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What are you making for dinner tonite?

What are you making for dinner tonite?
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  • Post #2611 - May 23rd, 2023, 6:49 pm
    Post #2611 - May 23rd, 2023, 6:49 pm Post #2611 - May 23rd, 2023, 6:49 pm
    Kung Pao Chicken
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    Image
    If you aren't tasting, you aren't cooking.
  • Post #2612 - May 24th, 2023, 6:51 pm
    Post #2612 - May 24th, 2023, 6:51 pm Post #2612 - May 24th, 2023, 6:51 pm
    I normally don't cook boneless/skinless chicken thighs on the grill because unless I'm willing to spend some extra time with them, they tend to fully cook before they develop any exterior texture. But tonight I went the other way. Oiled them liberally, seasoned them up heavy and then tended them mindfully while they grilled. Before that, though, working through some aging veg . . .

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    Veg Mise En Place & Masakage AS Koishi Gyuto, 210mm
    Evoo, shio koji, zucchini, salt, mini tomatoes, yellow onion, red bell & poblano peppers, chopped garlic, black pepper and white wine. Hot and fast saute in a couple of phases, doing my best to caramelize the wine and the liquid koji as they hit the pan . . .

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    Sauteed Veg

    Next up, the chicken . . .

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    Grilling
    As I mentioned above, I went direct on these to start. Once they were well marked (turn, turn, turn), I moved them over to the indirect side, covered the grill and let them finish.

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    Plated Up
    With leftover/reheated brown basmati rice and some spicy-sweet cucumber salad.

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2613 - May 26th, 2023, 12:44 am
    Post #2613 - May 26th, 2023, 12:44 am Post #2613 - May 26th, 2023, 12:44 am
    This has been a really weird shopping week. I drop into the Fry's (Kroger) store near the university and they have dozens of boneless "football" hams, regularly $4.99/ lb for $0.99/lb. It is the same ham that they sell in the deli for $8.99/lb. In that store which services a university area that is largely students and couples is always marking down roasts and whole hams.

    Then I hear to another Fry's store near the two reservations in Tucson and meet up with one of my friends who works in the store. He takes me back to what he has marked down. He has marked down a Home Chef Carne Asada Street tacos kit that is enough for six tacos. The normal price is $15.95, marked down to $4.20, which is less than what I could buy the meat for. So we had street tacos last night and they were easy to assemble and were pretty decent.

    The store is located in one of the poorest zip codes in the Tucson area and they are charging $2.65/taco when the local Mexican grocery charges $1.50/taco freshly made from scratch, fresh off the grill. Some of the prices these days just do not make a lot of sense. It is the kind of things that happen in major grocery stores when decisions are made 1800 miles away.
  • Post #2614 - June 1st, 2023, 6:06 pm
    Post #2614 - June 1st, 2023, 6:06 pm Post #2614 - June 1st, 2023, 6:06 pm
    Finally cooking an actual meal again after nearly a week away from the kitchen. Mapo tofu was calling my name . . .

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    Mise En Place & Takeda Classic Kiritsuke, 240mm
    Avocado oil, soy sauce, halved/seeded dried heaven-facing chiles, pixian doubanjiang, fermented black beans, ground pork, granulated sugar, toasted/ground Sichuan peppercorns, soft tofu, 4x gelatinous pork stock (eventually added, with some water, to create 'broth'), minced garlic, leeks and corn starch (later slurried).

    Used the dried chiles only for infusing the oil, so they went in first and came out after about a minute. Got caught between the end of one pack of pixian doubanjiang and the start of another. Different brands. Hence, the two-tone!

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    Plated Up
    Steamed/chilled asparagus w/3-vinegar vinaigrette (5-year Chinese black, balsamic, Greek table) and jasmine rice.

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2615 - June 4th, 2023, 6:30 pm
    Post #2615 - June 4th, 2023, 6:30 pm Post #2615 - June 4th, 2023, 6:30 pm
    Proof of concept? Or maybe not. Either way, BBQ purists, please look away! :lol: Was curious to see what the result would be if I smoked a brisket flat for a couple of hours, then wrapped it, brought it up to temperature in a 275F oven and then finished it over some live coals . . .

    Started out with a modest flat, just south of 7 pounds . . .

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    Seasoned
    60/40 dalmatian rub. Since I knew I'd ultimately be cooking this for doneness in the oven, I just went with a small fire; half a chimney of lump charcoal and a few quarter logs of apple wood. While some cooking was going to be fine, the goal here was primarily flavor the meat with smoke, so no need for a larger fire. Once the coals were dumped and the logs had burnt down, I moved the seasoned flat onto the cooker. From there, I closed the dampers almost all the way and let the flat smoke, low & slow, for about 3 hours, adding a couple of splits about 2 hours in.

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    ~2-Hour Mark
    Looking pretty good, I guess. I honestly wasn't sure at this point. My wood was dry, so even with the dampers/vents mostly closed, the fire burned hotter and faster than I'd anticipated. I wasn't unhappy to see something that might later resemble bark, even though I hadn't expected it. This is when I added a couple more apple wood splits to the fire box (now open) and once they fully combusted, I closed it up in order to keep the smoke lightly wisping.

