The Mediterranean Slow Cooker Cookbook (7 page)

FOR 1 CUP/115 G OR LESS:
In a large nonstick skillet, over medium heat, add the bread crumbs, and toast, tossing occasionally until the crumbs begin to turn golden, this should take about 5 minutes. Remove the crumbs from the skillet immediately to stop the cooking process.

FOR MORE THAN 1 CUP/115G:
Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C/gas 4, and line a baking sheet with a silicone baking liner or parchment paper. Add the bread crumbs, and cook for 10 minutes, stirring once to turn the bread crumbs. Remove from the baking sheet immediately to stop the cooking process.

Bread crumbs will keep in an airtight container for up to 3 days, or frozen in zipper-top plastic bags for up to 1 month.

CH.02
MEATS
(PORK, LAMB, AND BEEF)

Pork, lamb, and beef are all found on the Mediterranean table. In many areas, goat is also a part of the diet. Since goat is not as widely available in the United States, it is not included here, but it can certainly be substituted in recipes calling for lamb. Pork is eaten smoked or cured, as well as freshly slaughtered. In the Mediter-ranean, all of the pig is used, including the blood for sausages.

Cheaper cuts of lamb, pork shoulder, and beef chuck become melt-in-your-mouth tender after a long simmer in the slow cooker. The resulting sauces are filled with the essence of the meat. Many cheaper cuts will sweat large amounts of liquid, in some cases up to 4 cups/960 ml, so be careful when adding liquids to the pot; too much will water down the sauce.

Dishes with similar ingredients and preparations can be found throughout the Mediterranean, from
French Meatballs Languedoc
to
Turkish Beef and Veal Meatballs
to
Italian Bolognese Sauce
. The common thread is meat that is cooked low and slow to coax out its flavor, for a succulent and delicious entrée.

Pork Braised with Dried Fruits and Cipollini Onions

These aren’t your mom’s tough and chewy pork chops. They’re falling-apart delicious, with a sweet-and-savory sauce combining sweet cipollini onions with golden raisins and dried apricots, flavored with the spices of North Africa. The sauce is wonderful served over buttered noodles or couscous. These little piggies are comfort food taken to the next level, and your family will be hanging around the pot and tapping their toes, waiting for dinner to be ready!

SERVES 8

8 bone-in 1-in-/2.5-cm-thick pork loin chops (½ lb/225 g each)

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

24 cipollini onions, peeled and halved (see Slow Cooker Savvy)

8 threads saffron, crushed in the palm of your hand

¼ tsp ground ginger

1 cup/240 ml chicken broth

1 cup/170 g golden raisins

½ cup/85 g dried apricots, coarsely chopped

One 14½- to 15-oz/415- to 430-g can chopped tomatoes, with their juice

1 cup/240 ml beef broth

2 tbsp cornstarch mixed with ¼ cup/60 ml water

¼ cup/15 g finely chopped fresh cilantro, for garnish

Season the pork on both sides with salt and pepper. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over high heat, add the pork, and brown each chop on both sides. Transfer the pork to the insert of a 5- to 7-qt/4.5- to 6.5-L slow cooker. In the same skillet over medium-high heat, sauté the onions with the saffron and ginger until the outsides of the onions begin to soften slightly. Pour the broth into the pan, and scrape up any browned bits on the bottom. Transfer the contents of the skillet to the slow-cooker insert, and add the raisins, apricots, tomatoes, and broth, stirring to combine. Cover and cook on high for 4 to 5 hours, or on low for 8 to 10 hours, until the pork is tender.

Transfer the pork chops to a serving platter, and cover with aluminum foil. Transfer the sauce to a medium saucepan, and skim off any excess fat. Bring the sauce to a boil, add the cornstarch mixture, and whisk until the sauce returns to a boil and is smooth and thickened. Remove from the heat. Serve the pork chops napped with some of the sauce, and garnished with chopped cilantro. Pass the remaining sauce on the side.

SLOW COOKER SAVVY

Small, slightly sweet cipollini are a cousin of the pearl onion. To peel, bring 3 cups/720 ml of water to a boil in a saucepan, drop in the onions, and turn off the heat. After 3 minutes, remove from the water and drain. When cool enough to handle, cut off the root end of each onion; the peel should slip right off.

Pork Braised with Pomegranates

Opening a pomegranate is like opening a surprise package-inside are tiny little arils, seedlike in appearance, covered by a red waxy membrane. A great balance of sweet and tart, pomegranates are now found in almost every market-in the form of juice; or arils, separated from the fruit and waiting to be eaten; or the whole fruit, ready to be peeled. Pomegranates were eaten as far back as the exodus of the Jews from Egypt, as documented in the Bible.

Pomegranate molasses is the juice of the pomegranate, cooked down into a sticky, piquant syrup. A staple in North Africa and the Middle East, it packs a lot of pomegranate punch in small amounts. In this recipe it gives pork chops a sweet and smoky quality, making this a perfect dish to serve with couscous and a vegetable salad for dinner. It’s a riff on a traditional Persian entrée called
fesenjan,
which is made with chicken, rather than pork. I prefer the pork because it soaks up all the lovely sauce and is melt-in-your-mouth delicious after its long, slow simmer.

