budget-friendly recipes and meal planning
This apple goat cheese spinach salad with citrus dressing made its debut at a family Thanksgiving gathering. Thankfully, it was a hit. Nothing like using family to test out new recipes, but then again, I don’t think they mind helping out either. The citrus […]
Our favorite pulled pork potachos Do you ever find yourself with leftover pork loin or pulled pork, and you are maybe not really wanting another barbecue pork sandwich? I have a sweet and savory solution you must try: pulled pork potachos. Back […]
thick and chewy chocolate chip cookies You can’t go wrong with these thick and chewy chocolate chip cookies. The recipe is born out of America’s Test Kitchen. Expert cooks spent many attempts figuring out the best recipe for this variety of cookie. It’s […]
If you’re like me, you have your same old go-to pantry items like olive oil or vegetable oil. But once in a while, a new product comes across your path. So you have to share about it. Upon meeting the couple behind the […]
Instant Pot Italian Bean Soup This Instant Pot Italian Bean Soup is delicious the day you make it, becomes even better tasting leftovers, and creates a wonderful freezer meal to use later. Above all, the ingredients can be found at ALDI too. Win, win. […]
Do you ever find yourself with leftover pork loin or pulled pork, and you are maybe not really wanting another barbecue pork sandwich? I have a sweet and savory solution you must try: pulled pork potachos.
Back when my husband and I had extra money to burn, we made it to a little dive bar in town a handful of times before it closed. Consequently at almost every visit there, we devoured a large order of their mouth-watering pulled pork potachos – short for potato-nachos. Although technically an appetizer, it served as our meal.
A layer of their homemade potato chips topped with shredded pulled pork created the foundation to hold even more toppings and sauces.
From what I remember, the pulled pork potatchos we ordered were topped with sweetcorn kernels, green onions, sliced black olives, and a smattering of shredded cabbage/slaw.
But it doesn’t stop there. Drizzled layers of melted cheese, sour cream, barbecue sauce and an avocado or cilantro ranch came next.
Last of all were a handful of pickled sliced jalapeños. All served warm.
Truly a hot mess of a guilty pleasure. But oh so good!
One night inspiration hit me. I had leftover pulled pork made from Pioneer Woman’s recipe. Maybe I’d never tried making potachos at home because I didn’t think I could create quite the same level as the restaurant kitchen. That’s why we eat out, isn’t it?
Most of the ingredients needed for the potachos are at ALDI (the flavored ranch usually isn’t found there).
Due to sticking to our budget, not eating out as much, and our dear old dive going of business, I had to attempt a recreation of pulled pork potachos. Here’s what it involved for us that night:
Kettle-cooked chips (store bought 8 oz ALDI brand) stood in for homemade restaurant potato chips.
Shredded pulled pork already on hand.
Coleslaw with a vinegar based dressing (so it wasn’t too creamy). I really like this vinegar based coleslaw recipe.
Colby jack and mozzarella cheese shredded by hand so it melts better.
Sweet corn from a frozen bag.
Green onions chopped.
Black olives sliced.
Sour cream.
BBQ sauce (if the pulled pork hasn’t already been dressed in it).
Flavored ranch dressing like store-bought avocado, cilantro or chipotle ranch. Since I didn’t have any flavored ranch, I made a simple chipotle sauce (mayo, ketchup, chipotle chile pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, salt) that kicked in some heat — because I didn’t have any jalapeños on hand.
Pickled sliced jalepeños (optional).
First of all, line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil for easy clean-up. Turn the oven broiler on. Warm the shredded pork in a skillet prior to broiling to ensure safe meat temperature.
Layer up pulled pork potacho ingredients as listed above. Keep potato chips hidden under all the toppings to prevent burning. If you have a home-made ranch sauce, or sour cream, place it in a sandwich bag, cut a small corner off and squeeze/drizzle over the potachos for easy application. Add other toppings you like. That’s the beauty of potachos.
Finally, place the baking sheet on second from top position for 3 minutes to melt cheese and warm ingredients. Watch that it doesn’t burn. Let cool a few short minutes. Serve immediately. So so good!!!
As a result, this makes a great dish for a party or watching the big game!
Next time you find yourself with leftover pulled pork, you can certainly upgrade to pulled pork potachos — a monster of an appetizer.
Most of the ingredients needed for the potachos are at ALDI (the flavored ranch usually isn’t found there).
These pulled-pork potatchoes (potato nachos) are the perfect, messy solution to leftover pulled pork. Makes a great appetizer or meal with a mouthful of savory and sweet flavors.
I’d love to see a picture of your cooking. Share it on Instagram @nickelplatekitchen or #nickelplatekitchen.
Here’s a simple way to add tasty crunch to salads, sides and desserts with toasted sliced almonds. The fragrance of them baking is the key to knowing when to pull them out of the oven. Use toasted almonds in arabesque spinach salad and […]
thick and chewy chocolate chip cookies You can’t go wrong with these thick and chewy chocolate chip cookies. The recipe is born out of America’s Test Kitchen. Expert cooks spent many attempts figuring out the best recipe for this variety of cookie. It’s […]
This strawberry rhubarb pie comes from my dear mother-in-law’s tried and true recipe based on the Farm Journal’s Best-Ever Pies from 1981. Having raised her four children on a farm, it’s fitting she used the Farm Journal. Her recipe has been a hit at family gatherings and celebrations. Even if you are stuffed from the main course, you stick around for her strawberry rhubarb pie – often accompanied with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
The flavorful and flaky crust balances with the sweet and tart fruit filling. This strawberry rhubarb pie is held in such high regard that my husband and I decided to have pie instead of cake at our wedding. Many fruit pies on our wedding pie table were sourced from a local baker, Buckler’s Sweets (her pies are amazing). But my mother-in-law made our special wedding pie with her recipe. My sister-in-law customized the top crust as seen here:
While the strawberry rhubarb pie tastes like it requires a high skill level, my mother-in-law assured me that it would be easy to make. For another strawberry dessert try Strawberry Pretzel Jello Dessert.
