Beans and Beef Doesn't Always Mean Chili.

There are too many times I stand and stare into the depths of the refrigerator and freezer wondering what to make for dinner. That's also how I come up with many of my spontaneous recipes; boredom, frustration and a "I wonder if..." attitude. Holding a two and a half pound package of stew beef (beef cubes) in my hand, I wondered what in the world to do with it. Not beef stew again, just did that two weeks ago; not chili, just not in the mood for it and then I would have to make a truly large batch to share with my mom-in-law which meant going out to the store for more meat. Too much effort! Then I remembered my Taste of Home winning recipe, "Beefy Barbecue Macaroni", but I didn't want to deal with the cheese sauce and wasn't in the mood for pasta. Sometimes I am just my own worst enemy, especially when it comes to cooking.

Still had no clue what to create, so decided to trim the stew beef cubes and maybe an idea would come to me.  Now stew beef is essentially all the bit and pieces the butchers cut off steaks and roasts; sometimes there is a good bit of meat left, so they package it up for consumers to buy and make recipes such as chili, beef stew, maybe even kabobs.  However you should always examine the beef before just throwing it into your pot, as many pieces may need to be trimmed of fat; some might be pure fat themselves.  If you don't want to deal with this process, then go ahead and purchase a nice lean roast and just cut it up yourself.  With the beef I had, I needed to cut only a little fat off, but I finally decided to use the crock pot and made them as uniform to one inch as I could.


Alright, kind of use that recipe I mentioned, but in the crock pot; but no cheese, what am I going to do without cheese?  Looking around the pantry I found cans of red kidney beans; well just because I was adding beans didn't make it chili, right?  These are the ingredients I finally centered on: barbecue sauce, the beans, tomatoes, red onion and green bell pepper.  I was going to make a barbecue sauce based beef stew, but without the traditional vegetables of carrots and potatoes.

Let me tell you that this concoction of mine came out amazing.  The beef was so tender, it basically melted in the mouth; and absorbed the barbecue sauce flavor well.  The tomatoes did not break down into complete mush; the onion and peppers became very soft; usually green bell peppers are harsh in flavor, but they melded in perfectly.  The beans did not become too soft, or remain too firm; as Goldilocks would say, "They were just right".  The smell was intoxicating; the taste was just as equal.  This is the kind of meal you can enjoy as is, or with a side of mashed potatoes, rice, pasta or polenta.  I did not have to add lots of seasonings or even garlic as the bottled sauce I used had everything I needed - Jack Daniels Hickory Brown Sugar.  I didn't dredge the beef in the flour, then fry it; I didn't want to add anymore oil into this dish than the nonstick cooking spray added.  I also didn't want additional liquids like beef stock as I knew the beef and vegetables would exude their own moisture.  One thing I notice with recipes like this is that the home cook will add pasta to the pot; all well and good, but remember that pasta is like a sponge and will absorb all excess liquids.  I wanted a nice thick sauce with this meal, not anything watery, or so firm a fork would stand up straight in it.

Here's the recipe...

BBQ Beef Stew

Ingredients:

2 ½ lbs beef cubes; trimmed of fat and cut into 1 inch pieces

¼ cup flour
1 ½ cups chopped red onion
½ cup diced green bell pepper
1 cup red kidney beans
2 cups chopped tomatoes
1 (19 oz) bottle bbq sauce (hickory brown sugar)

Preparation:

Spray a 4 quart crock pot with nonstick cooking spray; set on low heat.  Spread beef cubes on bottom and sprinkle flour over all.  Spread other ingredients out in layers: onions, bell pepper, beans and tomatoes.  Pour bbq sauce on top; cover and cook for 8 hours.

Makes 8 servings.

Mary Cokenour

BBQ Beef Stew with Elbow Macaroni



BBQ Beef Stew with Mashed Potatoes
 

Smoky Brisket...Hoisin Style.

If you're a fan of this food blog, you know many of my recipes come from simple experimentation. Well Saturday I was craving a fresh made burger for dinner, but while in the local market I noticed that beef brisket was on sale. Fresh brisket, a lovely red color to the meat, just a 1/4 inch fat cap on top; so I picked up a two pounder. Once home though, I had to figure out what I wanted to do with it.  Too small for the smoker; too pretty to cut up for use in a recipe; what to do was a good question.

