Barbecue in Mexico

I am lucky enough to have a friend, who has a friend who lives in a house on the beach in Mexico! This is not the Mexico of all inclusives and resort hotels, this is the Mexico of middle class Mexicans and "gringos" living the dream of endless summer. The town is  called San Carlos in the State of Senora on the Sea of Cortes.

We spent much of our time rolling between snorkeling, swimming and just sitting on the deck enjoying the view and the warm sunshine. On the first night that we arrived a Mexican family that had adopted our host arrived to cook a Mexican barbecue.  Senora is renowned for it's beef and and a traditional Senorian barbecue starts out very similar to a Canadian barbecue with steak.

They brought some beautiful rib eye and sirloin steaks that had been sprinkled with sea salt and left to rest in that for a while.  When the coals were burning and before any food was put on, they wiped the grill with a cut onion to clean and season it.

slow cooked pork with apples and garlic

Fall is here with full monsoon rains.  Gone are the long evenings eating on the deck, summer dresses and sandals, time for comfort food, sweaters and boots.  I am trying to embrace this change, though this year for some reason I am finding it harder than ever.  The only way is to cook some really good comforting food and buy some new warm weather clothes.

I made this last weekend up at Pender Harbour where it was pouring rain, and we had spent the afternoon in front of a roaring fire playing quidler and drinking a full bodied red wine. It was so simple and cooked away all afternoon filling the house with the most glorious smells. Bring on winter.

1 pork butt roast, this one was fairly small and fed 4 with some left over
3 apples peeled and chopped
1 onion chopped
1 whole head of garlic cut in half
1 tablespoon of fennel seeds
1 1/2 cups of white wine.

Add all the ingredients except only add 1/2 cup of wine, with a little salt and pepper to a large cast iron pot.

Put on a tight fitting lid and place in a 300 oven.  You could also do the same thing but place in a slow cooker. Cook for at least 3 hours, but 4 or more is really better.

Chicken cacciatora

I believe I got my love of food from my father, though he never really cooked, getting good food was always important.  Today he sends me recipes that he sees on the Internet that he thinks I will be interested in.  I take this as a request for me to cook it for him, and so being the dutiful daughter I made the chicken cacciatora recipe from The Guardian newspaper that he had emailed me recently. Though of course I changed it a little, I just can't help myself, I get that from my mother!

2 tbsp olive oil
4 chicken legs, divided into thighs and drumsticks (skin removed if desired)
1/2 heads of garlic, cloves cut in half
1 small onion chopped
Small bunch of rosemary
1 carrot, peeled and diced
Half a glass of white wine
250ml decent chicken stock
1/2 quart home canned tomatoes or small can of chopped tomatoes

Heat the oil in a large, heavy-based casserole dish over a medium-high heat. Fry the chicken in batches until golden brown on all sides.

Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside. Fry the garlic, onion, rosemary and carrot, with a little more oil if necessary, for a few minutes until slightly golden.