Party Time

A friend of mine threw a house party this past weekend that had me thinking about how I define the word party. Most parties thrown by people in my age range (22-26) seem to be not too evolved from the typical college parties that we all went to not so long ago. There is usually some music, a spattering of six packs, maybe a keg, bottom shelf liquor, mixers, bags of cheap snacks and a do-it-yourself bar. I love these parties, but ultimately they all end up being very similar.Someone commented that this is the best corn they had ever eaten. It will be in season for only one more week, so hurry over to the farmer's market and pick some up.

That’s why when my friend Jeremy throws a party I’m always happy to step in and help. Once every couple of months we get together and throw a party that really blows other house parties out of the water. Not only do we have all of the typical 22-26 year old party amenities, but we pay very special attention to food and drink (food obviously being a key for me.) While parties are fun, there aren’t a whole lot of things I like more than eating. Any time there is a party with good food I think the guests end up being happier and the party ends up being better.

Pork Butt! Since a smoker was unavailable, we slow roasted this beauty int he oven for 7 hours. We then served it with my makeshift cracklins and home made cole slaw that was brought by one of the guests. The coleslaw was so good that I was actually a little jealous.

We threw this party with that in mind and with special attention to the bar. Guests who came between 7 and 9 were treated to a menu of:

Pulled pork sandwiches
Dry Rubbed pork spare ribs
Burgers
Hot and Sweet Italian sausage
Duck and Garlic sausage
Grilled corn rubbed with smoked paprika
Corn bread with blistered Shisito peppers
And my favorite… Bacon wrapped Honey crisp apples, grilled and brushed with maple syrup

There was also a cheese plate provided by Murray’s and a couple of VIP’s were able to sample some of my home made Maple Ice cream (it was really good)

Ribs. Since we only had one oven, we cooked each rack of ribs over the roasting pork butt for 2 hours then set them aside, lightly brushed them with BBQ sauce and finished them on the grill.

In addition we had someone serving as bartender for the entire night who was incredibly well prepared to serve delicious drinks. Not only did I spend a good hour cutting lemons, limes, oranges, and kiwi’s for mixed drinks but our bartender also brewed his own sweet tea (awesome) and squeezed fresh fruit juices for mixing. We even served drinks with cinnamon sticks for aroma and garnish.

In the end I think everyone really appreciated the tasty food, the delicious and somewhat unique mixed drinks. The attention to detail and taste in regards to set up, (the back yard was very inviting) food and drink really made the party more of an event than the parties I usually attend. Bacon wrapped apples waiting to be grilled. A Real crowd pleaser.

I suppose my reasons for writing about this are to give a shout out to a friend and to let everyone know that delicious things can really bring any sort of gathering to a completely different level. This is just another instance of how good food and good friends can make any night really spectacular. I’m looking forward to it.

Fall Eating

I know it’s talked about all the time, but cold weather food cravings are much different from warm weather ones. Here I am now as the seasons are changing and I look back at last fall as a time when I first started to really think seriously about food. I guess this is why, for the first time, I’m really noticing the changing of my tastes as the air cools (although it hasn’t gotten that much colder.)

While my summer cravings are usually centered around fish, or burgers and beer, or sushi or even just eating outside. I find that now, all I really want to eat is pork and duck. As a result I’ve been able to work on my meat repertoire. I cooked duck last night to inaugurate fall and it turned out really well. Instead of pairing it with fruit I tried to find fall ingredients. Here, on my friend’s blue plate, is the dish:



Coriander crusted duck breast with acorn squash maple puree, butternut squash, hazelnuts, and truffle honey.


I also used one of the methods I learned in my steak class to cook pork chops. We cross hatched the fat, rendered it, then pan roasted the pork in its own fat in the oven. The result is a well browned, juicy fantastic tasting piece of meat. My first attempt at this involved Indian spices—cumin, cinnamon, fennel, and coriander with a tamarind flavored fennel and apple slaw and another accompaniment that tasted ok but had the appearance of ‘dog vomit’ according to my mom. The pork was extremely pleasing but I could have done better with the other parts. I’m going to make a go at this again tonight with Honeycrisp apples (the best kind in my humble opinion,) caramelized fennel and arugula. I hope it turns out a little better because a piece of meat that tasty deserves some proper sidekicks.



Here’s a picture of some good looking fennel from Migliorelli Farms (USQ farmers Market) to make your Thursday a little brighter.

Pigging Out

From http://offthebroiler.wordpress.com/2007/05/31/nyc-dining-momofuku-ssam-bar/

The tender delicious Bo Ssam in all it's piggy glory. My friends and I finished an eight pounder this past Saturday and are very proud of the accomplishment.

Anyone who knows me knows that I love to eat pig products. If I could only eat one kind of animal for the rest of my life it would definitely be the pig. I can’t think of too many things that taste better than pork belly or bacon. I’m also a huge fan of all kinds of sausage, hot dogs, ribs, pork chops, cured meats and even pig’s head. My friend Aaron even went as far as to call me a ‘pigophile' the other day. This past Saturday, my intense love of pork products led me and my friends to a meal that had been months in the making: the Bo Ssam at Momofuku Ssam Bar.

For those of you that don’t know, Bo Ssam refers to a Korean style slow cooked pork butt (really the shoulder.) At Momofuku, the Bo Ssam is accompanied by a dozen oysters, Bibb lettuce, kimchee, kimchee puree, a chili bbq sauce and a ginger scallion puree.

We started off our porcine feast with a couple of non pig appetizers. These included the Momofuku pickle plate, the fried cauliflower with mint, Delfino cilantro and fish sauce, the tomato salad with fried tofu, the squid salad, and the poached Mayan prawns. After we each had a couple of sample bites, (the consensus favorite seemed to be the fried cauliflower) the Momofuku staff brought out the various Bo Ssam accompaniments. These were followed by an icy a plate of oysters and the highlight of the meal: an eight pound, crackly skinned, fall off the bone soft, rich, juicy, piggily delicious pork butt.

We were instructed to wrap the pork in lettuce and add the accompaniments along with (and this was surprising to me) an oyster! The idea of pulled pork and oysters doesn’t sound that great, but the briny fresh cool taste of the oyster helps add a lightness to the dense, rich flavor of the pork. We liked the combination so much we even ordered another dozen.

Other than the oyster my favorite Bo Ssam add-on was the ginger scallion puree. Like the oyster, the ginger added lightness to the pork that brought it to a completely different level. I can’t think of too many things that taste more perfect than Bo Ssam with ginger scallion puree, an oyster, and a little bit of kimchee for spice.

I’ve probably been to Momofuku Ssam bar 15-20 times and haven’t had an experience there as quite like the Bo Ssam. What made it even better was that the entire butt, our appetizers, a couple of bottles of sparkling shiraz, and a couple of rounds of the fantastically floral Hitachino white ale ended up being equal to, or less than my usual tab there. If you can find 7-9 friends who enjoy good food and have appetites, the Momofuku Bo Ssam is a must in the world of New York Food. There aren’t many meals that leave me sitting with a fully belly and a permanent, stupid smile on my face, but the Bo Ssam was one of them. Even though my fullness led me to be completely useless for the rest of the night, I can’t wait to go back.