Lots of people are asking about the instant pot. My intuition tells me that's a bad idea for this dish, though to be fair I haven't tried it. On a pressure cooking setting, it might just burn because there is no liquid added. On slow cooking setting you won't get nearly as much flavor from the fat slightly caramelizing on top. But if you really want to try it, I would try slow cooking function on "high" setting for 5-6 hours or until the pork gets to the right consistency.
Slow cookers work well--but you don't get the tasty caramelized fat on top. In effect, I gave been accidentally making pork confit for years in the crock pot.
Hi Helen, have you compared Dutch ovens? I noticed that you are using a Le Creuset. I have a Lodge enameled cast iron dutch oven and was just wondering if you have ever compared them? Le Creuset is a bit out of our budget right now, but it may be a good investment that we will use for years to come. What do you think?
I second Helen's intuition that using the IP is probably a bad idea. Pressure cooking would seem like it would be like the braising method but on steroids. Broasting / pressure-frying would be more similar to the confit method albeit on steroids, but the Instant Pot is not rated for this cooking method and I would strongly discourage attempting this. Broasting / pressure-frying is typically only done in commercial / industrial cooking facilities with specialized equipment that's not sold to the general public because of the inherent safety issues involved.
My 87 year old Cuban mother has been slow roasting pork shoulder for decades. She dresses it with mojo, hot olive oil poured over a bowl filled with sliced onion, minced garlic, salt, and a good squeeze of juice from half a lime.
Sounds about right for a cuban mother lol. You're lucky, write down her recipes, learn all you can. People like your mother are a museum that needs to be preserved thru her knowledge, In this case her cooking recipes. Also, learn about what she lived thru and how she saw historic events etc.. better than any textbook I promise
This looks really terrific. I have cooked pork shoulder for years, smoked and braised, slow cooker, but never this method. I am looking forward to trying it. Thanks for teaching an old dog some new tricks!
Helen you balance perfectly between a charismatic (and funny) delivery, easy to understand instructions, and really good editing. I love the way you deliver everything, and how you break things down in a way that teaches people independence, and not to be afraid of experimenting. "Why say no to more flavor?" has stuck with me and I remember it every time I cook new things. Also, thank you for including subtitles, they're great for people with hearing issues such as myself!
You really are a happy scientist, and a patient one at that! I loved the chef John inserts, and of course the delightfully elucidated delicious dishes. Watching this was a true treat!
My first try at one of your recipes. It all went exactly as you said and showed. You have certainly won me over. I can't wait until the other uses for this confit. My Rillettes are chilling now! Looking forward to cooking more of your dishes!
It is not obsessive to put pieces in specific order thinking what will touch what, but it is a great cook being also an engineer. I think that a lot of cooking practices were developed just this same way.
I watched this while having a cup of tea and eating your recipe of Apricot Walnut Rugelach that I finished making this morning. Off to buy pork shoulder now. You are the best.
Totally awesome. You, Alton Brown, and Chef John (round the outside) are my culinary heroes and heroines. Thank you so much for this series. I love it.
I made it yesterday from a piece of bone in pork shoulder which was 3.4kg. That yields a lot of Rillettes. From part of it I made Carnitas by letting the still large meat cubes completely cool down in the fridge (that was an idea from Bruno Albouse in his short ribs recipe) . That enables you to cut the big pieces into small pieces without them falling apart. Then under the boiler for a few minutes to crisp them up... and what can I say ... These are THE best carnitas I ever had in my entire life. Thank you Helen! And using a mixing bowl for the Rillette with a paddle attachment is just ingenious ... was that always a pain to do by hand.
I was thinking of doing the same! Thanks for the tip. My pork is cooking now, but I've never had rillettes before and while I know it'll be good, I'm not sure if I want to make a giant batch. I think I'll use half the pork for carnitas and half for rillettes.
Only 2 minutes in and I really like the presentation. Feels like a kindly home economics teacher educating me. LOVE chef John. Just earned even more points in my book. Instructions are clear and well delivered. Subscription earned. Looking forward to more content.
In Québec we love rillettes! Especially with a fougasse aux olives! - Thank you for showing me how to make them. Now I can enjoy them even when we are traveling in Arizona.
Chef John has a very old pair of videos on his method of making pork confit. It involves wrapping the pork shoulder in plastic wrap tightly for three layers, and then foil for three layers, and cooked in a low temperature oven for many hours.
I only recently found your channel and I'm glad I did. You are a really good teacher, with lots of explanations and directions. I want to try this one, however today I'm making your caramelized cabbage. I know this is a lot of work for you so, Thank You!
Thank you so much for your fearlessly honest comments on braising and slow roasting. Also a big thank you for sharing the precise meat, fat, juice ratio. I finally created the perfect texture and flavor thanks to your details.
Just whipped up 3.5 kilos of this pork....I'm supposed to leave some for the rillettes and carnitas tacos....but it's disappearing way too fast! It tastes so good. Thanks for the great video.
