(A guest blog-entry, don’t hold Bakerina responsible for this.)
A dear friend recently expressed that she needs a little attitude adjustment. In my opinion, this is best accomplished through food. Therefore, I prescribe the following shock treatment for your system. It guarantees that you will not be bothered by vampires, werewolves, mosquitoes and most fellow humans will give you extra space on the subway for several days. Experts agree that this remedy cures existential angst nine times out of ten. What’s not to love?
By way of back-story, I was introduced to this wonderful dish by my Singaporean-Chinese girlfriend back in college. She cooked from memory. There was a debate at the time about whether the recipe required 12 cloves of garlic or 12 bulbs of garlic. She cooked it with 12 bulbs, and it was a thing of beauty. But in order not to offend anyone’s delicate sensitivities, I’ve knocked it back to 6 bulbs. If you’re a wimp you could revert to the (probably correct) 12 cloves, but then you’d have nothing more interesting than Philippine adobo.
Garlic Stew
2-3 lbs pork shoulder
cooking oil
1 medium onion
6-12 bulbs (yes, bulbs!) garlic, peeled.
2 star anise
a couple bay leaves
1-1/2 cups light soy sauce
¼ cup rice wine or vinegar or similar
2 Tbs brown sugar
Water as needed
Cut the pork into 1-2 inch chunks. Sear the meat briefly in oil to seal (if so motivated). Cut onion in large chunks. Peel the garlic leaving cloves whole. Combine in a large stew pot (or slow cooker) with the whole anise, bay leaves, soy sauce, vinegar(wine), sugar and as much water as is needed to cover the meat.
Bring to a boil, then reduce to simmer for 2-3 hours if using a stew pot. Skim as necessary. If using a slow cooker, cook 6-8 hours until meat is ready to fall apart.
Serve partly drained, over rice or on toast.
Oh, I am so making this, particularly if we have any more 62-degree rainy days like we had last week. I’ll bet this tastes just luscious. And yes, I’ll make it with 12 bulbs. I am not about half-measures at all.
C, I’m betting that you do in fact peel all the skin off each clove, not just the papery outer layer, elsewise you’re left with squeezing 40 cloves of garlic into the stew, not my idea of fun.
‘mouse, did your girlfriend ever reduce the sauce once the stew was done, or would that make it too strongly flavored?
I almost want to double the recipe and make one batch with vinegar and one batch with the Shaoxing rice wine I buy in Flushing, but I can just hear Lloyd saying “Do we really need six pounds of meat and 24 bulbs of garlic?” Maybe another time.