Q: We were served pork crown roast for Christmas Eve dinner and went home with the leftovers. The only problem is the pork is very, very dry and inappropriate for re-heating or even for sandwiches. My mother suggested 15-bean soup, but I'm not a fan of that concoction the way she is, plus we have enough pork for about 3 large batches of it. Are there any other good ideas for what I should do with about 3 pounds of dry, overcooked pork?
Sent by Allison
Editor: Allison, overall, my suggestion would be to dice or shred it extra-fine and use it in places where its texture will be less of a problem: Breakfast burritos, cheesy pasta casserole, omelets, and soups. Along the lines of your mom's suggestion, what about this soup? Maybe it's a bit of a fresher option?
Readers, what else would you suggest?
Related: Ham Bone, Greens, and Bean Soup
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I'm so bad when it comes to creativity for leftovers..I usually just reheat and eat and I'm fine..but I came across this fun list of holiday recipes that has some ham recipes in it....that's as much as I can help.
I would try to re-hydrate it with some stock (chicken, beef, etc) and possibly some pork fat. I'd shred the leftovers, and cook them in a pot with onions, garlic, stock, and various other veggies (and pork fat? maybe some bacon?).
And then I'd turn it into a pot pie. :)
Here's this pork & apple pot pie with biscuit topping (you could skip the first few steps -- as your pork is already cooked). I think this would work nicely! http://rosemarried.wordpress.com/2011/03/06/recipe-swap-pork-apple-pot-pie-with-rosemary-gruyere-biscuits/
i used some dry brisket leftovers in a lentil soup, chopped in small bits it tasted great.
I'm with the suggestion to rehydrate with stock, or shred and heat on low (or in slow cooker) with salsa verde, then serve as pork tacos.
fried rice?
Pulled pork?
slow cooker with bbq sauce
What DonaldN said. Long slow simmer with BBQ.
White chili with chick peas, mild green chilis, corn.
rilletes?
Enchiladas
Slice and toast crusty rolls and cover one side with thinly sliced pork. Cover with grated apple, honey mustard dressing and cheddar slices.
Or instead of rolls, butter bread and grill as a panini.
The key is to mix it with enough moisture so the dryness is less noticeable. Whether that's soup, and you mix the pork in at the last minute, or BBQ sauce and you put the pork in just long enough to warm slightly, or adobo sauce and you make quick enchiladas or tacos - liquid is the key.
My ex-sis-in-law once brought the leftovers of a Christmas ham over at New Year's, by which time it had turned bad, and said she was tired of the leftovers and we could have the rest. Generous eh?
Barbecue sauce covers a multitude of sins, especially if combined with buttered, toasted hamburger buns.
I'd probably combine it in a variety of ways--in a chile sauce for soft tacos or enchiladas; add it as the meat to chili or a soup; use it as the meat base for a red sauce or ragu.
Sorry it was overcooked; a crown roast when taken out at the right time is heavenly.
Brunswick stew. We bought a "christmas ham" from a fundraiser which ended up being a horribly over-cooked dry, stringy pork butt. I made a lot of bbq sandwiches and brunswick stew.
Another great option is Shepherds pie. Technically this is made with leftover lamb, but it can also be made with beef...and why not try making it with pork?
Put it through an old fashioned meat grinder and make pork salad sandwiches with mayo, onions, celery and pickles.
Use some of the ground pork to make dumplings.
Warm it up and stick it in some soft corn tortillas with avocado slices, diced tomatoes, cheese and salsa. Mmmm.
I have a pozole recipe that calls for cooked pork; mainly you just stew the cooked meat (4 cups shredded) along with a couple cans of hominy, some chicken broth, and chopped onion and garlic and chiles and etc.
Tasty, and it's also supposed to be good luck to eat that on New Year's Eve!
Definitely toss it in the slower cooker with some barbecue sauce for pulled pork. It'll rehydrate it a bit, give it some new flavor/texture, and you can easily toss it in sandwiches or burritos.
Also, don't be afraid to freeze some of it now and pull it out later when you get some new ideas so it doesn't go bad.
I have to agree with several of the other posters- I immediately thought of doing some sort of pulled pork bbq. Prior to mixing in some delicious bbq sauce, I would add some fat and liquid back into the meat. Bacon grease and a little bit of stock would be great options. Pulled Pork freezes very well and can be used to make sandwiches, quesadillas, sliders, etc.