Chicken/Pork Breakfast Sausage

Using brined chicken breast in this recipe along with lean ground pork results in a very low-fat sausage that’s flavorful and has a nicer texture than chicken breakfast sausages I’ve had before. The fat content is so low that you’ll need to lightly coat your skillet with olive oil.

A great time-saving idea is to brine large amounts of chicken breasts, then freeze individually in ziplock bags for later use. I’ve found that prebrined and frozen chicken tastes the same in recipes as freshly brined. It’s also easiest to grind the chicken in the food processor when it’s still half-frozen.

We’ve eaten this sausage as standalone breakfast patties and cooked it in a breakfast hash with eggs, potatoes, and cheese. It was great both ways.

Recipe For Chicken/Pork Breakfast Sausage

1 pound brined chicken breast (partially frozen)
1 pound lean ground pork
¼ cup real maple syrup
2 teaspoons dry sage
1 teaspoon granulated toasted onion
1 teaspoon garlic powder
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper

Cut the chicken into chunks. Working in batches, pulse the chicken in a food processor until coarsely ground.

Combine the ground chicken, ground pork, maple syrup, and spices in a large mixing bowl. Mix well with your hands.

You can form patties or bulk cook it. If it’s warmed up a bit from mixing and gotten a little too soft and sticky, refrigerate for a while before forming patties.

Chile Paste

This chile paste is really versatile and will add that special something to your grilled or smoked meats.  It can be rubbed on beef or pork as a marinade before smoking or braising, and it's also a great addition to the masa for tamales to impart color and flavor.

Ingredients:

2 dry guajillo peppers
3 dry pasilla peppers
1 dry ancho pepper

1/2 tablespoon annatto seeds
1/4 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/8 teaspoon allspice berries
1/2 teaspoon coriander
3 cloves
1/8 teaspoon powdered cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon oregano
1 tablespoon salt

3 cloves garlic
1 small white or yellow onion, roughly chopped
2 ounces (1/3 of a small can) tomato paste
1/4 cup juice of naranjas agrias (sour oranges) or a combination of orange and lime juice*

In a large skillet over medium heat toast the dry guajillo, pasilla, and ancho peppers, turning frequently, until they smell fragrant and start to puff.  Add enough water to the skillet to cover the peppers, and bring the water to a simmer.  Cover with a lid and turn off the heat.  Allow to cool until the peppers can be handled.

When you can comfortably handle the peppers, remove the stems and seeds.

While you're waiting for the chile peppers to cool, in a spice grinder or coffee grinder devoted to grinding spices, grind the annatto seeds, cumin seeds, allspice berries, coriander, cloves, cinnamon, oregano, and salt to a powder.

In a blender or food processor, grind the garlic, then add the onion, tomato paste, and sour orange juice and process to a paste consistency.  Add the ground spice mixture, and the guajillo, pasilla, and ancho peppers, and continue processing into a paste.

Refrigerate after preparing.

* The only place I've found around here that always has naranjas agrias is my favorite Carnival market at 3460 Webb Chapel Extension in Dallas.  You should be aware that naranjas agrias aren't pretty.  They kinda look like warty oranges.

Al Pastor Style Tacos And Enchiladas

This recipe transforms very inexpensive or "scrap" meat into something really special.  Although the total preparation time for the pork is lengthy, the actual hands-on time is very short.  This recipe is well worth the effort and time because it's so yummy!

Traditionally al pastor tacos are made with pork that is marinated in some combination of achiote paste, dried chile paste, and/or pineapple or other fruit juice.  Following is a technique I used to prepare tender, juicy pork, which was then combined with an al pastor style paste to make a flavorful filling for tacos and enchiladas.

CARNITAS DE PUERCO (the pork meat)

There are several tender, fatty, flavorful cuts of pork that can become Carnitas de Puerco.  This time I used  the meat from the ribs that I trimmed away from the pork bellies that we made into bacon and pancetta.  But any fatty, tender pork, such as Boston Butt, would work for this recipe also.

The little racks of ribs that I removed from the pork bellies were just too good to waste.  I sprinkled them with some yummy Penzeys spice rubs (use whatever spice rub you like) and let them sit uncovered in the fridge for about a day and a half.  I then used a technique that I learned from my friend, Terri, braising the ribs in coffee.  I put the ribs in a Dutch oven, poured some leftover coffee over them, added a few peeled, crushed cloves of garlic, a thinly sliced onion, a couple pinches of salt, a few grinds of pepper, and a big splash of Marsala.

I covered the Dutch oven tightly with aluminum foil to seal in all the liquid, and then put the lid on.  Braised the ribs at 250 degrees for six hours, checking and stirring only every two hours.  After six hours, I removed the Dutch oven from the oven and allowed the pork to cool.  Once cool, I removed the meat from the bones, although it was so tender it practically fell off the bones of its own accord.  I refrigerated the braising liquid, letting the fat rise to the top so I could skim off and discard the fat.  (I actually saved the leftover braising liquid after preparing the al pastor pork and froze it to use later because it was so flavorful.)


