Well, it’s been almost a year since I last posted, my bad. Turns out, growing spawn that makes you puke your entire first and third trimester while chasing around a toddler doesn’t exactly inspire you to cook. Now that I’ve hatched my latest creature, I have picked the knife back up, and am ready to entertain again. Most of my recipes lately have been on the healthy-ish side because I’m trying to burn off the remaining baby fupa and I somehow thought it would be a wise idea to go to Mexico 3 months post partum. I’ll post plenty of pictures wearing my burka while poolside, grubbing on chicken fingers and margs–get excited. That being said, a lady needs her carb fix every now and then, and since I’m doing dry January**,  I figure a little rice here and there won’t kill me. Enter these bibimbap inspired bowls….forbidden (black) rice topped with chopped veggies, meat and a fried egg. Crawdad and I saw an episode of DDD this weekend where Guy Fieri got some pork dish and it inspired me to make this braised pork. Trim as much of the fat off the pork before braising it so that you don’t end up with greasy meat.

Braised pork 

• 3.5 lb pork shoulder, trimmed of excess fat, and cut into 3×3 inch cubes
• 1 c. low sodium soy sauce
• 1 c. sake
• 1/4 c. sugar
• 1/3 c. miso paste (white miso paste is preferable, found in refrigerated section)
• 2 tbs. ginger paste (found near the herbs)

Whisk all the marinade ingredients and pour over the cubed pork. Go ahead and marinate it in the pan you’ll be cooking it in, marinate in fridge overnight. Bake at 350 for 3 hours then shred into small pieces/chunks with forks. Let it sit in it’s sauce. This recipe makes a ton of leftover pork.

Bibimbap Bowls (serves 2)

• 1 c. black rice
• 1 3/4 c. water
• 2 portobello mushrooms, chopped (you can also use a 6oz. package of baby bellas or white shrooms)
• 1 tbs. olive oil
• 1/2 tbs. sesame oil
• 1/2 seedless cucumber, julienned (Crawford said he would do without this, so if you don’t like cukes, don’t include)
• 2 green onions, chopped
• 1/4 c. pork braising liquid (after it’s been cooked)
• 2 fried eggs
• however much pork you want in the dish
• sriracha or sambal chile paste for heat
• cilantro, for garnish

1. Combine water and rice and bring to a boil. Once it’s boiling, lower to simmer and cover, cooking for 25 minutes, until the water is absorbed. Remove lid and let it sit until you assemble.
2. Saute the shrooms in the olive and sesame oils for 10 minutes until the shrooms are browned and cooked. If you want the have the mushrooms separate (like in the photo), remove from the heat. Since you’ll be mixing all the sh*t together anyways, I recommend just mixing the mushrooms and rice together with the sake/miso/soy sauce. If combining, add in the cooked rice and the braising liquid and cook for 5 minutes.
3. While the rice and mushroom mixture is cooking, fry 2 eggs to your liking.
4. Once the rice and mushrooms have absorbed the sauce, transfer to two bowls, and top with the pork, green onions and cucumber. Garnish with chopped cilantro and spicy sauce of choice.

I’ll be writing up more recipes with the hope of posting weekly. However, I make no promises since the 2 hours of free time I have a day have been strictly dedicated to re-watching Gossip Girl. Each season has 25 episodes, and I’ve shamefully made it to season 5. I forget how ridiculous and wonderful it is. Plus, I was forced into watching The Killing, which is horribly terrifying, so I like my Upper East Side escape. Makes me forget that I’m covered in other peoples boogers and a human napkin 95% of the time. Kids are great.

peace.

**by dry January, I mean I had the flu, then was on steroids so I didn’t drink. Until now. Now I am sitting in my bed, on my laptop, obviously watching GG, drinking a glass of wine because one of my kids screamed like they were on fire and the other threatened the push in her brother’s soft spot. And one of them just woke up but I put the monitor on mute because I’m a good mom. She’ll survive…