For the latest Charcutepalooza project–grinding meat–daughter helped me make a batch of pork breakfast sausages flavored with with lots of fresh ginger and sage. The original recipe in Michael Ruhlman’s Charcuterie called for stuffing the meat into sheep casings, but I didn’t have any on hand so I just made loose sausage that we formed into patties [...]
Tags: Charcutepalooza·pork·sausage
I finally removed the roll of pancetta that was drying in a back stairway, hanging from a light fixture, and cooked some for breakfast. My guinnea pig was friend John, who is homebound. Most days during the week, I make breakfast for the two of us after dropping daughter off at school. As you can [...]
Tags: Charcutepalooza·curing meat·pork
Cured pork belly soon to be pancetta I was so impressed with the results of our home-smoked bacon I thought I’d try my hand at the Italian version of cured pork belly–pancetta. The process starts out much the same, with a five-pound slab of cross-cut belly acquired at the Dupont Circle farmers market from [...]
Tags: Charcutepalooza·curing meat·pork
We are engaging the concerns of a hungry planet--slowly--right here in our kitchen garden in the District of Columbia, about a mile from the White House.
What's in your turkey? We killed and butchered more than 80 birds on the farm of Mike and Michelle Klein in Prince George's County. Thankfully, Michelle did the gutting. Unfortunately, Mike bought his turkey chicks earlier than usual and they did not stop growing. Our prize for helping was a carcass that weighed nearly 40 pounds. It barely fit in the oven. Here, Mike is subjecting a slaughtered bird to the "magic fingers," a machine with a nubby, rotating barrel that removes most of the feathers. 
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