    While the brisket was smoking, there was plenty of time to make a quick pickle. Even with a flat, we're talking about a pretty heavy, fatty hunk of beef, so I thought a Thai-style ajaad would be a good pairing . . .

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    Mise En Place & Takeda Classic Kiritsuke, 240mm
    Granulated sugar, salt, Persian cucumbers, shallots, Thai birds eye chile (just one) and rice vinegar. I resisted the urge to add more heat, since the purpose of this pickle it to provide a light, cooling counterpoint to the fatty brisket.

    After about 3 hours on the smoker, I removed the brisket and drizzled it with a mixture of a few tablespoons of bbq mop (apple juice, cranberry juice, white vinegar, yellow mustard), a blob of gochujang and a quick squeeze of ketchup. From there, I wrapped it up tightly in foil, stuck a temperature probe in the thickest part of the flat and put it in a 275F oven. Target internal temperature: 203F, which it reached in about 2:40. From there, I fired up the grill and let the brisket rest while that was happening. Once the grill was ready to go, I touched up the seasoning and threw the brisket on the indirect side, covered, for about 15 minutes . . .

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    Grilling
    At this point, it smelled great and it felt pretty good to the touch but I still didn't know the outcome and the suspense was killing me.

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    Plated Up
    With a blob of the weekly slaw and some leftover/reheated veg medley. Once I sliced into it, I realized -- and you can see it clearly -- there was something more there than just flat -- some bonus point, as well. :)

    Also made a 'bbq' sauce from the de-fatted, reduced drippings that collected in the foil during the bake (along with a few other pantry items) but the meat was so good, we never even reached for it. It was nicely smoky, tender without being mushy, moist and unctuous. And there was even some very nice bark. Considering it was a relatively lean piece of Choice from Costco, the result was especially good. So, concept proven. Was it as good as a 100% smoked brisket? Well, definitely not as good as some I've had but absolutely better than some others. I'd like to try it again soon, next time with a whole, packer cut. Yeah, it's 3 separate cooks (oven, smoker, grill) but I also managed to compress the timeline from 12+ hours to about 7.5, so it was well worth it. And not that it's much more than cosmetic but I even got a nice smoke ring! :)

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2616 - June 5th, 2023, 6:25 pm
    Post #2616 - June 5th, 2023, 6:25 pm Post #2616 - June 5th, 2023, 6:25 pm
    Winner, winner, chicken dinner! Back to one with an easy-breezy after work quickie . . .

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    Grilling
    Charcoal-grilled chicken thighs.

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    Plated Up
    With grilled asparagus (went on after the thighs), a blob of the weekly slaw and some leftover/reheated tadka dal.

    Happy Monday! :)

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2617 - June 6th, 2023, 6:42 pm
    Post #2617 - June 6th, 2023, 6:42 pm Post #2617 - June 6th, 2023, 6:42 pm
    SausageFest!

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    Mise En Place & Sukenari HAP40 Gyuto, 210mm
    Salt, chopped garlic, green bell pepper, red bell pepper, yellow onion, black pepper, dried oregano, 'grill' sausages, white wine, evoo and white vinegar.

    Just our standard accompaniment prep, which I saute hot and fast on the stove top. Meanwhile, after being scored, the 'grill' sausages and a coil of hot Italian sausage, from Minelli's in Niles, found their place on the grill . . .

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    Grilling
    These all spent some time directly over the coals and indirect, too.

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    Plated Up
    With pickled cucumber salad (from brisket night) and some homemade sambal. The edible flowers, from our friend's farm, really dress up the plate. :)

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2618 - June 8th, 2023, 6:56 am
    Post #2618 - June 8th, 2023, 6:56 am Post #2618 - June 8th, 2023, 6:56 am
    I had a yellow mango in the fridge approaching its due date, and got inspired for a Thai pizza.
    Step 1: Grill
    * Two chicken tenderloins
    * 1/2 Red bell pepper opened flat (grilled the whole thing, saved half for another use)
    * 1 Jalapeno, halved (disappointingly lacking all heat)
    * About 1/4 of a red onion, sliced thick
    Salt and pepper and oil on everything, grilled direct to get a bit of char on it all.
    Cut everything into 1/4-1/2" pieces

    Step 2: Sauce
    Peel mango, cut flesh from seed and cube, dump into stick blender jar
    Juice of 1/2 lime
    1 Tbs nam prik pao (could have used a smidge more)
    2 Tbs coconut cream
    1.5 tsp fish sauce
    1/2 tsp each cumin, tumeric
    Puree with stick blender

    Step 3: Assemble
    2 small Boboli crust
    Top each with half the sauce, chicken, onions, peppers, sprinkle with crushed red pepper (probably would skip the latter if I'd used a little more nam prik pao or the jalapenos had any strength)
    Sprinkle grated mozzarella lightly over the whole thing (maybe 1/2C each?)
    Reheat grill, when hot set it for indirect. Cook until crusts are browned well and cheese is melted.

