FLOWER POT KITCHEN: EXCELLENT CORN TACOS WITH PULLED PORK AND CHIPOTLE DRY RUBBED CHICKEN

11 Jul 2012

EXCELLENT CORN TACOS WITH PULLED PORK AND CHIPOTLE DRY RUBBED CHICKEN

POUNDED ROASTED TOMATO SALSA

TOPPINGS FOR THE TACO'S, PICO DE GALLO, ROASTED TOMATO SALSA, GRATED CHEDDAR, CRISPY ICEBERG LETTUCE, SOUR CREAM AND GUACAMOLE

DRY PAN FRIED CORN WITH CORIANDER

BBQ PULLED PORK BUTT

CHARGRILLED CHICKEN WITH CHIPTOLE DRY RUB SEASONING

THE TRADITIONAL WHITE CORN TORTILLAS

OVER STUFFED TACO YUMMY...

INGREDIENTS

1/2 iceberg lettuce shredded

1 pot sour cream

1 avocado

1 onion fine diced

3 tomatoes de-seeded and fine chopped

2 tomatoes roasted and peeled

1 bunch coriander chopped

1 lime

Salt and pepper

200g cheddar or manchaego

1 corn on the cob

50g butter

1 chicken breast

DRY RUB INGREDIENTS

1 tbsp BBQ spice or blackened spice

1 tsp cayenne pepper

1 pinch garlic powder

salt and pepper to taste

BBQ PULLED PORK

1 pork shoulder

50ml liquid smoke

2ltr coke cola

1 pack BBQ spice mix

water to top up

WHITE CORN TORTILLAS

225g masa harina

1 pinch of salt

1 tbsp ooil

300ml hot, not boiling water

TO MAKE THE BBQ PULLED PORK BUTT

Take the pork and rub with the BBQ spice and liquid smoke, place in a deep roasting tin, pour in the coke and water to cover the pork, cover the roasting tin with tin foil. Place in the oven at 160 degrees for 2-3hrs. Once cooked, peel off any fat and discard, using two forks pull the meat apart, this should fall apart with no effort, if it is resistant, cover and place back in the oven for another 30-60 minutes. Let the pulled pork soak up all the cooking BBQ juices, if you feel the juices are too loose pop tray back in the oven with out a lid and on 200 degrees reduce the stock to the required thickness.

TO MAKE THE CORN TORTILLAS

It is so worth making your own tortillas, they take only a few minutes and taste amazing. Place the masa harina, salt and ooil in a bowl, add half the water and mix, add the rest slowly while bringing the dough together to a ball. knead for five minutes until the dough is smooth but still a little sticky, cover with a damp cloth and leave for 30 minutes. Take a 50 pence size piece of the dough and place on a square of cling film, top with more cling film and roll out in to a 6" circle. To cook pre heat a non stick flat griddle or pan and place the tortilla, two at a time if you can, cook for approx 30 seconds each side, you want to puff up a little and slightly char each side. Take a tea towel and warm it in the tumble dryer or microwave and wrap the cooked tortillas in to keep warm while you cook the rest just before serving.

DRY RUB CHICKEN

Take chicken breasts or a whole chicken, and rub the seasoning all over and inside cavities, cook the chicken and shred with two forks.

ROASTED TOMATO SALSA

In a hot non stick pan

PICO DE GALLO

One of my favourites, take the 3 toms chopped and de-seeded and mix with the finely chopped onions, coriander and season with salt and pepper, and adjust the final flavour with lime juice. You can add anything to this like red and green peppers, diced avocado etc.

ROASTED TOMATO SALSA

Take three tomatoes and roast off on a dry pan, peel the skin off and place in a pestle and mortar. Add chopped onion, coriander some salt and black pepper corns, a hint of lime juice and dash of ooil. Pound together well and add some red or green chilli.

GUACAMOLE

Such a simple and gorgeous dip and topping, take a really ripe, (this is really important) avocado, scoop out and place in a bowl, season with salt and pepper, add a squeeze of lime, finely dice some red pepper, a garlic clove maybe and a little onion, I like to really finely dice these and mix into the avocado, mash together with a fork, I don't like to blend as it becomes one mush of flavour.

DRY PAN FRIED CORN

take a corn on the cob, this maximise the flavour of the corn, in a hot hot non stick pan add the corn and toss, let some of the kernels catch a little as this caramelises the sweetness in the corn, do this for a couple of minutes, turn the heat down and add a generous knob of butter, season to taste, some fresh coriander can enhance this dish further.

LET THE PARTY BEGIN

Take a taco, fill with what ever you fancy and top with what ever you fancy, eat and enjoy and repeat.

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LIFE MY PASSION

Welcome to my daily life of cooking, one winters day many years ago my family and I were all inspired by a back to back rainy day of River Cottage this got us to stop talking about and start actually doing, suddenly three weeks later eight vegetable beds were dug, greenhouse erected and our first vegetables were propagating, this was the start to raising and growing our own food, our fabulous son Oscar changed our path in life which lead us to sell our small thriving restaurant of 10 yrs and to start our new life (Terrifying!) a life of the self sufficient in touch with nature and seasons, taking a step back and looking forward to a slower change of pace and making the most of every moment.

My passion for cooking was stronger than ever and having time at home with Oscar I found I had a new direction and I was no longer striving for perfection, I was suddenly very passionate for the enjoyment of the other side of food, something I had not realised, being the Chef/Cook and every other duty of your own small restaurant made me see that I never actually took time to cook what I wanted!

So there I was muddy boots and hands digging deep in more than one sense and I found myself transported back in time to where everyone grew some of their own food, it is a wonderful world with a real sense of achievement and loss, Slugs Snails and Caterpillars! But thats another story! Childhood memories of summers when I lived with my grand parents reminded me of so much that I had learnt about the make do and mend generation that I had forgotten.

Now as a family we love our free wild food days where we gather what nature has provided, have gone from being mini mini garden urban small holders, who did raised pigs at home because we could not wait to find land and supporting ourselves from our garden to now owning a very small farm that allows us to grow more vegetables for the whole of our family and neighbours, raise our own gorgeous Gloucestershire Old Spot pigs, (Sausages!) and pets! Dorset Down sheep, chickens for eggs and pet goats! Suddenly having large quantities of produce started to wake up the Cook in me!

The Cook was awake that part of me that wants to cook for the masses and I found myself setting up Flowerpot Kitchen, a Farmers Market Stall, I wanted to use our honest raised meats and make old fashioned pork pies, rabbit pies and game pies from the local game keeper along with old fashioned techniques and the best hot water crust pastry. This in turn grew to a small cottage industry from home weekly supplying three farm shops and a deli along with also attending three farmers markets A few years later there came a time when my son Oscar's health changed and it was an easy decision to stop.

I still hold the occasional pop up 40 seater restaurant or gourmet lunch which we do for local charities for the love of sharing food and to remind that Cook in me why I love our go slower self sufficient life!

So here I am sitting amoung the vegetables watching the chickens loving that every season nature teaches me something new and that nature is in charge! She has taught me to just go with it and grow. Give it a try from a tray of salad on your windowsill to a few tomato plants it all counts.