, boneless and tied

Rub

¾ cup paprika

¼ cup black pepper

¼ cup coarse sea salt

¼ cup brown sugar

2 tbsp dry mustard

2 tbsp chili powder

2 tbsp garlic powder

2 tbsp onion powder

1 tbsp cayenne

Rub pork roast as described above.

Prepare barbecue by placing a drip pan below the centre grids, directly on top of the FLav- R- Wave. Keep filled with water throughout the cooking period. Preheat barbecue on HIGH for 15 minutes. Turn off middle burners and leave outer burners set on LOW.  Place pork over drip pan, which is above the unlit burners.  Place packets of wood chips, which have been soaked in water, over lit burners. Replace every hour or so when checking meat and liquid in drip pan.  Keep lid closed. Maintain the temperature of the interior of the barbecue between 250°F and 300°F. Leave pork roast on grill until the internal temperature of the pork reaches 185°-190° F. This could take from 6 to 10 hours, depending on weather conditions. Remove from heat and let rest, covered with a foil tent for at least half an hour before pulling or shredding the pork with 2 large- tined forks. Serve on toasted rolls with sliced red onions and Chipotle/Beer Barbecue Sauce.

Chipotle/Beer Barbecue Sauce

1 onion, finely diced

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 can beer

2 cups ketchup

½ cup cider vinegar

½ cup brown sugar

3 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

2 tbsp chipotle pepper in adobo sauce

½ tsp hot sauce(optional)

Salt & pepper

Bev and Jackie are ready to dig in!

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, heat the oil and sauté onion and garlic until translucent.  Add beer and cook until reduced by half. Add ketchup, cider vinegar, brown sugar, Worcestershire Sauce, chipotle peppers, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 45 minutes.  Blend briefly with an immersion blender. Add hot sauce to taste.

Serve alongside the pulled pork in a large pitcher.

Thanks again for organizing a great event Tenille! For more information on The Grand Porch Party, and Alternatives Journal, follow the links. It was covered by CTV news yesterday as well!