    Step 4: Garnish
    1/2C peanuts, chopped
    1/2C cilantro, chopped
    Greens from 2-3 scallions, sliced thin
    4 tiny red shishito peppers, chopped fine (the pot I kept indoors over the winter produced fruit 1/2-3/4" long, many turned red -- they had a fair amount of bright flavor and heat, but mainly here for color)

    Serves 2 hungry people
    What is patriotism, but the love of good things we ate in our childhood?
    -- Lin Yutang
  • Post #2619 - June 10th, 2023, 7:16 pm
    Post #2619 - June 10th, 2023, 7:16 pm Post #2619 - June 10th, 2023, 7:16 pm
    I've been going out quite a bit lately (and it's ranged from excellent to 'why did I bother?') but no matter how the restaurant meals are, it always feels great to be back in the kitchen. You either cook to forget or you cook to remember, right? Had a nice flank from Zier's and decided to give it a Thai-style treatment . . .

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    Marinade Mise En Place & Sukenari HAP40 Gyuto, 210mm
    Thai birds eye chiles, palm sugar, fish sauce, gochugaru, lemongrass, microplaned garlic, lime juice and lime zest.

    Mixed all of this -- along with a squeeze of veg oil -- to create a marinade. The palm sugar was rock hard but a few minutes in the freshly squeezed lime juice remedied that. Lemongrass had seen better days but ironically, as it was fading out in the fridge, it actually become more fragrant, so I didn't hesitate to use it (after peeling away a few of the outer leaves, which were pretty dark). All of this, along with the steak, into a zipper bag and then into the fridge overnight, flipping it over occasionally.

    Also wanted to throw in a side dish, so prepped a veg stir-fry . . .

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    Cauliflower Mise En Place & Kurosaki Senko SG2 Gyuto, 240mm
    Avocado oil, fish sauce, soy sauce, minced garlic, carrot (leftover from something), sake, green jalapeno, spicy ssamjang, scallion bottoms, cauliflower and scallion tops. Just winging it in the wok . . .

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    Stir-Fried Veg
    This one turned out really nice. Gotta remember this combo in the future.

    Meanwhile, it was grill time for the marinated flank steak . . .

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    Grilling
    Marked over the coals for about 4 minutes and finished indirect/covered for about 7 more.

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    Plated Up
    With some brown basmati rice and some week-old ajaad, which seems to be peaking just about now.

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2620 - June 11th, 2023, 5:54 pm
    Post #2620 - June 11th, 2023, 5:54 pm Post #2620 - June 11th, 2023, 5:54 pm
    Mainly a leftovers/garden maintenance day but did manage to cook up a nice pot of beans to accompany it all . . .

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    Rancho Gordo/Xoxoc Project Rebosero Beans
    These showed up in a recent Bean Club shipment. I'd definitely never cooked this variety before.

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    Mise En Place & Kurosaki Senko SG2 Gyuto, 240mm
    Red spring onions, chopped garlic, slitted fresno/jalapeno/serrano & bay leaves, 4x gelatinous pork stock, evoo, leftover 'grill' sausage, black pepper, salt and the star of the show, overnight-soaked rebosero beans.

    More often than not, I go meatless on my beans but this time I decided to used some pork stock and figured that as long as I was, I might as well throw in some leftover sausage.

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    Plated Up
    With leftover/reheated short-smoked brisket, ajaad, a blob of the weekly slaw and some toasted/buttered everything bialy bread.

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2621 - June 12th, 2023, 8:39 am
    Post #2621 - June 12th, 2023, 8:39 am Post #2621 - June 12th, 2023, 8:39 am
    ronnie_suburban wrote:This one, red curry chicken, was a ~weekly staple for us during the height of the pandemic. It was one of the very first "Oh, I can actually make this at home" dishes for me and it quickly became a favorite. And I made it a LOT. And while my family would never complain, there came a time after which whenever I announced I was going to make it, their faces said what they were too nice to verbalize. But it's been months since I made it last and when I suggested it for one of our dinners this week, the notion was met with genuine enthusiasm. I guess absence actually does make the heart grow fonder . . . :D

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    Mise En Place & Mise En Place & Sukenari HAP40 Gyuto, 210mm
    Avocado oil, zucchini, kaffir lime leaves and Thai bird eye chiles, Thai basil, Mae Ploy red curry paste (freezer stock), chicken thigh meat, Maesri red curry paste, shallots, 4x gelatinous barnyard stock, sliced cremini mushrooms, gapi, shimeji mushrooms, coconut milk bamboo shoots, fish sauce and Bangkok Blend spice mix.

    Other than being subject to current veg inventory, the only material change in this version from my usual M.O. was to use a couple of different curry pastes. I really like the Maesri and that's what I usually use. But in a recent youtube video by Pailin, she really liked the Mae Ploy. I had some in the freezer, so I decided to use some of it, along with the Maesri. I liked the result. The Maesri comes in small cans that can be stored dry (until they're opened), which is ultra-convenient. And there's very little waste, if any. The Mae Ploy comes in a larger bag in plastic tub. Once opened, there's quite a bit leftover and it needs to be chilled or frozen to prevent deterioration. But I can see keeping a bag of it the freezer without it being too burdensome . . .

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    Plated Up
    With some leftover/reheated brown basmati rice and some cool, yogurt-based, Persian cucumber salad, which went surprisingly well with the spicy, pungent curry.