The answer came while I was gathering up ingredients to make my burger for dinner.   I saw the bottle of Hoisin sauce (yes, I keep a bottle on hand) on the refrigerator door shelf.  Hmmm, a smoky sauce with a multitude of flavors on a pretty cut of brisket; and the brain kicked in with an idea.  Haven't had good fried rice in awhile either, so I knew that would be my side dish; now I just had to wait till the next day.

I spent Sunday going through tons of photos for my travel blog, "The Southwest Through Wide Brown Eyes", and knew full well it would work me up to an "I want meat!!!" appetite.  During one of my stretching breaks from the computer, the numbers on the clock let me know it was time to prep the brisket.  Oh, you might ask, once you read the recipe, why the vinegar massage?  Brisket is a tougher cut of meat than say, eye round or top round; the vinegar will help to tenderize.  Two hours later though, time to put on the oven and get this cooking show on the road.  The final result was a tender, smoky, so full of flavor brisket; and the fried rice was all that much better by adding a little Hoisin sauce to it during its cooking process.  Got the photos I needed for my travel blog posts this week; got one heck of an intense dinner in the deal; overall good day!

Hoisin Beef (Brisket)

Ingredients:

2 lb beef brisket, trimmed of fat

3 Tbsp rice wine vinegar (or white vinegar)
½ tsp ground ginger
1 tsp white pepper
1 tsp salt
1 cup Hoisin sauce
1 Tbsp minced garlic
2 Tbsp diced red onion

Preparation:

Two hours before roasting the brisket; rub the vinegar over all sides of the meat, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate. 

 

Preheat oven to 325F; line roasting pan with aluminum foil.  Score top and bottom of meat with diagonal cuts, creating one inch diamond marks.  Mix together the ginger, white pepper and salt; rub on both sides of meat.  Place meat in pan and roast for 15 minutes. 

 

Mix together sauce, garlic and onion; turn meat over in pan, baste top and sides of meat with sauce mixture making sure to get sauce into score marks.  Return to oven for 30 minutes; turn over meat, baste and roast for another 30 minutes for medium-rare.  For medium; repeat turn and baste process, roast for 30 minutes more.  For medium-well; repeat turn and baste process, roast for 30 minutes more.

 

Remove meat to cutting board; rest for 5 minutes before slicing; spoon sauce from roasting pan over meat.  Serve with fried rice; when making rice, add one teaspoon of Hoisin sauce for every three servings to boost the flavor.

Makes 6 servings.

 

Mary Cokenour

Doesn't Matter What Language You Speak, it's Still Stew.

Every now and then I pull out "Best of Slavic Cooking" and "Croatian Cookbook", both by Alojzije and Ruzica Kapetanovic, to learn more about the cuisine of my heritage. Unfortunately my maternal grandmother took ill when I was very young, so I did not have many years afforded to me to learn from her. On this adventure, I looked up chicken recipes and found three, "Chicken Perket", "Croatian Chicken Stew" and "Chicken in White Wine Sauce" that looked simple to make. No, I didn't make all three fore as I read along I noticed that they were very, very similar in nature; perhaps one or two ingredients differed, but that was about it. I did the next best thing, I combined them all together and came up with my own version; but the next question was, "What do I name it?" I looked up the meaning of "Perket" first off and found out it can be spelt and pronounced differently in many languages, "perkelt", "porkolt", "palca, "paprikas", but it all meant the same thing, "STEW"!!!

So there you have the origin of my "Chicken Perket" also known as "Croatian Chicken Stew"; the American version; and here comes the final recipe.  Instead of simmering away in a skillet though, I prepared it in my slow cooker using the high setting; only took four hours.  Initially I used too much liquid and the sauce ended up being a bit on the thin side; but it was still good on pasta.  I also pureed too many of the vegetables, so very little was left to bite into.  I've made the changes to my own recipe to take these facts into account.  By the way, I asked a friend to sample it and she enjoyed it so much, she left none for her husband to try.  Now that's a taste tester I can appreciate!

Now I have to worry over just one more item; that my relations in Croatia read the recipe, try it out, and give their approval.  Fingers crossed!

Chicken Perket

(Croatian Chicken Stew)

Ingredients:

12 large plum tomatoes, chopped
1 large red onion, chopped
1 large green bell pepper, seeded and julienned
½ cup flour, divided in half
2 Tbsp minced garlic, divided in half
4 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts, sliced in half lengthwise
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1 tsp ground black pepper
1 Tbsp paprika
½ cup chicken stock
½ cup white wine
1 and ½ lbs angel hair pasta

Preparation:

Set a 6 quart crock pot on high; spray inside with nonstick cooking spray.

