Yet Another Food Thread

[Dannyalcatraz]

Lets share some more recipes!

I do most of the cooking in my household, but my Dad does the majority of the grocery shopping.

A few days ago, he came home with an 8.5lb pork loin for me to cook. This is a piece of meat longer than my arm (I wear a 16 1/2 34-35 dress shirt).

I cut it into 2 pieces, doing one on the stove, another in the oven.

Stovetop:

Saute lg onions

Season meat w/black pepper, garlic and onion powders, then sear the meat.

Rest meat on bed of sauteed onions.

Add some kind of liquid- usually a broth or stock (I added my home-made turkey stock for liquid- its low sodium and full of veggie-derived nutrients) and Cream of Mushroom soup for texture and thickening.

To this, add dried minced onions, parsley and dried mushrooms and cook the whole mess on low heat until the meat falls apart and the gravy is thick.

Serve over rice.

Oven:

I found myself without my usual complement of veggies, so I had to improvise, so I cooked the other half of the pork loin in something like my barbecue marinade.

Season the meat with powdered garlic and onion and some black pepper, then slice into medallions @ 3/4 - 1 in thick.

Place the meat on a bed of sauteed onions in a deep baking dish.

In a bowl, mix a lighter-flavored beer* (I used Shiner Blonde) with liberal amounts of Worchtershire sauce, Lemon juice, dried chives, red pepper, then pour into the dish. Most of the meat should be submerged. If some is exposed, take the time to flip the exposed medallions into the liquid about halfway through cooking.

Sear at 400F for 10-15 minutes, then cook at 325-350F until meat reaches internal temp of 160-165F. It should be fall-apart tender.

* heavier beers can also work- I usually use regular Shiner or Guinness in my marinades, I just wanted a lighter flavor this time around.

 

[Gilladian]

Mmmmm....

I recently was given some venison - it was not quite ground - chopped into 1/4" or so pieces. About a pound of meat, I think.

I put it in the slow-cooker with a half-cup of port wine (the only red I had on hand), three medium potatoes in large chunks, a large onion quartered, and 3 large carrots, coarsely chopped. I seasoned it with a bay leaf, a teaspoon of herb-de-provence, and celery tops.

After 3 hours of cooking (when I came home for lunch), I turned the cooker down to low, added some water, mushrooms, celery stalk, and a zucchini. It cooked about another 5 hours. I served it with warm wheat rolls, and it made 5 ample servings.

 

[CleverNickName]

Mmm...meat. Here is my recipe for beef & barley stew, which is perfect for a cool autumn day like today.

Trav's Beef and Barley Stew

2, 14-oz boneless steaks, cut into 1" cubes
1 t. olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup wild mushrooms, chopped (optional)
2 bay leaves, whole
1 t. savory
1 T. Worchestershire sauce
1/2 cup dry red wine
4 cups beef broth or boullion
1 can (14 oz) beef consomme
2/3 cup dry pearl barley
2 cups of potatoes, cut into bite-sized chunks
1 cup of baby carrots, snapped in half
1 cup of celery, cut into 1/2" long pieces
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat the olive oil in a heavy stock pot, and add the beef cubes. Cook over high heat until the cubes are well-seared and slightly browned around the edges. Add the garlic, onion, mushrooms, savory, bay leaves, red wine, and Worchestershire sauce, and cook over medium heat until onions are transparent and most of the liquid has evaporated.

Add the broth, barley, and consomme. Cover tightly and simmer slowly for 30 minutes, then add the potatoes, carrots, and celery. Cover and cook on medium heat until the vegetables are tender, about 30 more minutes. The stew will thicken as it cooks; if it becomes too thick add more beef broth.

Remove the bay leaves and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve with crusty french bread and a good beer.

 

[Ketherian]

Here's my favorite two. Both work well fresh from the oven/stove, or as something to be reheated. The recipes double (and triple) well.

Beef Stew with Red Wine
Taken from: Wonderful ways to prepare Crockery pot dishes by Jo Ann Shirley. Copyright 1979 Years and James, 5 Alexander Street, Crows Nest N.S.W Australia. ISBN 0 86908 154 3.