    =R=

    Well Ronnie, you had me at 'Mise en Place', but now I am drooling over your finished dinner! Were there any leftovers? Asking for a friend...
    "A party without cake is really just a meeting" ~ Julia Child
    "There are only four great arts: music, painting, sculpture, and ornamental pastry." ~ Julia Child
    "Build a Longer Table, NOT a Wall..."
  • Post #2622 - June 12th, 2023, 5:57 pm
    Post #2622 - June 12th, 2023, 5:57 pm Post #2622 - June 12th, 2023, 5:57 pm
    kalamazoogal wrote:Well Ronnie, you had me at 'Mise en Place', but now I am drooling over your finished dinner! Were there any leftovers? Asking for a friend...

    Hehe, thanks. There are almost always some leftovers, as I generally try to cook enough to take some to work for lunch . . . though, I'd be even happier to share them! :D

    Tonight, kicking off the week by teeing up another round of Pad Ka Prao . . .

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    Mise En Place & Konosuke HD2 Petty, 120mm
    Coarsely ground pork, garlic cloves, Thai birds eye chiles, red spring onions, carrot, asparagus, avocado oil, sweet soy sauce, oyster sauce, Thai basil leaves, fish sauce, soy sauce and Golden Mountain.

    Went off-script here in a variety of ways. First, since I had quite a bit of them on hand, I subbed in red spring onions for the shallots that I usually use. Since they're milder, I added some extra. Also worked in some asparagus (in lieu of the green beans I normally include) and yet another partial carrot that I just couldn't wait to get rid of. Actually, I like adding the carrot, which I've done in the past, because it brings some sweetness (more interesting than adding palm sugar) and a bit of texture, too. Once everything was prepped, it was time to mash up the garlic, chiles and spring onions in the mortar . . .

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    Mortar
    When I remember, I always add a pinch of salt to help abrade it all into a coarse paste.

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    Plated Up
    With a frizzled egg and some leftover/reheated brown basmati rice. I really liked the asparagus addition. Not sure I'd go out of my way to include it in the future but it brought something a little extra to the dish. If I have it on hand, I wouldn't hesitate to go that route again.

    Happy Monday! :)

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2623 - June 13th, 2023, 6:02 pm
    Post #2623 - June 13th, 2023, 6:02 pm Post #2623 - June 13th, 2023, 6:02 pm
    Just winging it with some u8-12 shrimp that I planned on grilling (a plan I hoped the weather wouldn't derail). Started with a marinade . . .

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    Marinade In Waiting
    Rice vinegar, microplaned garlic, lime juice, dark-roasted sesame oil, avocado oil, gochujang, shoyu, red pepper sauce, shrimp and Chinese cooking wine. Used very little of either acid here and only marinated the shrimp for about 60 minutes. Meanwhile, I prepped some green beans for side-dishery . . .

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    Green Bean Mise En Place & Yahiko Ginsan Nashiji Hand Engraved Gyuto, 210mm
    Shoyu, salt, sliced garlic, rice vinegar, green beans, gochugaru, red spring onions (the end of, yay!), dark-roasted sesame oil, avocado oil and black pepper. Doubled down on a few of the marinade ingredients, mainly to keep everything semi-aligned. Stir-fried these in the wok. Here, used the sesame oil only to finish.

    Back to those shrimp . . .

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    Grilling
    The rain never let up (fine -- we really need it). In fact, it got heavier but I raised the patio umbrella, which protected the fire and the food. I got a bit wet but I'm not sweet enough to melt in it. Happily, even cooking them in a couple of batches, the shrimp didn't take very long. As long as I was already getting rained on, I took the time to baste them with some of the leftover marinade while they grilled.

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    Plated Up
    With stir-fried green beans and leftover/reheated brown basmati rice.

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2624 - June 15th, 2023, 6:25 pm
    Post #2624 - June 15th, 2023, 6:25 pm Post #2624 - June 15th, 2023, 6:25 pm
    Back at the grill. Dry and cool tonight, and flatiron from Zier's on the menu . . .

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    Grilling
    Lightly oiled and seasoned (s, p and a dash of rub), this was cooked direct for a couple of minutes and finished covered/indirect for a few more. Next up, some veg . . .

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    Asparagus
    While the steak rested, it was the perfect interval to cook the asparagus.

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    Flatiron & Shiro Kamo SG2 Damascus Sujihiki, 270mm
    Once rested, it was time to slice the flatiron. This has been my slicer of choice lately. I recently tuned it up on the stones and it's just been sensational since then.

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    Plated Up
    With some leftover/reheated Rebosero beans.

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2625 - June 16th, 2023, 4:59 pm
    Post #2625 - June 16th, 2023, 4:59 pm Post #2625 - June 16th, 2023, 4:59 pm
    Bucatini all’ AmatricianaImage
    If you aren't tasting, you aren't cooking.
  • Post #2626 - June 16th, 2023, 5:15 pm
    Post #2626 - June 16th, 2023, 5:15 pm Post #2626 - June 16th, 2023, 5:15 pm
    It's that time of year again when the vegetables start telling you what to do (or at least piling up). So, veggie fritters . . .

