Pulled Pork Stew with Olives and Chickpeas; and: May I Introduce...
Kristen, of Dine and Dish had the interesting and very good idea of having newborn bloggers adopted by one of us old farts very slightly more experienced folk.
I was absolutely thrilled when my adoptee said she was willing to do dishes. We may be on to something here. (Ahem)
Anyway, (drum roll please): Attention Foodie Bloggers!
Allow me to introduce Michelle, the author of culinography, real life foodie adventures
Michelle has only been blogging since October but, trust me, she got the hang of this right off. Her recipes are scrumptious, her photos are drool-worthy and, brave soul that she is, she even joined the Daring Bakers! Please head on over and say 'Hi'. Tell her Katie sent you.... (Maybe she'll share some of that decadent-looking baked penne)
As long as I'm on the stage: I few weeks ago I received an email from Teresita, of Cooking in Buenos Aires. (I'd rather like to do that, actually.... cook in Buenos Aires) She asked if I would mention her site, her cooking classes and her yummy Empanadas. She is familiar with the indigenous cuisines of Latin America and incorporates that into her cooking. Teresita, consider your self mentioned! (Anybody want to go to Argentina with me for a week or ten?)
After all of that cranberry bread; and the chocolates; and the cookies; and the foie gras; and the smoked salmon; (excuse me a minute.... sigh..... okay) the mind said that something healthy should be in order.
Unfortunately, the soul wanted more comfort food.
Well, we all know what the road to hell is paved with, now don't we?
Comfort food it is!
It has to be possible to make healthy comfort food! In my humble opinion, this classifies. It's warm, full of flavor, low in fat and chock-a-block with vegetables.
Plus it has something near and dear to my palate: olives.
No one ever talks about the health benefits of olives. Olive oil, yes; but not olives.
So that is my mission for this Weekend Herb Blogging, hosted by Vani, of Batasari: to extol the virtues of olives.
When added to any dish, olives add another level of flavor and can make the ordinary extraordinary. But are they healthy?
I went to the World's Healthiest Food site and, yes, they are good for us! (whew!)
Not as good as Brussels Sprouts, perhaps, but, hey, we can't live on Brussels Sprouts alone!
They are high in vitamin E (better than taking those little brown gel-caps), iron, copper and fiber; and "are concentrated in monounsaturated fats". So there! Pass me the olives, please!
Pulled Pork Stew with Olives and Chickpeas
I simmered the pork for 75 minutes. It could be simmered longer and/or it could be done in a crock pot. The vegetables are done separately to better gauge how much liquid to add to the finished stew. Serve over brown rice or quinoa.
1 pork tenderloin, 12 - 14 oz (400gr)
2 tsp olive oil
15 oz (450gr) crushed tomatoes
1/4 cup beef stock
1 tsp chili powder
4 bay leaves
1 medium - large onion
4 cloves garlic
2 stalks (ribs) celery
1 medium - large carrot
15 oz (450gr) chick peas
1/2 cup green olives, sliced
2 tsp olive oil
1 tsp oregano
1 tbs fennel seeds
1 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp cumin
The pork: Trim tenderloin if needed, but leave whole. Heat oil in a heavy pot or Dutch oven with a tight-fitting lid. Add pork and brown on all sides, about 10 minutes. Add tomatoes, stock, chili powder and bay leaves. Bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer for 75 minutes.
The vegetables: 45 minutes before eating: Chop onion and celery, mince garlic. Cut carrot in half the long way then into slices, 1/8" (.35cm) thick. Heat oil in medium nonstick skillet. Add chili powder and sauté briefly. Add onion, garlic, celery and carrot, sauté until starting to get tender, about 10 minutes. Add chick peas, herbs and spices. Stir well. The pork should have quite a bit of juice by now; remove about 1/2 cup pf juice and pour over vegetables. Cover, reduce heat and simmer until vegetables are tender, about 15 minutes longer. Slice olives and stir in during the last 5 minutes of cooking time.
To finish: Remove pork from pan. Using two forks, pull the meat apart, shredding it into large chunks. In large bowl combine pork and vegetables. Using a slotted spoon, scoop the tomatoes out of the pork cooking pot. Discard bay leaves. Add as much (or all) of the stock left in the pan to make a thick, moist stew.
Weekend Herb Blogging was founded by the lovely Kalyn of Kalyn's Kitchen. You can find 2 years worth of herb and vegetable recipes in the WHB archives at her place.
Katie, be gentle with the tenderfoot and no giving dishes duty!
