It's finally over...

but now it's time to get down to business. Thank you to everyone that came to my graduation. I hope y'all enjoyed the food. My parents were thrilled and time spent with them is always precious. Starting with the amuse bouche, I made a Curried Corn Fried Dumpling with Coconut Broth, Chives and Paprika. For my entree, I made a Thai-style pulled pork with Bibb Lettuce, Pickled Carrots Daikon & Cucumber, Sesame Cilantro Panko Crumbs and Spicy Mayonnaise. There were two selections for dessert. The first, Mango "Cheesecake" Parfait with Hazelnut Cookie Crumbs, Vanilla Whipped Cream and Toasted Coconut. And finally, Mango Pannacotta with Caramel Fleur de Sel Brown Rice Krispies. Below are some of my recipes.













Braised Pork Butt
Adapted from David Chang

12 pounds Boston pork butt
16 oz white sugar
16 oz salt
36 fl oz water
12 fl oz rice wine vinegar
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon salt

Day Before Place 16 oz each sugar and salt in a bowl or saucepan large enough to hold the butt, add water and rice wine vinegar, and stir until dissolved. Place the pork butt in the brine solution. Make sure it’s submerged (weight if necessary), and refrigerate overnight.

Day Of

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place the pork in a large hotel pan, and cook uncovered in the oven for about 6 1/2 hours, basting the pork with the pan drippings every hour. When the meat is fork-tender and pulls away from the bone, sprinkle the exterior with a mixture of 1 tablespoon brown sugar and 1 tablespoon salt. Increase oven temperature to 500 degrees, and continue roasting until the outside is well caramelized. Remove from oven.

Pickled Vegetables

3 Carrots, Sliced
1 Daikon, Sliced
2 Japanese Cucumber, Sliced
8 oz Sugar
1 tsp salt
8 fl oz Rice Wine Vinegar
1 Thai Chili, Sliced

In a quart container, spread sliced carrots, daikon, and cucumber into a layer. Sprinkle with sugar and salt. Combine vinegar and sambal. Pour acid solution into a container and add vegetables to container. Chill until ready to use.

Spicy Mayonnaise

1 Egg Yolk
1 Tsp Yellow Mustard
1 Tsp Rice Wine Vinegar
1/2 Tsp Water
1/2 Tsp Salt
1 Cup Canola Oil
1 Tsp Sesame Oil
2 Tbsp Sambal

Whisk yolk, mustard, vinegar, water and salt together in a stainless steel bowl. Combine both oils in one container. Slowly whisk in oil mixture into yolk mixture until emulsified. Mix in sambal sauce.

Sesame Cilantro Breadcrumbs

4 oz Sesame Seeds, Toasted, Grounded
2 oz Cilantro, Minced
6 oz Panko
Salt

Heat a pan with oil. Quickly crisp panko in pan and season with salt. Remove panko and toss with sesame powder and cilantro. Serve on the side.

My cute parents!