This is a favorite of my old gaming group. I add potatoes and carrots and often omit the orange rind (a friend is allergic). The potatoes and carrots help extend the stew, although it can just as easily be served with baked or mashed potatoes, rice or barley.

• 2 pounds chuck steak, cubed
• ½ teaspoon black pepper
• ¼ pounds bacon, diced
• 2 teaspoons rosemary
• 4 medium onions, chopped
• 2 teaspoons orange rind, grated
• 4 teaspoons vinegar
• 4 teaspoons brown sugar
• 2¼ tablespoons cornstarch
• 1½ cups red wine
• 2½ tablespoons water
• 2 teaspoons salt
• parsley, chopped (to taste)

1. Saute the meat in a skillet with the bacon and onions until the meat is well browned. Put into the crockery pot with the bacon and onions.
2. Mix together the vinegar, brown sugar and red wine. Pour into the skillet, scrape the bottom and cook over a low heat for one minute.
3. Mix the salt, pepper, rosemary and orange rind with the wine mixture and pour over the meat.
4. Cover the crockery pot and cook on the low setting (200° F-200° C) for eight hours.
5. Mix the cornstarch with the water.
6. Turn the crockery pot to the high setting (300° F- 150°C).
7. Add the cornstarch and stir until the sauce is thick,
8. Serve garnished with chopped parsley.

Spicy Chicken with Poblano Peppers and Cheese
Taken from Cooking Light July 2005 P174. A reader’s recipe it was submitted by Jean Hardin of DeSoto Tx. Yield: 4 servings

This went over very big both times that I served it. The poblano can be chopped or left in halves. I usually don’t remove the skins as it’s a lot of work for not a lot of results (and it makes the dish a lot wetter than normal). I prefer to chop the poblanos to better mix in the heat.

• 4 poblano chiles, halved and seeded
• 2 cups chicken breast, chopped cooked
• 1 cup reduced-fat cheddar cheese, shredded
• 1 cup fresh corn kernels (about 2 ears)
• ½ cup onion, chopped
• ½ cup zucchini, chopped
• ½ cup red bell pepper, chopped
• 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, finely chopped
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ½ teaspoon ground cumin
• ½ teaspoon paprika
• ½ teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground
• ½ teaspoon garlic, minced
• ¼ cup salsa
• Cooking spray
• ¾ cup baked tortilla chips, crushed and divided

1. Preheat broiler.
2. Place poblano chile halves, skin sides up, on a foil-lined baking sheet, and flatten with hand. Broil 8 minutes or until blackened. Place peppers in a zip-top plastic bag; seal. Let stand 15 minutes. Peel and discard skins.
3. Reduce oven temperature to 375°.
4. Combine chicken and next 11 ingredients (through garlic) in a large bowl; stir in salsa, stirring until well combined.
5. Place poblano peppers, cut sides up, in an 11 x 7-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray; top evenly with ¼ cup chips. Spoon the chicken mixture evenly over chips; sprinkle with remaining ½ cup chips. Lightly coat chips with cooking spray. Bake at 375° for 20 minutes or until cheese melts and casserole is heated through.

 

[Stormborn]

Here are some of my favorites:

Recipe Summary Difficulty: Medium Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 3 hours 20 minutes Yield: 4 to 6 servings
User Rating: •.••

3 pounds beef short ribs, about 10 ribs Salt and freshly ground pepper
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
10 to 12 garlic cloves smashed
1-inch piece ginger, peeled and sliced into 1/4-inch slices
12 ounces good ale or cider
3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar or other mild vinegar
1 cup hoisin sauce

Season the ribs generously with salt and pepper. Heat the vegetable oil in a large heavy pot with a lid (Dutch oven) over high heat. Brown the ribs on all sides, in batches if necessary. Remove the ribs and pour off all but a couple tablespoons of the rendered fat.

Return the pot to the stove, lower the heat to medium and saute the garlic and ginger for about 3 minutes. Put the ribs, ginger and garlic into the slow cooker. Add the beer and the vinegar. Stir and then cover and simmer for 2 1/2 hours or until ribs are very tender.

