February: Pulled Pork

Winter calls for comfort food.  The cold weather and snow on the ground make cocooning in a warm house seem like a terribly good idea, and a warm house full of delicious smells makes the good idea even better.  Comfort food has as many definitions and interpretations as there are comfort food eaters, but generally, it’s a dish that is savoury, heavy, filling, and warming.  Usually, it’s a dish that evokes nostalgia for dinners past, and usually it’s a dish that is easy to prepare and cooked slowly, filling the house with mouth-watering aromas as it cooks.  While many dishes fill that bill for me, a pot roast is probably first on the list, with rich stews, home-made pork and beans, and roast chicken high on the charts.  In a column back in February 2009, I wrote about another great comfort food that has become a special favorite:  the bean, pork, and duck dish from the south of France, cassoulet. 

But another relatively recent discovery certainly fills the comfort food bill in every way:  pulled pork.  There are many versions of this delicious concoction, most coming from the Southern US, where pork shoulder is cooked using a smoker until it falls off the bone.  Variations show up in Mexican cooking, and even the Italian dish, porcetta is similar.

 My friend Albert Cipryk introduced me to pulled pork a few years ago.  He described it as a way to empty the fridge of old, partly used jars of condiments and sauces which were all thrown together into a slow cooker along with a large pork shoulder roast and left to cook until the meat falls apart.  Of course, each version of the dish was different, depending on what he found in his fridge, but a favorite discovery was the flavour added to the resulting dish when he added a partly used jar of molé, a chocolate based sauce used in Mexican cooking.

I’m not as daring as Albert and I tend to plan my pulled pork a little more carefully, relying on more traditional ingredients for the liquid base of the dish.  Once the meat has been slow-cooked until it falls apart, the pork is “pulled” by using two forks to shred it into a savoury mush.  This gooey mess is served over fresh buns, much like a sloppy joe, and eaten with the use of lots of napkins.  There is no standard recipe, and just about any favorite BBQ sauce can be used.  My favorite is the Maple Ancho Sauce from White Meadow Farms, which imparts a sweet, smoky flavour to the pulled pork.  But, as Albert proved, just about any combination can make a delicious sauce for the meat.

Pulled Pork

4 lb. pork shoulder or butt roast

2 onions chopped

2 garlic cloves chopped

1 ½ Cups of BBQ sauce (White Meadows Maple Ancho)

2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce

2 Tbsp chili powder

½ Cup of cider vinegar

Brown sugar to taste

Put everything into a slow cooker and cook on low for around 10 hours, or until the pork falls apart easily when pulled with a fork.  Shred the meat into the sauce and stir until it is a consistent mess.  Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper, and serve over fresh hamburger buns.  Cole slaw makes a good side dish.

 

 

 

January: A Short History of Pelham Slow Food

It has been five years now since the inaugural meeting of Pelham Slow Food.  The Convivium was formed under the enthusiastic and determined leadership of Renée Girard when the initial group of five fans of fair, clean, good food met at de la terre bakery and café on South Pelham St. in Fonthill.  I first met Renée shortly after that initial meeting, at a tasting of Spanish ham and cheese at Niagara College when she was introduced by one of the chef professors as the president of the Pelham Slow Food group.  Like most people who first encounter Slow Food, I thought it was devoted to taking your time while cooking… a concept I was entirely in favour of, so I introduced myself.

Since then, I have learned that Slow Food is not about cooking slowly, but rather a reaction against everything that “fast food” stands for: food that is cleanly produced, fairly paid for, wholesome, and served in pleasant, convivial surroundings… and, yes, you probably should take your time when cooking it.  Organized into “Convivia,” the movement is now represented in more than 150 countries and has the support of more than 100,000 members.

Renée’s idea for the Pelham Convivium was to bring together a few people who support the principles of the movement for events that nourished their ideas about food, and, not incidentally, provided delicious nourishment as well in the form of potluck suppers.  In addition, we supported the principles of the movement by buying suitable books for the Pelham library, helping a Cuban Convivium with a cash donation, and working with a group home to teach disadvantaged young people the joys of gardening.  Wherever possible, we promoted the ideals of Slow Food in the community and beyond… an effort that resulted in the first “Snail’s Space” column in the Voice of Pelham, a string of columns that in December reached 60.

