The Primal Blueprint Cookbook (9 page)

Add sliced kielbasa and heat through. Stir in chopped parsley.

Ladle into wide, shallow bowls. Garnish with chopped flat leaf parsley and a dollop of crème fraîche, sour cream, or plain whole milk yogurt
(optional).

This is the hands-down easiest and cleanest way to cook bacon, but it isn’t the fastest by a long shot, so plan ahead. The cooked strips will lay flat and be evenly cooked.

You can also remove the bacon when cooked about two-thirds through, rendering out most of the grease. Then chill or freeze the bacon strips in wax-paper layers for a quick finish or reheat later. Precooking is a great time saver for busy mornings, or while camping and grilling outside, as it is more efficient and reduces clean-up and flare-up problems that can accompany large amounts of dangerous hot grease. At the low temperature of 250°F, the bacon grease will not splatter and soil the oven, but instead will drip slowly through the rack and collect in the bottom of the sheet pan for easier cleanup.

Preheat oven to 250°F.

Place a flat cooling rack inside a large sheet pan. Place slices of bacon on rack, evenly spaced and close together but not overlapping or bunched up. Quantity to be baked is only limited by number of oven racks and pans.

Place pan of bacon in oven and bake. Check on bacon after one hour and then every 20–30 minutes, until bacon reaches desired level of chewiness or crispness. Depending on bacon thickness, fat-to-meat ratio, and moisture content, it may take an average of about 2 hours to achieve crisp bacon, less time for chewier bacon.

Bacon fat may be strained through a very fine steel mesh strainer and chilled for later use (bacon fat mayonnaise!).

BBQ pork shoulder is a crowd pleasing favorite budget cut of meat and quite simple and easy to make provided you have ample time—at least 8 hours, and sometimes up to 10 if the roast is very large or you are cooking more than one. You don’t want to rush pork shoulder because those muscles do a lot of work and need the long, slow cooking method to slow melt the collagen in the connective tissue and baste the meat with the natural fat. When the meat is done, it will easily pull apart into succulent shreds.

Use soaked and drained hickory wood chips if you have the time to replenish them hourly and want authentic BBQ aroma and flavor, but it’s quite delicious without the wood smoke, too.

INSTRUCTIONS:

Pat the pork shoulder dry with a paper towel and place in a flat pan.

Mix together the dry ingredients for the dry rub and apply to the pork shoulder roast, coating all surfaces and rubbing in well. Let roast sit at room temperature for 20–30 minutes to take the chill off. Insert a remote temperature probe into the center of the roast if you wish to monitor the temperature. If the shoulder bone is intact, make sure the thermometer is not touching it (it will give inaccurate readings).

Prepare the grill or smoker for indirect low heat to achieve a temperature of about 225–250°F (place an oven thermometer on the grill rack next to the roast). Slowly cook the roast over indirect heat (covered with the lid) for 8–10 hours, maintaining a constant temperature of 225–250°F. Replenish hot coals periodically if using that method. Soaked and drained hickory wood chips may be added to the coals or smoker box at the beginning and again every hour if a smoky flavor and aroma is desired. Cook until the roast reaches an internal temperature of 190°F and is falling apart tender in some parts.

Transfer to a sheet pan, wrap the roast well with foil, and let it rest for about 30 minutes.

Unwrap the roast and pull the meat apart with two forks, your fingers, or chop into ½ inch pieces on a cutting board, then place in a warm bowl. Remove any tough sinew or large layers of fat.

Alternative cooking technique:

Pulled pork may also be cooked in a slow cooker on low setting for 7–8 hours with excellent results. However, it will not have the smokiness that a grill or smoker provides. Skip the wrapping in foil step and after shredding/chopping, mix some of the juices that accumulated in the slow cooker with the meat before serving. Or, smoke or grill the roast over indirect heat for about 3–4 hours, then transfer to a covered baking vessel in a 325°F oven for another 2–3 hours.