PS...is there a better meat than pulled pork?
Posted by:Peter | January 10, 2008 at 08:13 PM
If doing dishes lands me a ticket to France, I'm all for it! :)
Thanks for the kind words, Katie!
Posted by:Michelle | January 10, 2008 at 09:13 PM
(P.S. Cooking classes in Argentina? Yes, please!)
Posted by:Michelle | January 10, 2008 at 09:22 PM
fennel seeds! i bet that's great with the pork. i have a slow cooker that i've used only once, but i've been meaning to give it another try!
Posted by:katy | January 10, 2008 at 09:43 PM
I'll go. For the cooking classes! Wouldn't that be great! But then I think that would be great just about any place away from Dallas.
Crock pot, slow cooker I used to have one. I guess now I use the oven & cast iron.
Posted by:MyKitchenInHalfCups | January 10, 2008 at 11:27 PM
Oh yay! I'm so glad to see the two of you hitting it off :) Thanks for participating.
Posted by:Kristen | January 10, 2008 at 11:45 PM
That sounds fantastic and just right for this time of year.
Group discount for Argentina? :o
Posted by:Mike | January 11, 2008 at 01:53 AM
Argentina I hope to visit you in France some day.
I am in luck because I love Brussel sprouts and olives, but maybe not together.
All these people that want to be mentioned, hummmm. Not me if too many people start reading my blog the presure would be more then I could handle.
Posted by:Shayne | January 11, 2008 at 02:14 AM
I love the idea behind Adopt-a-blogger. (In theory - my schedule is already seriously over-booked!) This sounds delicious. All those great spices plus olives, could not possibly taste anything but fantastic.
Posted by:Kalyn | January 11, 2008 at 02:53 AM
Um, Katie? I would like to go to Buenos Aires. Or just Argentina in general. For sure.
Posted by:Genie | January 11, 2008 at 06:47 AM
Interesting combination, and I'd like to go to Argentina!
Posted by:Ulrike aka ostwestwind | January 11, 2008 at 08:13 AM
Just so you know...love your blog. I can't wait to cook in France!
Posted by:Colleen | January 11, 2008 at 08:15 AM
Wonderful combination, as ever!! And sounding very intriging.
the idea to introduce new bloggers is thrilling. Just carry on. :)
Posted by:Helene | January 11, 2008 at 08:43 AM
Hola Katie! As always, you make me smile with your post!!!! I've been in the "adoption program" also, what a great idea! Will post about it soon, meanwhile will visit your adopted blogger.
Buenos Aires must be a thrill!
The pork recipe looks so savory!!! I don't usually use olives in my dishes... maybe I should try this. :D
Posted by:núria | January 11, 2008 at 01:24 PM
Peter, okay, I'll play nice. And, none!
You're welcome, Michelle. Maybe I should get a group together!
Katy, I had one...back when they were called crock pots!
Me two, Tanna, the crock pot is long gone! Argentina is nice this time of year....
Kristen, you had a great idea! It's fun!
Mike, I'm working on it!
Shayne, the door is open and we have room ;-)
Kaly, what's a schedule? I just seem to frantically do what's on top. God only knows what's at the bottom...
Genie, okay, you're on the list!
And Ulrike...(this could be big!)
Colleen, you'll enjoy the challenge... usually...
Helene, thanks, it's been fun.
Nuria, give it a try! I think using olives is more French than Spanish.
Posted by:Katie | January 11, 2008 at 10:20 PM
What a great bunch of ingredients! I love the pork addition!
You are so nice introducing us to a new blogger. Fantastic idea as it sometimes is hard to get yourself rockin' and rollin' in the blogsphere. I just visited her lovely site and will return to it!
Posted by:Deb | January 12, 2008 at 05:40 PM
Deb, that was nice of you to visit! It can be a challenge to get 'launched'!
Posted by:Katie | January 12, 2008 at 09:23 PM
What a fabulous dish and thanks for sharing new food bloggers with the rest of us...ummm...seasoned - ya, that's the word.
Posted by:Ruth | January 15, 2008 at 11:07 PM
Ruth, seasoned is a good word - wish I'd thought of it!
Posted by:Katie | January 16, 2008 at 09:33 PM
Can I get adopted as well? Great recipe here, we have something similar in the Philippines called afritada.
Posted by:A scientist in the kitchen | January 18, 2008 at 03:45 PM
Sure, Scientist - the more the merrier! I think you have fascinating food in the Philippines!
Posted by:katie | January 18, 2008 at 06:33 PM