The potluck dinners in members’ homes, arranged thematically to celebrate the cuisine of a different nation each meeting, have become much anticipated quarterly events.  At least once a year, we also venture out to a Niagara restaurant for a specially prepared Slow Food dinner and enjoy the personal commentary and enthusiasm of the chef in each instance.  Ryan Shapiro at About Thyme in Vineland let us in on his “sous-vide” method of making delicious duck confit; Michael Olson of Benchmark at Niagara College set out a magnificent homestyle feast; David Watt of Zest provided his trademark mouthwatering creations , and most recently, John Cercone put on a feast at Da Vinci of Fenwick that celebrated the cuisine of his ancestral region of Abruzzi in eastern Italy.  We have enjoyed learning to make cassoulet (and stuffing ourselves with it), sampling the wines of Southbrook, le Clos Jordanne, Alvento, Stratus, and Lailey Vineyards at special tastings, and welcoming friends from across the region to our annual Featherstone lamb roast with our good friends David and Louise at Featherstone Winery.

Through the last five years, Renée has guided the group with enthusiasm and creativity.  A former restaurateur and food stylist, she is now a fulltime student at Brock, having returned to university to pursue her lifelong love of learning… especially about other cultures and, of course, food. Renée is stepping aside as President of our Convivium but remaining an active member, while Valerie Grabove takes over the reins.  She deserves enormous credit for having the vision to found a Slow Food group in Pelham, the determination to see it grow and expand, and the creativity to organize events that stimulated, educated, and satisfied on many levels.

For more information about Pelham Slow Food, contact Valerie at vgrabove@sympatico.ca

December: Preaching to the Converted

            As the son of an Anglican minister, I am very aware of a nagging discomfort that afflicts all priests, pastors, and ministers:  the people in front of them on Sunday are not the people who need to hear their message.  The congregation is there, for the most part, because they already agree with what is being delivered, while those who are not in the congregation are beyond the reach of the message.

To some extent, we in the Pelham Slow Food Convivium are beginning to feel the same way.  There is evidence all around us that the message of Slow Food is getting through, that consumers, purveyors, and producers are all paying attention (or at least lip service) to the notion that good, healthy, locally produced food, served in pleasant, convivial surroundings is vastly better for our physical and mental health than fast food.  Surveys of those who eat fast food reveal that even they know it’s bad for them, but they can’t resist a hit of salt and fat as a guilty pleasure… and that their guilty pleasure is, in part, responsible for the “obesity epidemic” and the consequent rise in diabetes, heart disease, and other maladies (including the return of gout) that afflict our population and our overburdened medical system.

Upscale restaurants are including on their menus the farm or producer where the dish originates.  This trend, pioneered in Niagara by Michael Olson when he was the chef at On the Twenty in Jordan, is a welcome acknowledgement that good food comes from good farmers and good producers, a Slow Food mantra.  Local farmers’ markets are thriving and even expanding.  Supermarkets are advertising local produce when it is available on their shelves, recognizing that there is consumer demand for fresh, locally produced food.  (Although, in July… prime growing time… Sobeys was offering green onions from Mexico, so I drove down the street to Gallagher’s to get the Ontario version!)  The Ontario wine industry is further evidence that the quality and value of local products has reached the consciousness of consumers.  It wasn’t that long ago that only the most daring would present a bottle of Ontario wine as a hostess gift or serve it at a special meal; now, only those who don’t know much about wine would be scared off by an Ontario label.  Fonthill’s new butcher, Churchill Meats, makes a point of advertising that their products are drug free and eagerly tells customers which farm produced each cut of their meat.  Even pet food producers are boasting that they source their ingredients from within 100 km of their production facility.

When even manufacturers of dog food recognize that good, local food is a desirable (and marketable) commodity, we have to acknowledge that there has been a shift in the consciousness of consumers.  As a society, we have become more aware of the principles that gave rise to the Slow Food Movement, even if we aren’t even aware of the existence of the movement.  And yet… at the same time, fast food outlets continue to thrive; we are getting fatter as a population; we are getting less exercise; our incidence of heart disease and diabetes continues to rise.  What’s going on?

It seems that those who are willing to receive the message have received it, while those who continue to poison themselves with unhealthy food just didn’t get the memo.  And that has members of Slow Food Pelham uncertain about our purpose.  As a group, we get together to enjoy good food and share ideas about a better environment, healthier eating, local products… but it seems that much of society, at least those who are aware and care about their food, are as much Slow Foodies as we are!  And the rest will never get the message.  For more information about Slow Food Pelham, contact Renée at reneegirardb@hotmail.com

November: Recognizing Our Farmers

Now that the farm year in Ontario has wound down, farm markets are going for their winter hiatus, and we face a winter of largely imported fruits and vegetables, it’s not a bad time to reflect on the enormous contribution to our enjoyment of life provided by our farmers.  Whether they raise poultry or potatoes, soybeans or sour cherries, beef cattle or beets, grapes or garlic, we are in their debt.  This past season had trials for some with an unprecedented early spring and killer frost and drought conditions in many parts, but for others it produced some of the best crops in memory, thanks to hot weather and timely rain.  The farmer lives at the mercy of the weather and has to have the nerves of a gambler and the resiliency of a rubber ball.

