Main Dishes
Ginger-Sesame Chicken and Spinach
This is a recipe I tried for the first time tonight. It is quick and has a very nice flavor. I served it over steamed rice.
Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 lb chicken breast
- 2 tbs fresh grated ginger
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 – (6 oz) pkg fresh baby spinach
- 2 tbs sesame oil
- 1 tbs sesame seeds
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 2 tbs cornstarch or arrowroot (optional)
Dice the chicken and start it cooking with the ginger. I think I had closer to 2 lbs of chicken.
In another pot heat the garlic, spinach, oil, sesame seeds, and chicken broth. Cook until the spinach is wilted.
Add the chicken to the spinach and heat through. Add arrowroot (or cornstarch) to thicken the sauce slightly.
Serve over steamed rice.
Homemade Corned Beef
I was nervous the first time I made corned beef. The thought of a beef brisket sitting in the fridge for over a week is a little disconcerting. I’ve made it many times since my first attempt and haven’t had a problem yet.
It takes several days, but it is very easy to do. Slow cooking it with Fermented Sauerkraut is one of my favorite meals. I get my pink curing salt online at spicebarn.
Ingredients:
- 5 lb beef brisket
Brine:
- 1 gal water
- 2 cups kosher salt
- 1/2 cup brown sugar (or white sugar)
- 5 tsp pink curing salt
- 3 cloves garlic, crushed
- 1/4 cup pickling spice
Combine brine ingredients and heat to dissolve. Let cool completely. I usually heat about 3 quarts of the water with the other ingredients to dissolve then add 2 lb of ice to cool it quicker.
Trim fat from brisket and hit it several times on each side with a meat tenderizer.
Place beef and brine in a non-reactive container (stainless steel, glass, or plastic). You can also use a Ziploc bag. Weigh the beef down with a plate to keep it submerged.
Place in the refrigerator for about 5 days. Turn the brisket a couple times while it is brining. After it has brined remove and rinse thoroughly. A couple times it came out a little too salty. I have started soaking it in fresh water for about an hour after the corning process to remove some of the saltiness.
Boar Steak Dinner for Father’s Day
For Father’s Day this year we went all out. The kids pitched in and I think we made a great meal. I’m allergic to peanuts so my son did the Peanut Butter Pie. My daughter makes the best Classic Risotto so she took care of that. We had Clams Casino for an appetizer. For our main dish we had boar steaks with Bearnaise sauce and crispy onions. The appetizer, side dish, and dessert are separate posts.
Ingredients
- 4 boar steaks
- 1 sweet onion
Bearnaise Sauce:
- 1 shallot, chopped
- 2 tsp fresh tarragon (1/2 tsp dried)
- 3 tbs white wine vinegar
- 2 egg yolks
- 1 stick butter
- lemon juice
In a small saucepan on medium cook the shallot and tarragon until soft. Add the vinegar and cook another 2 minutes. Allow to cool. Stir 1 tbs water into the egg yolks. Stir the egg yolks into the shallot mixture and return to the stove on low. Whisk until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Add the butter 1 tbs at a time and stir until melted. Add the lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste.
Sprinkle the boar with garlic, salt, pepper, and herbs. Cook on a hot griddle about 2 -3 minutes per side.
For the crispy onion strings I have a nice little gadget that cuts them. They should be deep fried at about 400° for a few seconds until they are golden. They were tasty, but didn’t come out exactly as I hoped. I might try putting a little batter on them next time.
Here is our finished meal. Delicious!
Chicken Noodle Soup
Today feels like the hottest day this year, so I had the brilliant idea of making hot chicken noodle soup. It may not have been my best idea ever, but the soup was really good and it’s so easy to prepare. One nice thing about this recipe is you can vary the ingredients to what you have on hand. I like to use fresh ingredients, but I have used canned tomatoes in a pinch.
Ingredients:
- 1/2 chicken, cut up
- 1 – 2 tbs herb blend (I usually use poultry seasoning)
- 1 onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 whole carrots, grated
- 2 stalks celery, sliced
- 2 tomatoes, diced
- 2 cups water
- 6 oz egg noodles
Combine everything but the noodles in a crock pot set to low. Cook for 6 hours and pull the meat off the bones. Add more water if needed.
Turn the cooker to high and add the noodles. They should only take about 20 minutes. Serve with crusty bread (not pictured since mine failed).
The Best Roast Beef for Sandwiches
One of the greatest successes I’ve had with sous vide cooking is roast beef for sandwiches. Here is how I do it.
Ingredients
- beef roast (I used a 3lb London broil)
- granulated garlic (not fresh)
- salt
- pepper
To prepare the roast trim the fat and sprinkle liberally with garlic, salt, and pepper. I have read that using fresh garlic turns bitter when cooking sous vide so I always use dried.
Seal roast in a plastic bag.
Place in your sous vide cooker set at 136°. The first time I made this I cooked it for two days. The last time I made it I cooked it for 12 hours. I was happy with the results both times. It wasn’t quite as tender with the shorter time, but I preferred the texture. Check the water once or twice to see if more is needed to cover.
Leave the meat in the bag until you are ready to slice it. Remove from the cooker and place in a sink of ice water for about 30 minutes to quickly cool it. Place it in the refrigerator overnight or long enough for it to completely cool. You can place it in the freezer for a couple hours to make it easier to slice. Remove from the bag and reserve the au jus. Thinly slice it.
