By February 2021. I am 62 years old, retired from the Postal Service, my days now belong to me and the smoker and Rosetta and the slow unfolding of a life without a mailbag. The week arrived the way weeks arrive in Orange Mound — carried by the rhythm of morning coffee and evening porch-sitting and the steady, patient work of being present in a life that doesn\'t require grand gestures to feel meaningful. Mt zion homecoming back in person.
I smoked a pork shoulder this week — the classic, the king, fourteen hours over hickory, mopped with the vinegar sauce, pulled by hand when the meat surrenders to the touch. The bark was dark and crackled, the smoke ring a quarter-inch deep, and the meat came apart in my fingers with the familiar, miraculous tenderness of something that has been loved patiently for sixteen hours. Served on white bread with coleslaw and the sauce, because the serving is as traditional as the smoking, and tradition doesn't innovate — it deepens.
I sat in the lawn chair Saturday evening, next to Uncle Clyde\'s smoker, and watched the sky change colors the way it does in Memphis — slowly, generously, as if the sunset has nowhere else to be. The smoker was warm beside me, the ghost of the day\'s cook still in the metal, and I thought about what I always think about: family, fire, food, and the faith that binds them all together. Another week. Another smoke. Another chapter in the story that started when a man named Clyde handed me a mop and said, "Low and slow, nephew." Low and slow. Always.
Fourteen hours of hickory smoke and that pork shoulder does all the talking — but what it needs beside it on the plate is something crisp and bright and honest, something that cuts through the richness the way a cool breeze cuts through a Memphis August evening. This Apple Walnut Savoy Cabbage Salad has been riding alongside the pulled pork at our homecoming spreads for as long as I can remember, and when Uncle Clyde finally handed that mop over to me, the salad came with it. It’s the side dish that earns its place not by being fancy, but by being exactly right.
Apple Walnut Savoy Cabbage Salad
Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 0 minutes | Total Time: 15 minutes | Servings: 6
Ingredients
- 1 small head savoy cabbage, cored and thinly shredded (about 6 cups)
- 2 medium apples (Honeycrisp or Granny Smith), cored and julienned or thinly sliced
- 3/4 cup walnut halves, toasted and roughly chopped
- 1/4 cup thinly sliced red onion
- 1/4 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
- 3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Toast the walnuts. In a dry skillet over medium heat, toast the walnuts for 4—5 minutes, stirring frequently, until fragrant and lightly golden. Transfer to a plate and let cool completely.
- Prepare the dressing. In a small bowl or jar, whisk together the apple cider vinegar, olive oil, honey, Dijon mustard, salt, and black pepper until fully emulsified. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.
- Combine the salad. In a large mixing bowl, combine the shredded savoy cabbage, julienned apple, red onion, and parsley. Toss to distribute evenly.
- Dress and toss. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss thoroughly so every strand of cabbage is lightly coated. The acid will begin to soften the cabbage just slightly — that’s what you want.
- Add the walnuts and serve. Fold in the toasted walnuts just before serving to keep them crisp. Serve immediately alongside pulled pork, or refrigerate for up to 30 minutes — no longer, or the apples will soften and the walnuts will lose their crunch.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 185 | Protein: 4g | Fat: 13g | Carbs: 16g | Fiber: 4g | Sodium: 210mg