Mark Bittman observes in one of his recent NY Times columns that preparing food, even at the most sophisticated restaurants, is dead easy when compared to raising that food: a process that takes weeks if not months of expertise, investment, and hard work.

It is worth remembering when we shop for our food, that for every dollar we spend on farm-produced items, the farmer gets, on average, 14 cents.  For some products the discrepancy is greater than others.  For example, on a box of corn flakes costing $3.54, the farmer’s share is about 11 cents.  There are many factors that affect the price of food, including processing, transporting, advertising, packaging, and financing the products… but you can’t eat financing, packaging, or advertising.  This is what makes it so satisfying to go to our local markets or farm gates and buy directly from the farmers who produce the food.

Canadians enjoy some of the lowest food prices in the world.  It is estimated that we spend less than 10 per cent of our annual disposable income on food.  Compare that to 20 per cent in South Africa or 25 per cent in Brazil, 35 per cent in India or 45 per cent in Indonesia.  (Of course there are some serious consequences of that cheap food, an issue that we will look at in another column.)  Every year, the Canadian Federation of Agriculture observes Food Freedom Day.  This is the day on which the average Canadian family has earned enough to pay for their food for the entire year.  This year, it came on February 12^th. 

While we congratulate ourselves on the low cost of our food, let us recognize the contribution that our farmers make to provide that food, and hope that farming remains a viable and profitable venture so that the agriculture sector continues to retain and attract young, energetic, innovative, and dedicated farmers.

 

October: Slow Food and Slow Fishing

      

As readers of this column might have perceived, one of my passions (along with food and wine) is fly fishing.  I find this the most beautiful and calming of sports; if the word “Zen” ever applied to a leisure activity, this would be it.  This is “slow fishing” when compared to the manic, frantic type of angling we see on most televised fishing shows.  While I have fished for bonefish and tarpon, steelhead and salmon, pike and muskie, and have met anglers who prefer one of those prey to all others, I’m a trout fisher.  I would rather trick a 10 inch trout to take a floating insect imitation in a small stream than haul in an 80 pound tarpon somewhere off Cuba or Florida.  So I value small rivers and creeks for the fish they can hold when they are healthy, as well as for their importance to our environmental wellbeing.  The health of our small streams is the most important indicator of the health of our environment.  And, the best indicator of the health of small steams is the presence of Brook Trout.

     Brook Trout and Lake Trout are the only trout native to Ontario, and Brookies are an extremely fragile species, dependant on clear, clean, cold water for survival.  Any degradation of their environment is a threat to their survival; they are the “canary in the coal mine,” the first warning sign of trouble in a watershed.

     Twelve Mile Creek, which has one of its sources right in Fonthill, is the only cold water stream system in Niagara capable of holding Brook Trout.  There is anecdotal evidence from anglers, Conservation Officers, and landowners that a small population of Brook Trout still survives in the headwaters of the system, maybe downstream as far as Short Hills Provincial Park.  Old-timers tell tales of plentiful Brookies in the Twelve back in the 40’s and 50’s, but sightings now are rare.

     Enter Trout Unlimited Canada (TUC).  This is a conservation organization, made up mostly, it must be admitted, of anglers.  Like Ducks Unlimited (whose members are mostly hunters), which seeks to preserve wetlands as habitat for waterfowl, TUC seeks to maintain its sport by conserving and enhancing the environment that makes the sport possible.  (The difference between the two is that, by and large, the ducks do not survive their encounters with members of the organization, while the trout do, since most fly fishers practice catch and release.)  Regardless of the underlying motivation of these groups, the work they do to preserve, protect, and enhance Canada’s natural environment is beyond reproach.

      The Niagara Chapter of Trout Unlimited Canada is recently formed, but has already begun making plans for the enhancement of the Twelve Mile Creek watershed.  Working closely with the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority, Short Hills Provincial Park, Niagara College’s Ecosystem Restoration Program, Niagara Conservancy, and other interested organizations, Trout Unlimited is in the process of putting in place a plan to study one stretch of the stream to determine scientifically if Brook Trout inhabit it, what the barriers are to their survival and success, and how to improve the stream.  Working one stretch at a time, their goal is to make a significant contribution to the health of this unique watershed.

     What’s all this got to do with Slow Food?  One of the most important mandates of the Slow Food Movement is the preservation and enhancement of our environment.  This can be achieved through the protection of agricultural land, through sustainable farming practices, and through efforts such as those now being undertaken by the Niagara Chapter of Trout Unlimited Canada. 