Making this as we speak. I've done it with chicken thighs before, but I've always braised pork shoulder. Your arguments in the beginning made perfect sense. I'm a bachelor and I work double shifts 3 days on and 4 days off. I generally cook large quantities of food on my fourth day off and from those base meats and sauces and other items I cook that day I will make various meals from it for the next three. I prefer this over making one large pot of stew or soup etc. It makes me have different meals over those 3 work days without doing anything drastic to make the dishes because I prepped. Anyways, I say all that to say this. I love this method because I have a ton of pork I can make tacos, salads etc as you said from it, but I also get pork fat to cook eggs or other meals in as well as I reserve the bone(I trim whole neck myself) and I freeze the bones for other weeks when maybe I didn't shop and can make some cabbage and potatoes with that pork neck. Anyways I love your channel. Been watching on off for long time. You are one of the people that I learned to bake from because I actually hate baking, as I don't like pastry etc, but pizza, flat breads and other savory baked goods I love and I learned from you and a few other channels.
I've been making pork shoulder for years! It's such an easy and versatile dish! Never tried slow-roasting, only braised. Excited to try confit method! I'm gonna add some mango/ginger chutney on top of those sammiches 😄😄😄
I made this today with 4kg of pork shoulder! They are delicious!!! Alot of family members and friends are going to be very happy I follow you! Thank you!
Have made several times with great success. Most recent cook pork shoulder from Costco with little or no fat cap. I picked up pork belly (also from Costco) to create the top layer cover. Made almost entire amount into rillettes. Family and friends ate entire batch before I could freeze some for future. Extra fat made great frying oil for other dishes.
I have always appreciated exposing culinary frauds and, anymore, through the internet there is way too many. Helen’s honesty is as refreshing as the seemingly insignificant details that are NOT at all insignificant if a person wants to duplicate culinary
perfection. And Helen provides just that. There has not been one single recipe I’ve made of Helen’s that has not exceeded my expectations. And the compliments...oh yah. Then there is Chef John. If anyone has made a Chef John recipe most definitely they know, like Helen, he is a Master worth emulating, too. I love the Chef John reference, particularly in light of the otherwise mentioned that are just a few of the handful of not so great. Merry Christmas, and thank you Helen (and Chef John) for making me look like I know what I’m doing. 🎄
Helen, I really liked this video. I usually smoke my pork low and slow, or for only 45 minutes and then chunk it up and slow cook with onions for a few hours with 1/2 cup of water. I will definitely be trying this method with my short smoke slow cook pork. Thank you
I got goosebumps when I saw that pork searing on the pan - you have a true skill! I love watching your videos because your advice is always extremely helpful
I made this recipe last week and it turned out more delicious than I could have hoped. Not having any smoked paprika, I went ahead and used some Tony Chachere's original creole seasoning and I still can't get enough of the resulting Rillettes. My plan is to use the rest of the pork, now frozen, in some empanadas I'll be putting together for our Family Christmas Pot Luck. I'm looking forward to Helen's other uses for the pork and will be cooking my next batch of pork confit soon to try those out. Thanks so much Helen for the entertainment and knowledge you pass along!
OMG! My wife and I have been messing about with Pork for about a year, building up to something. Now I know what it is. I cannot wait to share this video with my wife tomorrow :)
Hi Helen. I tried making this dish yesterday with what I had in hand. Had no paprika, or most of the other aromatics. A bit of thyme that I added to the salt mixture. Used a small, old yellow onion rather than the shallots. White pepper instead of black because that's what I prefer. My pork didn't have the same fat cap as yours (or it was under the skin, which I didn't want to remove), so I used the skin and what little layer of fat there was on the bottom and top of the pot. Three hours later, my pork also was in a pool of oil and juices-- though, only 2/3 of the way. I also had the pork shoulder bone with the rest of the meat too; included its weight with the salt mixture measurements so maybe the pork is saltier than intended. Still edible, and tasty. Goes well with plain white rice. Meat wasn't melt-in-your-mouth tender, had chew to it, which was fine because that's how I liked it. Some areas are drier than others which is a shame, but I'll live. Skin was soft and had no browning because of the lid, and some remaining fat on the meat is blubbery, but I'm also fine with that. Thank you for the recipe!
It looks fantastic. I will have to give it try. My mother use to save all the fat drippings from a pork roast and after refrigerated spread on some dark German bread with some salt and pepper. I loved it. I'm sure I'll love this too. Thanks for sharing. Stay well and safe.
This is, by far, the best way to make pork! So tender and flavorful! I used it to make burritos, tacos (for those I seasoned it up with chopped onions, red and orange bell peppers, and my own blend of taco seasoning), as well as sandwiches and salad toppings. Very versatile, and practically melts in your mouth. Thank you for such clear instructions! Heading to the kitchen now to make more.
Thank you Helen for disclosing the ratios. I used just under 4 LBS of a shoulder and made 350 grams of the rillettes. So far very delicious. Tomorrow, my salad will consist of arugula, strawberries, slivered almonds, croutons, and crispy confit with a simple olive oil and red wine vinegar dressing. I love the way you explain things. My wife enjoyed the rillettes so, happy wife....