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    Mise En Place & Yahiko Ginsan Nashiji Hand Engraved Gyuto, 210mm
    Scallions, bubbly water, box-grated carrot, salt, confetti'd green cabbage, egg, box-grated zucchini, microplaned garlic, jalapeno, asparagus, AP Flour/baking powder, potato starch and black pepper.

    Last last time I cooked these, I made a note to include no eggs next time, in an effort make them more crispy. I wussed out because using no eggs seemed too damned radical, lol. So, I used only 1 egg (instead of 2) in the hopes it would make some difference in the final texture. In the end, they were pretty darned crispy but I really couldn't remember how crispy they were last time, so I'm not sure how much difference it really made (if any). :lol: As for the rest of it, I just plopped everything in a bowl -- including the one egg -- mixed it all up and then added/eyeballed the bubbly water until it reached the desired consistency. From there, shallow/pan fry in peanut oil . . .

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    Veggie Fritters
    Made a sauce of sour cream, home-ground horseradish, home-fermented sambal and some dijon mustard. Garnished with a shower of chives.

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2627 - June 16th, 2023, 5:44 pm
    Post #2627 - June 16th, 2023, 5:44 pm Post #2627 - June 16th, 2023, 5:44 pm
    Evil Ronnie wrote:Bucatini all’ AmatricianaImage


    That looks SOOOO good (everything you post does, but most look beyond my replication capabilities :)!!)
    "Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit; wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad." Miles Kington
  • Post #2628 - June 17th, 2023, 10:44 am
    Post #2628 - June 17th, 2023, 10:44 am Post #2628 - June 17th, 2023, 10:44 am
    Don’t underestimate yourself, Jen. I’ve seen your stuff…
    If you aren't tasting, you aren't cooking.
  • Post #2629 - June 17th, 2023, 3:48 pm
    Post #2629 - June 17th, 2023, 3:48 pm Post #2629 - June 17th, 2023, 3:48 pm
    Thought I had the day off but friends asked us to bring a Thai-friendly veg side to their house tonight. Happily, I'd just picked up some Persian cucumbers at the store yesterday. The rest, I tend to keep on hand at all times . . .

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    Mise En Place & Yahiko Ginsan Nashiji Hand Engraved Gyuto, 210mm
    Fish sauce, Thai birds eye chiles, shallots, Persian cucumbers, microplaned garlic, limes and palm sugar.

    Let that rock hard palm sugar soften up in the lime juice and then assembled the dressing, starting with equal parts of sugared lime juice and fish sauce. From there added everything else, tasted it and adjusted things a bit. After that, poured it over the sliced cucumbers, let it all sit for about an hour and adjusted one last time before I got it ready for the road . . .

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    Thai-Inspired Cucumber Salad
    Turned out pretty good and just about how one would expect -- tart, funky and mildly salty, with a touch of sweet and a touch of heat. We'll throw some plastic wrap over this before we head out with it later.

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2630 - June 18th, 2023, 7:04 pm
    Post #2630 - June 18th, 2023, 7:04 pm Post #2630 - June 18th, 2023, 7:04 pm
    Tonight, a quickie, use-up-some-stuff, stove-top dinner . . .

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    Mise En Place & Yahiko Ginsan Nashiji Hand Engraved Gyuto, 210mm
    Yellows onions, chopped garlic, scallions, baby squash, 4x gelatinous pork stock, sliced mini tomatoes, boneless/skinless chicken thighs (seasoned with my bbq rub), evoo, white wine, black pepper and salt.

    Pretty standard assembly here. Pan-seared the seasoned thighs in evoo, then removed them from the pan. After that, lifted the fond with the onions and built the veg medley from there; tossing in the squash last and letting it all simmer until it was soft. After that, to the platter and then serve . . .

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    Pan Seared Chicken Thighs & Veg Medley

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    Plated Up
    With some 'leave-behind' cucumber salad, a leftover/reheated veggie fritter and a slice of toasted/buttered multi-grain bread from Loaf Lounge.

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2631 - June 20th, 2023, 6:06 pm
    Post #2631 - June 20th, 2023, 6:06 pm Post #2631 - June 20th, 2023, 6:06 pm
    Taco Tuesday? Seriously? Why not? :D (especially since I had some nice, leftover tortillas from Pollo Vagabundo) . . .

    Also had some 3-day-old ground beef (80/20 chuck) that was beginning to go two-tone and decided to put it into play in taco form. Just winging it here, so I patched together a recipe from a few sources, taking into account what I happened to have on hand . . .

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    Mise En Place & Konosuke Tetsujin Blue #2 Gyuto, 210mm
    Avocado oil, salt, minced onion, tomato paste, black pepper, cumin seed, minced garlic, ancho chile powder, Mexican oregano, cayenne pepper, ground beef, beef bouillon, mini tomatoes and 4x gelatinous pork stock.

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    Plated Up
    With leftover/reheated Rebosero beans.

    Happy (taco) Tuesday! ;)

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2632 - June 21st, 2023, 6:29 pm
    Post #2632 - June 21st, 2023, 6:29 pm Post #2632 - June 21st, 2023, 6:29 pm
    For us, another mid-week grill + leftovers night . . .

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    Pork Shoulder Chops
    Here they are finishing up on the indirect side of the grill, where they cooked covered.

