Food Thread:Deep Fried Green Beans (You Have Been Holding Out On Me!) [CBD]

Sorry about the abbreviated post. Life intruded, so you will have to talk amongst yourselves and swap recipes and talk about guns and boobs. Sort of like every other Food Thread.

So...I went to a sort-of-local joint that specializes in BBQ. Not worth a long trip, but it is solid, if a bit generic. And one of the bartenders was a young kid who loved baseball, so how bad could it be? And they had a very nice, not too hoppy IPA that hit the spot. Unfortunately it was 8% alcohol, so I had to limit myself. Life is hard!

Anyway, one of the sides was green beans. How good could they be? Pretty damned good when they are deep fried and sprinkled with a bit of Old Bay seasoning. They weren't even battered....just plain beans. Wow.

The real issue is why I haven't had these before. Somebody has been keeping this from me, and I am not happy.

• Pork roast* (tied), about 3 lbs. This recipe can be easily doubled to feed 8-10 people.
  
• 1 lb. carrots, peeled and cut into pinky sized pieces (I use the bagged baby carrots)
  
• 1.5 lbs. Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into bite-sized chunks
  
• 2 large shallots, minced
  
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh Rosemary
  
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh Thyme
  
• 1 large Garlic clove, minced
  
• Good Olive oil
  
• Balsamic Vinegar
  
• Salt
  
• ½ teaspoon freshly ground black Pepper
  
• Unsalted Butter
  
• Red wine (or port)
  
• ½ & ½ or heavy cream

Boil 2 quarts of water

Preheat oven to 400° F
In a small dish, mix the herbs, the garlic, one teaspoon of Kosher salt, the pepper and two tablespoons of the olive oil.

Parboil the vegetables for a few minutes to give them a head start. Drain and set aside.

Heat a roasting pan on medium-high heat for a few minutes. While it is heating, lightly salt the pork roast. Turn the heat to high and place the pork roast in the middle of the pan. Sear each side for a minute or two, just until it has some nice color, resisting the temptation to move the roast around in the pan. Adjust the heat if it looks like the meat is burning. When the roast is nice and brown, remove the pan from the heat. Take the roast out of the pan and put it on the platter you will be using to serve it.

While it is cooling a bit, toss the potatoes and carrots together with some salt, pepper and a splash of olive oil. Smear the herb mixture all over the roast and return it to the pan. Toss the potatoes and carrots artfully around the roast and place in the oven until the internal temperature reaches 150° F. The timing will vary, but count on 45 -60 minutes. I use one of those neat probe thermometers with the cable so I don’t have to keep opening the oven and stabbing the roast with a hand-held thermometer.

Remove the roast from the oven, place on the serving platter and cover with aluminum foil. I put the carrots and potatoes into a bowl in case I want to reheat them.

Add the shallots and two tablespoons of butter to the roasting pan over medium-low heat and cook for a few minutes, stirring frequently so the shallots begin to soften and the pan is deglazed. When the shallots are soft, add about a glass full of red wine (use less if you use port, it is sweeter and more intense than red wine) and two tablespoons of Balsamic vinegar and continue to deglaze and reduce, whisking occasionally.

When it has reduced by half, take it off the stove, let it cool for a minute, and then whisk in about 4 ounces of ½ & ½. Return the pan to the stove over low heat and reduce for a minute or so, and then spoon the sauce over the pork roast. Or, slice the roast into ½ inch slices and spoon a bit of the sauce on each portion. Whatever works. And don’t forget to serve the potatoes and carrots.

*Pork takes very well to brining, so if you feel like doing a bit of extra work, give it a shot. Don’t salt the pork before you sear it though; the brining adds plenty of salt! And use only ½ teaspoon of salt in the herb mixture.
Brine: ¼ cup brown sugar and ¼ kosher salt in 24 ounces of warm water. Stir to dissolve. Add enough crushed ice to make 1 quart, then submerge the roast in the brine. Make sure that it is completely covered, and refrigerate for several hours. Remove from brine and pat dry.

******&topic=world_news"> posted by Open Blogger at 04:00 PM

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