leftover pork – The Funky Oven

Pork empanadas

My husband loves smoking pork shoulders. The average weighs about 9 pounds of meat. I run out of ideas for all the leftovers. I can only handle so many pulled pork sandwiches. This is a great way to use the leftover pork and it does not taste leftover. In fact, you can assemble these and freeze them for easy later use. One batch makes about 8-10 very large empanadas.

Dough:

12 tablespoons cold butter

3 1/4 cup flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 egg

2 tablespoon white vinegar

1/2 cup cold water

Pulse the flour, salt, and butter in a food processor until combined. It will appear like coarse crumbs. Mix the water, egg, and vinegar. Pour over the flour and continue to pulse until just combined. Flour the surface and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for a least 2 hours.

Filling:

3 cups leftover smoked pork

1/2 yellow onion

2 cloves garlic

1/4 cup fresh cilantro

1 teaspoon cumin

Salt and pepper

1/2 teaspoon mexican oregano

1 small can diced green chilis with juice

4 small jalapenos

Pulse all of the above in a food processor until it has a pate consistency. The jalapeno does not need to be seeded.

Egg wash:

1 egg

2 tablespoons water

Mix the egg and water together. Set aside to brush the top of the pies.

When ready to assemble, preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Roll the dough on a floured surface to 1/8-1/4 inch thick. Cut circles that are 6-8 inch diameter using a template or cereal bowl up-side-down. Place an egg sized amount of filling on the circle. Fold over half of the circle. Press down the edge over the filling using a fork. Place the pies on a silicone baking mat or parchment paper. Brush the top using egg wash. Bake for 20-30 minutes or until golden brown. Serve with salsa, guacamole, or sour cream.

Pork lemongrass soup

Soup

We had some leftover smoked pork butt to eat. I wanted something that was very different than the usual bbq pork or pulled pork options.

Here are some of the ingredients I found at the grocery store.

This Thai inspired soup took about 30 minutes to make and it was irresistible. The only portion I did not enjoy were the dried mushrooms. The store I chose did not have fresh mushrooms and a second stop was not an option.

The reason I cooked the noodles separate is because I do not like soggy overcooked noodles. You certainly could boil them in the soup pot.

1 tablespoon olive oil

2-3 cups leftover shredded pork

5 cups chicken broth

1 can light coconut milk

4 pieces jarred lemon grass

1/2 cup oyster mushrooms

2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

1 serrano or thai pepper seeded

1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger

1 large carrot, peeled and sliced

1/2 red bell pepper, seeded and sliced

3 green onions sliced

2 cup sliced bok choy

4 teaspoons fish sauce

1 tablespoon miso paste

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon lime juice plus for garnish

2 teaspoon honey

1/4 cup cilantro leaves

udon noodles, cooked

Combine garlic and ginger in oil in a soup pot. Cook for 1 minute. Add broth, carrot, red bell pepper, lemongrass, mushrooms, miso, soy sauce, green onion, bok choy, honey, fish sauce, pepper, and lime juice. Bring to a boil and boil 10 minutes. Add cilantro and coconut oil. Add shredded pork. Cook another 5 minutes on simmer. Prepare udon noodles in a separate pot. Remove the lemon grass and peppers (if wanted). Place soup over udon noodles. Garnish with more lime juice and cilantro.

Pulled pork BBQ pizza

Dinner

My husband treated me by cooking a pork shoulder yesterday. 18 hours on the propane grill to reach a temp of 200 makes a wonderful treat that we can eat all week. Not only did we buy it for like $10, but we had enough to feed us as well as gift half away. This is perfect! You could really use any pork… grilled, crock pot cooked, deli style, etc.

Crust:

2 1/2 cups white flour

1 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon white sugar

1 cup 110 degree water

1/2 packet of quick yeast – 1/8 ounce

Mix the yeast and sugar into the warm water and let sit for 10 minutes. Once the yeast is frothy, mix all ingredients together. The dough will be sticky. Let it rest about 20-30 minutes.

Toppings:

1 cup of shredded cooked pork

1 cup bbq sauce – I mixed 1 part Trader joe siracha bbq, 2 parts Maul’s original, and 3 parts sweet heat from Stubb’s

3 diced green onions

1/2 cup diced yellow onion

1 handful fresh cilantro

1 cup colby jack cheese

1 cup sliced cherry tomatoes

Once the dough was ready, I preheated the oven to 475 degrees. I sprinkled corn meal on a baking sheet. A pizza stone works even better but I cannot find mine today. I made 2 pizzas out of the dough. With each portion, I pressed it out on the baking sheet until the bottom portion was very thin and almost breaking. I layered the toppings in this order – sauce, tomatoes, cilantro, pork, onions (both), and finally cheese. This baked for about 15-18 minutes or until the edges were brown.

I immediately transferred it to a wooden cutting board to keep the crust crispy while cooling slightly. It make a really great thin crust pizza! So yummy!

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