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    Plated Up
    With leftover/reheated stir-fried squash & cauliflower, cucumber salad and some toasted/buttered giardiniera bread from Loaf Lounge.

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2633 - June 23rd, 2023, 3:37 pm
    Post #2633 - June 23rd, 2023, 3:37 pm Post #2633 - June 23rd, 2023, 3:37 pm
    Taco Tuesday earlier in the week nudged me to branch out a bit. Had some cremini mushrooms on hand and realized that I could give them essentially the same treatment as I'd given the ground beef. Then, that kind of reminded me of Irazu and that really nice vegetarian burrito they do, which I usually order with mushrooms and rice. In no way was I trying to replicate that -- what I ended up making was neither meatless nor vegetarian -- but it certainly did inspire me . . .

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    Mushroom Mise En Place & Ogata SG2 Kasumi Gyuto, 210mm
    Avocado oil, cumin seed, salt, black pepper, minced garlic, cremini mushrooms, 4x gelatinous pork stock, granulated garlic, Spotted Cow, Mexican oregano, granulated onion, ancho chile powder and cayenne pepper.

    Thinking about my burrito, I definitely wanted to include rice, so I made make a batch of cilantro-lime rice using some brown basmati that I cooked in the rice cooker . . .

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    Rice Mise En Place
    Confetti'd cilantro, lime zest, lime juice and cooked brown basmati rice. Mixed the add-ons, to taste, into the cooked rice here.

    To round out the burrito fillings, I also re-fried and mashed up the end of a batch of Rebosero beans in a touch of bacon fat, reheated some leftover taco meat, grated some aged cheddar, sprinkled out some cotija and sliced up some avocado. Next, it was time for assembly . . .

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    Assembly Mise
    All the fixins: repurposed/re-fried Rebosero beans, aged white cheddar, leftover/reheated taco meat, avocado, ground cotija, cilatro-lime brown basmati rice and flour tortilla.

    From here, a fill and roll, then into a hot, lightly oiled pan for a few minutes to color them up and melt the cheese. After that, slice and serve . . .

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    Plated Up
    With some leftover restaurant salsa. Only issue I ran into was that my tortillas had some age on them. So, even warmed up before rolling, they were a bit brittle, especially on the ends. Other than that, this worked out really well.

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2634 - June 24th, 2023, 8:54 am
    Post #2634 - June 24th, 2023, 8:54 am Post #2634 - June 24th, 2023, 8:54 am
    Whitefish and fancy carrots.

    click to enlarge
    Image

    Whitefish, count me a Fan!
    Hold my beer . . .

    Low & Slow
  • Post #2635 - June 24th, 2023, 6:55 pm
    Post #2635 - June 24th, 2023, 6:55 pm Post #2635 - June 24th, 2023, 6:55 pm
    With what appears to be a bumper crop of garlic in our garden this year, the scapes are coming in fast and furious. Figured that a good way to use some of them would be to make chimichurri-type sauce . . .

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    Mise En Place & Ogata SG2 Kasumi Gyuto, 210mm
    Parsley, garlic, Chinese celery leaves, red chile flakes, red wine vinegar, garlic scapes, fresh oregano, cumin, black pepper and salt.

    Used the food processor, separately, on the parsley and the scapes (nice, sharp blade there so, no puree), then did the rest, including the mix, by hand. Seasoned it up, let it sit for a few hours, touching it up along the way . . .

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    Garlic Scape Chimichurri, Resting

    Got some kohlrabi from my 'CSA' farmer (will use it in a few days) but the still-intact greens were in great shape, so I decided to shelve my plan to make broccoli tonight and instead, made the greens . . .

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    Kohlrabi Greens Mise En Place & Ogata SG2 Kasumi Gyuto, 210mm
    White vinegar + granulated sugar (=gastrique), fresh shallots, salt, kohlrabi greens, smashed garlic, bacon fat, red chile flakes and black pepper.

    The chimichurri was just about tasty enough to eat on its own but I figured it'd be better on a piece of grilled meat. Zier's had a very special grass-fed, pasture-raised antibiotic-free beef from a ranch in northern Ohio (Flying K). Raised so skillfully, carefully and patiently, that it still graded out at prime. That kind of marbling is uncommon in 100% grass-fed beef. Several cuts were available. Mainly because I think tomahawk steaks are stupid, I picked up a bone-in sirloin . . .

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    Bone-In Sirloin, Grilling
    SOP here. Lightly oiled and seasoned, them marked on the direct side and finished, covered, on the indirect side.

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    Plated Up
    With some leftover/reheated cilantro-lime rice. In the end and somewhat ironically, this glorious steak didn't really 'need' the chimichurri. It was plenty flavorful on its own -- with a very complex and almost floral finish -- so I used the chimichurri pretty sparingly. It'll go into the fridge, topped with a bit of evoo that will, hopefully, help keep it optimal for a few more days. And yeah, I see that bug hole in the kohlrabi greens. If it's good enough for them, it's good enough for me! :D

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2636 - June 25th, 2023, 5:30 pm
    Post #2636 - June 25th, 2023, 5:30 pm Post #2636 - June 25th, 2023, 5:30 pm
    This being the 5th year in a row we've made these, I guess it's become an annual, end-of-June tradition around here to stuff and tempura-fry some squash blossoms. When we were CSA subscribers, this is the time of year around which we'd usually receive the blossoms with our weekly delivery. This year, without a subscription, we ordered them directly from the farm's website . . .

