What’s for Dinner? Pulled Chicken in 30 Minutes

Andrew and Marilyn Hunter are on hiatus as Andrew begins shooting the premier season of a new reality TV show. During their absence, The Family Table will be penned by our Special Fork Food Editors.

By Joanne Lamb Hayes
For The Family Table, a blog for busy families

When my family discovered pulled pork sandwiches at a local barbecue restaurant, they asked me if I would make them at home and I said, “Well, maybe.” But every time I thought about marinating, wet mopping and slow roasting a big chunk of meat for hours, I decided to just take them back to the restaurant.

Then on one visit we noticed something new on the menu, pulled chicken. It was delicious and I said, “This I can make!”

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Healthy Snacking

By Lori Powell
For One or Two Bites, a blog for singles and couples

Yes, there is such a thing…and I’m about to try a new kind of eating. Instead of three meals, I’m going to snack my way through the day eating seven or eight little meals. Sounds pretty good, eh?

If I got you excited, simmer down because it’s not utopia; remember, you just can’t just eat anything you want. Those snacks have to be power-packed with nutrients – they’re basically smaller bites of the three larger, healthier meals a day.

I did a trial run the other day. Okay, I know it was just one day and you can do just about anything if it’s only for one day (or as research tells us, even two or four days).

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Having a “Temper” Tantrum?

By Katie Barreira
For Cooking Newbie, a blog for beginner cooks

Tempering chocolate can be one of the more intimidating, exacting and maddening culinary tasks. But it doesn’t have to be.

Why temper?
If you’re going to melt chocolate for coating, candy making, or dipping you’ll have much snappier results if you take the time to temper.

When heated above 90 degrees the fat in chocolate (cocoa butter) separates and forms streaky grey crystals when cool if not first recombined.

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SPAMMED – the Food Kind!

By Sandy Hu
The latest from Inside Special Fork

If you grew up in Hawaii and you claim Spam has never touched your lips, you are: 1) a hermit 2) a protected child of food snobs or 3) telling a lie.

As everyone knows, Hawaii boasts the highest per capita consumption of Spam in the U.S. Spam meals and snacks are sold at local drive-ins, McDonald’s and even the 7-Eleven.

So tonight, when I attend the annual ancestral potluck of the San Francisco Chapter of Les Dames d’Escoffier International, an august gathering of food influencers, guess what I’m taking to represent my heritage? Spam musubi!

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Miso Salmon—an Easy Weekday Meal

By David Hu
A new video for Video Friday

I love Japanese food. It can be delicate or hearty, intricate or plain, sophisticated or everyday. Often people think Japanese food is hard to make. In fact, many popular Japanese dishes are fairly easy for the home cook. Teriyaki, tonkatsu and tempura all come to mind.

But for one of the easiest Japanese dishes, try miso-glazed salmon. This is a great weekday meal: only six ingredients, prep time of about 5 minutes, very little clean up, and healthy, to boot!

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