Dear Helen, thank you for your excellent recipes. They are just great and I appreciate your benevolence on the screen. About your scientific explanation of the merits of confit in oil, may I complete your explanation (as a chemist). If you cook meat in water based liquid, your temperature is always limited to 100oC or even below, according to altitude. That is, you boil your meat. If you cook it in his own fat (oil once it is hot), the temperature of the oil will follow the outside temperature and rise higher if the oven is higher than 100oC (e.i. 150oC). So the meat will be exposed to more than 100oC, that means that all the water inside the meat will gently vaporise and escape as vapor, thus drying and desiccating the meat. Once all the water is out, the temperature inside the meat can grow and the cooking in oil at higher temperature will "confit" it. Best regards from Switzerland.
Thank you for this recipe. I appreciate all the effort you put into researching and explaining your recipes. You make everything seem approachable and I always feel like I can achieve the same results as you do because your videos are so comprehensive. Thanks so much for all your effort.
I love you! Haha you’re wonderful. I’m sad that I’m BARELY finding your channel just now. Consider me a loyal subscriber now. I just threw my pork confit in the oven and I can’t wait to try. I’m making the carnitas version, but it’s literally just the Mexican version of the French confit method. Cheers.
Thank you, once again Helen. I love your presentation, and you have demystified confit perfectly. I will definitely try this. My absolute favourite way of cooking pork, apart from the roasts l grew up with, is ltalian style - maiale al latte - pork in milk. Unbelievably good, and, if you don't know it already, I'd love to think you'd try it. The milk reduces to make a stunning sauce and, although the fat needs to be trimmed as, like you said, it ends up resembling blubber, the fat content of the milk more than compensates. 😊
Dear Helen, I'm from Southern California and the closest we have to a charcuterie board is Hillshire Farms' prepackaged "Small Plates." I had the chance to try a charcuterie board in Boston and it was one of the most delicious things I have tasted. I have no idea if you imparted your knowledge onto their menu, but I am so grateful for all your tips and your recipes so I can make it myself back home!
Watching this video was a true delight. I am definitely incorporating this into my meal plans for the holidays. Also - I very much appreciate the scientific approach, in particular that you give percentages for the seasoning.
Just did it this week. Excelente! Just added some lime juice to my rillette as it was a little too sweet. Tip: if you plan to use all the pork shoulder for rillette, like I did, there will be no fat enough rendered from the shoulder. I purchased some pork fat from a Mexico market (manteca de cerdo, grasa de cerco). Paid $1.50 for 14oz. Not the same of bacon fat!
This is AMAZING! We visited friends in western France and had dinner at Rochemenier. We had the most delicious rillettes there and finally are able to make it. Thank you.
Dear Helen. You are so generous! I love looking at your videos. I wish to be able to get the chance to follow one of your classes one day. Thank you for sharing your experiences and recipes.
This looks DEEEELICIOUS!!! I often bbq (smoke) pork picnic or pork butts and they're both wonderful cuts of meat. I smoke on a rack in a pan to save the juices but I've been discarding the fat. This looks like a brilliant idea. I can't wait to try it. Thanks Miss Helen. 🙏👨🍳
This is amazing. The pork confit was amazing, right out of the pot and the Rillettes is a great find. Turned out good and entire family enjoyed it. I have always liked pâté and braunschweiger/liverwurst but no one else would eat it. Now we can all enjoy this together. Looking forward to making the other 2 recipes in the coming days. Thanks!
Oh! as ever, the instructions are clear and well presented, the recipes themselves are terrific......but Helen! It's YOU that is just perfectly wonderful! Я обожаю тебя! Happy Holidays to you and yours!
I came across your channel completely by random and I was so stoked when you started talking about Chef Jogn. I love that dude and am very happy that I found your show :)
I do pulled pork in a crock pot. No liquid. All the internal fat renders and there's SO MUCH of it. When I add my Carolina vinegar sauce, the pork absorbs it all after I drain the fat from the crock pot. I don't get burnt ends from smoking, but it's definitely a Carolina pulled pork. So juicy and tender. And I love that "blubbery" internal fat. So good.
Wow the way I make pulled pork was unintentionally confit! I would roast an entire shoulder in my dutch oven until tender, then shred it in the pan, letting it sit and carry-cook in its own fat until there was no longer a pool of it in my pan. Ultra tender pulled pork every time!
Outcome steady is thanks to Rennie. Hello Hellen. Until now I’ve been making Pork Rillettes using Anthony Bourdain’s recipe in his book Les Halles. Today I tried doing it your way annnnnd…. From now on I’ll be doing it your way. 🤩🤩🤩. I tasted some while it was hot and my immediate thought was that I’d better dial the salt back to 0.8 next time but let’s wait and see how it tastes once it’s been in the fridge for a day or so. I really like this method. Thanks for sharing.
I love your chef John reference! Well done! 👍 Also I really enjoyed this video. We need more slow cooking in this world. Waiting is always worth the wait.
Wonderful as always. Thank you for sharing your knowledge, skill, inspiration, enthusiasm and infinite charm. I love pork but never had the courage to cook it myself - pork fat can be revolting with careless (under)cooking. You have convinced me to try it myself. I know I would enjoy your cooking classes but Australia isn’t very close to Boston. 🙂
Big appreciation post to you Helen you genuinely give me drive to continue my pursuit in the culinary field. You video give me inspiration and wonder about all the things that I can do and the things I don't know. Your a straight up gem of the culinary world keep it up !!!