AL PASTOR PASTE/MARINADE

2 dry chipotle peppers
5 dry guajillo peppers
3 dry ancho peppers
2 Tablespoons braising liquid or water
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/2 cup minced onion
4 minced garlic cloves
1/4 cup pineapple juice
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
2 Tablespoons tomato paste
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Simmer the chipotle, guajillo, and ancho peppers in about 3 cups of water until soft and pliable.  Drain and cool.  Remove the veins and seeds from the peppers (use disposable gloves to avoid burning your hands).  In a blender or food processor combine the chiles, braising liquid, kosher salt, onion, garlic cloves, pineapple juice, cumin, cloves, tomato paste, and cinnamon, and pulse to make a paste.

Warm one to two tablespoons of bacon grease (or other oil) in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add the al pastor paste/marinade, and saute gently for about five minutes.


TACOS AL PASTOR

Stir a small amount of the al pastor paste/marinade into 1 to 2 pounds of carnitas de puerco and saute in a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat until pork is slightly crispy on the edges.  Spoon pork into softened corn tortillas and top with your favorite garnishes, such as cheddar cheese, lime juice, diced fresh onion, and cilantro.


ENCHILADAS AL PASTOR

Leftover carnitas de puerco
Thinly sliced green onions
Bacon grease
Leftover al pastor paste/marinade
Corn Tortillas
Extra sharp cheddar cheese, shredded


Preheat oven to 350 degrees.


Add sliced green onions to shredded pork.  In a skillet over medium heat mix leftover al pastor chile paste with bacon grease (or other oil).  Spread a small amount of the chile/bacon grease mixture over the bottom of a glass casserole dish.  One by one, dip corn tortillas into the remaining chile/bacon grease mixture in the skillet to soften the tortillas.  Place about 1/3 cup of the pork/green onion mixture in the middle of each tortilla, followed by a sprinkling of shredded cheddar cheese.  Roll up the tortilla and place seam side down in casserole dish.  When casserole dish is filled with enchiladas, pour the remaining chile/bacon grease sauce over the enchiladas.  Cover the enchiladas with shredded cheddar cheese and sprinkle with sliced green onions if desired.


Bake uncovered at 350 degrees until the enchiladas are hot and the cheese is bubbly and melted, 30-45 minutes.

If the tortillas appear to be getting too dry while baking, add 1/2 cup of chicken broth to the dish.

Vietnamese Spring Rolls With Nuoc Cham Dipping Sauce

I first experienced Vietnamese food in 1987.  My boss' boss at the time had come to Dallas from Vietnam.  She took our group to lunch at a Vietnamese restaurant in East Dallas, so we had the benefit of a Vietnamese native to direct our choices.  It was love at first bite for me.  Vietnamese food is so fresh and healthy and such a beautiful blend of all the flavors.  Vietnamese food has been among my favorites ever since.  One of my very favorite Vietnamese foods is the spring rolls with nuoc cham sauce.  Sometimes Vietnamese spring rolls are served with peanut sauce; however, I haven't found nor been able to develop a recipe for peanut sauce that even approaches the perfection of nuoc cham.  I'll continue researching Vietnamese peanut sauces, but in the meantime here are some simple recipes to satisfy your Vietnamese cravings:


Vietnamese Spring Rolls


Boiled and peeled shrimp and/or marinated cooked pork (about 12 shrimp or the equivalent weight in pork)
2 ounces dried rice stick noodles or rice vermicelli, cooked according to package directions
8 round rice paper spring roll wrappers (readily available at Asian markets)
1/2 cup mung bean sprouts, rinsed
16 Thai basil leaves
8 cilantro sprigs
1 small cucumber, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1/4-by-1/4-by-2-inch sticks
2 large scallions, trimmed, halved, and sliced into 3-inch lengths


Cut the shrimp in half  lengthwise or julienne the pork.

Clear a work surface and place all filling ingredients in separate containers in the following order around the work surface:  Rice paper wrappers, shrimp and/or pork, rice noodles, bean sprouts, basil, cilantro, cucumber, scallions.


Place a damp layer of paper towels on work surface.


Pour hot water into a wide shallow dish or large dinner plate.  Submerge a wrapper until it is slightly soft and pliable.  Remove from water and place on the work surface.


Working quickly, lay 3 shrimp halves or some diced pork in a row, just above the center of the wrapper.  Layer a scant 1/4 cup of the rice noodles over the shrimp, followed by a few bean sprouts, 2 basil leaves, and 1 sprig of cilantro.  Place 3 to 4 cucumber sticks and 3 to 4 scallion pieces on either side of the noodle pile.  Fold the bottom half of the rice paper wrapper over the filling.  Holding it firmly in place, fold the sides of the wrapper in.  Then, pressing firmly down to hold the folds in place, roll the entire pile up to close the top.  (Think burrito style.)  Turn each roll so that the rice paper seam faces downward.  Serve with nuoc cham dipping sauce.


Vietnamese Nuoc Cham Dipping Sauce


5 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons water
1/3 cup fish sauce (nuoc nam)
1/2 cup lime or lemon juice (about 3 limes or 2 lemons)
1 large clove garlic, crushed, peeled, and sliced or minced
1 or more bird's eye or Thai chilies, seeded and sliced or minced
Sprinkling of finely shredded carrot


Whisk together the sugar, water, fish sauce, and lime or lemon juice in a bowl until the sugar is completely dissolved. Add the garlic and chili and let stand for 30 minutes before serving.  Decorate with shredded carrot.