Start with the crust. Flour, salt, vegetable shortening, ice water. Use a pastry cutter like the one below to cut in the shortening with the flour and salt. I don’t claim to be an expert pie maker by any means, so I wasn’t sure if my trial run of the dough would turn out. But it did! This recipe makes enough for 2 and a half to three pie crusts.
Spread some flour on the counter before you roll it out with a rolling pin. Pinch off about 1/3 of the dough. Roll out a 12″ diameter circle for the bottom. Pinch off another 1/3 of the dough and roll out another crust for the top. You’ll have leftover dough after making the two crusts.
Use a 9.5 inch deep dish pie pan if you have one. Mine is very similar to this one. It contained all of the pie juices the entire time of baking. No leaks or spills!
Next the rhubarb and strawberries. Our local Kroger thankfully carries fresh rhubarb most of the year. Or sometimes they carry it in the frozen food section. Fresh from a garden is best if that is available to you in the spring. Thankfully my mother-in-law supplied most of the fresh rhubarb here from her garden.
Slice rhubarb about 3/4 inch thick. This size allows the pieces to stay firm enough and not get too mushy during the baking.
Slice fresh strawberries 1/2 inch thick. As my mother-in-law shares, this is a very forgiving recipe. So if the strawberries aren’t exactly that width, don’t sweat it. Another strawberry dessert favorite is Strawberry Pretzel Jello Dessert.
Add the sugar, flour and salt. Mix lightly in a large bowl.
Dump the mixture into the prepped crust. Time for butter! Divide up the two tablespoons of butter and dollop across the top of the pie.
Cut slits in the top before transferring crust to pie. Fold the top crust under the lower crust all the way around. Then flute the edge. I just pressed the dough edges between my pointer finger of my left hand and my thumb and pointer finger of my right hand. Thankfully it turned out okay! At this point you could wrap the pie with foil or plastic wrap and freeze for up to three months. Baking time is essentially the same. Watch for golden crust and bubbling juices like you normally would. Freezing makes it easy to prep ahead for holidays or celebrations.
Bake at 350°, center rack, for about 40-50 minutes, until the juices start to bubble and the crust is golden brown. (When I baked from frozen it needed 55 min.) To prevent the crust edges from being over-baked, I go the cheap route and take strips of aluminum foil, curve them and lightly cover edge of the pie. But I know they make tools for such occasions as pictured below:
Let the pie rest for 30 minutes or more to allow the juices to thicken. The longer you wait, the better the piece of pie will hold up. Add vanilla bean ice cream or whipped cream!
The delicious crust and sweet and tart strawberry rhubarb filling makes this time-honored family recipe a classic dessert pie for any occasion, especially in the spring and early summer.
I’d love to see a picture of your cooking. Share it on Instagram @nickelplatekitchen or #nickelplatekitchen.
This apple goat cheese spinach salad with citrus dressing made its debut at a family Thanksgiving gathering. Thankfully, it was a hit. Nothing like using family to test out new recipes, but then again, I don’t think they mind helping out either. The citrus […]
Thanks to a friend at work, I learned of a new way to cook bacon — in the oven. If you’ve never had the opportunity to try this method, I highly recommend it. There’s less splatter of grease. You can still get just as tender […]
Sometimes a green leafy salad begs for a sweet dressing. This Hawaiian Dressing will not disappoint! It fits well in a 1½ cup lidded jar or dressing shaker. You’ll get a mini workout when you shake the dressing for 30 seconds or more to get all the sugar to dissolve. The beauty is artificial sweeteners work well too. See this dressing used here in my Arabesque Spinach Salad.
Once you’ve assembled the ingredients (fresh garlic makes this dressing), pour into the lidded jar and shake!
A lidded mason jar or dressing shaker will do the job. I really like my OXO dressing shaker with easy pouring and storage.
This Hawaiian Dressing is featured (half of this recipe amount) in my Arabesque Spinach Salad. The dressing amount used here in this post is double the amount you’ll find in the Arabesque Salad post. Another salad to try with a vinegar based dressing is Apple Goat Cheese Spinach Salad with Citrus Dressing.
Sweet and tangy Hawaiian dressing compliments a variety of green salad flavors and is easy to make.
Did you make this Hawaiian Dressing? Share it on Instagram @nickelplatekitchen or #nickelplatekitchen.
Easy Quinoa Salad If you like Greek salad and quinoa, then you’ll enjoy this Easy Quinoa Salad with homemade lemon vinaigrette. Even if you don’t have a fresh lemon on hand, you can still throw it together. The tang of the feta, the crunch […]
Welcome to Nickel Plate Kitchen! I'm Elizabeth, wife of Jim and mom of two boys (a 3yo and a newborn). I'm passionate about good food on a budget with room for extravagance now and then. I hope you find something helpful while you're here. Thanks for stopping by!