Thank you for showing me this recipe. And more importantly the method! I was intrigued by the idea of cooking something slow in oil instead of high temperature frying. So I made this - twice. The first one I burnt to a brick. But I tried again. the results were that I found one of the most tender and juicy chunks of meat I have made. I did not like the pimenton, and will reduce it a lot next time. I also want to try this with beef. Very good!
I'm making this recipe this week-end. Looks absolutely delicious. Pimenton is a great idea. I wanted to share my experience with confit. I grew up in South-West of France, Toulouse, and we confit a lot over there. I usually make sure to add enough melted fat to cover the meat. I'm not sure it makes a difference if your pork is very fatty. But if you only have the marbled shoulder without the thick layer of fat on top, I suggest you add melted lard. 300ºF for the whole baking time might be a little too hot. For best results and consistently "melt-in-your-mouth" meat, I preheat my oven to 150ºC (300ºF) and bake for about 30 minutes at that temperature. Then I lower the oven temperature to about 120ºC (250ºF) or just enough to keep the fat at a constant 90ºC (194ºF). I use a thermometer to check the fat temperature after 1 hour or so and adjust the oven heat as needed. The 1st time around, I suggest checking that fat temperature every 15 minutes or so, until you know what temperature your oven should be in order to keep the fat at 90ºC (194ºF). Take note of that temperature for future reference to avoid fiddling with the oven thermostat every time you confit something. Also, the reason you start at 150ºC (300ºF) is because the pot and the meat are cold so starting a bit hotter allows heating up everything faster.
Thanks for this very nice video. I come from Tours and there Vouvray (the local sweet white wine) is added to the cooking process. Rillons are also produced by adding the wine to the cooking process.
I made this recipe this week. I have to confess that I didn´t put the pork in a regular oven, but a wood oven, but I didn´t do anymore ajustments to the recipe, so my pork ended up more toasted and without any gravy, just some fat, so I decided not to make the rillettes but rather try out the other recipes suggested in the other video. The salad turned out delicious, although I didn't put fennel, bacause I do not appreciate it that much, I forgot the shallot and didn't feel like chopping herbs. I only had parsley and I didn´t think it would bring to much to the salad. Still I must say that the pork is delicioius, I will make it again with some ajustments, because I really want to use the wood oven. I would like to thank you for the recipe, I love your channel. Thanks
I followed the recipe for the confit, and rillettes, but I used turkey thigh meat. I covered it with the fatty thigh skin but otherwise followed every step. It turned out really great, even though turkey thigh is not so fatty as pork shoulder.
I have a huge lump of pork with a great fat cap in my fridge, ready to be made into confit & rillette for our family Christmas feast. Happy holidays, Helen, and thank you for your wonderfully clear instructions. ❤️
I love watching your videos Helen ... I always learn something, and love how you challenge the standard approaches in a very thoughtful way. This video on pork shoulder makes perfect sense to me and I will definitely give it a go. I look forward to the ideas you have in the next few videos!
Lots of people are asking about the instant pot. My intuition tells me that's a bad idea for this dish, though to be fair I haven't tried it. On a pressure cooking setting, it might just burn because there is no liquid added. On slow cooking setting you won't get nearly as much flavor from the fat slightly caramelizing on top. But if you really want to try it, I would try slow cooking function on "high" setting for 5-6 hours or until the pork gets to the right consistency.
Would you like to try doing it in an electric pressure cooker and tell us if it has the same flavor?
btw, thanks for a GREAT video explanation and tutorial. You are delightful. My husband and I love watching!
Slow cookers work well--but you don't get the tasty caramelized fat on top. In effect, I gave been accidentally making pork confit for years in the crock pot.
Hi Helen, have you compared Dutch ovens? I noticed that you are using a Le Creuset. I have a Lodge enameled cast iron dutch oven and was just wondering if you have ever compared them? Le Creuset is a bit out of our budget right now, but it may be a good investment that we will use for years to come. What do you think?
I second Helen's intuition that using the IP is probably a bad idea. Pressure cooking would seem like it would be like the braising method but on steroids. Broasting / pressure-frying would be more similar to the confit method albeit on steroids, but the Instant Pot is not rated for this cooking method and I would strongly discourage attempting this. Broasting / pressure-frying is typically only done in commercial / industrial cooking facilities with specialized equipment that's not sold to the general public because of the inherent safety issues involved.
"You are Chef John of whether to turn your scale on" I love it! We all stan Chef John :)
She made me laugh when she said that 😂
@@beatrizsandoval4395 Me too, and I hoped Chef John watches this video too :)
All foodtubers worship at the throne of Emperor Chef John, even the great Helen.
My 87 year old Cuban mother has been slow roasting pork shoulder for decades. She dresses it with mojo, hot olive oil poured over a bowl filled with sliced onion, minced garlic, salt, and a good squeeze of juice from half a lime.
