Thursday, October 4, 2012

Rosie Serves Youngest Hawthorne.


Youngest Hawthorne and Junior are home for the weekend
and I get to have fun cooking for him.
I was supposed to do his favorite today,
his last day here - 
the sauteed scallops on a bed of spinach risotto
atop a Parmesan crisp
with caramelized onions and pest.
And I forgot.
Bad Rosie!

At least he forgot too.

So when YH came in this afternoon
to announce the severity of his hunger,
I quickly had to pull something out of my ...
freezer and garden.

 
I'm thinking of a citrus flavored Jasmine rice
with blackened pork filets.

First I started on Jasmine rice.
Whenever I cook Jasmine rice,
I add in extra water.
The directions on the bag call for
1 cup rice and 1 1/2 cups water.
I brought 2 cups salted water to the boil
and added in 1 cup of the rice.
Reduce heat to low, cover,
and cook 15 minutes.


These are the flavors I'm putting into my rice:
lemon zest
orange zest
parsley
garlic
fresh ginger root
dark soy sauce
scallions from my window box

And here's my rice:
I uncovered the pan 
and stirred the rice a few times during cooking.
After 15 minutes,
all the water was soaked up,
but the rice was fluffy.

I added a little more water
and poured in a cup of FROZEN peas.

As I've said so many times before,
if you use canned peas,
I will come to your house and hurt you.

Just ask Mr. Hawthorne.

You know I love my action shots.

My flavor additions to the rice include:
2 tsps ginger juice
2 tsps minced garlic
1 tsp lemon zest
1 tsp orange zest
some of the ginger pulp, minced
1 TB dark soy sauce

Pour soy mixture into rice
and stir to combine evenly.
Turn off heat and keep rice covered.

Next, I started on the toppings for the rice -
scallions and parsley.
I neatly sliced my home-grown scallions.
Better than store-bought.

Then I had a thought.
 Knowing of YH's imminent spiral into starvation,
my thought was to have him chop the parsley
so I could start on the pork filets

This is what my brain looks like.

On to my pork filets.
I have a gallon bag of pork filets in the freezer.
Always buy on sale.
$1.99/pound is good for this area.
I poured a thin layer of peanut oil in my iron skillet
over medium high heat.
Bring to 350 degrees and add seasoned chops.
Freshly ground salt and pepper,
 a dusting of cumin,
and Lawry's Seasoning Pepper.

I cooked these inch-plus-thick chops
about 4 minutes on each side.

While the pork filets were searing,
I turned to check out YH's progress on his parsley.
Holy crap!

It's almost a paste.



I love that little wisp of steam.

I topped it all with sliced scallions and parsley.

The rice?
Loved the flavors.


The pork was still ever so slightly pink.
A proper sear on the outside
and sweet, succulent pork on the inside.

Tender, lovely, juicy, little pork morsels.



5 comments:

Lea said...

Mmm, that rice looks fantastic. And I've yet to meet a pork chop that I don't like.

Marilyn said...

The pork chop looks great. I can get a whole pork loin for $1.99 at Sam's Club and then I can cut it up to my heart's desire.

zzzadig said...

I agree on the canned peas with the exception of one variety, Batchelors Marrowfat Peas. Since Marrowfats are dried English peas brought back to life by rehydration and cooking, there is not a terrific amount of difference in doing it yourself or letting Batchelor's do it for you. The flavor is unique.

Catherine said...

Dear Rosie, what a delicious meal...and so quick to prepare! I love the citrus addition to the rice. I make my rice the same way always have to have those frozen veggies. I like to add turmeric powder to mine as well.
The pork looks mouthwatering. What a treat for Young Hawthorne.
Blessings my dearest, your friend, Catherine xoxo

Rosie Hawthorne said...

Zzzadig, never heard of Batchelors Marrowfat Peas, but then I'm quite naive. Where do you procure this?

Dear Catherine, try adding annatto (achiote) to your rice, for a bit of color and flavor.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annatto