Daddy Sunday Dinner

Something I've tried to encourage here at Chez Gossett is Michael's culinary endeavours. Every now and then I remind The Dad and The Child that Dad should cook on Sundays, hoping (beyond my wildest dreams) that it will become tradition.

This past Sunday, The Dad cooked, and it was good. Really good.

He had visions of a pork crockpot stew. He announced this at lunch with many errands to run. I smiled.

When he arrived back home at 2:50 with a hunk of pork shoulder and a melange of root vegies, I announced this would be an oven/braising application as I wanted to eat by 7.

Armed with the MacBook (3 different recipes), my santoku and a cutting board - he was off. I peaked in every now & then with a query/observation. (These are often met with a curt suggestion I leave him alone only to be summoned 7-10 minutes later with a request for direction.) This is how we roll.

In the end, The Dad served up a gorgeous stew; one that I intend to share when it's my turn to deliver a meal!

Here's what he did:

2# Pork shoulder - diced into 1" cubes.

Saute' in 2 T Olive Oil in a dutch oven until lovely, crusty brown.

Add 2 T flour. mix well and saute' for 3-5 minutes.

Add 1 cup each:

Sliced Onion, peeled & 1" chunks Carrots & Parsnip and

1 Bulb fresh fennel, sliced into 1" wedges.

Saute' for a bit.

Deglaze pot w/ 1 cup White Wine. Add chicken stock to just under the vegies and meat. Stir in 3 fresh rosemary fronds and fresh ground pepper. Braise in 325 oven for 1.5-2 hours - til pork hunks are tender. Add a bit of fresh Thyme.

I made "toast" as if I were making a grilled cheese - w/o the cheese. It was perfect with the stew.

The anise of the fennel perfectly balanced the clove-y sweetness of the parsnip...so good.

The Child loved it.

I was sad when it was gone.

Daddy Sunday Dinners rock.