Carnitas

I fixed this a couple of weeks ago simmering on the stove top. Tonight with the other half of the 5 pound family pack in the PC.     Changes to the recipe (both times) - no orange juice, reduced salt to 1 teaspoon, added 1 tablespoon of sugar-free orange marmalade, 1 teaspoon chili power, and 1 teaspoon cumin.    Served with warm corn tortillas.  The kids also like it in fancy hot dog rolls with cheese and mild green taco sauce. Carnitas 3 pounds of pork butt 1 cup of orange juice 3 cups of water 2 teaspoons of salt 1. Cut pork into strips (three inches by one inch), in the pressure cooker, bring to 15 lbs pressure, cook for 40 minutes. 2. Quick release, remove lid, and turn heat up to medium high, and continue to cook until all the liquid has evaporated and the pork fat has rendered (about 45-60 minutes). Stir a few times, to keep pork from sticking to bottom of pan. 3. When pork has browned on both sides, it’s ready (there will be liquid fat in the pan). Serve either cubed or shredded (pork will be tender enough that just touching it will cause it to fall apart). PC info is with my Fagor 6qt on a gas stove top-YMMV. Originally from the HOMESICK TEXAN blog: Carnitas (adapted from Diana Kennedy) Ingredients: 3 pounds of pork butt 1 cup of orange juice 3 cups of water 2 teaspoons of salt Method: 1. Cut pork into strips (three inches by one inch), bring to a boil and then simmer uncovered on low for 2 hours. Do not touch the meat. 2. After two hours, turn heat up to medium high, and continue to cook until all the liquid has evaporated and the pork fat has rendered (about 45 minutes). Stir a few times, to keep pork from sticking to bottom of pan. 3. When pork has browned on both sides, it’s ready (there will be liquid fat in the pan). Serve either cubed or shredded (pork will be tender enough that just touching it will cause it to fall apart).Goes very well with a green salsas such as Ninfa's green sauce or this tomatillo salsa or this salsa verde with avocados and tomatillos. Serves 4-6 Notes: Whether to shred the meat like pulled pork or leave it in cubes I think is determined by what you're used to eating. Texas isn't a pulled-pork state so the texture isn’t as familiar as nicely done chunks. Likewise, I think the brilliance of this recipe lies in its simplicity. You can add as many different spices, herbs and aromatics as you like—but if you have good-tasting, happy pork why not let its flavor shine with just a bit of salt? Ultimately, however, making carnitas is a highly personal affair and so make them as they best suit you!

55 stops global warming

From <http://brighterplanet.com/conservation_recommendations/32>
".... slowing down can really save money and carbon. Each 5 mph you drive over 60 mph saves about 7 minutes on a 100-mile trip, but costs the equivalent of paying an extra 25 cents per gallon for gas. You’ll also emit an extra 1.5 lbs of CO₂ every 20 miles. For the average American, the difference between driving at 75 mph and 65 mph — or 70 mph and 60 mph — adds up to almost $300 and 1,400 lbs of CO₂ each year."

"Different vehicles achieve maximum fuel economy at different speeds, but on average mileage increases until 25-30 mph, stays about constant until 55-60 mph, and then declines rapidly. Why? At that speed air resistance starts to overcome even the most streamlined design, because the power required to overcome the force of air resistance is proportional to the cube of velocity."

Each of us can reduce our carbon footprint by just slowing down, even if we are driving a high efficiency vehicle. Air resistance hurts the most aerodynamic vehicles. And anyone can do this with no additional investment!

I'm not sure I believe in global warming, but I drive 55 mph (the speed limit for big rigs and towed vehicles in CA), because if it is true, to do otherwise would be irresponsible.

a family treasure, forever

A number of years ago my mother got the cookbook bug and planned on giving each of her 6 children, and 7 sisters/sister-in-laws a cookbook. She collected favorite recipes from all of us, along with her favorites, and created a wonderful book of memories.

Page 2 -- She bought cute cookbooks with blank recipe pages, and started handwriting the recipes. After completing most of the first book, she decided she had bitten off more than she could chew. With my dad's help they typed all of the recipes into the computer, a TRS-80, and printed 13 sets so they would be ready for Christmas. She then completed that first handwritten cookbook.

Page 3 -- We all treasure Mom's Family Cookbook. Being her oldest child I received the only handwritten Family Cookbook that my mother produced. Now that she is gone, especially around Thanksgiving, that cookbook brings me such joy. You see, my Mother's birthday was November 26.

And now, you know the rest of the story.


Make a cookbook, it will be a family treasure forever. And create the pages in a text file, you never know what computer you may need to do reprints on in the future. Ours have been printed on a TRS-80, a 286 PC, and Windows 95 and XP.

it is too late

What more could have been done? When the media has subscribed so completely is there anything that can be done. It is distressing to watch this play out, the rah, rah, rah. I morn over a media that has forgotten journalism.