SERVES 6 TO 8

6 medium carrots, cut into 1-in/2.5-cm pieces

2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

1 tsp turmeric

½ tsp ground cinnamon

1½ tsp salt

1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

6 bone-in 1-in-/2.5-cm-thick pork loin chops (½ lb/225 g each)

3 tbsp unsalted butter

2 large sweet yellow onions, such as Vidalia, finely chopped

¼ cup/60 ml pomegranate molasses

2 cups/480 ml chicken broth

1 cup/115 g finely chopped walnuts

½ cup/30 g finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

2 tbsp cornstarch mixed with ¼ cup/60 ml chicken broth or water

1 cup/80 g pomegranate arils, for garnish

Arrange the carrots in the insert of a 5- to 7-qt/4.5- to 6.5-L slow cooker. In a small bowl, combine the olive oil, turmeric, cinnamon, salt, and pepper to form a paste. Rub the paste into the pork.

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat, and brown the chops on each side. Transfer the pork to the slow-cooker insert when browned. Melt the butter in the skillet, and cook the onions for 3 minutes, or until they begin to soften. Add the pomegranate molasses and broth and stir up any browned bits on the bottom of the pan. Pour the mixture over the chops. Cover the slow cooker and cook for 3 hours on high, or 5 to 6 hours on low.

Stir in the walnuts and parsley, cover, and cook for another 30 minutes on high, or 1 hour on low. Carefully remove the pork chops and carrots from the slow cooker using a large spatula, and transfer to a serving platter. Cover with aluminum foil.

Transfer the sauce to a saucepan, and bring to a boil. Add the cornstarch mixture, and whisk until the sauce returns to a boil and is smooth and thickened. Remove from the heat. Pour some of the sauce over the pork chops and carrots, and pass the remaining sauce on the side. Garnish the chops with the pomegranate arils before serving.

Braised Pork in Balsamic Vinegar

Succulent chunks of pork, redolent of sage, simmer in balsamic vinegar until the pork is fork-tender. The flavorful sauce is
molto buono
served over polenta, pasta, or garlic mashed potatoes.

SERVES 6 TO 8

3 lb/1.4 kg boneless country-style pork ribs or pork shoulder, excess fat trimmed, and cut into 1-in/2.5-cm chunks

1½ tsp salt

½ tsp freshly ground black pepper

2 tsp dried sage (not rubbed)

2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

2 large sweet onions, coarsely chopped

1 cup/240 ml good-quality balsamic vinegar (see Slow Cooker Savvy)

Sprinkle the pork with the salt, pepper, and sage. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat, and brown the pork on all sides, a few pieces at a time, trying not to crowd the pan and transferring the browned meat to the insert of a 4- to 6-qt/3.5- to 5.5-L slow cooker as it’s done. Put the onions in the pan, and sauté until they begin to soften, about 3 minutes. Pour the vinegar into the pan, and scrape up any browned bits on the bottom. Transfer the onion mixture to the slow-cooker insert, turning the pork in the onions. Cover the slow cooker, and cook on high for 3 hours, or on low for 6 hours, until the pork is tender.

Remove the pork from the slow cooker, and skim any excess fat from the top of the sauce. Season the sauce with more salt and pepper if necessary. Return the pork to the sauce and keep warm until ready to serve.

SLOW COOKER SAVVY

Traditionally made balsamic vinegar from Modena is expensiue; thick, syrupy, and sweet, it is delicious paired with fruit, or served over uanilla ice cream. The vinegar is made from the Trebbiano grape, and the traditional methods used by the consortium in Modena to produce it make it very expensive for both the maker and the buyer. The vinegar is aged in progressively smaller wooden barrels of uarious types, such as cherry, chestnut, and ash, for between five and twenty-five years, or euen more. Many producers in the Modena-Reggio area say that their generation makes
balsamico
for the next one. In the United States, much of the supermarket balsamic vinegar is actually red wine vinegar with caramel color and added sugar. Buy good-quality balsamic vinegar, imported from Italy, and make it the best you can afford.

Tuscan Milk-Braised Pork

A classic from the region of Tuscany, this simple dish features melt-in-your-mouth tender pork and a luxurious sauce flavored with white wine, lemon zest, and sage. Using a combination of milk and cream prevents the milk from curdling, which sometimes happens in the long cooking process. If you have an older slow cooker that overheats, cook this on the low setting, and if the sauce curdles, use a blender to smooth it out. There are differing opinions about the herbs to use in this dish, but I find the sage gives it a nice mellow flavor that pairs well with the lemony sauce.

SERVES 8

1½ cups/360 ml whole milk

2 cups/480 ml heavy cream

Peel of 1 lemon, cut into strips

Leaves of 1 large bunch fresh sage (about 20), thinly sliced

One 4-lb/1.8-kg pork loin roast, tied with butcher’s twine or silicone bands

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

½ cup/120 ml extra-virgin olive oil

1 large sweet yellow onion, such as Vidalia, finely chopped

3 medium carrots, coarsely chopped

3 ribs celery, including the leaves, coarsely chopped

½ cup/120 ml dry white wine, such as Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc, or dry vermouth

Pour the milk and cream into the insert of a 5- to 7-qt/4.5- to 6.5-L slow cooker. Stir in the lemon peel and half the sage. Cover the slow cooker, set it to high, and set aside.