Making use of........

March 4,2012

The hog my husband and family roasted for my birthday was absolutely tasty.  After giving everyone a little to take home, we still had some to eat on for the week.  I have made bar-b-que sandwiches and took some of the meat and combined it with some fresh turnips and made the best turnip and pork stew.  It had a little touch of a smokey flavor that was out of this world.  I will share with you my steps at the end of this post.  Another thing i did, was after deboning all the meat, i put the bones in a pot of water to make stock.  I thought.......why waste this wonderful flavor...... make use of these bones...so that i did...

I let this simmer on the stove for an hour or so and enjoyed the aroma, as i relived that day this pig roasted on a fire while family and friends gathered.

After it cooled i was able to skim the grease off the top before putting in the freezer.  It will be a wonderful stock to use in a gumbo or soups and beans. 


Last year our turnips did not do well, so we were pleased to have  a successful bunch growing this year. 

The basis of a good stew is the roux.  I usually brown the meat first then remove it from the pot, then make the roux in the same pot.  But since this pork was already cooked, i made my roux first.  I browned about a cup of flour in a cup of oil until it turned the color of a penny.  Thats the advise i got from my grandmother when i was learning how to cook.  In her 90 years of living she's cooked many a roux in her days.  Bless her heart........she is no longer cooking for herself anymore, as she shared her story with me on my birthday, that she now recieves meals on wheels to deliver her meals.  She adds to that by saying "although I'm thankful for such a service as this... their cooking just doesn't have any flavor like my cooking". She has taught all of us well.  Love you maw maw.......

We like alot of seasoning in our cooking, so i use alot of onion, celery, garlic and bell pepper.

 

                                                                                                                   

After making the roux, i add my seasonings in and wilt them down, adding a little water if needed to prevent any scortching.

After my seasonings have cooked down i add the peeled and cubed up turnips.  Stir them around a few minutes then add some stock.   Since i had that wonderful stock made from the bones, i used it.  I let this cook down until the turnips start to get soft, then i added the pork that was pre-cooked from the pig roast.

Let this simmer until it thickens and the turnips are tender, allowing all these flavors to blend together.  You can add a little parsley and or green onions towards the end.

You can make this turnip and pork stew using other cuts of pork such as boston butt, cut up into pieces, or pork country ribs, which is our favorite.  I just wanted to make use of some of this roasted pork.  It turned out really good, sorry i didn't get a picture of it served up over rice. 

Im linking up to the following blog hops:

The Ole'Saturday Homesteading

Made from Scratch

Country homemaker hop

Thanks for stopping by........

                                                                Live simple.....Sheryl