Sounds about right for a cuban mother lol. You're lucky, write down her recipes, learn all you can. People like your mother are a museum that needs to be preserved thru her knowledge, In this case her cooking recipes. Also, learn about what she lived thru and how she saw historic events etc.. better than any textbook I promise
As a French guy who grew up eating riettes, thank you very much I didn't know it was that easy!
I will try to make this because I’ve not had them in a long time.
This looks really terrific. I have cooked pork shoulder for years, smoked and braised, slow cooker, but never this method. I am looking forward to trying it. Thanks for teaching
an old dog some new tricks!
Helen you balance perfectly between a charismatic (and funny) delivery, easy to understand instructions, and really good editing. I love the way you deliver everything, and how you break things down in a way that teaches people independence, and not to be afraid of experimenting. "Why say no to more flavor?" has stuck with me and I remember it every time I cook new things. Also, thank you for including subtitles, they're great for people with hearing issues such as myself!
I know. She slays me.
I love the chef john references :)
You really are a happy scientist, and a patient one at that! I loved the chef John inserts, and of course the delightfully elucidated delicious dishes. Watching this was a true treat!
Concur! Even though I am full from my recent meal, I am just dying to taste her rillette!
My first try at one of your recipes. It all went exactly as you said and showed. You have certainly won me over. I can't wait until the other uses for this confit. My Rillettes are chilling now! Looking forward to cooking more of your dishes!
So glad it went well :)
It is not obsessive to put pieces in specific order thinking what will touch what, but it is a great cook being also an engineer. I think that a lot of cooking practices were developed just this same way.
I watched this while having a cup of tea and eating your recipe of Apricot Walnut Rugelach that I finished making this morning. Off to buy pork shoulder now. You are the best.
so glad you enjoyed the rugelach :)
Totally awesome. You, Alton Brown, and Chef John (round the outside) are my culinary heroes and heroines. Thank you so much for this series. I love it.
I made it yesterday from a piece of bone in pork shoulder which was 3.4kg. That yields a lot of Rillettes. From part of it I made Carnitas by letting the still large meat cubes completely cool down in the fridge (that was an idea from Bruno Albouse in his short ribs recipe) . That enables you to cut the big pieces into small pieces without them falling apart. Then under the boiler for a few minutes to crisp them up... and what can I say ... These are THE best carnitas I ever had in my entire life. Thank you Helen! And using a mixing bowl for the Rillette with a paddle attachment is just ingenious ... was that always a pain to do by hand.
So glad it all turned out well :)
I was thinking of doing the same! Thanks for the tip. My pork is cooking now, but I've never had rillettes before and while I know it'll be good, I'm not sure if I want to make a giant batch. I think I'll use half the pork for carnitas and half for rillettes.
Only 2 minutes in and I really like the presentation. Feels like a kindly home economics teacher educating me. LOVE chef John. Just earned even more points in my book. Instructions are clear and well delivered. Subscription earned. Looking forward to more content.
In Québec we love rillettes! Especially with a fougasse aux olives! - Thank you for showing me how to make them. Now I can enjoy them even when we are traveling in Arizona.
Chef John has a very old pair of videos on his method of making pork confit. It involves wrapping the pork shoulder in plastic wrap tightly for three layers, and then foil for three layers, and cooked in a low temperature oven for many hours.
I only recently found your channel and I'm glad I did. You are a really good teacher, with lots of explanations and directions. I want to try this one, however today I'm making your caramelized cabbage. I know this is a lot of work for you so, Thank You!
Isn’t she wonderful? I’ve been a subscriber for more than a year and I love her. She gives so much information and details. So much work.
Thank you so much for your fearlessly honest comments on braising and slow roasting. Also a big thank you for sharing the precise meat, fat, juice ratio. I finally created the perfect texture and flavor thanks to your details.
Just whipped up 3.5 kilos of this pork....I'm supposed to leave some for the rillettes and carnitas tacos....but it's disappearing way too fast! It tastes so good. Thanks for the great video.
I keep coming back to this video because I just find it so satisfying 😌
Why is helen so powerful. I wish Helen was my teacher for everything.
Making this as we speak. I've done it with chicken thighs before, but I've always braised pork shoulder. Your arguments in the beginning made perfect sense. I'm a bachelor and I work double shifts 3 days on and 4 days off. I generally cook large quantities of food on my fourth day off and from those base meats and sauces and other items I cook that day I will make various meals from it for the next three. I prefer this over making one large pot of stew or soup etc. It makes me have different meals over those 3 work days without doing anything drastic to make the dishes because I prepped. Anyways, I say all that to say this. I love this method because I have a ton of pork I can make tacos, salads etc as you said from it, but I also get pork fat to cook eggs or other meals in as well as
I reserve the bone(I trim whole neck myself) and I freeze the bones for other weeks when maybe I didn't shop and can make some cabbage and potatoes with that pork neck.
Anyways I love your channel. Been watching on off for long time. You are one of the people that I learned to bake from because I actually hate baking, as I don't like pastry etc, but pizza, flat breads and other savory baked goods I love and I learned from you and a few other channels.
"You are Chef John of whether to turn your scale on" got you the like!
I've been making pork shoulder for years! It's such an easy and versatile dish! Never tried slow-roasting, only braised. Excited to try confit method! I'm gonna add some mango/ginger chutney on top of those sammiches 😄😄😄
I made this today with 4kg of pork shoulder! They are delicious!!! Alot of family members and friends are going to be very happy I follow you! Thank you!