Begin layering ingredients inside – tomatoes, onion, bell pepper, ¼ cup flour sprinkled evenly over all, 1 tablespoon garlic.  Place in the chicken breast pieces and spread the remaining ¼ cup of flour over them.  Add the mushrooms, remaining garlic; then evenly sprinkle over the black pepper and paprika.  Pour the stock and white wine over the top.

Cover and cook for 3 and ½ hours; remove chicken and 1/4 of the vegetables.  Use a stand or immersion blender to puree the remaining vegetables, and thicken the liquid.  Return the chicken and reserved vegetables to the pot; cover and cook for another half hour before serving.   Also during that last half hour, prepare the pasta to desired tenderness; place a serving into bowl and top with sauce, chicken and some vegetables.

Makes 8 servings.

Mary Cokenour

The Mein Idea.

Growing up, if we were in the mood for Chinese food, my mother would open up those blue cans of La Choy Chicken Chow Mein; heat the ingredients and top with the crispy "chow mein" noodles. I didn't like it; mushy and hardly any chicken, but living in a strictly Italian/Croatian neighborhood didn't give easy access to Chinese take out. As I grew older, finding a Chinese take out place or restaurant became easier as neighborhoods changed and developed; but I had a phobia about chow mein and refused to order it. Once, someone I was dining with ordered chow mein; it looked just like the canned stuff I abhorred, but served over white rice and no crispy noodles topping it. Yes, I was a bit nauseated by the sight, so made sure to keep my eyes on my own plate of chicken and broccoli; so much better by the way.

As I moved around and found different places to dine, I became more and more educated on Asian cuisine.  Thai, Japanese, Chinese, or Vietnamese became my first choice whenever asked, but my vote always lost out to American or Italian.  I purchased my first Wok back in 1982 and practiced making recipes as often as possible; I became pretty adept at stir frying.  Chow Mein though still remained my foe.  Moving to Utah, ingredients for Asian dishes, and good Asian restaurants, became almost impossible to find; my mother sent me "care packages" filled to the brim with packets of noodles, spices and bottles of sauces.  A favorite dish was Lo Mein which I posted on this blog a little over a year ago; and I'm reposting due to the nature of this current writing.

Seafood Lo Mein
 

Lo Mein

Ingredients:

1 lb lo mein noodles (thin or flat)

4 Tbsp peanut oil, divided in half
½ cup each thinly sliced bell peppers and onion
¼ cup green onion, cut at an angle
1 ½ cups bite sized pieces chicken, pork, beef, shrimp, scallops, crabmeat (or any combination)
1 cup stock (chicken, beef or vegetable depending on protein used)
6 Tbsp oyster sauce
6 Tbsp dark soy sauce
4 tsp cornstarch
2 tsp sesame oil
1 Tbsp each minced ginger and garlic
½ tsp ground white pepper
1 cup straw mushrooms
1 cup bean sprouts

Preparation:

Cook lo mein noodles according to package directions; set aside, but keep warm.

In a large Wok or skillet, heat 2 Tbsp peanut oil; add bell peppers, onion and green onion; sauté till softened.  Remove and set aside.  Add remaining 2 Tbsp peanut oil; sauté protein for 2 minutes before adding 2 Tbsp each of oyster and soy sauces; cook another minute, remove and set aside.

In same Wok or skillet, mix together 4 Tbsp each oyster and soy sauces, cornstarch, sesame oil, ginger, garlic and white pepper.  Bring to a boil and let cook 2 minutes to thicken; add back sautéed vegetables and cooked protein; add mushrooms, sprouts and lo mein noodles.  Mix together thoroughly and let cook together for 3 minutes; tossing frequently to coat and heat through.

Makes 6 servings.

Mary Cokenour

June 6, 2012


What about my Chow Mein phobia that I've been writing about?  Well one day I decided to be brave, order it and see if I could eat it without the gag reflex kicking in.  Surprise, surprise though; the place I was at served it an entirely different way than I'd ever seen before.  It was not mushy vegetables, microscopic shredded chicken swimming in sauce....there were noodles in it, the same type of noodles used in lo mein.  The waiter assured me that this was indeed Chow Mein, so you know I had to research it a bit and find out the why of it all.

