Quiet Day, Fish, Diet, Shopping,

A quiet day once the PSW had gone. Actually it's working out well, one of the two guys who come here now takes out the garbage, the other takes out the recycling. Only thing I am not sure about is how thorough they are about Matt's exercises. Doing them with him tonight he seemed to be less able than usual. Maybe I should see what they are doing more often.

Tonight we had salmon for a change. I enjoy that fish and am not sure why we don't eat it more. In fact we both enjoy all kinds of fish, but these days it tends to be pretty pricey. VSM has a very good fish department - not bad at the grocery store either, and I should take advantage. I just took out some smoked trout to defrost for my breakfast. I have had it for weeks and kept forgetting it. I checked up on gout the other day and one of the things I need to do is lose weight again. I blame my hospital stay a couple of years ago, ever since I came home and decided to eat, I can't stop. Having lost 50 lbs in 2013 and kept it off for 5 years I am not too happy with myself but it is difficult because these days I eat a good meal and 5 minutes later I am hungry. Every time I start to diet, I go off it by supper time. Of course, for the gout, I need to stop drinking, they say wine is OK but spirits are not. We kinda stopped drinking wine as a bottle is 3 glasses each and Matt seemed not to cope with it too well lately.

I need to get down to the store in the morning, I want more artichokes and at least one bottle of tonic for Matt. He has been drinking small bottles which come from Quebec, I discovered, but the large bottles work better.  Oh, and artichokes don't have many calories. Trouble is, Saturday is laundry day, I could have gone this aft. but I just slept and slept this afternoon. Then I fell asleep watching TV this evening. I ought to be rested by now!!!

This recipe appealed to me particularly because I figured one could cook it in the Instant Pot or by stovetop. Not quite sure how readily available shoulder or butt of pork is available. Will have to make enquiries.

Braised Pork with Citrus

The combination of citrus and spices marks this as a dish typical of many of the cuisines of the Caribbean.

For the marinade:
1 cup (250 ml) orange juice
1/4 cup (60 ml) lime juice
2-4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 Tbs (15 ml) finely chopped fresh ginger
1 tsp (5 ml) crushed black peppercorns
1/2 tsp (2 ml) cinnamon
1/2 tsp (2 ml) ground allspice
1/2 tsp (2 ml) dried oregano
1/2 tsp (2 ml) dried thyme
Salt to taste
1 Tbs (15 ml) vegetable oil
2 lbs (900 g) boneless pork shoulder or butt, cut into 3-inch (7 cm) pieces
1 cup (250 ml) beef or chicken stock
1/2 cup (125 ml) orange juice
1 15-oz (425 g) can tomatoes, drained and chopped
2 bay (laurel) leaves
Hot sauce to taste
Chopped cilantro (coriander leaves) for garnish
Lime wedges for garnish

Mix the ingredients for the marinade in a bowl and add the pork, stirring to coat the meat. Refrigerate covered overnight, stirring occasionally. Remove the pork from the marinade and reserve the marinade. Heat the oil in a large pot over high heat and brown the pork in batches. Transfer the pork to a plate and add the reserved marinade, stirring to dissolve the brown bits in the bottom of the pot. Reduce the marinade by half and add the pork and remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer covered until the meat is tender, about 1 hour. Serve garnished with cilantro and lime wedges.

Yield: Serves 4 to 6.

Source World Wide Recipes

Have a great weekend, stay well, stay safe.