So glad it turned out well :)
Have made several times with great success. Most recent cook pork shoulder from Costco with little or no fat cap. I picked up pork belly (also from Costco) to create the top layer cover. Made almost entire amount into rillettes. Family and friends ate entire batch before I could freeze some for future. Extra fat made great frying oil for other dishes.
Omg I hope Chef John sees this video! He always cheers me up.
I have always appreciated exposing culinary frauds and, anymore, through the internet there is way too many. Helen’s honesty is as refreshing as the seemingly insignificant details that are NOT at all insignificant if a person wants to duplicate culinary
perfection. And Helen provides just that.
There has not been one single recipe I’ve made of Helen’s that has not exceeded my expectations. And the compliments...oh yah.
Then there is Chef John. If anyone has made a Chef John recipe most definitely they know, like Helen, he is a Master worth emulating, too. I love the Chef John reference, particularly in light of the otherwise mentioned that are just a few of the handful of not so great.
Merry Christmas, and thank you Helen (and Chef John) for making me look like I know what I’m doing. 🎄
Helen, I really liked this video. I usually smoke my pork low and slow, or for only 45 minutes and then chunk it up and slow cook with onions for a few hours with 1/2 cup of water. I will definitely be trying this method with my short smoke slow cook pork. Thank you
I got goosebumps when I saw that pork searing on the pan - you have a true skill! I love watching your videos because your advice is always extremely helpful
I made this recipe last week and it turned out more delicious than I could have hoped. Not having any smoked paprika, I went ahead and used some Tony Chachere's original creole seasoning and I still can't get enough of the resulting Rillettes. My plan is to use the rest of the pork, now frozen, in some empanadas I'll be putting together for our Family Christmas Pot Luck. I'm looking forward to Helen's other uses for the pork and will be cooking my next batch of pork confit soon to try those out. Thanks so much Helen for the entertainment and knowledge you pass along!
So glad you enjoyed the rillettes. Great job improvising with the spices :)
OMG! My wife and I have been messing about with Pork for about a year, building up to something. Now I know what it is. I cannot wait to share this video with my wife tomorrow :)
Hi Helen. I tried making this dish yesterday with what I had in hand. Had no paprika, or most of the other aromatics. A bit of thyme that I added to the salt mixture. Used a small, old yellow onion rather than the shallots. White pepper instead of black because that's what I prefer. My pork didn't have the same fat cap as yours (or it was under the skin, which I didn't want to remove), so I used the skin and what little layer of fat there was on the bottom and top of the pot.
Three hours later, my pork also was in a pool of oil and juices-- though, only 2/3 of the way. I also had the pork shoulder bone with the rest of the meat too; included its weight with the salt mixture measurements so maybe the pork is saltier than intended. Still edible, and tasty. Goes well with plain white rice. Meat wasn't melt-in-your-mouth tender, had chew to it, which was fine because that's how I liked it. Some areas are drier than others which is a shame, but I'll live. Skin was soft and had no browning because of the lid, and some remaining fat on the meat is blubbery, but I'm also fine with that.
Thank you for the recipe!
Thanks for the recipe. Fabulous Chef John references!
Now that's what a call a TUTORIAL. The rillettes looks fantastic and I can't wait to see what you will do with the rest of the pork.
It looks fantastic. I will have to give it try. My mother use to save all the fat drippings from a pork roast and after refrigerated spread on some dark German bread with some salt and pepper. I loved it. I'm sure I'll love this too. Thanks for sharing. Stay well and safe.
This is, by far, the best way to make pork! So tender and flavorful! I used it to make burritos, tacos (for those I seasoned it up with chopped onions, red and orange bell peppers, and my own blend of taco seasoning), as well as sandwiches and salad toppings. Very versatile, and practically melts in your mouth. Thank you for such clear instructions! Heading to the kitchen now to make more.
Thank you Helen for disclosing the ratios. I used just under 4 LBS of a shoulder and made 350 grams of the rillettes. So far very delicious. Tomorrow, my salad will consist of arugula, strawberries, slivered almonds, croutons, and crispy confit with a simple olive oil and red wine vinegar dressing. I love the way you explain things. My wife enjoyed the rillettes so, happy wife....
Your voice could launch a thousand ships! I love the sound of it! thanks.
Your most compelling and sensual video yet LORD I will be making this as soon as possible
Thank you! This and your croissant video have helped me master the art of French cooking. 😉
Dear Helen, thank you for your excellent recipes. They are just great and I appreciate your benevolence on the screen. About your scientific explanation of the merits of confit in oil, may I complete your explanation (as a chemist). If you cook meat in water based liquid, your temperature is always limited to 100oC or even below, according to altitude. That is, you boil your meat. If you cook it in his own fat (oil once it is hot), the temperature of the oil will follow the outside temperature and rise higher if the oven is higher than 100oC (e.i. 150oC). So the meat will be exposed to more than 100oC, that means that all the water inside the meat will gently vaporise and escape as vapor, thus drying and desiccating the meat. Once all the water is out, the temperature inside the meat can grow and the cooking in oil at higher temperature will "confit" it. Best regards from Switzerland.
