Wednesday, January 29, 2014

Korean BBQ Beef
















Ingredients-
3LB Beef Short Ribs cut off bone and butterflied

Marinade-
1/2 Cup Water
1 Cup Low Sodium Soy  Sauce
1/4 Cup White or Red Wine( my wife only had white)
2 TBL Sesame Oil
1/2 Cup Brown Sugar
1/2 Cup Minced Green Onion (Scallions)
6 Cloves Garlic Sliced Thin
2 tsp Ginger 1/4in. or smaller Dice
1 tsp Black Pepper
1/4 Cup Grated Pineapple (you can also use 1 small apple grated with skin, 1/2 pear grated with skin or 1/2 kiwi skined and grated, pineapples were on sale!)




















Directions-
1. Add all ingedients for the marinade into a medium pot.
2. Over med.-high heat bring to a boil and let reduce 7-10 min.
3. Cut the meat off the bones and butterfly the beef *Link to how to butterfly a short rib*. For more surface area for the marinade.
4. Let marinade cool. Then add beef, marinate for 4-6 hours or overnight.
5. Fire up the grill baby! On low-med. heat grill beef 5-6 min. per side.
6. While beef is on the grill put marinde into med. sauce pan and bring to a boil, reduce for 5 min.
7. Strain marinde for extra sauce.
8. Once beef is cooked to your liking (I go medium rare) plate and add as little or as much sauce as you like(I added a ton) and enjoy.








Friday, January 24, 2014

Sweet and Spicy BLT with Avocado





















Ingredients-
1LB Thick Cut Bacon
1 Cup Brown Sugar
1/4 Cup Black Pepper( Black Pepper is the worlds most traded spice)
2 TBL to 1/4 Cup Crushed Red Pepper (Depending on how much heat you like)
1 Head Lettuce
1 Tomato
1 Avocado
1 Fresh Loaf French Bread

Directions-
1. Mix Brown Sugar, Black Pepper and Crushed Red Pepper in small bowl.
2. Place parchment paper on sheet tray, place bacon on tray overlap bacon by 1/8 inch.
3. Evenly spread Brown Sugar mix over bacon.
4. Bake at 350 degrees 8-10 min. rotate tray cook for 3-5min. or until bacon is cooked.
5. While bacon is cooking, cut Tomato, Lettuce, avocado and bread.(add mayo or what ever you like)
6. Once Bacon is cooked add 4-5 pieces(or 9 like a guy at work did) to sandwich and enjoy.

Monday, January 20, 2014

Braised Italian Pork Loin
















Ingredients:
2 Tbl Olive Oil
3 Garlic Cloves
1 large Onion
3 Carrots
3 Sticks Celery
1 Can 6oz. Tomato Paste
1 14oz. Diced Tomatoes
3lb. Pork Loin
1 Bottle White Wine (I used a Pinot Grigio)
Chicken Stock (store bought or make your own)

Spices:
Use as much or as little it's up to your taste buds
 1 1/2 Tbl Sage
1 1/2 Tbl Thyme
Salt and Pepper to taste
Fresh Italian Parsley(or Cilantro)

 Directions:
1. Add olive oil to a large pot. Sear pork loin on all sides then let rest.
2. Cut onion, celery, carrots 1/4 to 1/2 inch dice.
3. Using the same pot and oil. Saute onion, celery, carrots and garlic until onion is translucent 6-7 min.
4. Add tomato paste and spices, stir until well mixed, cook until paste starts to darken.
5. Add wine(I used half of the bottle my wife drank the rest), deglaze and reduce 7-10 min.
6. Add pork loin. Pour in chicken stock leave about 1/2inch of pork showing.
7. Cover and cook on med-high heat until pork reaches 135-140 degrees ( a little over an hour) let rest 10-15 min. before cutting.

Serving:
There are two ways of doing this.
The first way-
1. Cook rice. (season the water, a little olive oil and what ever spices you put into the sauce)
2. 1/2 inch dice on the pork.
3. Put rice into a bowl add pork. Put as little or as much sauce as you like.
4. Garnish with cut parsley or cilantro. See picture above.















The second way-
1. Cook rice. (season the water, a little olive oil and what ever spices you put into the sauce)
2. Strain sauce into a sauce pan.
 3. Bring sauce to a boil med-high heat.
4. Whisk 2 Tbl cornstarch with 1/4 cup water.
5. Add 1/2 of the cornstarch to sauce and whisk, Add all for a thick sauce less if you like a thin sauce.
6. Slice pork 1/2inch thick.
7. Place rice in the center of plate add three slices of pork put on as much or as little sauce as you like. 8. Garnish with cut parsley or cilantro.

First Post as a Food Blogger

Hello World, So this is my food blog(what the hell am I doing?) a little history on me. I'm currently a line cook at a very high end retirement community in Denver Colorado. I have been there for a year and a half before that I worked at a restaurant in downtown Denver. Wait this is not making much sense! OK... rewind a little more I got sober 1946 days ago(that translates into 5 years and four months) and realized that I hated my job. I have always loved to cook for my family and friends. With my wife pushing me to change careers and to do something new, I figured culinary school. Ok, I think that makes more sense so I have been cooking as a "pro" for almost two years. Now I want to jump into food blogging and as I type this my first post the pizza we ordered for dinner just showed up(true story…yet the conversation is that our fav pizza joint recently changed their recipe…boo!). Let's make this as interactive as possible please add comments/ questions,add pictures of your finished food or what you did different you can even make special requests. I will try to comment on yours as well, I will post your recipes as well. Now remember recipes are just guidelines not directions to the center of the universe, I hate when some recipe says to use this much of an ingredient and you can't taste it. I say add as much or as little of something so it is to your taste. After all you are the one who is eating it! I want to have fun with this besides it's only food if you don't like what you made you can always order pizza.