Here's the gist of it, those crispy noodles that came with the LaChoy canned stuff were a substitute for real Chow Mein noodles.  Basically they are the same as those used for Lo Mein; however, after boiling them, they are then fried in oil into a solid mass; the remaining ingredients and sauces are cooked together and then poured over the fried noodles.  It's a texture thing really; soft lo mein noodles absorb the sauces more quickly; while fried chow mein noodles are simply coated, yet come apart easily to combine with the other ingredients.

Chicken Chow Mein
 

"Fear is the mind killer", is a classic line from the movie "Dune", and it is such a statement of truth.  In this instance, "Fear was the appetite killer"...key word "was".

Mary Cokenour

How to Prepare Spaghetti Squash.

Spaghetti squash is an oblong shaped (normally yellow in color, sometimes with an orange tint) winter squash which can be easily prepared.  After cutting the squash lengthwise, use a simple spoon to scoop out the seeds; the raw flesh is firm and the surprise comes after cooking.  This type of squash can be baked, boiled, microwaved or steamed; my personal favorite way is baking it in an oven.  I have tried the microwave way, but I believe the baking method gives the squash more flavor, especially if you allow the ends to brown slightly.  The squash in my photo is about seven inches long; what I would consider medium sized and gives up about four cups of cooked flesh.  Oh, when buying a spaghetti squash, be warned that it looks slightly like a honeydew melon, but the melon typically has a greenish tint to it, while the squash won't.


After cleaning the squash, preheat the oven to 375F; line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and place the squash cut side down.  Some folks say to rub oil on the rind, but it really doesn't do a thing for the flesh inside and the rind will soften with or without the oil.  Bake the squash for 40 - 50 minutes; the edges will begin to brown and the flesh can easily be removed with a fork.  Clean the squash while it is still hot; hold the rind side with a folded towel and lean the bottom against the edge of your bowl; with a downward scraping motion pull the strands of the flesh into the bowl.  See how it looks like spaghetti, and the texture is almost the same also; the taste however is different, it does taste like a vegetable.  You can easily use the strands in any dish you would use the pasta in; top with your favorite pasta sauce, make a frittata, or go completely vegetarian with your recipe.  Could you add a protein?  Why not!?!  Small meatballs, grilled and sliced sausages, crispy bacon; treat it like a pasta that just happens to have more vitamins and minerals than grains.

Mediterranean Spaghetti Squash

 

 

Ingredients:

 

4 Tbsp olive oil

1 and 1/2 cups sliced mushrooms

1 and 1/2 cups cup sliced zucchini

1 Tbsp minced garlic

1 and 1/2 cups diced tomatoes

3/4 chopped fresh parsley

4 cups cooked spaghetti squash

salt and ground black pepper to taste

Option: grated Parmesan cheese on top

 

 

 

 

Preparation:

 

 

 

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat; saute' the mushrooms, zucchini and garlic together until the mushrooms soften and begin to brown.  Keep stirring to keep the garlic from burning.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Add the tomatoes, mix and let them cook down for about five minutes, so the excess liquid can evaporate.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Add the parsley, but only cook for one minute to allow it to wilt a little.  If you want it to look more dramatic though, instead of chopping the parsley leaves; leave them whole.  Add the spaghetti squash and toss well to make sure it gets a good coating of the vegetables and parsley.  Add salt and pepper to taste; depending on how vegetarian you want this dish, you might want to sprinkle a little grated Parmesan cheese over the top of each serving.

 

 Makes 4 servings.

 

I served this to both my husband and his mother; neither had ever had spaghetti squash before, nor knew what it was.  They ended up splitting the four servings up between them.  Good thing I keep a jar of peanut butter in the house; made myself a sandwich for lunch while they chowed down on the squash.  Oh well, at least I know they enjoyed it...a lot!

 

Mary Cokenour

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



Hunan in Cortez is Worth the Try.

Hunan Chinese Restaurant

2561 East Main Street
Cortez, Colorado, 81321

(970)
565-0919
Fax: (970) 565-0266

Website: N/A



Having been told about Hunan and the buffet by friends, we decided to try it out; unfortunately what we did not know is that the buffet is only served at lunch time.  Arriving around 5pm, we found ourselves to be the only diners in the restaurant; the staff were seated at a back booth talking, but seated us as soon as we got their attention.  After that, service was very attentive; making sure our water glasses were filled and that we were happy with the dishes we had ordered.

