Momofuku Pork Belly Ssäm with Mustard Seed Sauce

The pork belly ssäm photo didn't turn out, it was too blurry.  But trust me, we did have this recipe with the pork.  However, Niall had it with Halloumi to make it vegetarian.  (And so did I.  I liked the cheese substitute almost as much as the pork.)  What made it for me was the mustard seed sauce.  It's a little pickled cucumber, a few pickled mustard seeds, mayo, two kinds of mustard and green onions.  Fantastic!

Shredded Pork Barbacoa

Can I just say that I love pork? This is a modified version of a modified version of a knock-off recipe for the shredded pork at Cafe Rio. (Kind-of Mexican restaurant in Utah.) I got the recipe from a friend, but I can't find it on her blog anymore. And I realize the picture just doesn't look appetizing.

Ingredients

3-4 pounds pork roast *

1 1/2 cups (12 ounces or 350 ml) taco sauce **

3 cloves garlic

1 can chipolte chilies in adobo sauce

1 cup brown sugar

2 cups (16 ounces or ~400 ml) cola (Coke, Dr. Pepper, generic cola are all fine, as long as it's not diet)

Mix together the taco sauce, garlic, chilies (with adobo sauce), sugar and coke.

Pour over the pork and cook in a slow cooker for about eight hours.

When the meat is tender and done cooking, drain the liquid. (Reserve the liquid to store any leftovers, it is also a nice base for other Mexican sauces, soups, etc.)

With a fork, shred the pork. It can be used as filling for burritos, tacos, nachos, added to a salad, etc.

Leftovers will keep for a few days. Pour some of the liquid from the meat on top of the pork to keep it moist, cover and refrigerate.

* I made a half portion with 1.5 pounds of pork and reduced the cooking time to five hours.

** I have a really hard time finding taco sauce so end up making my own. The most recent recipe I used:

1 can chopped tomatoes
1 chipolte, soaked in boiling water and then with stem and seeds removed (I should have used gloves, but didn't)
2 teaspoons vinegar (I used white)
2 Tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 packet taco seasoning
1 teaspoon granulated garlic
1/4 onion

Combine everything in a blender and mix until smooth.