September: Slow Food’s Most Important Idea

As I have noted previously, the Slow Food Movement started out as a reaction against fast food, and advocates everything healthy, good, sustainable, and fair that fast food is not.  While this column is written in support of the Slow Food Movement, specifically as it applies to the Pelham Convivium (our fancy but appropriate name for Chapter or Branch), its content sometimes wanders pretty widely from the stated doctrine and aims of the International Movement.  But any organization that is as big (more than 100,000 members) and broad (more than 150 countries) as Slow Food has to admit a great deal of variation within its stated principles, so I don’t feel too bad if I sometimes stray from orthodoxy.

However, I have written twice previously on a subject that hits right at the heart of what Slow Food is all about, and I’m about to make that three times.  Back in 2008 I first wrote about the importance of family meal times.  I felt the subject was so important I repeated it the following year.  It’s now time to revisit this most important of all of Slow Food’s ideas.

Here are the facts:  eating together as a family will increase a child’s grades, reduce the likelihood of drug, alcohol, and tobacco use, decrease the incidence of teen obesity, and reduce the rate of adolescent depression.  The more often a family sits down to a meal together, the greater the beneficial effects.

Many studies have been conducted to arrive at these results.  The University of Minnesota’s is typical.  They conducted a huge study on the subject, and statistically eliminated from their results all other factors like income, family dynamics, and location.  Their conclusion was unambiguous: “Sitting down as a family at mealtimes was the primary cause of significant improvements in children’s health and wellbeing, especially among girls.”  The more often the study groups sat down as families at mealtimes, the greater the benefits.  And among the benefits noted were better academic performance, reduction in tobacco, substance, and alcohol use, and improved mental health.

Of course, it helps if the meal that the family sits down to is healthy, nutritious, tasty, and home-cooked.  The benefits also are more evident if the TV is turned off along with cell phones, video games, iPods, Blackberries, Wi units, computers, e-readers, and all other sundry electronics.  But even if the meal is takeout and the TV is on, the act of sitting down together as a family at mealtimes is a beginning point that can lead to a more satisfying and “convivial” family dinnertime with all the potential benefits noted above.

 

August: Fish and Chips

Many Niagara Region old timers will agree that the best fish and chips ever were produced in Welland by Ideal Fish and Chips on East Main Street.  Louie dispensed his perfectly battered fish and deliciously golden chips from behind the counter of the tiny restaurant that was tastefully decorated with grease spattered green walls and Formica tables.  Regulars would squeeze past the counter and go to the back of the place where two more small rooms accommodated tables crowded every lunchtime with a broad cross-section of Welland businesspeople, from lawyers practicing at the nearby courthouse, to Niagara College professors, to workers at the Atlas Steels plant, to local retailers.  When Ideal burned to the ground (there could not have been a more combustible building anywhere, saturated as it was with cooking fat) Louie’s customers were scattered to the four winds to try to find a lunchtime replacement for their fish and chips addiction.

As one of those thoroughly addicted, I searched far and wide for a new favorite.  Friends and fellow Ideal devotees migrated to other spots: Bonnie landed on Sue’s Seafood in Welland, while Gordon switched his devotion to Hutch’s on the lakeshore in Hamilton.  While I agree that both of these make a worthy F & C lunch, my choice for Louie’s crown is Newfoundland’s Own at the corner of Prince Charles and Lincoln in Welland, where the fish and chips are pretty darned close to the gold standard set by Ideal.   It’s takeout only, so lacks the unique atmosphere of Louie’s place, but the food is outstanding.

There are other worthy contenders for fish and chip excellence.  I stop at Jill’s in Fonthill on my way through town when I’m in the mood for a lunchtime F & C fix.  If I plan ahead, I trek out to Centennial Park in Fenwick on Friday evening for the Lions Club fish fry there, and am always really impressed.  These guys might be amateurs, but someone knows a thing or two about making fish and chips, because their product is excellent.

While fish and chips are traditionally haddock or halibut (pollock is a poor substitute), sometimes someone tries a successful variation on the traditional favorites.  Stone Road Grill in Niagara on the Lake did an upscale version, using tempura battered salmon as the fish.  Their frites have always been exemplary, so the combination was outstanding, while deviating widely from tradition.  But Niagara residents in the know venture out to Port Colborne to get a really special treat.  Minor Fisheries have boats that ply the waters of Lake Erie for yellow perch, walleye (pickerel), and smelt which they process and sell commercially.  Lake Erie, by the way, supports the world’s largest fresh water fishing fleet and has an enormous recreational fishing industry that supplies fishing families all over Niagara with delicious perch.  Minor Fisheries has a small outlet on West St., right beside the canal, that sells their fish right off the boat and does a good lunchtime business with short order meals.  Their fish and chips (for $5.00!) are prepared with their freshly caught and lightly breaded perch.  Here’s a delicious way for locovores and hundred-mile-diet types to satisfy their craving for F & C.