We ordered two appetizers, Egg Rolls and Dumplings (choice of fried or steamed); these are made fresh every morning in house. The wrappers on the egg rolls was lightly fried and crispy; it was loaded with shredded cabbage, so much so, that it was difficult to bite apart, so it all came out of the wrapper in a chunk. I used a fork to break it into smaller pieces to dip in my mixture of sweet/sour sauce and hot mustard. The dumplings were not pan fried like other Chinese restaurants usually do; they were deep fried which made the wrappers hard and too crunchy.


Before the appetizers were served, we were given a bowl of Egg Drop Soup; it was amazingly delicious.  Thicker than usual, with little bits of carrot and so satisfying.  Next time we go back, I'll fore go the appetizers and just enjoy the soup.




We also ordered two main dishes; Combination Rice Noodles and Happy Family.  The Combination Rice Noodles did not have any sauce on it which allowed the freshness of the noodles, vegetables, pork, beef, shrimp and chicken to sing out loud.  A slight sprinkling of soy sauce enhanced this dish more; but it was delicious with or without the sauce.  If you think about comfort food, this is it Chinese style.



Happy Family made us both very happy indeed; the brown sauce was out of this world in flavor; the vegetables were crisp; the BBQ pork slices, beef, chicken and shrimp were all cooked perfectly.  This is one of those dishes that, no matter how full you feel, you still want to keep on eating it.  It was served with white rice which we used to make sure we sopped up every bit of sauce.


Overall, the appetizers were a fail, but the soup and main dishes made up for it in spades.  In the mood for Chinese food and in the Cortez, Colorado area; Hunan Chinese Restaurant is a must try.

Mary Cokenour

Pantele's Desert Deli is an Oasis of Freshness.

Pantele's Desert Deli

98 East Center Street
Moab, Utah, 84532

(435) 259-0200
Fax: (435) 259-0050

Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Panteles-Desert-Deli/260445626649

Several times I have tried to have a meal at Pantele's Desert Deli, but they've always been closed early; I have finally found out the secret why. The menu items are so good, they're sold out in mere hours; better get in there between 11am to 2pm; or place an order via phone or fax, otherwise you're out of luck.

The interior of Pantele's is simple; counter for ordering and simple tables and chairs for dining at.  The staff, however, make it special by being very friendly and welcoming; Mary is all smiles and very cheery; owner Bella is vibrant, and passionate about her food and the business itself.  Bella owns the business with her husband, Eric; but she is the tidal wave force behind it all.

Arriving at 2:30pm, there was a "Sorry, We're Closed" sign on the window and I thought we'd missed our chance to try Pantele's again.  However, there were diners inside, so I decided to try anyway; good thing I did!  Yes, they were sold out of most items, but ingredients for a Gyro were still available; yelling out to my hubby in the car, we both ordered the Gyro with a side of potato salad. 

After getting our drinks, it did not take long for our order to come to our table.  The potato salad was to die for!!!  Chunks of tender, real potatoes in a creamy, seasoned mixture of mayonnaise, salt, paprika....and I couldn't get Bella to give me her secret recipe.  I was so enjoying the potato salad, I almost forgot about the Gyro.  Again...to die for!!!  The meat is cut into sections instead of long strips, and grilled to sizzling goodness.  The tomatoes, onions and herbs are so fresh, and the Tzatziki sauce was amazing; not a drop went to waste.  My hubby inhaled his meal; I had to keep swatting his hand away as he kept reaching for mine.

Perusing the menu as we ate, we saw many items we wanted to try out at another time.  For convenience, boxed lunches are available which is great for all the hikers and adventurers we get in the area.  Bella explained that Pantele's only creates about 20 servings of the menu items per day to keep the freshness scale at 100%.  Instead of buying cheaper ingredients in bulk, these smaller amounts of servings ensures freshness and high quality.  Impressive nowadays when fast food and frozen ingredients seem to be becoming the standard in too many eateries.

So here is the gist of Pantele's Desert Deli; get there or order early; owner and staff are friendly and let you know they want and appreciate their customers; the food is made daily with fresh, high quality ingredients.  It's a win situation!!!  Unfortunately, now that you know about Pantele's, it's going to be even harder to get a meal there in the future.

Mary Cokenour