Post the Thirty-first (in which our heroine finally caves and joins Twitter)

I was so strong for so long.  I really, really was.  But since a certain over-zealous mod on Boards.ie banned blog links in their Cooking & Recipes section, I've been forced to consider other ways to get this blog out there, and it seemed that Twitter was a bit of a no-brainer.  So, if you feel like following me, I'm @CookingCoffey.  I promise to restrain myself as much as possible, ok?  All tweets will be put through a rigorous quality-control system to ensure that only the funniest and most acerbic (and food-related, obviously) make it though the brain-to-keyboard filter.  I'll still talk as much crap as I want on Facebook, though.

So, if you're still interested, we're on to day three of the pulled pork.  Definitely not one for the instant-gratification brigade, but in food, as with all things in life, good things come to those who wait.  By the way, this is perfect party food, and if you have a large-capacity slow-cooker, you could totally increase the size of the pork joint - just make sure to increase the other ingredients by the same volume.  To give you an idea, though, this recipe quantity fed Emmet and I for two nights in a row.  And Emmet eats a lot.

Pulled Pork Day Three

3 tbs brown sauce                        2 tbs "normal" vinegar (optional)
Soft baps                                     Whole pickles
Coleslaw (see recipe below)

1.  So, your pork is cooked to perfection, so all we need to do now is sauce it and serve it.  Remove the pork from the cooking liquid and stick it on a large chopping board.  Strain the cooking liquid into a smaller pot (discard the veg) and place over a high heat.  Bring to the boil and allow to reduce to about a third of its original volume.

2. While the sauce is reducing, pull your pork.  Simply grab two forks and shred your pork roughly with them.  When it's all shredded, go across it once or twice with your biggest knife, just to make sure it's all nice and even.  Bung it back into the pot with your reduced sauce, add the brown sauce and vinegar (have a taste first if you're not sure about using the vinegar - I like sharp tastes but you might prefer it a bit sweeter), season with salt & pepper, if needed, and heat through.

3. Serve on a warmed platter in the middle of the table with the soft baps (Aldi do a pack of eight miniature soft rolls which are PERFECT for this), coleslaw and pickles.  As you can see, I made chips too.

Thanks to Ashlie at www.feedingmyobsessions.blogspot.com for the coleslaw recipe (with one or two minor changes).  I hate mayonnaise, and by extension have always hated coleslaw, but this one is really, really good.

Homemade Tangy Slaw

250g white cabbage, shredded               1 huge carrot, peeled & grated
150ml natural yoghurt                             2 tbs lemon juice
1 tbs red wine vinegar                            0.5 tsp sugar
Pinch each of: cumin, smoked paprika, cayenne pepper, chili powder.
Salt & pepper to taste

1.  Mix the cabbage & carrot in a large bowl.  If you have time, leave your carrot to drain a bit on kitchen towels first, as it can be very wet.

2. In a small bowl, mix the remaining ingredients.  Have a good taste, and adjust any of the spices if you fancy.  Give it all a good whisk, then pour into the cabbage & carrot and mix well.  Enjoy!