QUEEN VICTORIA'S THRICE- COOKED PORK LEG

 by: MisS VictoriA DaviD

I have found that using the electric food steamer was worth the trouble and time as it leaves the meat so tender! 

Main Ingredients:

• Pork Leg; cut into three pieces
• Fresh Ginger, finely chopped
• 2 cloves of Garlic; finely crushed using a garlic press
• 2 tbsps. of Sunflower Oil

Sauce Ingredients:

• 3 tbsps. of Extra Virgin Oil
• 1 tbsp. of Clear Honey
• ¼ tsp. of Cayenne Pepper
• a pinch of Salt
• a pinch of Mixed Herbs
• 1 tsp. of Vegetable Stock Granules

Sauce Preparation:

1. In a deep bowl, combine the extra virgin oil, clear honey and cayenne pepper. Stir well.  
2. Add the salt and vegetable stock granules as additional flavours. Stir all well again.
3.  Once mixed and blended, just set it aside. 

Thrice- Cooking Procedure:

1. Wash and rinse well the fresh pork leg (if frozen, thaw your meat).
2. Prepare the chopping board and use a butcher's knife to divide the pork leg into 3 pieces. Wash again and set aside in the fridge.
3. Prepare your electric FOOD STEAMER and fill the boiler pan/base with water up to its maximum water level.
4. Lay the pieces of pork leg into the rice bowl and then, place it in the steaming barrel/tray (if in case the rice bowl cannot accommodate all of the pieces, use another steaming tray. Just make sure that the piece of meat is placed in the centre so when it's steaming, the dripping juice will funnel down into the rice bowl underneath).
5. Cover, turn on the food steamer and set its timer at 40-60 minutes. Check every 20-30 minutes with the intention of turning each over. Alert your senses apart from maintaining the water level of its base.
6. While waiting, chop the ginger and crush the garlic. Additionally, formulate and make your homemade glazed sauce as well.
7. Prepare your cooking dish and scatter evenly on its base the chopped/crushed main ingredients. Then, seal it by distributing on top the sunflower oil.
8. Ten minutes before the steaming ends, preheat the oven to 160ºC under BAKE MODE (electric).
9. When the pieces of pork leg have been steamed, remove them out of the rice bowl and place them one by one over the arranged ingredients in the cooking dish.
10. Using a silicone pastry brush, coat and cover the pieces all over with the prepared homemade glazed sauce.
11. Subsequently, cover-up your cooking dish with a sheet of foil and seal it by twisting its end sides.
12. Place it in the preheated oven, then bake for 40 minutes. In 20-minute time, turn over and glaze the pieces with the remaining sauce and its own extracted piping hot succulent juice. Be careful not to burn yourself!
13. Once baked, remove the foil and bring the meat to GRILL MODE. I have been using a double-oven cooker with grill for the past months. Thus, when it was time for me to grill the pieces I turned on the grill and set its degree temperature to 3 out of 4 levels.
14. Grill them for 30 minutes and carefully turning over every 15 minutes. If you can spoon-out its extracted juice without burning yourself, do it and spread all over the pieces.
15. Once crispy grilled, take your cooking dish out of the grill. If possible, spoon & glaze again over the pieces its flavoursome jelly-like juice.
16. Leave it to cool down for 3 minutes before cutting the pieces into less choking portions. Alternatively, dish them out of the cooking dish and serve the way they are on the table for you and your 2 more family members to devour.

The benefit of using an electric food steamer in order to tenderise the meat is that it is far better than traditionally boiling it in a saucepan. Why is that? It creates a succulent meat with sitting duck consistency particularly the fat and skin. Moreover, it yields a gelatinous syrup which can be used either as the luscious final liquid for cooking rice or as a savoury broth ingredient for the gravy sauce.

The next time you have plenty of time, try cooking meat this way and who knows, your evasive granny would appreciate its succulence as well!

QUEEN VICTORIA'S BAKED/GRILLED BONED PORK LEG

by: MisS VictoriA DaviD

 

As an old saying goes, “A way to a man’s heart is to fill his empty stomach.”

Sistahs, it is time for you to prepare your kitchen and check the needed ingredients for this scrumptiously meaty recipe. It gives a succulent cooking experience and also, warms up your kitchen in this type of weather. More importantly, it will truly indulge your man’s appetite... STOP HIS AGONY!!!

Ingredients:

• Boned Pork Leg 
• 3 cloves of garlic; crashed/sliced
• ginger; crashed/sliced
• mixed herbs
• 2 tbsps. of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1 tbsp. of Sunflower Oil
• 1 tbsp. of Lemon juice
• 1 tbsp. of Worcester sauce
• salt, pepper, cayenne pepper and vegetable stock granules to taste
•  1 medium cooking onion; slice into 4 and separate each layer 
• 4 medium-sized mushrooms; cut each into 2 

Cooking Procedure:

1. Thaw your meat, if needed.
2. Prepare the chopping board and place your meat on it. Use a sharp knife to scar on top and turn-over to do the same. Just set it aside.
3. Prepare your crashed/sliced garlic and ginger, then insert most of the slices in the created scars of the meat. Dont throw away the excess garlic and ginger, just scatter and arrange evenly in the bottom of the pyrex glass.
4. Rub the whole meat with mixed herbs. 
5. Prepare your cooking dish (Pyrex-glass cooking dish is good) and lay the prepared meat in the centre to create an art. Just set it aside.
6. Mix and whisk the Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Sunflower Oil, Lemon juice and Worcester sauce in a bowl. After that, add the condiments for additional flavours and make sure they are all well blended.
7. Gradually, pour the mixture you made from cooking procedure 6. Just make sure it is distributed evenly over the meat.
8. Design it with layers of onions and slices of mushrooms around it (Be Imaginative!) Then, cover the pyrex either with foil or its lid.
9. Place it in a safe area and marinate it for 1 hour before placing it in the oven.
10. Preheat the oven to 150ºC under bake mode (electric). 
11. Place the cooking dish (with the marinated meat) in the preheated oven, then bake it for 30 minutes. In 15 minutes time, glaze the meat with its own sauce and turn it over for the other side to be soaked in its sauce, too. 
12. After that, remove the foil or lid and change the Bake to Grill as well as adjust the temperature down to 120ºC. 
13. Place and grill it for 30 minutes. Check it every 10 minutes and glaze the meat using its own sauce.

Eat it with joy in your heart and share your dish with loved-ones as the scrumptiousness will be revealed when all are together around the table.

I miss my loving Tatay because of this Filipino inspired cuisine of mine.