Dylan James
The dish I prepared was pulled uncured ham and roasted butternut squash tacos paired with an Anjou pear salsa. The vanilla bean paste was marinated with the ham in the crockpot, and the erythritol was used with the vanilla bean paste and the Anjou pear salsa.
I don't like the taste of ham, and I wanted to cook it in a nontypical way so that I would enjoy it more, so my first thought was to cook it like pulled pork. And the only way I eat pulled pork is either on a bun or in a tortilla, which inspired me to go the Mexican route.
My first reaction was, "Oh no, this basket is filled with WAY too many sweet ingredients!" The vanilla bean paste, erythritol, and Anjou pears are the sweetest; however, even hearty ham and the starchy butternut squash often pair well with sweet dishes.
My highest point during the process was the exceptional cooking I did with the ham. I pride myself on my timing and doneness, so finding the exact hours (6) to cook the half of the ham to the point where it was shredding off the bone was a great accomplishment, especially when one considers how tough of a meat ham can be. And my lowest point would be after the cooking; I feel like I could have incorporated the vanilla bean paste in more ways than one.
I decided to use the pear in salsa because I knew I needed a crunchy and spicy element to the dish. The Anjou pears given to us were not 100 percent ripe, which became advantageous for me because of its crunch that it added. Also, because of how apparent the crunchiness and sweetness was of the pears, it gave me the idea to add the jalapeño and red onion as a much needed spicy complement for a taco.
Testers were worried that the ham would be too dry and the squash would be too mushy. However, they all had opposite reactions. The ham was incredibly moist, and the squash was caramelized. My taste testers thoroughly enjoyed the melody of sweet, salty, crunch, and spice. They also thought to make tacos was very creative.
The overall surprise to me was that I only used half of the ham and half of the squash.
I enjoyed my time with this dish for a couple of reasons: 1. I have developed a new love for ham after cooking it in the crockpot for the first time, and 2. I only used five extra ingredients, which was a big deal to me because I don't usually need to limit myself on the number of ingredients I use when I cook at home.
The presentation turned out very modern and gorgeous. I was blown away by my color pairings, which made the tacos shine. A deep, salmon-colored plate with a blue netting place mat helped the tacos pop out in my photos.