Here is the finished product. I usually heat the au jus with a cup of water and 1 tbs of cornstarch to thicken it slightly to make French dip sandwiches.
Pork & Shrimp Egg Rolls
I like to make these and keep them in the freezer They are quick and easy to pop into the fryer when we feel like having a snack.
Ingredients:
- 14 oz cooked peeled shrimp
- 1 lb ground pork
- 1/2 bundle bean thread noodles (optional)
- 6 tbs (3 oz) water chestnut
- 6 tbs (3 oz) carrots
- 4 tbs (2 oz) celery
- 4 tbs (2 oz) onion
- 1 pkg (30) egg roll wrappers
I measure this using a kitchen scale so the tablespoon measurement is an approximate.
Cook the ground pork. Chop the shrimp, vegetables, and bean noodles. You can also combine everything and grind it in a meat grinder. Drain everything after grinding or chopping.
Lay down one wrapper on your work surface with the point towards you. Place about 2 tbs filling on the wrapper. Mine is closer to 3 tbs because there were only 20 wrappers in the package I purchased.
Combine 1 tbs flour and 2 tbs water for sealing the rolls. Starting with the point closest to you roll it over one time. Fold the right and left points in. Brush the point furthest away from you with the flour mixture. Finish rolling and press the point down to seal. Place roll with sealed edge down on a plate. Place them in the freezer if you are not having them right away.
To cook, heat enough oil to cover them to 325°. Cook 3 or 4 at a time. The fresh ones float so you should hold them down with the basket or turn them half way through. For fresh ones cook for 3 minutes. For frozen ones add another 30 – 60 seconds.
Drain on a paper towel and serve hot with soy sauce.
Asian Marinated Chicken
This recipe is very easy and imparts a great Asian flavor. I used legs and thighs. I baked it, but it would be equally good grilled.
Marinade:
- 2 tbs fresh ginger (1 oz), grated
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed
- 2/3 cup soy sauce
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 6 tbs sesame oil
- 6 tbs hoisin sauce
- 2 tbs rice vinegar
Combine marinade ingredients and add the chicken. Marinate for several hours or overnight. Remove chicken and discard marinade. Bake it at 350° for 45 minutes.
Ham and Turkey Stromboli
I had some puff pastry in my freezer that I wanted to use so I found this recipe. I think mine might have turned out better with pastry that hadn’t sat in my freezer for too long (it was a little dry). It was still tasty and I think I will make it again.
Ingredients:
- 1 sheet puff pastry
- 8 oz thin sliced ham
- 8 oz thin sliced turkey
- 4 slices provalone cheese (optional)
- 1 cup shredded cheddar
- 1 egg
- 1 tbs water
Let the puff pastry thaw in the refrigerator for a couple hours (I took mine out in the morning and used it in the evening). Preheat oven to 400°. Roll out the thawed puff pastry on a lightly floured surface to about 16×12 inches.
Layer the ingredients on the puff pastry in the following order: ham, provalone, turkey, then cheddar. Leave a 1″ edge on one short end so you can seal it.
Starting from the short side roll the pastry. With damp fingers seal the seam and pinch the ends. Place seam side down on a baking sheet. Beat the egg and water and brush the roll.
Bake for 25 minutes at 400°. Remove and allow to cool for 10 minutes.
Mine split a little and some cheese came out the end. I think when I try this next time I am going to make a couple slits in the top to allow steam to escape.
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( None so far )Sous Vide Adobo Grilled Chicken Breast
For more information about sous vide cooking please see How I Sous Vide.
This is an easy recipe with great flavor. I like precooking the chicken so it doesn’t dry out on the grill. I’ve lightly steamed it in the past, then grilled. This time I wanted to try something different.
Ingredients:
- 4 chicken breasts
Marinade:
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed
- 2 tbs lime juice
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1/4 tsp pepper
I split the chicken breasts, but that is not necessary. Place the chicken in a single layer into a vacuum sealing bag (or Ziploc).
Combine mayonnaise, garlic, lime juice, oregano, and pepper. Reserve about 1/2 cup for mopping the chicken later. Pour the remaining marinade into the bag with the chicken.
Seal the bag. If you are using a Ziploc type bag fill a large container with water and slowly submerge the bag to squeeze out air. When you get close to the zipper start sealing it, tilting the bag as you go to get out as much air as possible. Allow to marinate several hour or overnight.
Setup your sous vide system and place the chicken in the water bath. I cooked it at 136° for 2 hours. This cooks it to rare. While it is safe to eat, it can withstand a few minutes on the grill without drying out. Remove the chicken and place the bag into an ice water bath while you heat up the grill. I use a Cobb grill which takes about 30 minutes to get hot. Once the grill is hot take the chicken out of the bag. Place it on the grill, brushing with the reserved marinade. I grilled it for about 10 minutes.
Remove from grill and enjoy.
I’ve tried this recipe before, but this is the first time cooking it sous vide before grilling. It came out very moist and tasty. I think when I do it next time I will skip the additional brushing as it was nicely sauced when I removed it from the bag.
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( None so far )Next Entries »
The Cooking Cobb 