Easy Pulled Pork - Braised Pork Neck With Onion Gravy
This is my foolproof, super easy pulled pork recipe for which you don't even need a smoker or barbecue grill. It is simply a matter of searing the meat in a pot and braising it for a few hours until most of the water is evaporated. In addition to that, the onion gravy sauce that is prepared with the meat stock really tops it off.
First, melt the coconut oil in a medium-big pot on medium heat and sear the pork neck in it on each side, for about 5 minutes in total
Next, pour about 3-5 liters of water into the pot. Add enough water to cover the meat, then add about 1/3 to 1/2 of that volume of water on top. So, if you need 3 liters to cover the meat, add 1 to 1.5 liters on top
Now, add the salt, pepper & cumin and put a lid on the pot, but leave a small gap so the water is able to evaporate
Let the pork neck cook on low-medium heat for 4-5 hours until you have 400-500 milliliter of water left and the meat is tender. Then, you can turn the plate off. Make sure to flip the meat 2-3 times within the last 2 hours, if it is not completely covered with water anymore
Sauce
When the pork neck is done, melt the butter in a pan on low-medium heat. Then, add the onions and fry them for 5-10 minutes until they become golden brown
Now, add salt, pepper & -if you like- a minced garlic clove and fry everything for about 1 minute while stirring
Next, add about 400 milliliter of meat stock from the pot with the pork neck to the pan in order to deglaze the onions
Finally, let everything cook for 10-15 minutes while stirring occasionally until you have a sauce of your desired thickness. In the meantime, cover the pot containing the meat with a lid to keep it warm
Recipe Notes
The method in this recipe works with nearly any type of meat, but best with cuts that contain fat & some gristle like beef shank or ham hock.
You may also enhance the sauce by deglazing the onions with red wine and let it cook for a minute before adding the meat stock.
This liver meatloaf / liver bread made from pork liver is extremely nutritious & easy to prepare with only 3 main ingredients plus seasonings. It makes a nice main or side dish, breakfast or snack and works well as a low carb & nutrient dense substitute for bread or burger buns. It can be enhanced easily by adding extra ingredients to the basic mixture. You only need a food processor, a loaf pan and -of course- an oven for the preparation.
First, preheat your oven to 175°C (350°F). Meanwhile, put the pork liver into a food processor and mince it for 30-45 seconds until you have a viscous mixture
Next, add the cream cheese, eggs & all seasonings and mince everything again until the mixture is homogenous. This should take about 1 minute and if necessary scrape off the residues from the side of your food processor's container, then mix again for a minute
Now, put a baking sheet inside a loaf pan or grease it with butter to prevent sticking. Then, pour the mixture into it
Finally, put your loaf pan into the oven and bake the mixture for about 1 hour until it is solid
Recipe Notes
You can check if the loaf is done by sticking a chopstick into it and pulling it out again. If there is no residue on the chopstick your liver meatloaf / liver bread is finished.
This recipe is very basic and you can modify it by adding ground beef, a diced onion, a minced avocado(minced in food processor before adding the liver) or some shredded cheese that you stir in with a spoon after mincing everything.
For a liver pudding, simply add a tablespoon of butter, 100g heavy cream & 250g ground pork/beef to the mixture and 2-3 bay leaves on top, before putting it into the oven.
Another idea would be to bake the mixture for about 20-30 minutes on a baking tray and using it as a pizza crust.
I simply added some mustard, low carb ketchup and cheese. If you want to you can go all the way to make sandwiches with the liver bread, with salad, cucumber, bacon, cheese and a fried egg - or whatever you prefer.
Pan Fried Pulled Pork - Slow Roasted Pork Shoulder
This pan fried pulled pork recipe for slow roasted pork shoulder is very delicious, saturating and easy to prepare, too. You only need a piece of pork shoulder, oil & butter for frying, some seasonings and about an hour of passive cooking time. The side dish to that can be as simple as boiled eggs or some vegetables.
First, put the coconut oil into a pan on medium-high heat and when it is hot add the pork shoulder
Season the meat with salt, pepper, cumin and coriander on the upwards facing side while searing it on the other for 3-5 minutes.
Then, flip it and add the seasonings again while searing the other side, also for about 3-5 minutes until it gets a medium brown color
Now, set your plate to low heat, add the butter to the pan and put a lid on top
Finally, let the pork shoulder fry for about 60 minutes with the lid on and flip it about each 15 minutes.
It is perfect, when the meat falls from the bone and you can easily pull the meat fibers apart with a fork
Eggs
While the pork shoulder is slowly frying and has about 10 minutes left of cooking time, start to prepare the eggs.
Simply put them into a pot with boiling water and cook them for about 5 minutes, alternatively use your egg cooker
When they are done, peel the eggs, place them on a plate, cut them in half and sprinkle some salt & pepper on top
Recipe Notes
Pro Tip: For some awesome vegetables on the side, cook them in a pot or the microwave until they are nearly done. Put the finished meat on a plate and cover it with aluminium foil to keep it warm. Then, shortly fry the vegetables on medium-high heat in the remaining butter and pork grease in the pan.