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    Mise En Place & Hitohira TD Blue #2 (Stainless Clad) Kurouchi Gyuto, 210mm
    Everything but the oil: AP flour, fine sea salt, baking soda, boursin, eggs, squash blossoms, fresh herb row: chives, basil, oregano & parsley, Spotted Cow, ricotta cheese and potato starch.

    Used equal parts of flour and starch in the batter, along with some salt and some baking soda. Added the beer, along with a few ice cubes, until the consistency seemed just about right. Eggs were strictly for the filling. Using soft cheeses for the filling, I've found that adding egg helps keep it all intact during the frying, as does popping the filled units into the freezer for a few moments before battering and frying. And if the oil isn't hot enough (350F), it'll run. Last and maybe most importantly, always be sure to pore over the blossoms carefully before filling them. We found several little critters in there, some of them still wiggling! :lol:

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    Plated Up
    Intended to make a sauce but it never happened. 8-)

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2637 - June 25th, 2023, 8:20 pm
    Post #2637 - June 25th, 2023, 8:20 pm Post #2637 - June 25th, 2023, 8:20 pm
    ronnie_suburban wrote:This being the 5th year in a row we've made these, I guess it's become an annual, end-of-June tradition around here to stuff and tempura-fry some squash blossoms. When we were CSA subscribers, this is the time of year around which we'd usually receive the blossoms with our weekly delivery. This year, without a subscription, we ordered them directly from the farm's website . . .

    Image
    Mise En Place & Hitohira TD Blue #2 (Stainless Clad) Kurouchi Gyuto, 210mm
    Everything but the oil: AP flour, fine sea salt, baking soda, boursin, eggs, squash blossoms, fresh herb row: chives, basil, oregano & parsley, Spotted Cow, ricotta cheese and potato starch.

    Used equal parts of flour and starch in the batter, along with some salt and some baking soda. Added the beer, along with a few ice cubes, until the consistency seemed just about right. Eggs were strictly for the filling. Using soft cheeses for the filling, I've found that adding egg helps keep it all intact during the frying, as does popping the filled units into the freezer for a few moments before battering and frying. And if the oil isn't hot enough (350F), it'll run. Last and maybe most importantly, always be sure to pore over the blossoms carefully before filling them. We found several little critters in there, some of them still wiggling! :lol:

    Image
    Plated Up
    Intended to make a sauce but it never happened. 8-)

    =R=


    Rao’s.

    Those look gorgeous by the way!
    "Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit; wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad." Miles Kington
  • Post #2638 - June 26th, 2023, 6:22 pm
    Post #2638 - June 26th, 2023, 6:22 pm Post #2638 - June 26th, 2023, 6:22 pm
    boudreaulicious wrote:
    ronnie_suburban wrote:Intended to make a sauce but it never happened. 8-)

    Rao’s.

    Those look gorgeous by the way!

    D'oh! Of course . . . and thanks.

    Tonight, after work, it was 'back to one' with grilled chicken thighs . . .

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    Grilling
    Used a combo of a couple of different homemade rubs -- one particularly paprika-forward -- on these. Cooked about 30 minutes, covered/indirect.

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    Plated Up
    With some Korean-inspired, spicy-sweet glazed/broiled eggplant and some leftover/reheated kohlrabi greens.

    Happy Monday! :)

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2639 - June 27th, 2023, 6:46 pm
    Post #2639 - June 27th, 2023, 6:46 pm Post #2639 - June 27th, 2023, 6:46 pm
    I love them baby squashes and I love them sausages, too!

    Image
    Baby Squash Mise En Place & Hitohira TD Blue #2 Kurouchi Gyuto, 210mm
    Evoo, salt, baby squashes/scallion bottoms, white wine, garlic and black pepper. Didn't have much of a plan here. Seared the babies in evoo, then added the scallions and garlic. Once they browned, I splashed in some wine, covered it, reduced the heat and let it steam. When the squash were tender, I removed the cover, blasted the heat and tried to add a bit more color to them . . .

    Image
    Baby Squashes

    Next up, grill time . . .

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    SausageFest!
    Cevaps and kielbasa.

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    Plated Up
    With home-fermented sambal and some leftover Thai-inspired cucumber salad (now gone!).

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2640 - July 3rd, 2023, 3:11 pm
    Post #2640 - July 3rd, 2023, 3:11 pm Post #2640 - July 3rd, 2023, 3:11 pm
    Haven't been making many meals over the past few days (been living mainly on leftovers and restaurant food) because was I gearing up for a family/holiday get-together we hosted yesterday. Made a couple of appetizers . . .

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    Pimento Cheese Mise En Place & Hitohira TD Blue #2 Kurouchi Gyuto, 210mm
    Mayo, pimentos, jalapenos, microplaned garlic, sharp white cheddar and worcestershire sauce. Love this minimalist recipe that Pigmon & Trixie-Pea shared with me. It's a real crowd pleaser.

