By Christine Salins.
A Weissman once said…
“…can we please stop with the barrage of 2.3 second meals that only need 1 ingredient? I get it…we’re busy. But let’s refocus on the fact that beautifully crafted burgers don’t grow on trees.”
Joshua Weissman is a social media star with more than 10 million followers on YouTube and TikTok. He’s also an unapologetic cook.
Formerly a professional chef who worked at several top fine dining restaurants in the U.S., Weissman these days spends his time making entertaining and educational videos showing people how to cook and how to re-create their favourite restaurant dishes at home.
Great cooking does, and should, take time, he says. He thinks people should be making more of their own food from scratch, everything from their buns and beef patties to condiments and pickles. “You know you want to, and you know it’ll taste better…” More than likely, it will also be cheaper.
With that in mind, he has also produced a cookbook. Joshua Weissman: An Unapologetic Cookbook (Alpha, $39.99) is designed to appeal to home gourmets as much as to his online followers.
Simple to follow, quirky, and beautifully photographed, the book provides all the building blocks for creating a superior gastronomic experience – “potentially even life-changing”, he says in his inimitable style.
With irreverent humour and some light razzing, Weissman urges people to become the master of their own kitchen and take control of their food. He also wants them to have the confidence to give food their own twist. “If you don’t like blue cheese, then don’t use blue cheese.”
If fast food, the supermarket aisle or the super-fast-super-easy cookbook are letting your tastebuds down, Joshua Weissman: An Unapologetic Cookbook could be the kitchen companion you need.
“I want people to be entertained by food in the same way that I am. I’m not trying to make the same cookbook as everybody else. I want to make a cookbook that somebody actually wants to sit down and enjoy because it’s fun,” he says.
Mojo-braised Pulled Pork
Makes 2½ litres
2 to 2.25kg boneless pork shoulder or Boston butt
chicken stock, if needed
salt, to taste
Mojo marinade:
2 shallots
2 heads garlic, peeled
zest of 2 oranges
zest of 3 limes
2 tbsp oregano leaves
½ bunch of mint leaves
1 tbsp freshly ground cumin
2 serrano chiles
1 cup (250ml) extra-virgin olive oil
1½ tbsp salt
1 cup (250ml) fresh lime juice or Seville orange juice
1 cup (250ml) fresh orange juice
1 Prepare the mojo marinade. In a blender, add the shallots, garlic cloves, orange zest, lime zest, oregano leaves, mint leaves, freshly ground cumin, serrano chiles, olive oil, salt, lime juice, and orange juice. Blend together on high speed until completely smooth. Reserve 1 cup (250ml) of the marinade to use for dipping; refrigerate, covered, until needed.
2 In a large resealable bag, place the pork shoulder, and pour in the remaining mojo marinade to cover the meat. Seal the bag and marinate in the refrigerator overnight.
3 Preheat the oven to 200°C. Remove the pork from the marinade and place in a 6.5-litre Dutch oven. Pour in all of the marinade. The marinade should come about halfway up the pot, but if not, add a little bit of chicken stock.
4 Braise the pork, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Then reduce the temperature to 180°C and cook for 3 to 3½ hours, uncovered, turning occasionally to make sure all sides get browned.
5 Remove the pork from the Dutch oven and place on a cutting board to cool.
6 Strain the remaining mojo braising liquid into a small bowl, discarding the solids.
7 In a large bowl, using two forks, shred the meat. Toss together using the strained braising liquid to coat the meat to your desired level of fatty goodness. Season to taste with salt. Enjoy in Cubanos, on rice, or in a quesadilla with the reserved marinade for dipping.
From Joshua Weissman: An Unapologetic Cookbook by Joshua Weissman (Alpha, $39.99) Photography by DK: Ralph Smith Studios. Recipe © 2021 by Joshua Weissman.
For more information, please contact Anna de Sousa / [email protected] or Talie Gottlieb / [email protected]
Check out some of Joshua’s viral videos:
YouTube (4.6M Followers)
Making the Popeyes Chicken Sandwich at Home, But Better (9.8M Views)
Making McDonald’s Chicken McNuggets At Home, But Better (5.1M Views)
TikTok (5.6M Followers)
Greatest Burger Sauce Ever (336K Likes)
Big Cookie (263K Likes)
Before creating his YouTube channel, Joshua worked at two James Beard award-winning restaurants—Odd Duck and Uchiko—as well as at Emmer & Rye, which was named “Bon
Appetit’s Best New Restaurant.” Most recently, in collaboration with Tyson Cole, Joshua contributed to the menu and development of Aaron Franklin’s newest restaurant Loro. After nearly a decade of cooking professionally, his passion has been fueled by working with some of the greatest fine dining restaurants in the south-central region of the US. He notably cooked at the James Beard Award–winning restaurant Uchiko, where he spent time focusing on the finest details of cuisine, training other cooks and chefs, and diving deep into the territory of precise Japanese cookery and fermentation. Joshua can be seen chopping it up for millions of fans on his popular Youtube channel, Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram. He currently resides in Texas.