Heat the oven to 300 F. Put contents of slow cooker back in Dutch oven. Pour the hoisin sauce over the ribs, move the pot to the oven, and cook, uncovered, for 30 minutes.
Strain fat from the top of the pot so that you're left with just the good stuff.

and
Sausage and Kale Soup

1 package chicken and apple sausage, sliced
Olive oil
1 large onion, diced
2 ribs celery, diced
2 medium carrots, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 medium potatoes, cubed, OR 2 cans canellini beans, drained
1 bunch kale, washed very well, tough stems removed
1 quart chicken stock (I like Kitchen Basics in the box)

Brown sausage disks in skillet over medium-high heat; transfer to slow cooker. Saute onion, celery and carrots in olive oil; add garlic once other vegetables are in the skillet and season with salt and pepper; cook just until vegetables begin to glisten; transfer to slow cooker.

Add potatoes or beans to slow cooker. Slice kale across leaves into 2-inch-wide strips; place in slow cooker. Pour chicken stock to cover contents. If needed, top up with water or more chicken stock. Season with salt and pepper (potato version will require more salt than bean version).

Cook until vegetables are soft and kale is tender. Serve with crusty bread, butter and firm cheese, or cornbread.

and every Christmas I make:

Mother Medora’s Magical Toffee

1 ½ cups chopped walnuts (or favorite)
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
¾ cup or 1 ½ sticks of butter + enough butter to cover pan
1 pkg. Semi-sweet chocolate chips

Pour nuts onto a silicon mat or well greased and foil line pan. Take the butter and brown sugar and boil together for about 7 min. stirring CONSTANTLY. This should bring it to HARDBALL stage, 250-260 degrees on a candy thermometer. If you don’t have a candy thermometer, drop a bit of mixture into cold water and see if it forms a hard but still yielding ball.

Pour the mix into the pan over the nuts. Sprinkle with as many chocolate chips as you like and more nuts. If you have used a silicon mat it will cool fairly quickly, but should still sit for at least 30 min. to an hour. If you used a pan it will take longer to cool.

Toffee is tricksy stuff. Humidity, altitude, relative temperature, and the way you hold your mouth can all effect how it comes out. I usually ruin about 1 batch in four. Whatever you do, if making multiple batches, be sure to clean the pot out between them. A single sugar crystal from a previous batch can ruin a new one.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Ahhh, this thread is shaping up nicely!

As an addendum to my first post, I'll add that I forgot to mention that I shredded some Parrano cheese to put on top of the Pork Medallions- it truly brings a nice finish to the flavor.

If you don't have Parrano, a good Parmesan or Gouda- or a mix of the 2- should do just fine.

 

[CleverNickName]

There are a few more recipes over in my What Do Gamers Eat thread, if you are interested.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Sweet Hot Chicken

Preheat oven to 350F.

Make some rice, mixing it with butter, slivered almonds, green onion and parsley in the bottom of your baking dish.

Choose your baking chicken parts to your personal taste- lt meat, dk meat, mixed, whatever.

Make a glaze of melted unsalted butter and honey with a little lemon juice (1-2 tsp) for zip if you wish. You want it to be relatively thin but still tasting of honey. Mix red pepper, paprika and cinnamon into the glaze, then brush your chicken pieces with it.

Place in baking dish over bed of the rice you made earlier.

Sprinkle chicken with a bit of almond slivers, then place in oven.

Cook until done. Chicken should appear reddish-golden brown, and will be a bit crispy, sticky, sweet and hot.

Take out the rice and almond slivers and you have a nice variant recipe for Hot Wings/Drumettes.

WARNING: This smells somewhat like an apple pie while cooking. You may wish to have a real one on hand to satisfy whatever craving that might instill for dessert.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

There are a few more recipes over in my What Do Gamers Eat thread, if you are interested.

Thanks for that cross-link!

If you haven't already, I'm going there and post a similar link to this thread.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Just a thought: I purchased a coffee bean grinder- well, a second one- to do to nuts what I use my primary one to to to beans, namely grind them to a gravelly powder.

This saves a LOT of work when trying to make crusts for things like Trout Almondine.

I bring this up because it just occurred to me that I could use it to grind up my almonds to a fairly fine powder to include in the honey-butter mix when making the Wings variant of my Sweet Hot Chicken...giving them a nice, toasted nut flavor in addition to making them slightly less sticky.