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    Pimento Cheese & Ritz Crackers
    There's a raging debate in our house when it comes to pimento cheese: Ritz or Townhouse. Last time, I diffused it by baking some fresh bread (for Masters-style sandwiches). This time Ritz won out. :lol:

    Time for a little guacamole . . .

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    Mise En Place & Hitohira TD Blue #2 Kurouchi Gyuto, 210mm
    Red onions, dried/ground/seeded arbol chiles & salt, homegrown cilantro, avocados, mini tomatoes, lime and salt.

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    Guacamole
    As it turned out, way too much arbol. Those babies from Rancho Gordo were potent. I only used 4 but that resulted in an usually spicy guacamole. A few of us liked it but it wasn't as big a mover as I'd hoped for.

    There was also one very special appetizer that I didn't make but was fortunate enough to receive as a gift . . .

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    Country Ham
    I don't know what I did to be worthy of such a gift but my chum Justin sent this ham -- that he cured himself -- to me a few months ago. It was at 22 months when I received it and is now at about 28 months. Here, you see it after 4 days of soaking (changing the water every ~12 hours) and some very mild brushing to clean it up. It was in beautiful condition and needed very little work. Rich, deeply flavorful and funky as all get out. Just a glorious piece of legmeat.

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    Ham, Stand & Takeda Classic Sujihiki/Yanagi, 310mm
    If this looks like the worst slicing job you've ever seen, you'd be right about that. I did my best but being a rookie, even with some very nice tools, this was a challenge. When I went high, I slipped off the ham. When I went low, I sliced too thick. I nailed a few slices but it's clear how much sawing I was doing here. There's a lot more left, so I'll continue to practice and give packs of this amazing ham away to friends and family. Gotta' pay it forward, for sure.

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    Justin's Country Ham
    We ended up snarfing this down on some fresh biscuits that one of our guests was nice enough to bake . . .

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    Plated Up
    Coupla' little sandwiches and a blob of the holiday-weekend slaw.

    Also made a few sides . . .

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    Kale Mise En Place & Hitohira TD Blue #2 Kurouchi Gyuto, 210mm
    Black pepper, salt, smoked pork hock, evoo, winterbore & redbore kale leaves/stems, smashed garlic cloves, shallots, red chile flakes, granulated sugar and white vinegar (=gastrique).

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    Kale & Ham Hock
    These turned out really well but still,I didn't like them nearly as much as the kohlrabi greens I made earlier in the week.

    How about some pasta salad?

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    Pasta Salad Mise En Place, Global Cheese Knife & Hitohira TD Blue #2 Kurouchi Gyuto, 210mm
    Fusilli, parmigiano reggiano, blanched carrot, red pimentos, salted/drained Persian cucumber, castelvetrano olives, mini tomatoes, blanched peas, homegrown basil leaves (wanted to wait until the last possible minute to mince them up), microplaned garlic, trio of feta cheeses, fresh oregano, balsamic vinegar, red wine vinegar, evoo, dried oregano and black pepper. Not pictured -- and really key to the whole thing -- is some dijon mustard, which I used to emulsify the vinaigrette that was made with the evoo and the vinegars.

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    Pasta Salad
    I like this method a lot (thanks, Chef John) -- the cooked pasta is drained and immediately tossed in about half the vinaigrette. Stir it every few minutes and once it's no longer warm, add the remaining vinaigrette and the rest of the ingredients.

    Beans, anyone?

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    Rancho Gordo Pinto Beans

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    Mise En Place & Hitohira TD Blue #2 Kurouchi Gyuto, 210mm
    Evoo, yellow onion, slitted jalapenos/fresnos & bay leaves, overnight-soaked pinto beans, chopped garlic, carrot, celery, salt and black pepper.

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    "Baked" Beans
    Don't tell anyone but I actually cooked them on the stove top. 8-)

    There was more and annoyingly, the rain never let up until it was time to grill the mains. Once the weather cleared, I took to the deck. Doing my best to get it all ready at roughly the same time, I fired up a couple of charcoal grills. First, was some chicken thighs on my 27" kettle . . .

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    Chicken Thighs Grilling
    Less is more. Just went with salt, pepper, granulated garlic & onion and dried oregano. These cooked for about 30 minutes, covered/indirect the whole way.

    While the chicken was cooking on Grill #1, I went over to Grill #2 to cook a few rounds of skirt steaks . . .

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    Skirt Steaks Grilling
    These cooked direct, very briefly. I think there were 3 or 4 rounds, so I built a pretty big fire to make it all the way through.

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    Charcoal-Grilled Skirt Steaks
    Once the final round of steaks was off (and resting) and the fire was fading, I got the final meat of the day on the grill . . .

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    Hot Dogs Grilling
    Kayam natural casing beef & pork dogs. Of course, I love Vienna Beef dogs but every once in a while, it's nice to change it up.

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    Charcoal-Grilled Hot Dogs
    Waiting for bunnage and condimentation.

    Once the dogs were done, it was time to pull the thighs . . .

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    Charcoal-Grilled Chicken Thighs

    Other than the plate of mini ham sandwiches shown above, I never did get a picture of any of my other multiple plates (or cocktails!). ;) 8-)

    Hoping everyone has a great holiday! :)

    =R=
    Same planet, different world

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