i am a food blog

I have an obsession with breakfasts foods, and by extension, brunch. I love eating breakfast foods anytime and all the time. This makes brunch an especially exciting meal for me–seeing people devour breakfast foods after 12 pm makes me happy.

As a brunch monster I’m always on the lookout for new places to try out. A couple of weeks ago our friend Bruce suggested The Red Wagon in East Van. The Red Wagon is a cute little neighbourhood diner that does creative comfort food. They have regular breakfast items, but they also have a few specialties. One of them is pulled pork pancakes with Jack Daniel’s Maple syrup.

The pulled pork pancakes are famous around town. Every so often, photos of the pancakes pop up on my friends’ Facebook feeds. They’ve even been on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. It’s the dish that chef Brad Miller is most proud of. And it’s served all day!

I didn’t order them, but Bruce did. He even got two over easy eggs on top. It must have been crazy delicious because he finished the whole plate. I had a tiny bite and it was tasty enough for me to want to recreate at home.

I tweaked it a bit: the pancakes were mini-fied, the pulled pork was sans BBQ sauce and the Jack was traded for Maker’s Mark. It’s a truly fantastic dish. The fluffiness of the buttermilk pancakes and the richness of the pork made me wish I made a Red Wagon sized portion. Sweet-savoury combos are the best! Especially when the sweet part has bourbon in it. The bourbon sauce is crazy delicious. You must make these pancakes. You won’t regret it!

I am pork-topped, I am bourbon sauced: I AM PULLED PORK PANCAKE!

Pulled Pork Pancakes Recipe
yield: 4 servings

• 1 cup flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 2 cups pulled pork, warmed

Preheat the oven to 175°F. Mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and sugar in a medium bowl. In a small bowl, beat the egg and mix with the buttermilk. Add the wet ingredients to the flour mixture and stir gently. Do not over mix. This is a thick, lumpy pancake batter. The little lumps will make your pancakes fluffier. Let bater sit for 10 minutes so some moisture works its way into the lumps.

Heat up a frying pan over medium-low heat. Brush a thin layer of butter or oil on your pan. Take 2 tablespoons of batter and drop it into your pan. Cook until many tiny bubbles appear on the surface. Flip and continue cooking. This side won’t take as long, maybe a minute or two. Hold the pancakes in the warm oven until you’re done with the batter.

To arrange, place one pancake on a plate and top with pulled pork. Repeat twice. Serve with bourbon syrup. Enjoy!

Bourbon Syrup Recipe
makes about 3/4 cups

• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup bourbon (I used Maker’s Mark)
• 1/2 cup water

In a small saucepan, Bring the sugars, bourbon and water to a boil over high heat. Turn the heat to medium-low and let the syrup bubble gently and reduce until a syrup like consistency, about 5-6 minutes. Keep an eye on it so it doesn’t burn! Let stand 5 minutes. Enjoy warm.

bourbonpancakespulled pork