Start the music
A shipmate on the MV Guidance inspired R.B. McCarthy to create this dish when he explained the significance of shells. He raved when my grandfather made this spicey pork so it was an obvious connection and the music just fit too well to pass up. You’ll have to read the Inspiration to understand why this is a sort of “Soul food”.
Sauce
- 1 ½ cups water
- 2 tablespoons corn starch
- 3-ounce tomato paste
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- 3 tablespoons hoisin sauce
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Sriracha hot sauce
- 4 cloves garlic (minced)
- 1 tablespoon minced ginger
Shells and Filling
- Oil or non-stick cooking spray
- Salt
- 1 pound ground pork
- 1 bunch scallions
- 4 cloves garlic (minced)
- 1 tablespoon minced ginger
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- 1 large egg
- 2 tablespoons black sesame seeds
- 2 tablespoons dark rum
Sauce
- Thicken the sauce by whisking the ingredients together in a small saucepan until the cornstarch dissolves.
- Then bring it to a boil.
- Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer 3 to 4 minutes.
- Reserve ¼ cup of the sauce in a bowl large enough to accommodate the filling you will be mixing up. Set remaining sauce aside to cool.
Shells and Filling
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Oil a 13 x 9-inch baking dish. Set aside.
- Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add shells and cook until about 3/4 cooked and very al dente. Rinse shells and set aside
- Add pork, garlic, ginger, soy sauce, rum, most of the scallions, and egg in the bowl with the reserved sauce and mix well
- Stuff each shell with about 1 tablespoon of pork mixture
- Place filled shells in the prepared baking dish. Pour the remaining sauce over the shells.
- Cover with aluminum foil and bake 45 to 50 minutes. Baste the shells occasionally with the sauce. The shells are done when they register at 165 degrees on a thermometer.
- Remove from oven and let rest 5 minutes before serving. Mark the time while having a rum.
- Garnish with reserved scallions and sesame seeds.
Check out these posts…
- Kiko and the First Mango Tree… The recipe
- Kiko and the First Mango Tree…The Inspiration
- Rib Eye Steak Strips….The Revision
- A month of nights, a year of days
- Waru’s Mimosa
FROM PARADISE WITH LOVE AND RUM 
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