Trader Joe's pulled pork taco...to the rescue!

Wow, I can't believe August 13th was the last time I posted! I do have an excuse, and it's a good one. We moved across the country, and I have been in a whirlwind of unpacking boxes, buying furniture, returning furniture because I realize it's ugly when I get it home, navigating new and twisty city streets, learning to deal with mean city drivers, and just generally getting acclimated to life in Pennsylvania after six years in the desert.

One thing that was the most stressful about this move was getting back into a cooking groove. Not only did I have to throw away a ton of my staple ingredients and re-buy everything, but I also had to get used to a completely different kitchen set-up. I still have to open at least 2-3 drawers before I find what I'm looking for, but for the most part my kitchen is now stocked and organized, and I'm ready to get back into cooking with a vengeance!

I also hope to breathe some new life into this blog by posting more frequently (aiming for 2x a week), taking more pictures, and just generally giving it a face lift. I hesitate to put this in writing because then I'll be held accountable, but I guess I'll go ahead and do it anyway. :)

I'd like to kick off the new East Coast edition of Quinoa and Corn Chips with a recipe that was a lifesaver on a day I really needed one. It was a cold, gray, rainy day (there are lots of those here, I'm noticing), and I was trudging through Trader Joe's, craving a warm comforting dinner without a clue about what I wanted to make. Usually I have at least an inkling of something in mind...a certain meat I've thawed out, or a veggie I need to use before it goes bad. But on this particular day, my mind was completely blank.

Then I saw these cute little red sheets of paper tucked into a little bin along the wall in the meat section of the store:

I almost cried with relief: "Yes! This is it!" This is exactly what I want to make!" And to make it even better, it listed ingredients that were right there in that very store. No hunting down special cuts of meat or unique spices. Everything I needed was right there in that Trader Joe's, and to make it better YET, it was a crockpot dish. And not a complicated crockpot dish that requires lots of chopping and marinating and browning, it was a "dump everything in and turn it on" type of crockpot dish. The dinner fairy was definitely looking out for me that day. I don't know if these little recipe slips are at all Trader Joe's, or if it was just a nice gesture by an employee at this particular store, but either way I am grateful and wanted to share the wealth. Here is what the paper says, BTW:

Mexican Pulled Pork from Trader Joe's in King of Prussia, PA

1 package of taco seasoning

2 1/2 lb pork loin

1 can of organic diced and no salt added tomatoes*

3 garlic cloves

1/2 onion diced

1 bunch cilantro

1 tbs apple cider vinegar

Pour the can of tomatoes into your crock pot. Add the pork loin, next toss in the rest of the ingredients. Slow cook on high for 3 hours, then cook on low for the next 4-5 hours. Remove the pork loin and shred. Add the pork loin back to your crockpot so the meat can absorb the juices. Serve in a tortilla with your favorite toppings, or simply serve with Cuban Style Black Beans and Rice. Enjoy!

*Obviously they are promoting their own canned tomatoes, but any diced tomatoes will do. 

I took home my ingredients, dumped them in the crockpot, and had delicious pork tacos that night.

As always, I have a few personal notes about the recipe. 

1) The total cooking time is about 8 hours (not counting the shredding), so make sure you plan accordingly. If you don't start them until 3 pm, you'll be in trouble!

2) I chose to use hard shells instead of tortillas. Whatever you choose, just don't forget to buy the taco shell because it's not on the ingredient list. That's something I'd typically do, so I wanted to point it out.

3) The flavors in this recipe were fantastic, but one key ingredient was left out: salt. Make sure you season it thoroughly with salt before serving. And if you'd like to spice it up, you could also add diced chiles, jalapenos, or chipotle peppers...totally up to you.

4) The other thing that was left out was the fat removal. I have a huge issue with fatty meat, so I made sure to scrape off and discard all the visible fat after the meat was cooked, and only put the lean shredded pork back into the pot. 

5) And of course you'll probably want some accompaniments to the tacos, so in addition to the ingredients listed, I recommend having any or all the following on hand:

Chopped tomatoes and/or salsa

Chopped red onion

Chopped cilantro

Shredded cheese
Shredded lettuce
Sliced avocado

Hot sauce

Sliced jalapenos

I forgot to take a photo of the finished tacos because I was too busy shoveling them in my face. So just close your eyes and envision some delicious, tender, shredded pork in a crispy shell, topped with all of the things I listed above. Yum! And since there was so much left over, I put it in a freezer bag to have on some other cold, gray, rainy day (which I'm sure will be tomorrow) And this time the prep will be even easier. Thanks Trader Joe's! :)

Chicken and rice with spicy tomatillo and Mexican squash sauce (and homemade guacamole)

I always get excited when something I cook turns out well, but I get particularly giddy when it's something I invented myself. It's been a while since I got experimental in the kitchen, so the other night I decided to get a little crazy with my newest batch of veggies from Bountiful Baskets.

My basket contained a mystery ingredient I'd never cooked with before. It was gray squash (also known as Mexican squash). Through a Google search, I learned that it's kind of like zucchini, but tastes better and doesn't get quite as mushy when cooked. That sounded promising.

Since it was nicknamed Mexican squash, I figured I'd use it in a Mexican-inspired meal. I had a bunch of tomatillos, some jalapenos, tomatoes, and onions, so I decided to do some chopping, roasting and pureeing to create a tangy, spicy sauce to serve over chicken and rice. It also gave me a chance to work on my new chopping techniques courtesy of the Knife Skills class I took at Sur la Table (highly recommended, by the way).

Feeling extra creative, I decided to make my own Mexican rice instead of using the boxed pre-seasoned stuff. And I also made some fresh guacamole with the avocados in my basket.

Chicken and sauce:

canola or olive oil
8 tomatillos
1-3 jalapenos (taste them to see how spicy they are before deciding how many to use)
1 small onion, chopped
2 gray/Mexican squash, chopped into smallish cubes
1 or 2 garlic cloves, chopped

2 large tomatoes, diced (or substitute canned tomato)

about 1 cup of chicken broth

salt

tomato paste
a handful of chopped cilantro

Chicken breasts, pounded thin

Peel the papery skin off of the tomatillos, and rinse them. Roast the tomatillos and jalapenos under the broiler until the skin starts to blister and turn black; flip over so both sides are roasted. Puree the roasted tomatillos and jalapenos in a blender or food processor until fairly smooth. Set aside.

Saute the diced onions, garlic and squash in some oil for several minutes, until tender. Transfer to a large sauce pan/soup pot. Add the tomatillo and jalapeno mixture to the pot. Pour in the chicken broth and add the tomatoes. Simmer for a few minutes, and add salt to taste. If it's too tangy, add some tomato paste to sweeten it a little bit. You can also add some more chicken broth if it's too thick. If it's too runny, let it simmer for a while until it reduces down.

While the sauce is simmering, heat some oil in a saute pan. Season both sides of the chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Saute, turning once, until no longer pink. Serve the chicken over the rice, and ladle the sauce on top. Guacamole can be served on the side, or mixed in with the dish.

Rice:

I followed this recipe, substituting cilantro for the parsley. I also used canned diced tomatoes instead of tomato sauce.

Guacamole:

If I have really pretty, perfectly ripe avocados, I keep the guacamole simple: mashed avocados, freshly squeezed lime juice, salt, chopped cilantro, and possibly some chopped tomatoes.