HOW TO MAKE PUERTO RICAN PERNIL | NYT COOKING

Von Diaz, a cookbook author, journalist and professor of food studies is here to show us how to make pernil. Perhaps the best known and most coveted dish from Puerto Rico, pernil is a pork shoulder that’s marinated (ideally overnight) in garlic, citrus and herbs, then slow-roasted on high heat to achieve a crisp chicharrón, or skin.

Get the recipe: https://nyti.ms/3rp5rJx

THE WORLD IN A POCKET-POCKET FLAG

On July 4th, we aim to celebrate the diversity that makes this country so great — if we can agree on nothing else, America is perhaps the best place with access to enjoy many different pocket foods and the opportunity to know the people who make them. The variety of food we are able to enjoy here is graciously tied to the people who come from around the world and bring their flavors and traditions with them.

TURCOS IN CORPUS CHRISTI, TX

Featured on Vivian Howard’s new show, “Somewhere South” on PBS. Watch “American as Hand Pie” here.

It wasn’t until a few years ago that I truly came to appreciate turcos, the tiny turnovers my grandma labors over every holiday season stuffed with thrice-cooked pork, raisins, and nuts. As cinnamon and anise waft through that sweltering South Texas kitchen, my mom, her sisters and cousins still try to sneak a fresh turc (as they lovingly call these pockets) straight off the sheet pan. “Only eat the ugly ones!” my grandma always yells. See, she stashes all of her perfectly roped empanadas for the big parties, a far cry from how they were originally eaten.

FIELD COMPANY GUIDE TO SOURDOUGH BREAD, WITH BOULTED BREAD

How to make sourdough bread in a Field Cast Iron Dutch Oven.

Joshua Bellamy and Sam Kilpatrick from Boulted Bread in Raleigh, NC guide us step-by-step through preparing and baking sourdough bread in a cast iron Dutch oven. A seasoned cast iron Dutch oven with a snug-fitting lid is the best tool for making bakery-quality bread at home.

We cover starter management, shaping the loaf, bake times, and lots of pro tips for the at-home baker.

Learn more: fieldcompany.com/sourdough

KIMCHEE MANDU WITH BROWN BUTTER PAN SAUCE

Dumplings, or mandu (or mandoo), as they are called in Korean, are a delicious way to stretch your dollar. Serve with rice and a salad and 6 or 7 dumplings to make a full meal. As an appetizer, even less will do. All that to say, making dumplings at home is a thrifty way to feed yourself, freeze for later or entertain a roomful of people.

DUENAS FAMILY TRIP REEL

A shortened highlight reel of our home video of our trip to Mexico summer of 2015.

Watch the others here:

Part 1: Puerto Vallarta

Part 2: Mascota Y Navidad

Part 3: Tequila, Tlaquepaque, y Guadalajara

MANDALA | A FOOD EXPERIMENT

An abstract stop motion animation experiment focusing on the spiritual feeling of mandalas + my love for food.

QATAYEF IN MORRISVILLE, NC

'Twas the night of the Men’s NCAA Basketball Championship and Tar Heels across the world were biting their nails in nervous anticipation of the game. I met up with fellow Carolina alum, Omar AbdelBaky, on that balmy April evening. As our team prepared for sweet redemption against Gonzaga, we started talking about our favorite pocket foods to quell our nerves. Omar instantly brought up one of his favorite childhood treats, qatayef, a sweet dumpling that his mother, Kariman Allam, makes during the month of Ramadan. We called her on the spot and she happily agreed to teach me about qatayef and its importance to her family during Ramadan.

SO GOOD PUPUSAS IN DURHAM, NC

In 2015, Cecilia Polanco wanted to start a scholarship fund for undocumented students, but needed a sustainable way to monetize the fund. She founded So Good Pupusas to raise money and use the revenue to support her non-profit, Pupusas for Education, which provides the scholarships.

Channeling her cultural capital, she set out on a tasty mission: to serve “a taste of El Salvador with a side of social justice.”