Friday, March 11, 2011

Bread-That-Was-Supposed-to-be-Ciabatta with Shredded Pork

Couple days ago, Danielle from Runs with Spatula gave me an award, thanks Danielle! It sounds like a fun thing to write but to be honest with you, I don't know what to write when it comes to 7 things about myself. I will try...
  1. I'm a bookwhore. My husband hates how I leave books all around. Trip to bookstore is always filled with temptation.
  2. My yearly new year resolution is to be less profane, somehow I haven't succeeded yet. 
  3. I get all happy and excited when I go grocery shopping, and spend less than I expected. Then I will show the receipt to my husband and yap about it for a good 15 minutes til he tells me that "I don't really care how much you save". Ouch.
  4. Socially inept. It's really hard for me to start a conversation. But after 5 minutes of talking, usually things go smoothly. 
  5. I cannot live without chilli sauce. Or chilli itself. We buy the 136oz huge jar and it'll be gone by the end of the month.
  6. My husband is 11 years older than me, but sometimes I look 5 years older than him. Life. is. not. fair.
  7. My right thumb nail is deformed, has been that way since I was 14. Don't know what's wrong with it. Anyone?


Back to food, last week I made two huge loaves of ciabatta from Peter Reinhart's book, Bread Baker's Apprentice. It was good but definitely not ciabatta. It doesn't have huge airpockets as it should be. I love eating ciabatta just as is, without any adornments. Unfortunately, this bread-that-was-supposed-to-be-ciabatta (BTWSTBC) is too dense to eat as is. So I decided to slowcook a piece of pork shoulder butt with ketchup, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, bay leaves, paprika, garlic and dried chilli flakes. And shredded it by hands and top the BTWSTBC with the shredded pork. 


The crunchy, rustic-looking crust with the soft bread and the juicy, tangy pork, without a doubt, is delicious. If that bread was a pillow, I'd love to sleep on it. But the thought of having bread crumbs on my hair snapped me out of it. And pork is such a versatile ingredient. No matter how you prepare it, it will turn out edible if not tasty. And I believe pig's sole purpose in this world is to be eaten. Cow/cattle serves multiple purposes, chicken too. But not pig. Where is pig's destination other than the butcher shop? Oh pork, how I love you.

BTWSTBC is just a vessel for the awesome pork. The inside was scooped so it could be used as a shovel, for transferring the pork from plate to mouth. Eating utensils aren't needed.

11 comments:

  1. I love books too :D). It still looks like a ciabatta to me and it looks very good!

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  2. Cooking Gallery: thanks for the comment! That was quick, I just posted it within few minutes :)

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  3. Yum! Looks like an excellent use for this bread. ;)

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  4. looks like i've found a baking book librarian like myself here :D i thought the bread looks good though, especially with the juicy pork sandwiched in between, looks very sumptuous :)

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  5. I'm actually older than my husband and I look older than him too. Ha.

    How do you like that book? I have it and I never use it!

    xoxo
    Robin

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  6. Robin: I love the book, really detail oriented IMHO, but can't really tell much yet because this is the only bread I've made using the book.

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  7. It may not be ciabatta, but it sounds wonderful, esp with that pork inside of it. I'm getting some inspiration for my Sunday meal...
    There is NO way you could look older than your husband. I haven't seen too many pictures of you, but if you look a day older than 24 I'll eat my hat.
    I must also recommend Carl Hitz' bread baking book. Great ciabatta in that book.
    The list about you is very funny. You really go through that much chili sauce?! That's impressive.

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  8. Mariko: *hands you a hat* :D I'm not the only one consuming copious amount of chili sauce, my 4-yr-old is cuckoo for chili sauce too. He helps me finish it up.

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  9. I made ciabatta from that book too! And I was also missing the air pocket. I just couldn't understand where I got it wrong. I believe that with Reinhart's book, you gotta follow the recipe to the letter. And nobody would touch my BTWSTBC.

    I should try it again. The BTWSTBC looks delicious!

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  10. Your husband is 11 years older? Wow. How did you guys meet? And also, unless your husband looks 14, I do not think you should look 5 years older than him...;-)

    Ciabatta or not, as long as it's carbs stuffed with pork...I'd eat it and enjoy it! :-D

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  11. Jun: I did follow it to the letter, but I think I should add more water. Only use the minimum suggested amount of water.

    Sophia: We met at school (he pursued his bachelor's degree pretty late in his late twenties). The thing is, he looks 23! So unfair....

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