Thank you for this recipe. I appreciate all the effort you put into researching and explaining your recipes. You make everything seem approachable and I always feel like I can achieve the same results as you do because your videos are so comprehensive. Thanks so much for all your effort.
I love you! Haha you’re wonderful. I’m sad that I’m BARELY finding your channel just now. Consider me a loyal subscriber now. I just threw my pork confit in the oven and I can’t wait to try. I’m making the carnitas version, but it’s literally just the Mexican version of the French confit method. Cheers.
Chef John is a hero
Thank you, once again Helen. I love your presentation, and you have demystified confit perfectly. I will definitely try this. My absolute favourite way of cooking pork, apart from the roasts l grew up with, is ltalian style - maiale al latte - pork in milk. Unbelievably good, and, if you don't know it already, I'd love to think you'd try it. The milk reduces to make a stunning sauce and, although the fat needs to be trimmed as, like you said, it ends up resembling blubber, the fat content of the milk more than compensates. 😊
Dear Helen, I'm from Southern California and the closest we have to a charcuterie board is Hillshire Farms' prepackaged "Small Plates." I had the chance to try a charcuterie board in Boston and it was one of the most delicious things I have tasted. I have no idea if you imparted your knowledge onto their menu, but I am so grateful for all your tips and your recipes so I can make it myself back home!
Oh my..that looks delicious. I can almost smell the pork! Thank you!!!
Watching this video was a true delight. I am definitely incorporating this into my meal plans for the holidays.
Also - I very much appreciate the scientific approach, in particular that you give percentages for the seasoning.
Just did it this week. Excelente! Just added some lime juice to my rillette as it was a little too sweet.
Tip: if you plan to use all the pork shoulder for rillette, like I did, there will be no fat enough rendered from the shoulder. I purchased some pork fat from a Mexico market (manteca de cerdo, grasa de cerco). Paid $1.50 for 14oz. Not the same of bacon fat!
I love the lime juice idea :)
K for real I think I just discovered the best chef on RUclips. Magnifique.
This is AMAZING! We visited friends in western France and had dinner at Rochemenier. We had the most delicious rillettes there and finally are able to make it. Thank you.
Dear Helen. You are so generous! I love looking at your videos. I wish to be able to get the chance to follow one of your classes one day. Thank you for sharing your experiences and recipes.
Such a lovely shout out to chef John 🥰
This is a great explanatory video - merci, Chef! 👩🍳
What a soothing voice and video. I'm going to try this for Xmas dinner!
This looks DEEEELICIOUS!!! I often bbq (smoke) pork picnic or pork butts and they're both wonderful cuts of meat. I smoke on a rack in a pan to save the juices but I've been discarding the fat. This looks like a brilliant idea. I can't wait to try it. Thanks Miss Helen. 🙏👨🍳
This is amazing. The pork confit was amazing, right out of the pot and the Rillettes is a great find. Turned out good and entire family enjoyed it. I have always liked pâté and braunschweiger/liverwurst but no one else would eat it. Now we can all enjoy this together. Looking forward to making the other 2 recipes in the coming days. Thanks!
Oh! as ever, the instructions are clear and well presented, the recipes themselves are terrific......but Helen! It's YOU that is just perfectly wonderful! Я обожаю тебя! Happy Holidays to you and yours!
I came across your channel completely by random and I was so stoked when you started talking about Chef Jogn. I love that dude and am very happy that I found your show :)
"I really should have gotten a bigger bowl" spoken like a true chef john fan
I do pulled pork in a crock pot. No liquid. All the internal fat renders and there's SO MUCH of it. When I add my Carolina vinegar sauce, the pork absorbs it all after I drain the fat from the crock pot. I don't get burnt ends from smoking, but it's definitely a Carolina pulled pork. So juicy and tender. And I love that "blubbery" internal fat. So good.
I have just discovered you and I am in love. AND, Chef John, he is one of the best ever.
As someone who is terrible at eyeballing things I really appreciate the precise measurements
This video earned you a subscriber! Been looking for new ways to cook pork roast thank you! 🇺🇸👍
This channel rocks!
Wow the way I make pulled pork was unintentionally confit! I would roast an entire shoulder in my dutch oven until tender, then shred it in the pan, letting it sit and carry-cook in its own fat until there was no longer a pool of it in my pan. Ultra tender pulled pork every time!
I grew up on rillettes, it was kept all winter without a fridge. This video makes me nostalgique.
This lady knows her stuff
Thumbs up for Chef John reference.
Absolutely loved the Chef John of whether to turn your scale on. :D
Divine. Looking forward to the other recipes using this meat!
Outcome steady is thanks to Rennie.
Hello Hellen. Until now I’ve been making Pork Rillettes using Anthony Bourdain’s recipe in his book Les Halles. Today I tried doing it your way annnnnd…. From now on I’ll be doing it your way. 🤩🤩🤩.
I tasted some while it was hot and my immediate thought was that I’d better dial the salt back to 0.8 next time but let’s wait and see how it tastes once it’s been in the fridge for a day or so.
