Lunch Archives - Page 16 of 18

Pulled-Pork Sandwich with Pickled Onions and Radishes

July 2, 2024July 1, 2016 by Emily

Happy July 4th weekend, readers! We’re taking this week off from posting brand new articles while we organize our recipe boxes for the summer, but we thought you might appreciate this post from a couple of years ago. We make pulled-pork every year around this time, and made this way it is DAMN TASTY.

I’m not going to tell you that slow-roasting a pork shoulder is the quickest path to dinner – far from it – but, for a weekend cooking project, it definitely pays off in spades.

There are actually two different cuts that get called pork shoulder: “Boston butt” and “picnic shoulder.” Either is fine for this, but do get bone-in and if possible, pasture-raised. Boston butt is easier to find but I tend to look for picnic because it’s usually sold skin-on and I like to make crackling.

True, there is a bit of planning involved here but most of the time is inactive and the end result is so worth it. It’s perfect for a relaxed kind of party (the best kind, in my opinion) where people don’t mind getting messy or sparring over bits of crunchy pork skin. Because of the way it’s cooked, pulled-pork should stay pretty juicy, so it’s great in this kind of sandwich.

I combined two recipes here, one is Momofuko-style with a sweet/tart glaze from Bon Appétit (I love the flavors but it didn’t include crackling). The other is a Jamie Oliver recipe which I used mainly as a technique to get crispy skin.

What you wind up with is a huge pile of delicious pulled-pork with a tart vinegary glaze and a sheet of crackling that you can cut up and distribute as you like (or eat by yourself when no one’s looking). This would be perfect on its own or in tacos, quesadillas, grilled-cheese sandwiches (try one with bleu cheese!). I definitely recommend making something pickled to go along-side (we made both Quick-Pickled Red Onions and Sweet & Sour Pickled Radishes). We also made a version of this Asian Cabbage Salad, but without fennel since we didn’t have any.

We meant to take a picture of the pork coming out of the oven, but Game of Thrones Season 4 Episode 1 [2016 update: feel free to replace with GoT Season 6 / Outlander Series 2 finales as applicable] was just starting and … well, there are some things you just don’t trust your DVR with.

We also meant to take a picture of the crackling … but we ate it.

Teriyaki Brown Rice Salad With Avocado

July 5, 2024June 10, 2016 by Emily

A healthy, hearty grain salad with lots of crunchy vegetables, avocado, and a sweet and salty teriyaki dressing.

Blood Orange Salad with Shaved Fennel and Pistachios

June 15, 2024January 22, 2016 by Emily

Blood orange salad is a colorful, tangy and healthy way to remind yourself that winter will not last forever. As a bonus, it also wards off scurvy!

This is the salad to make when you can barely remember what a real garden tomato tastes like. When you’re so deep in winter that the summer abundance of a few months ago seems like a fever dream.

This is the salad that reminds us that, even in the dead of winter, there are still wonderful things to be found if you know where to look.

Thai Peanut Noodles with Grilled Chicken

June 15, 2024January 15, 2016 by Emily

Thai Peanut Noodles with Grilled Chicken

These peanut noodles might be one of the most delicious and easiest recipes we’ve ever created. It’s basically the love child of Chinese cold sesame noodles and Thai chicken satay. If you like those kinds of flavors, I think you’re going to be pretty happy with your dinner.

It’s also happens to be very adaptable. You can make a vegan version with tofu. You could grill shrimp instead of chicken. You could add pretty much any vegetable you would throw into a stir fry (I’ve listed some options with the recipe below).

We found these fresh noodles at our local Asian market but dried spaghetti works equally well. I’ve also seen fresh Chinese egg noodles for sale at our grocery store and those would be great too. Whatever style you decide on, cook them until they’re al dente (but don’t undercook them either).

Pesto Couscous Salad with Mozzarella and Tomatoes

July 2, 2024July 31, 2015 by Emily

If, like us, you have a mountain of basil in your garden, go make pesto! And then make this pesto couscous salad and feel damn proud of yourself.

With great gardening power comes great gardening responsibility. Namely, what the heckings do I do with the huge jungle of basil that is currently exploding in my front garden? Well fair reader, I’m glad you asked.

The first thing I did was make Basil Pesto with Walnuts and Pecorino. Holy moly, is it tasty. (I list a whole bunch of uses for it on that post but this magnificent salad deserved a post of its very own).

The idea came about because Matt and I had plans to go to a Sangria Festival at a local winery with some friends (and yes, this event is exactly as fun as it sounds.) We’ve gone the last few years and had an absolutely amazing time. It’s basically a huge picnic, with the most incredible views of the Hudson River, and endless access to refreshingly delicious but dangerously potent sangrias. It’s a week later and I’m still recuperating (#old).

Red Cabbage Salad with Spicy Miso-Ginger Dressing

June 15, 2024June 5, 2015 by Emily

A crunchy, spicy red cabbage salad flavored with miso and ginger. Ideal as a side for Asian meals, or as a standalone lunch. Just don’t call it a slaw!

When I was thinking about what I wanted to serve alongside the Bulgogi Lettuce Wraps we were planning on making, I knew I wanted something bright and fresh to counter-balance the rich grilled beef.

That’s when I decided to take our Asian Cabbage and Fennel Salad recipe and mix it up a bit. I love, love, love miso and the addition of it gives this dressing a richness that is almost creamy, though there’s no mayo or any dairy in it. It’s actually almost a nutty flavor. Matt said it tasted like the peanut sauce you get with satay, but even better (and there’s no peanut in it either). It also happens to be vegan and can be made gluten free if you use tamari in place of the soy and use a GF miso, like this one).