I really like this method. Thanks for sharing.
I love your chef John reference! Well done! 👍
Also I really enjoyed this video. We need more slow cooking in this world. Waiting is always worth the wait.
Wonderful as always. Thank you for sharing your knowledge, skill, inspiration, enthusiasm and infinite charm. I love pork but never had the courage to cook it myself - pork fat can be revolting with careless (under)cooking. You have convinced me to try it myself. I know I would enjoy your cooking classes but Australia isn’t very close to Boston. 🙂
So excited for this series! Thank you Helen! I won't be able to let the holidays go by without making this
Just want to say, what a great video. Very informative and educational. I am an experienced cook yet I learnt so much. Humbling.
Big appreciation post to you Helen you genuinely give me drive to continue my pursuit in the culinary field. You video give me inspiration and wonder about all the things that I can do and the things I don't know. Your a straight up gem of the culinary world keep it up !!!
It is really hard to find a different/refreshing cooking channels. Yours is one of them. Subscribed.
I really love this channel, the way she explains what's gonna happen when I do something really helps me a lot.
Thank you for showing me this recipe. And more importantly the method! I was intrigued by the idea of cooking something slow in oil instead of high temperature frying. So I made this - twice. The first one I burnt to a brick. But I tried again. the results were that I found one of the most tender and juicy chunks of meat I have made. I did not like the pimenton, and will reduce it a lot next time. I also want to try this with beef. Very good!
Your commentary is amazing!! Such an intimate and gentle tone of voice :) Excited to try rillettes!
I'm making this recipe this week-end. Looks absolutely delicious. Pimenton is a great idea. I wanted to share my experience with confit. I grew up in South-West of France, Toulouse, and we confit a lot over there. I usually make sure to add enough melted fat to cover the meat. I'm not sure it makes a difference if your pork is very fatty. But if you only have the marbled shoulder without the thick layer of fat on top, I suggest you add melted lard. 300ºF for the whole baking time might be a little too hot. For best results and consistently "melt-in-your-mouth" meat, I preheat my oven to 150ºC (300ºF) and bake for about 30 minutes at that temperature. Then I lower the oven temperature to about 120ºC (250ºF) or just enough to keep the fat at a constant 90ºC (194ºF). I use a thermometer to check the fat temperature after 1 hour or so and adjust the oven heat as needed. The 1st time around, I suggest checking that fat temperature every 15 minutes or so, until you know what temperature your oven should be in order to keep the fat at 90ºC (194ºF). Take note of that temperature for future reference to avoid fiddling with the oven thermostat every time you confit something. Also, the reason you start at 150ºC (300ºF) is because the pot and the meat are cold so starting a bit hotter allows heating up everything faster.
Speaking of melting fat...your voice always melts me ; ) I'm looking forward to giving this a try. Thank you!
Thanks for this very nice video. I come from Tours and there Vouvray (the local sweet white wine) is added to the cooking process. Rillons are also produced by adding the wine to the cooking process.
went great on my first try, definitely going to be my go to for pork
Love the nod to Chef John. Aside from being adorable, I knew there was another reason why I liked you.
I did the Confit. Works out pretty good.
Helen, with this series of recipes, will be the OG of pork confit. 😜
Helen this has to be one of your finest videos yet ☺️❤️
I'm so glad I found this channel! I really like the amount of time you spend comparing different techniques!
Excellent video, wonderfully explained information.
I made this recipe this week. I have to confess that I didn´t put the pork in a regular oven, but a wood oven, but I didn´t do anymore ajustments to the recipe, so my pork ended up more toasted and without any gravy, just some fat, so I decided not to make the rillettes but rather try out the other recipes suggested in the other video. The salad turned out delicious, although I didn't put fennel, bacause I do not appreciate it that much, I forgot the shallot and didn't feel like chopping herbs. I only had parsley and I didn´t think it would bring to much to the salad. Still I must say that the pork is delicioius, I will make it again with some ajustments, because I really want to use the wood oven. I would like to thank you for the recipe, I love your channel. Thanks
glad you enjoyed it!
Thank you! I tried your method and made confit port and rillettes. Really delicious and going to be my go-to slow cooking pork method
I followed the recipe for the confit, and rillettes, but I used turkey thigh meat. I covered it with the fatty thigh skin but otherwise followed every step. It turned out really great, even though turkey thigh is not so fatty as pork shoulder.
I've made this exact Chef John recipe several times and now I look forward to trying your pork confit and Rillettes.
UPDATE
I made this, for xmas, and it was the best pork we've ever had.
I am now hungry. That looks so delicious.
I have a huge lump of pork with a great fat cap in my fridge, ready to be made into confit & rillette for our family Christmas feast. Happy holidays, Helen, and thank you for your wonderfully clear instructions. ❤️
This was amazing!! Can’t wait to do it again.
I love watching your videos Helen ... I always learn something, and love how you challenge the standard approaches in a very thoughtful way. This video on pork shoulder makes perfect sense to me and I will definitely give it a go. I look forward to the ideas you have in the next few videos!
This looked so yummy. I’m saving this video and I’m going to make it. Thank you so much Helen. I love watching your videos.